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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Silver Lining, by John Roussel
+
+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: The Silver Lining
+       A Guernsey Story
+
+Author: John Roussel
+
+Release Date: January 13, 2009 [EBook #27798]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SILVER LINING ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by StevenGibbs, KarenD, and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+
+
+
+
+THE SILVER LINING
+
+
+_A GUERNSEY STORY._
+
+
+  BY
+
+  JOHN ROUSSEL.
+
+
+  Guernsey:
+  FREDERICK BLONDEL GUERIN,
+  "THE SUN" OFFICE, HIGH STREET.
+
+  1894.
+
+
+
+
+INDEX.
+
+
+  CHAPTER    I.--THE RESULTS OF DISOBEDIENCE                       3
+            II.--A LITTLE GIRL'S CHANGE OF LIFE                   15
+           III.--THE BOARDING SCHOOL                              24
+            IV.--THE INFLUENCES OF A GOOD HOME                    33
+             V.--THE REWARD OF INORDINATE AMBITION                45
+            VI.--NEW ACQUAINTANCES                                54
+           VII.--AN ABRUPT DISMISSAL                              62
+          VIII.--AN UNPLEASANT VISIT                              72
+            IX.--DECEPTIONS                                       79
+             X.--'TWIXT LOVE AND DUTY                             84
+            XI.--BUSINESS                                         91
+           XII.--A STRANGE MEETING                                96
+          XIII.--SUPERSTITION                                    102
+           XIV.--FAILURE                                         107
+            XV.--DARK DAYS                                       115
+           XVI.--SHADOW AND SUNSHINE                             125
+          XVII.--THE EFFECTS OF A SERMON                         130
+         XVIII.--SUCCESS AFTER SUCCESS                           135
+           XIX.--TOM'S INTERVIEW WITH MRS. VIDOUX                143
+            XX.--TOM'S VISIT TO HIS UNCLE                        148
+           XXI.--THE ENCOUNTER                                   153
+          XXII.--FATHER AND DAUGHTER                             159
+         XXIII.--A SECRET CORRESPONDENCE                         163
+          XXIV.--MR. ROUGEANT GOES TO CHURCH                     169
+           XXV.--LOVE TRIUMPHS                                   173
+          XXVI.--WEDDED                                          183
+         XXVII.--RECONCILIATION                                  189
+        XXVIII.--A SAD END OF A MISPENT LIFE                     197
+          XXIX.--DOMESTIC HAPPINESS                              205
+
+
+
+
+THE SILVER LINING.
+
+A GUERNSEY STORY.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+
+THE RESULTS OF DISOBEDIENCE.
+
+
+One fine summer afternoon--it was the month of June--the sea was
+calm, the air was still, and the sun was warm.
+
+The mackerel boats from Cobo (a bay in the island of Guernsey) were
+setting sail; an old woman was detaching limpets from the rocks, and
+slowly, but steadily, filling up her basket. On the west side of the
+bay, two air-starved Londoners were sitting on the sand, basking in
+the sunshine, determined to return home, if not invigorated, at
+least bronzed by the sea air. On the east side, a few little boys
+were bathing. A middle-aged man, engaged in searching for sand-eels,
+completed the picture.
+
+A little boy, who might have been nine years of age, was standing in
+the road gazing upon this scene. The way in which he was clothed,
+betokened that he was not one of the lads that lived in the vicinity
+of that bay. He was dressed in a well-fitting knickerbocker suit,
+and his polished boots, his well combed hair, denoted that he was an
+object of especial care at home. He possessed a very intelligent
+air, a fine forehead, rather large eyes which were full of
+expression, and his frowning look, the way in which he stamped his
+little foot, denoted that he was of an impulsive temperament. This
+little fellow had some very good ideas. He had determined to be
+good, and unselfish; and he tried to learn as much as he possibly
+could. His mother had told him that later on this would help him in
+life.
+
+Once, an inquisitive pedlar, noticing his intelligence, and his
+garrulous disposition, asked him jokingly if he ever intended to
+marry. Upon which Frank Mathers (this was the boy's name) assumed a
+serious air, and giving his head a little toss he answered, "I do
+not know yet, there are so many beautiful little girls everywhere,
+one does not know which one to choose."
+
+A physiognomist might easily have seen that in this little boy's
+soul a struggle was going on. "Shall I go?" he was saying to
+himself; "shall I go and amuse myself?" His conscience had a great
+power over him; but the beautiful sea was tempting, each wave as it
+fell produced a sound which was sweeter to his ears than the
+sweetest music.
+
+"Your mother has forbidden you to go;" said his conscience; "you
+must obey her."
+
+He continued to remain undecided between pleasure and duty, the
+strife going on meanwhile within him. All at once, he espied on his
+extreme left four small boys about his size, who were coming out of
+the water. How they laughed; how joyful they seemed to be; how they
+made the water splash and foam around them. Frank immediately began
+to run at full speed towards them, and covered the space of sand
+which separated him from the little boys in two minutes. He arrived
+breathless near the group of children who were dressing themselves.
+He looked at them, and was asking himself if he must go nearer to
+them, when one of the group looked at him with a surly air. Little
+Frank translated this into: "What business have you here?" and
+retreated.
+
+He began to examine the man who was looking for sand-eels. The
+fisherman was digging in the gravel with a spade, and now and then a
+few of the little fishes were dislodged from their hiding place.
+They wriggled in such a lively fashion that Frank was greatly
+amused, and forgot, for a time, all about his first desire of a run
+in the sea.
+
+He laughed aloud when he saw a big sand-eel, bigger than any which
+the man had yet captured--for he took the trouble to go and see in
+his basket--escape into the water and swim out of the man's reach.
+
+The fisherman was evidently annoyed at having lost this fine
+specimen, and when he saw this little fellow laughing, and standing
+quite close to his basket, he grew angry, and in a rough tone of
+voice, speaking in Guernsey French, he exclaimed: "Begone, you
+impudent little rascal."
+
+Now, little Frank did not know French, and consequently did not
+understand a single word of what this man said, but he hastily
+retreated. "He must have uttered something terrible," he said to
+himself; "what an ugly face. Why is this man vexed with me? I have
+done nothing to grieve him; only bent over his basket and laughed
+when I saw that fish escape; but why did not the man laugh also? It
+was so amusing."
+
+He looked round to see whether he could discover any of those little
+boys who had attracted his attention when he was in the road, but
+none of them were visible. There were a few persons here and there,
+but no one was near him. He made sure of this by directing his eyes
+successively in the direction of every point of the compass. The
+"sand-eel man" was still busy, but he was far enough. Frank hastened
+behind a small rock and began to undress. As he did so, he
+experienced a series of queer sensations. He was tasting pleasure at
+the expense of his conscience, and, struggle as he would, he felt
+unhappy. It was the first time that he thus openly disregarded his
+mother's commands, and it cost him something to do so.
+
+It did not take him long to divest himself of his clothing. He was
+soon in the water, dancing and romping. The water around him
+resembled that of Lodore.
+
+He now felt happy, having forgotten all about his mother and the
+errand which she had sent him to accomplish.
+
+The water was warm; the little green crabs that walked sideways
+passing quite close to him, amused him considerably. He passed a
+portion of his time chasing them. Then he waded farther into the
+water till it came up to his hips. Ah, this was pleasure indeed! He
+would not have exchanged his place for a suite of rooms in
+Buckingham Palace.
+
+He had been in the water for about a quarter of an hour. He glanced
+round to see if the fisherman was to be seen. No trace of him now.
+
+"He has gone home," he thought. He began to feel cold. "I must go
+and dress," he said to himself, "or I shall catch cold, and then
+mamma will know that I have been bathing."
+
+Frank proceeded towards the place where he had placed his clothes,
+but as he approached the shore, he found that the water seemed to be
+getting warmer. This discovery was the cause of his staying five
+minutes longer in the water than he would otherwise have done.
+
+Then he again betook himself towards _terra firma_. "Hullo,
+what's this?" And he held up a boot. "How strange, it looks exactly
+like mine," he muttered. Then a thought--a flash shot through his
+brain, immediately followed by a pang through his heart. The
+thought--"where are my clothes?"--the pang--the result of his
+disappointing glance towards the place in which he had placed them.
+He was out of the water in the twinkling of an eye. The boot which
+he had found was in his hand. Where were his trousers? where was his
+coat? There was his shirt being knocked about by the waves! He
+rushed upon it, threw it on the gravel near his boot, and began
+tremblingly to search for his other garments. He at last succeeded
+in bringing together the following collection: One pair of trousers,
+one stocking, one boot, one shirt. That was all.
+
+He was now shivering from head to foot, his teeth chattered in his
+mouth, his whole appearance was one of utter wretchedness. He did
+not cry; he was too miserable; he only kept muttering: "I will never
+disobey mamma any more; I will never do it, never, never."
+
+He looked round to ascertain that no one was looking at him. What
+was his vexation to discover the man with the sand-eels eyeing him,
+a repulsive grin covering his whole face, and a small black pipe
+stuck between his teeth.
+
+This sight, instead of discouraging Frank, made him assume an air of
+bravado. He took his shirt, wrung out the water, shook it and
+proceeded to put it on. How cold it was; how it stuck to his little
+body. It only made him shiver the more. He put his stocking on the
+left foot; then he put on his trousers, and lastly, his boot. This
+boot he put on the right foot so that his feet were both hidden from
+view. Then with a heavy and repentant heart--what person is not
+repentant when he sees himself in some nasty scrape caused by his
+own sinfulness?--he directed his irregular steps towards his home. A
+curious sight to gaze upon was this little fellow as he wearily
+plodded on his way.
+
+He had not advanced twenty yards when he took off his boot and put
+it on the other foot. He could not endure the pain that it caused
+him. He had not been accustomed to go without stockings, he had
+never tried the experiment before, and he wondered why his feet were
+so tender. He rose and began to walk once more. It was an unequal
+walk, like that of a person with a short leg. He stopped again. Some
+gravel had found its way into his boot, and the torture which it
+caused him was unendurable. He carefully withdrew all the
+pain-inflicting pebbles, brushed off the gravel that adhered to his
+stocking, and resumed his laborious task of walking. When he came
+into the road, the people which he met laughed at him. "Ah; what
+nasty people there are in these places," he thought. He fancied he
+was being punished. He had hoped to have had a lot of fun. He would
+have returned home, invented some pretext for having been longer
+than usual; and now, what a wretched plight he was in. Why was he
+not punished in another way? this was too severe, he had never
+sinned at that amount, he was receiving extra payment.
+
+Thus soliloquized our little man when he arrived near a farm-house
+called "Les Pins." He heard a pig squeak, and hastened along as fast
+as his naked and now sore foot would allow him.
+
+There, in the farmyard, was a sight which he had never before
+witnessed. One man, a butcher, was pulling on a rope which was tied
+around a porker's snout. Three other men were forcibly pushing the
+animal along. They made but little progress however, for master
+piggy placed his feet so firmly on the ground that it required all
+the efforts of the four men to make him move.
+
+At last he was with difficulty brought near the scaffold; the altar
+upon which he was to be sacrificed to supply the voracious appetites
+of man.
+
+He was forcibly lifted upon the wooden bench and firmly held down.
+Then the butcher twisted the piece of rope around his hand and the
+pig's snout, and unsheathing a sharp knife, he plunged it in the
+animal's throat. The porker's life-blood gushed out in a red stream.
+Frank fairly danced with joy. He forgot all his troubles while
+witnessing those of the pig. The latter tried to shake himself free.
+He filled the air with protestations against the treatment to which
+he was being subjected, he invoked his gods, but all in vain. Firmly
+held down by the four men he soon ceased to struggle and lay quite
+still.
+
+"It does not seem to me," Frank heard one of the men remark, "that
+he has given a very violent shake before dying, as porkers
+generally do." "Oh, he is dead enough," said the butcher, "fetch the
+water and let us make haste." The men obeyed the order which was
+given rather peremptorily and the half drunk butcher followed them,
+so did a lad of fourteen years (the heir to the estate), who,
+according to a Guernsey custom, had been holding the pig's tail.
+
+Frank was just considering whether he would go nearer to the animal
+when the latter gave a jump. In a moment piggy got down and galloped
+in an awkward fashion straight in the direction of Frank, who
+uttered a cry of terror and ran away as fast as his legs would carry
+him. He forgot all about his exposed foot, and received a few nasty
+bruises and cuts against the sharp stones that were placed in the
+road for macadamizing purposes.
+
+He cast an anxious glance behind him to see if the porker was
+following him, for he had now no other idea but that the pig was
+being sent to complete the punishment which he thought had been
+dealt out to him for his disobedience. But the porker was not to be
+seen. He had fallen dead after having run a few yards. When Frank
+came higher up the road, he proceeded to examine his foot. It hurt
+him considerably. He tied his handkerchief around it and resumed his
+walk. Seeing a great gap in the hedge he looked through it and saw
+that the men were plunging the porker in a great tub full of
+steaming water. Then followed a scraping with ormer shells, and, in
+a few minutes, the black pig was divested of his hairy coat. His
+skin was white and smooth, like those which Frank had seen at the
+meat market.
+
+Not caring to see more, and feeling very cold, he resumed his
+journey homewards. He was so excited with what he had witnessed,
+that he did not think so much about his wretched condition as he
+would otherwise have done, and when he arrived in front of his
+father's house, at the Rohais, he was almost cheerful.
+
+But he suddenly stopped short. "If I go inside with this countenance
+on, mamma will punish me severely," he thought.
+
+He therefore called to his aid all the hypocrisy which his years
+were able to muster, and assumed a most miserable expression. But
+this was not enough to satisfy Frank's idea of the exigencies of the
+present situation. He doubled his fists, rubbed his eyes vigorously,
+and uttered a very plaintive and doleful cry.
+
+Thus prepared, he entered the house by the back door, keeping a
+sharp look out through the corner of his eyes for his mother. She
+was not in the kitchen; he opened the door of the parlour; his eyes
+reddened and moistened by the friction to which they were being
+subjected, while his cries were heart-rending. Mrs. Mathers was not
+in the parlour. He stopped his sham crying, sat himself on a chair
+and listened eagerly for the sound of approaching footsteps; ready
+to recommence his little game as soon as his mother entered the
+house.
+
+No sound of approaching footsteps were however heard. Frank Mathers
+was now quite chilled, although the weather was very warm. His
+excitement had abated and he was feeling down-hearted. There was no
+fire in the room. Frank fetched a large coat (his father's) and
+wrapped it around him. He was busily engaged in this operation when
+his mother suddenly appeared upon the scene.
+
+She wore slippers, which accounted for his not having heard her
+footsteps.
+
+"Well?" she said, wondering what her son was about, "what are you
+wrapping yourself up for?"
+
+Frank was taken by surprise. He looked up with a very confused air.
+His mother misinterpreted his look. "Don't be silly, child," she
+said, "have you carried that letter to Mr. Gavet."
+
+"Yes, mamma," mumbled the little fellow, "but----" and he unbuttoned
+his coat and exhibited his dilapidated state before the eyes of his
+astonished mother. "What _have_ you been doing?" she questioned
+anxiously. "My clothes were caught by the sea," he sobbed, and
+genuine tears flowed down his cheeks.
+
+Then he confessed everything to his mother; how he had been tempted
+to enjoy himself despite her orders; how he had watched a man who
+was catching sand-eels; and, finally, how his clothes had been
+washed away by the rising tide.
+
+When he had finished speaking, he raised his eyes to see what kind
+of look his mother wore. Perceiving a cloud of sadness hanging over
+her brow, he jumped up and exclaimed: "Oh, mamma, do not look at me
+so; I will never disobey you any more."
+
+The mother took the now repentant son upon her knees, and, after
+having shown him the consequences of disobedience; after having
+spoken to him of the pain which he caused her through showing a
+disposition to do wrong and of the sin which he committed, she
+instructed him tenderly, and made an impression on his soft heart,
+such as a mother alone knows how to make. Then she kissed her son.
+"You forgive me, then?" said the boy. "Yes, my dear, I forgive you."
+
+Frank Mathers was so impressed with his mother's love that he
+silently determined never again to grieve her. "Now let me change
+your clothes. You might catch a severe cold and perhaps be ill for
+weeks after this. Do you feel ill?"
+
+"No, mamma, I am cold, that is all."
+
+When Frank was eating his supper that evening, his heart was full of
+thankfulness. "What a good mother I have," he thought, "I will never
+do anything contrary to her orders any more." He suddenly stopped
+eating. The thought of the porker struck him and he called out
+gently: "Mamma."
+
+"What is it my dear?"
+
+"A dead pig came running after me."
+
+Mrs. Mathers looked somewhat anxiously at her son. Was his mind
+going out?
+
+"They had killed a pig at a farm, and when they were gone to fetch
+some water, the porker jumped down and came running after me," said
+the little boy.
+
+The slight shock which the mother had received, had sufficed to
+flush her cheek.
+
+There was something strange in that bright tint on her face, it
+glowed with a strange light. Her eye had a kind, but far away
+glance; an almost divine expression. It was full of tenderness and
+melancholy. She seemed to belong to some other world then; her whole
+soul seemed to shine in that sweet face. This was how she looked as
+she gazed upon her son that evening, while he was finishing his
+supper, seemingly not at all astonished at his mother's silence. He
+had grown accustomed to these moments of pensiveness on his mother's
+part. Of late, she often fell into a strange reverie, and little
+Frank was yet too young to understand these symptoms always followed
+by a short, hollow cough. His mother was attacked with phthisis.
+
+When he had finished his supper, Frank again turned towards his
+mother.
+
+"How can a dead pig run?" he asked.
+
+"The pig was not dead," said his mother; "now make haste and go to
+bed. I don't want to have to nurse you to-morrow."
+
+The little boy obeyed, muttering to himself: "The pig _was_ dead. I
+believe what I have seen. Mamma must have misunderstood me."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II.
+
+A LITTLE GIRL'S CHANGE OF LIFE.
+
+
+Miss Rader was a tall, stiff, sour-faced lady of four-and-fifty. She
+kept a school for young country ladies at a place called "Fardot,"
+in one of the parishes adjoining the Forest.
+
+Among the pupils who were unfortunate enough to fall under her harsh
+rule was a certain little girl whose name was Adèle Rougeant. She
+was the daughter of an avaricious farmer who lived at "Les Marches,"
+in the parish of the Forest.
+
+This little girl's mother had now been dead three years. Adèle was
+then only four years of age.
+
+"You will place our daughter at Miss Rader's school till she is
+seven years of age," were the instructions of Mrs. Rougeant to her
+husband on her death-bed.
+
+This was not all; Mr. Rougeant was solicited by his wife to place
+Adèle for ten years at a boarding-school in "the town," where she
+would receive an education such as pertained to her rank and
+fortune.
+
+Mr. Rougeant would gladly have sent his daughter to the parish
+school, till the age of fourteen. Afterwards, he would have had her
+taught to work. He would have had to pay only one penny a week at
+the parish school, whereas he now paid five pence. Soon, he would
+have to disburse from fifty to sixty pounds a year for Adèle's
+sake. "What extravagance," he muttered between his teeth. But he
+dared not go against his promises to his dying wife. Mr. Rougeant
+was superstitious. "If I fail to fulfil my promises to my dying
+wife, I shall most certainly see her ghost;" he said to himself. So
+he preferred to part with a portion of his income in exchange for a
+life unmolested by apparitions.
+
+It was the month of August of the same year in which the events
+narrated in the preceding chapter occurred. The pupils of Miss Rader
+were all assembled to receive the prizes which they were supposed to
+have won.
+
+The reward-books were handed to the pupils by an elderly lady--Mrs.
+Lebours. She was standing in front of the row of young girls,
+surrounded by half-a-dozen satellites of her own sex. Miss Rader was
+sitting near the group of "young ladies."
+
+Mrs. Lebours began: "First prize for French has been won by Adèle
+Rougeant, but the committee of ladies have decided that as she is
+about to pursue her studies elsewhere, she will not receive the
+prize. It will be given to the one next to her, who is going to
+remain under Miss Rader's excellent tuition."
+
+This little speech having been delivered by Mrs. Lebours, who
+meanwhile flourished the reward-book; Miss Rader approached Adèle,
+and tapping her unkindly on the shoulder, she whispered to her in a
+whistling tone, her snaky eyes expressing the kindliness of a tiger:
+"You see what you gain through wanting to leave my school; you lose
+a beautiful book."
+
+Adèle was not unhappy. On the contrary; she experienced an
+elevating, martyr-like sensation. She turned towards Miss Rader.
+
+"I have earned it?" she questioned.
+
+"Yes, but----."
+
+"I am satisfied," she said; then, quoting as near as she could a
+phrase which had attracted her attention in one of the rare books
+which she had cast her childish eyes upon, she added, "We do not go
+to school to obtain prizes, but to acquire knowledge."
+
+Miss Rader was seated in her former place when Adèle finished. Her
+upper lip was slightly curled up, she was gazing upon Adèle with a
+look of supreme contempt.
+
+The distribution of prizes was soon finished. The children were
+dismissed for the holidays and sent home. Adèle bore her little head
+up proudly. She had been wronged. She felt a thrill of pleasure as
+she entered her home at "Les Marches."
+
+In acting as they had done, the committee of ladies had placed
+themselves lower than her. She felt it, and prided herself upon
+being ever so much better than they were. When her father came in
+she called out to him: "I earned a prize, but they would not give it
+me as I was going to leave school."
+
+"Humph!" he said moodily, "I am afraid you over-estimate your
+intellectual capacities. Carry this letter to your uncle Tom at the
+'Prenoms.'"
+
+And he handed his daughter a scrap of paper.
+
+Adèle did immediately as she was bid, not daring to speak when she
+heard her father's gruff tone.
+
+The farm of the "Prenoms" was only half a mile distant from "Les
+Marches," and Adèle did the distance in ten minutes.
+
+She gave the letter to her uncle. "You will have to wait for a
+reply," he said.
+
+Her uncle was a man who never said more than was absolutely
+necessary.
+
+"Seat yourself; here is a chair for you," said her aunt.
+
+Adèle took the preferred chair, and her aunt began to question her.
+
+"So you are going to a boarding school," she said; and Adèle felt
+that there was something sarcastic in her tone.
+
+"Papa wants me to," she mumbled timidly.
+
+"Oh, it is not so much Alfred's wish," significantly said Mrs. Soher
+(Adèle's aunt), as she turned towards her step-mother who was seated
+on a "_jonquière_," engaged in mending a pair of stockings.
+
+Near her sat a young boy who looked a little older than Adèle. He
+was mischievously occupied in knotting the skein of thread which his
+grandmother was using.
+
+Adèle resented what she knew to be a slight cast upon her dead
+mother's memory, but she did not speak. Her aunt had always been
+hostile to her, she knew not why.
+
+Old Mrs. Soher raised her hoary head and remarked: "In my time,
+young girls like Adèle used to learn to read and write,--and work."
+
+Adèle felt very uncomfortable. She wished her uncle would make haste
+and write his reply; but he sat at his desk, passing his fingers
+through his hair; a method with which he was familiar when puzzled.
+Then he rose and cast a significant glance at his wife who followed
+him out of the room.
+
+The old woman espied her prankish grandson. She immediately broke
+out into a violent fit of scolding: too animated to be serious. "Ah!
+but what next, you wicked little rascal. Knotting my thread; but I'm
+sure. I have a mind to slap your face. Just look at what you have
+done. Why did you do it?"
+
+Tommy--the little boy--giggled. "I was tired of sitting here doing
+nothing," he answered impudently; "why don't you tell me a story."
+
+"Well, now, be a good boy; do you know where the bad boys will go?"
+
+"With the devil."
+
+"Quite right; now, you will be good."
+
+"Tell me a tale; you know, something about the old witches," said
+Tommy. "How do they make people ill?" he questioned pulling
+impatiently at his grandmother's shawl.
+
+"They give themselves to Satan," answered the grandmother.
+
+"How?"
+
+"They sign their name, writing it backwards with their own blood."
+
+Adèle shuddered; although she was a country girl, she had never
+heard anything of the sort before. She listened attentively.
+
+"You told me they were given books; did you not?" questioned the
+lad.
+
+"Yes they receive one or two infamous books, which they cannot
+destroy after they have taken them, neither can anyone else do away
+with these bad books. Yet, I remember quite well when there was one
+completely annihilated.
+
+"It was when one of my aunt's died. She was a terrible witch; alas,
+the chairs; and all the cups and saucers, bowls and plates on the
+dresser danced when they carried her body out of the house."
+
+Adèle laughed.
+
+Tommy looked at her. "Oh, it's true," he said, "you can laugh if you
+like--ain't it grand'ma?"
+
+Mrs. Soher went on: "When we cleaned out the house, we found one of
+those awful books. No one dared to open it, yet everyone knew by its
+funny covers, its queer print and its yellow paper, that it was one
+of the 'devil's own.' My sister, who, by the way, was not very
+superstitious took----"
+
+"Superlicious! what's that?" questioned the boy.
+
+"People who don't believe in all sorts," immediately explained
+grandmamma.
+
+"Now where was I? ah, my sister took the book and threw it into the
+fire but it did not burn!"
+
+"Oo-oo," ejaculated Tommy.
+
+Adèle began to be credulous. It must be borne in mind that she was
+only seven years old.
+
+Grand'ma proceeded: "She snatched it again from the fire and put it
+on the table. Now it happened that on that very day, my brother was
+going to seek for shell-fish at a place called _La Banque au
+Mouton_. He said that he would take the book and place it under a
+big stone; then, when the tide rose, it would be covered over, and,
+we all hoped, altogether destroyed.
+
+"He took it as he had promised to do (we were gone home to dinner
+then, for we did not care to eat in the house of a witch), and
+placed it, so he told us, under a big stone which he could hardly
+lift."
+
+"Ah, the Evil One was caught," remarked Tommy.
+
+"He is not caught so easily as all that," said his grandmother.
+"When we returned to our work, do you know what we saw?"
+
+"No!"
+
+"We beheld the book laid upon the table."
+
+Tommy opened his mouth wide enough as to be in danger of
+dislocation, then he closed it with an exclamation: "Ah-a!"
+
+Adèle dared scarcely breathe.
+
+"That's not all," continued Mrs. Soher, "we were determined to get
+rid of the book. This is what we did.
+
+"My brother spoke to the minister about it. The clergyman declared
+that the book could only be stamped out of existence by a special
+process. He went to what had been my aunt's house, and summoned my
+brother and those who were there into the kitchen. Then one man
+thrust a bundle of furze into the oven and set it alight. Another
+one threw the book amongst the flames and firmly secured the door.
+
+"'Down on your knees,' commanded the minister. Everyone obeyed. The
+clergyman prayed aloud, when in a few moments, piercing shrieks were
+heard issuing from the oven. The whole company were in a state of
+horripilation. The clergyman ceased praying. He simply said with
+quivering and pale lips: 'The book is burning.'
+
+"The cries ceased. The door of the oven was opened. The book was
+reduced to ashes."
+
+The two children were awe-stricken.
+
+They sat as still as two mice, breathing only as much as was
+absolutely necessary. It was Tommy who first broke the silence.
+
+He was more accustomed to hear these strange tales than his cousin,
+and, consequently, got over his fright sooner.
+
+"How did the book shriek," questioned the boy.
+
+The entrance of Mr. Soher and his spouse disturbed the proceedings.
+Adèle was very glad of it, for she was anxious to be back home
+before dusk.
+
+Handing her a piece of paper, Adèle's uncle bade her be sure to give
+it to her father. He enjoined her not to lose it, but to hold it
+tightly all the way home. "Don't put it in your pocket," he added as
+the little girl was preparing to leave.
+
+Adèle did as she was bid; she could not put the missive in her
+pocket, because--there was no pocket to the dress which she wore.
+
+She hastened home. The story which Mrs. Soher had recited had shaken
+her nerves.
+
+As she neared her father's house, she was tempted to look at the
+writing on the paper. There was a brief struggle within her. At last
+her conscience prevailed over her curiosity.
+
+She met her father who was waiting for her on the threshold and
+handed him the paper. He ran his eyes over it and muttered audibly:
+"Let him go to the dogs, then, if he wishes to do so."
+
+As soon as Adèle was out of the "Prenoms" the two garrulous women
+began to talk about their little visitor. As was their wont, they
+(especially the younger Mrs. Soher) cast upon Adèle all the slander
+and scandal which they were capable of. Their epigrams were as
+devoid of wit as they were coarse.
+
+Mr. Soher, who sat near, did not join in the conversation. He
+professed to be a very religious man, but he rarely occupied himself
+about his household duties. His wife was just saying: "When one
+thinks that if that little brat of a girl had not been born, we
+should inherit all my brother's property," when the man rose from
+his chair. "I am going to the prayer-meeting," he said abruptly,
+and his puritanical form as suddenly left the room.
+
+"Now, it is time for you to go to bed," said Mrs. Soher to her son,
+when her husband was gone.
+
+"I don't want to go yet," replied Tommy.
+
+"But you must go, and you will go now; I'll not listen to your
+nonsense; come, do your hear."
+
+"Ah! let me stay a little longer, ma."
+
+"No, not one moment; come along."
+
+"Only one minute," pleaded the spoilt child.
+
+"Bah! what do you want to stay for?" said his mother, re-seating
+herself.
+
+The minute passed away, so did many other minutes, but Tom did not
+stir.
+
+After again trying in vain the power of her pleadings and commands,
+the weak-minded mother took her son by the sleeve of his coat.
+"Come," she said, "to bed with you."
+
+Tommy began to cry.
+
+She dragged him out of the room and up the stairs. He screamed and
+kicked, but was finally placed in his cot. Mrs. Soher had hardly
+stepped into the kitchen, when her son was heard crying.
+
+"I am frightened," he bawled; "the fire--the witches--the book."
+
+"Bah!" said his mother, "he'll go to sleep soon." And so he did.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III.
+
+THE BOARDING-SCHOOL.
+
+
+Mr. Rougeant had returned early from "the town" on that Saturday
+afternoon. He was now perusing the _Gazette Officielle_, the only
+newspaper which he ever cast his eyes upon. The servant--a good old
+Guernsey soul, who had been in the service of the family for ten
+years--was busily engaged in preparing the dinner. Contrary to the
+farmer's orders, Adèle had been sent by Lizette (the servant) to
+fetch the cider.
+
+Unluckily for the little girl, Mr. Rougeant did not care to go to
+the expense of buying a tap. In its stead he had a number of small
+holes bored in one end of the cask. In these holes, which were
+placed vertically, one above the other, tight fitting wooden pegs
+had been driven. One of these pegs he drew out when he required some
+cider.
+
+When Adèle entered the cellar, mug in hand, she examined the cask.
+She did not know which peg to take out, neither did she care to
+return into the kitchen with an empty vessel. She ventured
+cautiously to pull out one of the pins. It fitted tightly. She
+jerked on it. The peg came out; so did the cider. She hastily
+replaced the peg in its place, but the cider spurted all over her
+clean white pinafore. Timidly, she went back to the kitchen.
+
+"I did not know how to----"
+
+She did not finish. The servant perceived her plight, and, with a
+gesture, silenced her. She bustled her out into the vestibule, threw
+her a clean apron, bade her put it on, and proceeded to the cellar.
+She speedily caused--or thought she caused--all traces of the little
+girl's blunder to disappear.
+
+When she returned, Mr. Rougeant was talking to his daughter. He was
+saying: "Listen, Adèle. Miss Euston's collegiate school for ladies
+will re-open on Tuesday next, September the 13th, at half-past two
+o'clock. A few boarders received."
+
+"How would you like to go there?" he asked of his daughter; merely
+for form's sake, however, for he had already resolved that this
+would be, if possible, Adèle's future home, for some ten years at
+least.
+
+"I don't know," said the little girl, placing her thumb in her
+mouth;--a sure sign of mingled deep-thought and puzzlement--a mode
+of expression which, by the bye, she was not to enjoy much longer.
+These gesticulations are not in harmony with boarding-school
+etiquette.
+
+Her father did not make any other remark. He placed the newspaper on
+one side, and fell to work with his dinner.
+
+This important piece of business having been accomplished, he
+started to go to town on foot.
+
+His interview with Miss Euston resulted in Adèle being accepted as a
+boarder. She was to be entirely entrusted to the care of Miss
+Euston, and, lastly, Mr. Rougeant was to pay an annual stipend of
+fifty guineas.
+
+When he came back home, Adèle's father sank in a chair. He was
+tired. Moreover, he was annoyed. The fifty guineas which he had
+promised to pay each year vexed him.
+
+He said to himself: "This daughter of mine will run away with all
+the profit which I am making out of my newly-opened quarry. But,
+since it must be, I cannot allow myself to violate the promises made
+to the dying. I must try and see if I cannot save a little more than
+I have done lately. This servant costs me too much. I must get rid
+of her somehow. Another one, a French one for example, would work
+for four or five pounds less a year."
+
+In this puzzled state he descended to the cellar. He had an implicit
+belief in cider as a general restorative. His scrutinizing glance
+soon detected the ravages caused by Adèle's blunder. "What a fine
+excuse," he mumbled--and he grinned.
+
+He entered the parlour where Lizette was setting things to rights
+and demanded in an imperative and angry tone: "Who has done that
+mess in the cellar?"
+
+"I did," quietly answered the servant, anxious to shield Adèle.
+
+That fib she soon repented to have uttered.
+
+"I give you a month's notice," said Mr. Rougeant, and he was about
+to disappear when Lizette, feeling that she was not required any
+more, and moved to the quick, turned towards her master.
+
+"I can go now," she said.
+
+"Well, go; so much the better."
+
+That same evening, Maît. Jacques (Mr. Rougeant's workman) drove
+Lizette in the "spring cart" to her mother's cottage.
+
+Adèle wept. Her father silenced her with a frown. "You will commence
+school on Tuesday next," he said.
+
+The little girl looked at her father in surprise, and, an inward
+emotion completely mastering her, she recommenced crying.
+
+"How shall I be able to speak to those English people?" she sobbed.
+
+"You can talk English, can't you?" was her father's not
+over-consoling remark.
+
+"Only--a--little."
+
+"The person to whom I spoke is a nice lady; now, don't be silly,
+child."
+
+"The little girls will laugh at me," she said, drying her tears with
+her pinafore.
+
+Her father did not answer her, but sat meditatively pulling on his
+enormous nose.
+
+It was nearly midnight when Adèle managed to drop to sleep.
+
+Tuesday came. Her father drove her to town in his old phaeton. Then,
+taking her by the hand, he led her at No. ----, Grange. The two were
+ushered into a small, but prettily furnished drawing-room.
+
+After a few moments, Mdlle. Parmier entered the room, and after
+having conversed in French for a few minutes with Mr. Rougeant, the
+latter withdrew, bidding good-bye to his daughter who watched him
+disappear with a dazed and stupefied air. "Is this a dream?" she
+thought. "Ah! would that it were." Never before had she spoken to a
+lady from town. She listened to hear Mdlle. Parmier's harsh voice
+bid her follow her, but, instead of doing so, the little French lady
+advanced towards her and in a gentle tone of voice (so soft, that
+Adèle stared at her in astonishment) said: "_Miss Euston va bientôt
+venir. Croyez-vous, ma chère, que cette nouvelle demeure vous
+conviendra?_"
+
+"_Oui_," answered Adèle, greatly relieved that there was at least
+one person here who could talk in French.
+
+Then, while the lady occupied herself with a book, Adèle was busy
+picturing to herself the dreadful Miss Euston. Her father had said
+that she was a nice lady; but, alas, how could she? Did she not
+speak in English? How was she going to answer her? "She will
+certainly laugh at my bad English," Adèle thought; and her lips
+moved about uneasily, and her eyes were moist.
+
+She looked towards Mdlle. Parmier. She saw four or five ladies in a
+confused group; she wiped away the tears that obscured her vision.
+
+"Ah! if this lady were head mistress?" she went on thinking. "Oh! my
+clothes, they are not so pretty as those which the little girls who
+were in the playground wore." She listened tremblingly for the
+sounds of approaching footsteps. How she wished that the ordeal of
+the first interview would be passed. She grew so excited that she
+would have given anything to be out of that room. Any sudden
+catastrophe which would have averted the terrible ordeal of
+confronting Miss Euston would have been welcomed by her. Had she
+been alone, she would have tried her voice to see how it sounded in
+English, but Mdlle. Parmier was there; so she only coughed a little
+to clear her throat. She tried to cough softly, as she had heard
+Mdlle. Parmier do; but she fancied her voice sounded hoarse and
+vulgar. She cast a gaze towards a mirror placed at one end of the
+room. What a plebeian figure!
+
+Hark! what was that? a soft tread was heard approaching. The French
+lady looked up from her book, and fixing her eyes encouragingly on
+the little girl, she said: "_Miss Euston sera bien aise de vous
+voir; parlez-vous l'anglais?_"
+
+"_Un peu, mademoiselle_," said Adèle, and the door opened.
+
+The dreaded form of Miss Euston entered the room.
+
+"Dis is de yong Ma'm'sel Rougeant," said the French lady,
+introducing Adèle to the newly-arrived lady.
+
+The latter, a tall, refined and amiable lady, advanced towards Adèle
+with a pleasant air, and such a kind smile lighting up her
+intelligent features that the little girl felt immediately drawn
+towards her.
+
+Miss Euston at once saw that Adèle was timid and feeling very
+uncomfortable.
+
+She took the child's hand in her own and said kindly: "I am very
+glad you have come, Adèle; but, your hands are quite cold; come
+nearer to the fire."
+
+Adèle stood up. Miss Euston put the chair nearer to the fire, placed
+the child upon it, and began to chat in quite a friendly way.
+
+Mdlle. Parmier retired. Adèle's fears had vanished like a cloud of
+smoke. She felt more than simple admiration for Miss Euston; she
+experienced a kind of veneration for her.
+
+Had an angel from heaven entered the room instead of this lady,
+Adèle would not have been much more dazzled than she now was.
+
+"Do you understand English?" inquired Miss Euston while helping her
+pupil to warm her hands.
+
+"Not much, ma'am."
+
+"Then you shall soon learn, for I can see a pair of intelligent eyes
+beaming under those chestnut curls."
+
+Adèle smiled. She felt a kind of bitter and sweet happiness. The
+dreaded introduction was over, but now there were the little girls
+to encounter. What kind of reception would _they_ give her?
+
+"I am going to have two new dresses for you to try on presently,"
+said Miss Euston; "now, come, let me show you your bed chamber."
+
+Adèle was delighted with her bedroom. How neat the little crib
+looked. Miss Rader had told her that the people from town never had
+white linen; they knew not how to wash, and, besides, the smoke
+caused their once white linen to look grimy.
+
+After having asked Adèle if she was pleased with her room, and the
+little child having answered: "Yes, ma'am, very much," Miss Euston
+led her into the schoolroom where about twenty young girls were
+assembled. They were being directed to their respective places by
+Mdlle. Parmier.
+
+Miss Euston told Adèle that she would not do anything that day but
+familiarize herself with her new surroundings.
+
+She gave her a nice book full of beautiful pictures to look at. Then
+she began to attend to a class of the bigger girls.
+
+Adèle felt her heart sink a little when Miss Euston left her, but
+she managed to pluck up courage and was soon absorbed looking at the
+beautiful pictures in her book. She timidly raised her eyes from
+time to time and gazed upon the young group of girls who were near
+her. Two of them she perceived were looking at her, and exchanging
+glances, after which they tittered.
+
+This made Adèle's blood rush to her face. She knew they were
+laughing at her and she felt uneasy. "I am as good as they are.
+Just let them wait till I have my new dresses," she thought.
+
+She made up her mind not to look at them and kept steadily looking
+at her book. But the pictures had lost their charm. Her little soul
+revolted against the treatment to which she was being subjected by
+these two little girls.
+
+When the time for recreation arrived, Miss Euston took Adèle by the
+hand and led her up to two other girls; one about Adèle's age, the
+other two years older. She told them to take care of their new and
+future companion. She was sure, she added, that they would make
+things pleasant for her. "Yes, ma'am,--come," they said to their new
+acquaintance. They led her out of the schoolroom and amused her
+during the whole time that was set apart for recreation purposes. By
+the time the bell rang for the pupils to form classes, the three
+little girls were as friendly as could be. Adèle forgot all about
+the little girls that had laughed at her.
+
+Later on in the evening, she discovered that her two little
+companions were the only boarders beside herself.
+
+The day after her entrance, an event occurred which deserves perhaps
+to be narrated.
+
+Adèle walked alone down the Grange, turned to the right, and not
+knowing where she was going, found herself in a lane called George
+Street.
+
+She was busily engaged contemplating a poor little crippled girl,
+when the latter's crutch slipped and she fell prone on the road.
+
+She got up quickly, however, seized her crutch and looked anxiously
+round to see if someone had perceived her.
+
+Adèle stood near, smiling.
+
+The girl in rags went up to her. "What'r'yer laughin' at, yer
+dressed up doll?" she said. (Adèle had one of her new dresses on.)
+"If you don't stop it," she continued threateningly, "I'll give yer
+such a bloomin' smack as 'l' make you think you're in the beginnin'
+o' next week."
+
+Adèle did "stop it," and hastily walked away.
+
+"What!" she said to herself, "can these little girls from town beat
+you soundly enough to make you think you are in the beginning of the
+week to come? They _must_ be clever. I will ask Miss Euston about
+it."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+
+THE INFLUENCES OF A GOOD HOME.
+
+
+Ten years have elapsed. On a stormy September afternoon, in a room
+of a two-storeyed cottage, situate at the bottom of the Rohais, a
+woman lay dying. Her husband knelt beside her bed, holding his
+wife's hand.
+
+The stillness that prevailed was only disturbed by an occasional sob
+from the husband, and the short irregular breathing of the dying
+woman.
+
+The breathing suddenly became more regular. The husband looked at
+his wife. He saw that she wanted to speak to him, and immediately
+approached his head nearer to her.
+
+"I am going, John," said the woman in a faint tone; "I feel that I
+am rapidly drawing nearer the end. I know you will take care of our
+son, and--if ever you marry----"
+
+Here she paused as if unable to go on.
+
+"Oh! don't mention that, I will never marry again, dearest. I will
+look forward with eagerness to our second meeting. I shall meet you
+there, Annie," he said, and, pressing her hand between both his own,
+he gazed earnestly into his wife's half-closed eyes.
+
+Mrs. Mathers sank back on her pillow, exhausted with the effort
+which she had made to speak those few words. Presently a change came
+over her face. Her husband beckoned to Marie, the servant, who
+hardly dared to approach, awed as she was at having to witness a
+person in the grip of death.
+
+The end came, swift and pangless. The soul passed from the body to
+its eternal resting place.
+
+Marie stood beside the bed, her big eyes fixed on the corpse, hardly
+able to believe her senses.
+
+"But, I thought Madame was better, much better," she said, half
+aloud, half to herself.
+
+"Ah! unfortunately," said the widower, "'twas only the lull before
+the storm--a state which is common to people dying from consumption.
+Make haste," he continued to the bewildered Abigail, "put the blinds
+down."
+
+Marie did as she was told and the man proceeded downstairs.
+
+In the kitchen, seated on a chair, a boy was sobbing. His father had
+just told him that death had visited them. And the boy felt
+completely weighed down with grief. His mother had been so good to
+him. "Such an excellent mother," he said to himself; "ah, how I
+shall miss her."
+
+He sobbed silently; the hot tears were few and far between. His
+grief was too intense to be demonstrative.
+
+He stayed there for fully an hour, in the same attitude, bowed down
+as it were by this heavy load which had fallen upon him.
+
+Let us go back into Frank Mathers' history--for Frank Mathers it was
+who mourned his mother's loss--for a few years.
+
+Mr. Mathers, his wife and only son were seated round the fire one
+evening.
+
+"You will be fourteen years of age to-morrow," said Frank's father,
+"it is time for me to think of finding you a situation."
+
+Frank did not answer, the idea of leaving school did not please him;
+he looked up from his book for an instant, then pretended to resume
+his reading.
+
+"I shall talk to Mr. Baker, the grain merchant; as you have a liking
+for books, I think you would do well in his office. Would you like
+to go?" said his father.
+
+"If you think I am old enough to leave school," mumbled Frank.
+
+"Certainly you are old enough," said his father, "we can't afford to
+keep you at school all your life."
+
+Mrs. Mathers looked at her son sympathetically, she knew he loved
+his school immensely.
+
+"You will only have to be at the office from nine till five, and, if
+you are diligent, you shall be able to study a few hours every day,"
+she said.
+
+"Yes," said the boy reluctantly.
+
+In less than a week after this, Frank had left school and was
+settled in Mr. Baker's employment.
+
+The winter was beginning to make itself felt, and the days were
+growing shorter and shorter. Ah! how Frank liked these winter
+evenings. He took his books, and, drawing his chair near a small
+table close to the fire, he kept plodding on, evening after evening,
+educating himself constantly.
+
+At the age of nineteen, he obtained a situation as clerk in a bank.
+He possessed a good knowledge of English and French. He was also
+acquainted with German, Latin and Mathematics.
+
+He had learnt unaided two systems of shorthand: one English and one
+French.
+
+Neither was he ignorant of other useful sciences, of which he had
+striven to acquire at least a few elements.
+
+Thus armed for the world's battle, he thought himself almost
+invulnerable. "I am bound to succeed," he sometimes said to himself.
+"I have done all that I possibly could do towards that end. I don't
+believe in chance. 'What a man soweth, that shall he also reap.'"
+
+If ever a youth deserved to succeed, it certainly was Frank Mathers.
+He had sacrificed many pleasures for the sake of better fitting
+himself for life's struggle. Often, when his companions invited him
+to spend an evening in questionable pleasures; "No, he would answer,
+I have no time for that." At last, they ceased to torment him.
+
+He liked these evenings spent at home, quietly, near the fire, alone
+with his mother, who sometimes lifted her eyes from her knitting or
+sewing, and affectionately gazed for a few moments upon her son.
+
+They were nearly always alone, mother and son; for the father, who
+was a carpenter, spent his evenings in the workshop.
+
+As her son neared his twentieth birthday, Mrs. Mathers felt that she
+would never live to see it. She was very anxious for her son's
+future. After all, would he always keep in the path in which he was
+now walking?
+
+One evening when she felt worse than usual, her anxiousness for her
+son's welfare rose to such a pitch that she ventured to speak a few
+words to him.
+
+"Frank," she began, "you know that I am not in very good health."
+
+"Yes, mother."
+
+"I don't think I shall live long," continued she, "and, I should so
+much like to know if you have formed a decision to be a noble,
+good, and upright man."
+
+"You are not going to die," said the youth in a half-frightened
+tone, "you will be better soon, I hope."
+
+"No," she said, "I am slowly but steadily declining;" then she added
+in a very affectionate tone: "Will you promise me, Frank, that you
+will always strive to do what is right?"
+
+"Mother," replied the son, his voice quivering with emotion: "I will
+be good."
+
+Neither of them said another word for a few minutes. Their hearts
+were too full. Affectionate love, grief and resignation were filling
+their souls.
+
+Soon, the father entered and the family retired.
+
+Next day Mrs. Mather's prophecies were fulfilled. She felt much
+worse and stayed in bed. In less than a week, she was dead and
+buried.
+
+Thus deprived of his mother, Frank Mathers felt intensely lonely. He
+suppressed his grief as much as possible, but it could be seen that
+he suffered.
+
+He had his father, 'tis true, but Mr. Mathers was a man of a gloomy
+temperament. But a young man of nineteen ought not to be attached to
+his mother's pinafore! The house seemed so empty, it seemed quite
+large now, a roomy house with no furniture. The air he breathed was
+not perfumed with the sweet breath of love as it was wont to be.
+
+He grew melancholy. He had never been of a very bright temperament,
+and the life of self-sacrifice which he had hitherto led, had not
+helped him towards being cheerful.
+
+Besides, there was no one to cheer him now, no kind word to spur him
+on. "Ah! life without love," he sighed, "life without love is
+hardly worth living."
+
+From bad he went to worse. He almost ceased to eat. He lost a great
+deal of his former activity and was often absent-minded. His
+employers noticed this, for he often made false entries in the
+books.
+
+One morning, the manager of the bank thought fit to speak to him. "I
+cannot make out what ails you," he said, "but you will have to be
+more careful in the future."
+
+"Pull yourself up, Mr. Mathers, try and take more interest in your
+work, or I shall feel obliged to dispense with your services
+altogether."
+
+"I must try," answered Frank. "I _will_ try, Sir."
+
+And try he did, but all to no purpose.
+
+A cloud seemed to hang over him; he was in a state of lethargy. "Am
+I going mad?" he said to himself more than once. No! he was not
+insane, not yet at any rate; he simply took no interest in life.
+Nothing seemed to distract him; he cared for nothing, spoke to no
+one except when questioned.
+
+His father and Marie often tried to coax him into conversation.
+
+In answer he sometimes said "Bah! life is but an empty bubble,"
+oftener, he said nothing at all, but gazed fixedly at the floor all
+the time.
+
+A few days after the manager had spoken to him, he ceased to go to
+work altogether. He did not send a letter to his employers, telling
+them of his intention to leave; of what use was it? everything was
+nothing to him.
+
+It was not for his departed mother that he grieved. He grieved not.
+He hardly gave her a thought now, and, when he did, his eyes seemed
+to brighten up and his lips muttered: "Thou art happy."
+
+The doctor who examined him shrugged his shoulders. "Hypochondria,"
+he said as he met the enquiring glance of Mr. Mathers; then he
+added: "He will probably be better in a few weeks."
+
+The neighbours, without being consulted, said: "He is mad."
+
+The days came and went, and after a few months of melancholiness he
+grew a little bit better. His father noticed that he began to take
+an interest in the culture of the garden.
+
+"I shall have to find work for him," thought Mr. Mathers, and, one
+day, when his son seemed in a more joyous mood than usual, he spoke
+to him.
+
+"Do you think that if I built a greenhouse you could take care of
+it?" he questioned.
+
+"I think so," said his son.
+
+"Work is slack just now," went on Mr. Mathers, "I might as well put
+up one in the garden as do nothing."
+
+"I think I should very much like to grow tomatoes and grapes," Frank
+remarked.
+
+"You feel better now, then," said the father. These were the first
+words which he ventured to speak to his son about his health, now
+that the latter's senses seemed to have returned to him.
+
+"Have I been ill?" said Frank; and then after a pause----"Of course,
+I have not been very well lately,--yes, I am better, I think I am
+myself again."
+
+"Well;" said his father, "it is agreed, we shall have a greenhouse.
+I think you had better go in the garden and see if you can find
+something to do there."
+
+Frank did as he was requested. The garden at the back of the house
+was a small one, covering some twenty-five perches; of these eight
+were to be blessed, or cursed, with a glass covering.
+
+While Frank was engaged in tying up some Chrysanthemums, he was
+joined by Marie, the servant.
+
+"Doin' a bit o' work, Master Frank," she said.
+
+"Yes, a little," he replied.
+
+"Well, that's better than mopin' about doing nothing," was the not
+over-particular rejoinder.
+
+Frank smiled. "Well," he said, "a fellow must do something when he
+can, but there are times when he cannot."
+
+"Perhaps," said Marie, rather absent-mindedly, as if she had not
+understood the meaning of his words.
+
+She glanced around her, to make sure that there was no one about;
+then she came quite close to Frank. "Have you heard the news?" she
+said.
+
+"What news?" questioned Frank.
+
+"Why, they say your father is goin' to marry; didn't you know?"
+
+Frank's face became livid, his lips tightened, his pruning knife
+dropped from his hand.
+
+"What?" he exclaimed, as if he had not fully understood.
+
+"Your father's going to marry again," said the servant in an
+undertone, "and I'll tell you who told me so, it was Jim Tozer, her
+brother; he ought to know."
+
+"The brother of whom?" questioned Frank mechanically.
+
+"The brother of Miss Tozer," informed Marie.
+
+"I should have thought that your father would have stuck a little
+more to his word, for when your poor, dear mother was dying, she
+mentioned something to your father about marrying. He pretended to
+cry, and bawled out: 'Don't mention it, I'll never marry again; I'll
+never marry again.'"
+
+"And mother been dead only five months," said Frank, more to himself
+than otherwise.
+
+"But it won't be yet, you know," said Marie. "Jim Tozer told me they
+would probably wait till next year."
+
+Then seeing Mr. Mathers coming towards them, she pretended to gather
+some parsley close by, and quickly re-entered the house.
+
+Frank's father did not talk to his son then, but began taking
+measures for the greenhouse.
+
+As for Frank, he was extremely angry with his father. He thought
+that his mother's memory was being slighted; but he resolved not to
+say a word about it to his father, and to let matters stand as they
+were.
+
+Time passed on. The winter was over. It was the month of April. The
+birds sang in the trees, the grass was springing up, the fields were
+being clothed in verdure. Nature, which had lain so long dormant,
+was awakening. From the trees which looked dead a few weeks ago
+little buds were peeping forth, taking their first view of the
+world.
+
+Frank Mathers was filled with delight as he watched this development
+of nature.
+
+One evening when he had just finished planting some tomatoes, he was
+surprised to see his father enter the greenhouse.
+
+Mr. Mathers' face was rather pale. He looked agitated.
+
+"They look well," said the father, meaning the tomato plants.
+
+"Yes, they _do_ look well," answered his son; "I was just thinking
+as much before you came in."
+
+There was a long silence here. Frank knew that his father had
+something to communicate to him, and he guessed what it was.
+However, he did not help him out of his embarrassment.
+
+Finally, after several preliminary hems to clear his throat, Mr.
+Mathers began: "It is a good thing that the tomatoes are planted;
+to-morrow you will not work, I suppose."
+
+"I hope I shall, I have all these boxes to clear away."
+
+"Yes, yes, but to-morrow I am going to be married."
+
+Frank did not answer. He raised his eyes and looked straight at his
+father. His lips quivered and refused to utter a sound.
+
+The son's gaze was more than a match for the father's. Mr. Mathers
+was not yet so hardened as to laugh and look back defiantly at his
+son. He, however, recovered his self-composure, tried to make
+himself believe that he was in his perfect right, and in a
+well-feigned voice--"Well?" he said interrogatively.
+
+Not a word came from the son's lips; a deep sigh escaped him. He
+stepped forward and walked out of the greenhouse, leaving his father
+there--alone.
+
+The couple were quietly married at the Greffe the next day.
+
+Frank went about his work as usual, and when he came in to dine, his
+step-mother was awaiting him, her face beaming with smiles.
+
+When Frank found himself thus confronted by Mrs. Mathers No. 2, he
+did not feel nearly so hostile to her as he had felt towards his
+father.
+
+He could not however welcome her warmly when his heart clamoured
+otherwise. He was not a hypocrite.
+
+When the husband advanced with his wife, the youth took the
+outstretched hand and in a cold tone, his lips still uttering what
+his heart did not inspire, he said, as if welcoming a stranger: "I
+am happy to make your acquaintance, madam."
+
+He soon perceived that he had gone rather too far. He had acted on
+the impulse of the moment. In fact, he had dug the abyss that was
+ever to lie between his step-mother and himself.
+
+"After all," he said to himself, "it is better to obey one's heart."
+He did not even stop to think that there were two powers at work.
+
+He was more to be pitied than blamed. He had loved his mother
+dearly, and now that she was dead, he revered her memory.
+
+He now perceived the influence of a good home. It had rescued him
+from a life of idleness and perhaps of vice. The genial atmosphere
+of their little parlour had kept him at home even more than his
+books, which he, however, cared a good deal for.
+
+But now, it was all finished. This place would no more be home. It
+was a house, a comfortable dwelling place; that was all. He would
+now have to live amongst unattractive and semi-hostile surroundings.
+
+Through his own fault, he would suffer. One thought however
+strengthened him. Thousands of others had suffered for conscience's
+sake. He remembered how his blood rushed to his face, when he read
+about the tortures of the martyrs of religion; or the driving into
+exile of the patriots of Poland.
+
+Strengthened with these thoughts, he rose, more determined than ever
+to do right; to champion the good; to work; to study; to strive to
+acquire wisdom.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V.
+
+THE REWARD OF INORDINATE AMBITION.
+
+
+Frank Mathers had hours of dejection. Like every other person, he
+had his faults. In one of these fits of depression he grew
+impatient. Then, his ambition turned in the wrong direction. He was
+seized with a mania for getting rich quickly.
+
+How to proceed, he did not know.
+
+At last he thought that if he could invent something useful, and
+patent it, he would soon acquire what he so much desired to possess.
+Now, there are thousands who are constantly trying to do as much,
+but they are as likely to succeed as they were when they first
+began.
+
+Frank was one day walking along a country lane when he perceived a
+cow which had broken loose.
+
+She galloped about, her tail erect, her head lowered.
+
+He pursued the animal, and after a prolonged chase and much dodging
+and capering on the part of both, he managed to grasp the rope which
+was tied round the brute's horns. He held it tightly and proceeded
+to tether his captive. But when he had driven the peg in the ground,
+he noticed that it was very easily pulled up.
+
+He pondered over this as he proceeded towards his home. Suddenly, he
+slapped his forehead. "I have it," he said to himself. "I will have
+a peg, which, when being driven, will go all right, but when pulled
+about, will release two small prongs at the sides. This will make it
+impossible for anyone to pull it up; a small knob will be affixed
+which, when turned, will replace the prongs, and the peg will come
+out in a jiffy."
+
+"Ah!" he went on thinking, "this would be a useful thing, an article
+which would command a ready sale. Besides, it would be used wherever
+a good gripping peg would be necessary."
+
+He was enthusiastic. His mind was already full of different schemes
+which he would start when he had acquired fame and riches.
+
+When he came home, he was so sure of success that he imparted his
+idea to his step-mother, with whom he was not generally very
+confidant.
+
+Poor Frank! the volley of mockery which he received quite baffled
+him.
+
+"So you think to make your fortune in that way," she said. "No, no,
+my boy, you never will."
+
+"But don't you see that it's a most useful thing, that----"
+
+"Stop, stop," she interrupted, "don't make me laugh. Do you think
+that people are going to listen to your nonsense? Why! your peg
+would get clogged with earth and would not act."
+
+"Wouldn't it though, at any rate, it's worth thinking over, so I'll
+do that."
+
+"If you choose to spend your money in that fashion, you can do so,"
+retorted the lady, smiling contemptuously.
+
+"You won't laugh at me this day month," thought Frank as he made his
+exit.
+
+Once alone again, he grew more determined than ever. His mind was
+completely dazzled with the bright future before him.
+
+Next morning, he posted a letter to an inventor's agency in London.
+He stated that he had invented something he knew would be useful,
+and very much in demand if manufactured. The letter went on to
+detail in full length the "safety peg." Then he went on to say that
+he would very much like to have it patented and if they would kindly
+send terms and advice in the course of a mail or two, he would be
+thankful.
+
+Two days afterwards, he hoped to receive the joyful news. "They will
+certainly write soon,--such a valuable article--besides, they have
+an interest in its being patented," he said to himself.
+
+He accordingly watched for the postman, and as soon as he saw him,
+his heart beat wildly. To think that he had the precious missive. He
+approaches, and now he is going to open the gate,--no, he passes
+without even looking in the direction of the house.
+
+"Surely he must be forgetting," thought Frank, and he shouted: "Mr.
+Pedvin, have you any letter for me?"
+
+"No; not to day," said the postman--and he went on his way.
+
+"What are they up to now?" thought the youth, "they ought to make
+haste. I'll wait till to-morrow, and if I don't receive any news,
+I'll send them a note, and a pretty sharp one too."
+
+Next day he again watched for the postman's arrival. He felt
+miserable; the state of uncertainty in which he was, caused him to
+be depressed. Still he could not imagine that the letter would
+contain anything contrary to his hopes.
+
+The idea was so far from his wishes that he shook it away at once;
+he could not even bear to think of it.
+
+But the postman came not, and it was now ten o'clock. He remembered
+with pain that the day before he had passed by at half-past nine.
+
+"I must attend to my work," he thought, "he will come presently." He
+went about the greenhouse, watering his plants, but every other
+minute he opened the door and anxiously watched for the bringer of
+good news to put in an appearance.
+
+He came at last. He handed a letter to Frank who ran towards him to
+receive it.
+
+"You seem very much in earnest," remarked the postman, "maybe it's a
+love-letter. And from London too," he added noticing the post mark.
+
+"I'm not so foolish as that," said Frank; as if such letters were
+below his dignity; "this is about an invention which I am going to
+have patented."
+
+The postman showed the whites of his eyes, then turned on his heels
+and continued his journey.
+
+Frank tore open the envelope, unfolded the letter and read:--
+
+     "London.
+
+     "We are in receipt of your letter of the 3rd instant, and have
+     much pleasure in informing you that your invention has not, to
+     our best knowledge, been patented or manufactured.
+
+     "We think it would prove very well in rural districts.
+
+     "The best way for you, would be to secure it by provisional
+     protection for nine months.
+
+     "Please forward us £2 10s., and we will send you, at our
+     earliest possible convenience, the necessary documents."
+
+"Hurrah!" shouted Frank joyfully. "I'll send them the money as soon
+as I can."
+
+He read the letter a second time to make sure that his eyes had not
+deceived him. Suddenly he stopped reading. No, it was not in the
+letter. A thought had struck him. "I will have to mention the money
+matter to my step-mother, for she keeps the keys of my drawer," he
+said in a soliloquy.
+
+He went into the kitchen. Mr. and Mrs. Mathers were there. Frank
+flourished the letter in his hand and exclaimed: "My invention is
+likely to be a success." And, holding the letter in both his hands,
+he read it to his parents.
+
+He emphasized the points that were in his favour, with all the force
+which he was capable of displaying.
+
+Mrs. Mathers looked satisfied enough till her step-son came to the
+money matter. Here her face lengthened and as soon as he had
+finished reading she said: "Clever people; they think they are going
+to pocket all this money with a few words of flattering."
+
+"Someone must pay for the one pound stamp and other expenses,"
+answered Frank.
+
+"After all this spending of money, perhaps it would not prove,"
+rejoined Mrs. Mathers.
+
+"We won't know if we don't try," retorted Frank; "people don't make
+fortunes staring about them with their hands in their pockets."
+
+"But you don't mean to say," almost angrily said Mrs. Mathers, "that
+you would send them your money in that fashion?"
+
+"I do," answered the young man in a decided tone. He was growing
+impatient at what he thought to be a wanton check of progress on his
+step-mother's part.
+
+Here, Mr. Mathers left the room without having said a word.
+
+Frank watched him disappear and then remarked: "Do you think these
+people are going to work for nothing? They would be fools."
+
+"Oh! 'tis not _they_ who are fools," sarcastically remarked his
+step-mother.
+
+The young man waxed hot. His whole being was rising in wrath within
+him. He, however, mastered his passions. It was his duty to bend,
+and he did so. "If I could convince her, if I could make her feel as
+I myself feel," he thought.
+
+For one minute he was silent, not knowing how to begin the speech
+that was to bring conviction into her soul.
+
+"Ah!" he thought as he looked at his step-mother who had resumed her
+work as if the debate was settled, "she checks me when I try to push
+myself; she tries to nip my plans in the bud. When, with a few words
+of encouragement, I might soon be a rising man. But I must convince
+her--I must. If I don't succeed in doing it, I will act alone. The
+money is mine, why should I not be able to do what I like with it.
+If, however, I could bring her to think as I do."
+
+"I have always tried to push myself," he began in a somewhat tender
+and pleading tone, "and you never give me one word of encouragement
+or praise."
+
+Mrs. Mathers looked up: "You try in the wrong direction," she said,
+"earn money by all means, but don't throw it away like a simpleton."
+
+Unheeding this, Frank resumed: "If I do not try and make life a
+success I don't know anyone who will do it for me. I have studied.
+Many an evening have I sat up with my books thinking of the use my
+knowledge would be to me in future life; many an outing have I
+denied myself for the sake of studying; many a pleasure have I
+sacrificed for the sake of acquiring knowledge. I did not care, work
+did not seem heavy, because it carried with it a hope of future
+happiness. I worked on till late in the evening. I rose early in the
+morning to resume my studies. And, if sometimes I felt discouraged,
+worn out by the ceaseless toil, I said to myself: 'Take
+courage--science is bitter but its fruit is sweet.' I have tried to
+cultivate myself as much as possible, to fill my mind with all that
+is noble, pure, and elevating--to acquire good habits by shunning
+bad society and by reading good books--in short, I have sacrificed
+my past self for the sake of my future self.
+
+"And now (his tone grew inexpressibly sad), when I try to gather a
+few of the fruits which I have grown, you throw yourself between
+fortune and me.
+
+"It is exactly as I was reading in a book the other day, in which
+the writer said: 'The cause of many failures is that men wait for
+something to turn up instead of turning up something for
+themselves'----"
+
+"You and your books," ejaculated Mrs. Mathers,--"but I'll have no
+more of this begging and grumbling; do as you like, throw your money
+to the dogs, give it to whomsoever you choose. Perhaps, when you
+know the value of money, you will learn to appreciate it more. For
+my part, I will have nothing more to do about this tomfoolery."
+
+Frank left the room with a light heart. He was free, at liberty to
+do whatever he chose. He chuckled to himself: "Liberty _is_ sweet. I
+will now show them what I can do when I have no one to hinder me.
+However, I will wait a day or two before sending the money. I must
+not act too quickly,--I will think it over."
+
+He went about his work. He felt that manual labour was almost below
+his dignity now. What! he, an inventor--a benefactor of mankind--the
+probable millionaire of years to come--he, who would soon be looked
+upon as the foremost man of the island, pointed at and envied by
+everyone--watering tomatoes. Oh! it certainly was below his rank.
+However, he would work yet for a few days and then, well then he
+would appear in his proper sphere.
+
+Poor fellow, he had yet another of life's lessons to learn. He
+little imagined the crushing blow that was to fall on him and
+scatter all his hopes.
+
+That evening he went to bed with his head brim full of ideas and
+plans for the future. His heart overflowed with delight. He dreamt
+of nothing but inventions, huge fortunes and fame.
+
+Next morning, when he awoke, his head had cleared, but his ideas
+were the same. He never doubted for a moment the certainty of his
+success.
+
+During the course of the morning there were instants in which he
+felt less confident. What if he did not succeed--what would his
+step-mother say--what would he himself do, he who had made this
+scheme part of his being. But he would prosper, why, here (looking
+at the letter) was the opinion of people who had been amongst
+inventions for years.
+
+A shadow seemed to cross the path of the greenhouse. "I think
+someone has passed by," he thought, "I will go and see." Suiting the
+action to the thought, he sprang at the door and opened it. What
+was his astonishment to see the postman. Two days following! it was
+an event, for they seldom received letters.
+
+On hearing the noise which Frank made on opening the door, the
+postman turned round and handed him a letter. He was agreeably
+surprised to see that it was from the inventors' agency, but his
+delight was soon changed into bitter anger and bitterest
+disappointment when he had read its contents. It was worded thus:
+
+     "London.
+
+     "DEAR SIR,--We are sorry to inform you that the invention we
+     were about to patent for you, had, we have just found out, been
+     patented before.
+
+     "The inventor, we have learned, ruined himself in trying to
+     push it."
+
+He read it twice over. Alas! it was too true. Sadly and mournfully
+he went into the house, there to think of his misfortune.
+
+He entered the little parlour, threw himself on a chair, took the
+letter from his pocket and re-read it.
+
+He crumpled the letter in his hand and exclaimed: "'Tis too true,
+there is not the slightest hope; ah! this is indeed a cloud with no
+silver lining."
+
+He rose, paced the room in an agitated state and muttered: "But
+yesterday, I thought myself a rising man, now, I have utterly
+failed; that upon which I had set my heart, upon which my thoughts
+had dwelt and upon which my hopes had been built, has fallen to the
+ground."
+
+"Such joy ambition finds," something seemed to echo within him.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+
+NEW ACQUAINTANCES.
+
+
+For a week or so Frank Mathers grieved about his misfortune. At the
+end of that time, an event occurred which completely distracted him.
+
+He was taking a walk a few miles from his home, not far from the
+Forest Church. When he came near the farm of "Les Marches," he
+perceived a man, who, seated on a branch, was sawing it. This branch
+projected over a quarry which was filled with water.
+
+Suddenly, the branch gave way, and Mr. Rougeant (such was this man's
+name), fell into the water.
+
+Frank at once ran towards the spot, taking off his coat as he
+hastened along. He was a good and plucky swimmer. When he came near
+the quarry, the drowning man was struggling for dear life. Frank
+seized the position in a moment. He saw that it would be useless to
+jump into the water, because, when once in, he would not be able to
+reach the edge of the quarry, for the water's surface was quite four
+feet below that of the ground. There was not a moment to lose. The
+man had already gone down twice; he was coming up for the second
+time. Frank took his coat in one hand, and, leaning over the edge of
+the quarry at the risk of falling in himself, he caught hold of a
+tuft of grass with the other hand, and awaited the drowning man's
+appearance.
+
+The farmer rose to the surface, struggling. His eyes were dilated,
+his whole countenance presented a frightened and imploring
+appearance.
+
+He uttered a cry, 'twas a cry in which he poured forth all his soul;
+his last and supreme appeal to heaven and earth; but one word, but
+ah! what a deep prayer to one, what an earnest appeal to the other,
+were centred in that word: "Help."
+
+"Seize this, seize this," cried Frank.
+
+The drowning man saw the dangling sleeve, his last chance of
+salvation. Frantically he clutched at it. Ah! he has missed it. No,
+as he was going down for the third time he threw out his arm once
+more. It was a forlorn hope, but it was successful. He caught hold
+of the coat with both his hands and raised himself. He found a creek
+in which he placed his foot, and with Frank's manly help, was soon
+extricated from his perilous position.
+
+Mr. Rougeant was panting for breath, and exhausted, but saved from a
+watery grave.
+
+Frank bent over the man he had rescued, dried his face and took off
+his boots, examining him meanwhile. Mr. Rougeant, whom we did not
+describe when we first met him, was a man of medium height. He had
+broad shoulders, a powerful chest, an almost square head and a
+formidable nose. Under his nasal organ, there bristled a short
+moustache.
+
+When he had partly recovered his senses, he looked around him.
+"Where is my saw?" he questioned, then he added: "My hat, where is
+it?"
+
+The hat, probably a leaky one, had gone to the bottom.
+
+Frank was as much amused as he was astonished to hear him. He
+replied: "I suppose they must both be given up as lost."
+
+"It is a pity," said the prostrate man, "it was a good saw, and a
+brand new one too."
+
+The man spoke in the patois of the island, a kind of old Norman
+French which the young man understood very well. He, therefore,
+answered in the same language.
+
+"Shall I go and call your people?" Frank said after a while.
+
+"No, thank you, I think I can walk home."
+
+He stood up and they both proceeded towards the farm-house.
+
+"Not a word of thanks," soliloquized Frank, as he surveyed the
+strong frame and the powerful limbs of his companion.
+
+Just then the farmer turned abruptly to him: "A good thing you were
+passing near at the time of the accident. I might have been
+drowned," he said.
+
+"I am very glad of having been of service to you," answered Frank.
+
+"You're a good fellow," resumed the farmer looking at him and
+nodding. "It's not everybody," he continued, "who would have had the
+sense to do as you have done."
+
+They arrived at the farm-house, a two-storeyed house, without any
+pretence at architecture, and with a slate covering: the house was
+surrounded by stables, pig-sties, a small garden and a conservatory.
+In front of the house was a parterre, most tastefully arranged with
+flowers which surrounded an immense fuschia, five feet in height and
+covering an area of about fifty square feet.
+
+The two men entered by the front door. Mr. Rougeant led his rescuer
+into the kitchen. Here was Jeanne, a French servant, occupied in
+poking the fire.
+
+"Ah, but dear me," she exclaimed as she caught sight of the pair,
+"what has Mr. Rougeant been doing now?"
+
+"I fell in the quarry," said the farmer gruffly, "go and prepare
+some dry clothing, be quick, make haste."
+
+Jeanne immediately did as she was bid. She did not leave the room,
+however, without casting an inquisitive glance at Frank.
+
+"Adèle," shouted Mr. Rougeant in a voice of thunder, "where are
+you?"
+
+"Miss Rougeant is gone, she told me she would not be long," answered
+the servant from upstairs.
+
+"Oh, yes, always gone," said the father of Adèle, in none too
+pleasant a tone; "those young girls are always out when most
+wanted."
+
+Then he began to talk about his quarry. "Only a year ago that quarry
+was being worked. There were twenty men employed in it. It paid well
+then. But it's all over now. The man who worked it found a little
+bit of rubbish in his way, and, like a fool, he got frightened and
+left working it, and now you see it's full of water. Are the clothes
+ready?" This was said, or rather shouted to the servant.
+
+"Yes, Sir, they're ready; I'm coming," said Jeanne.
+
+"It's time," said Mr. Rougeant rising, "I am trembling all over
+now." He had been shivering for the last quarter of an hour.
+
+When he was half way up the stairs he called out: "Of course you
+will wait till I come down again, I shall not be long Mr. ----."
+
+"All right, Sir, don't hurry," answered Frank.
+
+Left alone in the kitchen, the young man had time to examine the
+room. He had never been in a farm-house before.
+
+On one side, ranged along the wall, was an oblong table which was
+bare. Above it, against the wall, was a shelf on which Frank could
+discern three or four big home-made loaves of bread.
+
+On the opposite side, was a deal dresser on which were ranged
+saucers and plates, while cups and mugs were hung upon nails driven
+into the edge of the shelves; He was in the midst of his examination
+when someone entered the house by a back door. "Is it the girl of
+whom Mr. Rougeant spoke?" he wondered. Then he pictured her to
+himself: a tall overgrown country-lass, with hands like a working
+man's, and feet! well, one might just as well not think about them,
+they were repulsively large; it was a blessing that they were hidden
+from view.
+
+He was in the midst of his imaginations when Adèle Rougeant stepped
+into the kitchen. On perceiving Frank she was a little astonished,
+but soon recovered her self-control and assumed a well-bred smile.
+
+The young man immediately hastened to explain the cause of his
+presence. He was greatly astonished. Here, then, was the corpulent
+country-girl his imagination had fancied! Before him stood a young
+lady altogether different to anything he had pictured her to be. "A
+girl of about seventeen," he tells himself, but later on he
+discovered that she was one year older than that; plainly, but well
+dressed. Her gown fitted her slender form to perfection. Every
+detail in her dress was arranged with such taste, her small shoes,
+the exquisite lace round her throat and such a charming face peeping
+out of it all. She was not beautiful, but she was pretty and
+attractive, she opened her mouth when she smiled as well as when she
+spoke.
+
+"Pray be seated," said the young lady to Frank who had risen on her
+approach.
+
+Frank sat down, quite confused and ready to run out of the room. He
+felt very timid, so far, as to be uncivil; in the presence of Adèle.
+A young man who has spent most of his time alone, studying, will be
+timid when he meets a representative of the softer sex.
+
+He scarcely lifted his eyes from the floor. He knew she would think
+him ill-bred, he was ashamed of himself, but he could not help it.
+He was full of bashfulness. Now, bashfulness is almost always a sure
+sign of _amour-propre_.
+
+He scolded himself, but his red face grew redder. It was soon of a
+colour resembling peacock-blue.
+
+Noticing his discomposure, Miss Rougeant could not help sharing some
+of it, and, doubtless, things would soon have come to an awkward
+point for both, if Mr. Rougeant had not put in an appearance.
+
+"So this is the gentleman who saved your life?" said his daughter,
+speaking in English.
+
+In the same language Mr. Rougeant replied: "Yes, this is he."
+
+She had now regained all her former ease, and knowing her father's
+manners, thanked Frank most cordially.
+
+He stammered out a few words of acknowledgement.
+
+Seeing that her visitor cast glances at the quaint furniture, and
+anxious to break the confusing silence, Adèle went on: "Doubtless
+you had not seen a kitchen like this before Mr. ----."
+
+"My name is Frank Mathers," interposed the young man.
+
+"And mine is Adèle Rougeant," said she.
+
+"Fancy, putting you in such a kitchen. We must go into the parlour
+directly."
+
+"This is indeed very quaint and certainly primitive furniture. I
+must explain the use of----, that is if----."
+
+"I should be greatly obliged," said Frank, "but it really is giving
+yourself too much trouble."
+
+"On the contrary, it gives me pleasure. This"--pointing to a low
+kind of bedstead--"was the sofa of our forefathers. We call it a
+_jonquière_. It was formerly stuffed with a weed which still grows
+near the coast; called jonquier--hence its name. These rods were
+used to hang the _craséaux_ on them. A _crasé_, the singular of
+_craséaux_, is a lamp of the most primitive type."
+
+"A vessel with a beak in which some oil is poured, and in the beak
+is placed a wick, while underneath the vessel another one is
+suspended as a receptacle for the oil which falls from the upper
+one. Only ten years ago we still used them. I remember it quite
+well."
+
+"And these are what we call '_lattes_,'" she said, pointing to a
+wooden rack which hung suspended from the ceiling and parallel to
+it. "As you see, the bacon is kept there."
+
+She stopped here, and looked anxiously at her father. He was pale
+and trembling. "Are you ill, father?" questioned his daughter.
+
+"No, I'm not ill, although I do not feel quite well. Make me a
+_totaïe_," he said, "then I'll go to bed and try to sleep off my
+indisposition."
+
+His daughter did as her father requested.
+
+When she was out of the room, Frank asked Mr. Rougeant what he meant
+by a _totaïe_.
+
+"Oh, it's a capital thing," responded the latter, "toasted bread
+soaked in warm cider. You swallow cider and all; if that does not
+drive a cold away, nothing will."
+
+While the young lady was busily engaged in toasting the bread, Frank
+thought it best to take his leave.
+
+Mr. Rougeant asked him to pay them a visit on the morrow. The young
+man promised to call. He managed to overcome his timidity
+sufficiently to raise his eyes as he took leave of Adèle. Her eyes
+met his, she blushed and immediately dropped her eyelids.
+
+Through the eyes the souls had spoken.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+
+AN ABRUPT DISMISSAL.
+
+
+Next day Frank Mathers prepared to pay his promised visit.
+
+He fancied that he felt very much like William the Conqueror when he
+set out from Normandy to fight against the English. And probably he
+did.
+
+While he was dressing with more than ordinary care, his thoughts
+were all about Adèle.
+
+"'Tis strange," he soliloquized, "such a well-bred, educated and
+refined young lady in this strange place. She is a rose among
+thistles,"--he had already formed his opinion of the master of "Les
+Marches."
+
+"How lonely she must feel living with these two people, one a
+big-headed, and in proportion bigger-nosed man, the other, an
+old ignorant hag, her face of a dirty yellow, and her jaw! it
+reminds me of a species of fish which have a mouth that opens
+vertically--'Melanocetus Johnstoni'--I think the name is."
+
+Here he finished soliloquizing and dressing.
+
+He cast a glance over his clothes. "They don't appear to fit very
+well," he thought. "How strange that I had not noticed this before.
+I feel disposed to put on my best coat instead of this one."
+
+Then he tried to scoff these thoughts away and when they would not
+leave him, he called himself a simpleton, scolded himself for his
+fastidious taste, and resolved to start as he was.
+
+It was two o'clock when he called out to his step-mother: "Mother!"
+(this was a delicate piece of flattery); "I am going to see how the
+man I saved from drowning yesterday is getting on."
+
+"Oh, all right, Frank," answered Mrs. Mathers, pleased to hear him
+calling her "mother."
+
+The young man stepped out into the open air with a decided gait.
+After an hour's walk he arrived at the farm-house, heated by his
+rapid journey.
+
+He was courteously received by Adèle at the door. On her devolved
+the duties of hostess, which she endeavoured to discharge
+conscientiously.
+
+She led her guest into the parlour where Mr. Rougeant was seated
+before a fire in an easy-chair. Frank shook hands with him and
+inquired how he felt.
+
+"Not too bad, thank you," he replied, and beckoning Frank to a chair
+close to him, he began to converse about his farm.
+
+Frank listened and answered as well as he could, making a remark now
+and then about agriculture which astonished the farmer considerably.
+He had the tact to respect Mr. Rougeant's feelings, and the latter
+was not slow in showing his appreciation of it.
+
+"You seem to know more about farming than I do," remarked Mr.
+Rougeant.
+
+Frank felt flattered. He began to talk about agricultural chemistry,
+but he was soon stopped by his host.
+
+"I don't believe in theory," interrupted Mr. Rougeant, "give me
+facts, show me results. A great many people write about farming who
+can hardly distinguish a parsnip from a carrot."
+
+The young man dared not go against the farmer. He saw, by his
+manner, that he was not a man to be contradicted. He looked at
+Adèle. She was smiling, but directly her father looked round towards
+her, her face became as grave as a nun's.
+
+Mr. Rougeant continued triumphantly to talk about his farm. It was
+all the world to him, and almost the only thing about which he could
+converse.
+
+He never read a book.
+
+During the conversation Frank learnt that he had about one hundred
+vergées of land, one fifth of which he kept, the remainder was let
+to other farmers. He had but one workman, a man about sixty years
+old, who had worked for the Rougeants for more than forty years. His
+name was Jacques Dorant. Then, there was his horse; it was old now,
+but still good. Ah! when he was younger, he was a splendid horse,
+such strength, such form, such a fast trotter, frisky, but as gentle
+as a lamb.
+
+Thought Frank: "If he is to be credited, there has never been such a
+horse since the days of Bucephalus, the famous horse of Alexander."
+
+During the whole time that they had been in the parlour, the young
+man had not found courage to address a word to Adèle. He was very
+careful about his tenure. He spoke in a voice which he endeavoured
+to soften; he uttered the best English which he could frame,--for
+Mr. Rougeant spoke in English this time--and when there was an
+opportunity of displaying his talents, he availed himself of it with
+eagerness.
+
+Once, he made a serious blunder. He talked about turnips which he
+had seen growing in a field close by. At which the farmer laughed:
+"Well, I never, turnips, ha-ha...."
+
+Frank felt stung. His face coloured deeply, his head was on fire.
+What did _she_ think of him? Through the mist that seemed to gather
+before his eyes, he managed to glance rapidly in the direction of
+Adèle. A thrill of delight shot through his veins. She was looking
+at her father with an offended air, her lustrous eyes seemed to
+issue forth a censuring light.
+
+"Of course, you will stay in to tea, Mr. Mathers," said the farmer
+after a few minutes of silence.
+
+Frank accepted the invitation thankfully.
+
+Adèle left the room to help to prepare the tea things.
+
+Left alone with the farmer, the young man looked about him more
+freely. He noticed that the room was very plainly furnished. His
+eyes alighted on a painting which represented a cow standing near a
+cattle-shed. "What a shocking display of art," he said to himself.
+"Infringement of the rules of perspective, shocking chiaroscuro, bad
+composition...."
+
+Mr. Rougeant casually noticed him. "So you are having a look at my
+cow," he said, "a friend of mine painted that picture; he was a real
+artist." Then he paused, examined it like one who understands his
+business, and continued: "Yes, yes, exactly like her, the little
+white patches and that little bump on her back. I gave my friend ten
+shillings for that painting; just think, ten shillings, seven pounds
+of butter. But," he added by way of consoling himself,--for his
+avaricious heart was already revolting against this useless
+expenditure of money; "it's well worth that, it's the very likeness
+of my 'Daisy.' My daughter had the impudence to tell me once that I
+ought to put it in the wash-house. Alas! young people will always
+be young people."
+
+Struggle as he would, Frank could not refrain from smiling. His host
+took it for a genuine smile of admiration and looked at him
+approvingly.
+
+At this stage, Adèle announced that the tea was served.
+
+Whilst they were at the meal, Frank was in great perplexity as to
+how he should avoid breaking any of the rules of etiquette in
+Adèle's presence.
+
+He was so much in earnest about doing things properly that he
+committed several blunders. Once he almost overturned his cup, then
+he blushed till his face was all discoloured, and bit his under lip
+savagely. A minute after that, while gallantly passing a plate
+containing _gâche à corinthe_ to Adèle, he knocked it against the
+sugar basin, overset the latter, and sent the pieces of sugar and
+cake flying in all directions. He grew angry with himself, and
+completely lost his head. Mr. Rougeant complained of not being
+hungry. Frank, who misunderstood him, answered: "Ah! I see." Another
+blunder.
+
+At last the meal was over. The two men rose and returned to the
+parlour. The first remark of the farmer was: "In my time, servants
+used to eat at the same table as their masters, but our Miss says
+that she will not have it. I let her have her own way sometimes; it
+does not cost me more, so I do not care."
+
+He called out to his daughter: "Adèle, make haste, so that the
+gentleman may hear your playing."
+
+"I am coming soon," was the reply.
+
+The farmer went on to Frank: "The instrument which she plays is a
+violin. For my part, I do not care for it. It does not make enough
+noise. Give me a harmonium or a cornet. But my daughter persists in
+saying that she will not learn anything but the violin. Perhaps it's
+better after all," he added, suddenly thinking of the outlay
+required for a new instrument.
+
+Adèle came in with her violin, which she at once carefully tuned.
+She appeared confident of success. She placed herself opposite her
+father and nearly alongside the young man.
+
+"Fire away!" said the father, "what are you doing now?"
+
+"I was just seeing if the strings were well tuned," she said. "It is
+of no use trying to play if the instrument is out of tune." These
+last words were spoken to Frank.
+
+"I cannot play on the violin," said he.
+
+"Ah! then you won't criticize me," said she.
+
+She bent her head over her instrument, and began playing. She forgot
+the outward world, her whole attention was concentrated on her
+violin as her slender and nervous fingers guided the bow or pressed
+the strings.
+
+It was a sweet soft tune--like her voice--her face wore a tender
+expression. Then the music swelled, became louder and louder till it
+reached its climax; the bow bounded over the strings, the fingers of
+the left hand rose and fell in quick succession, her expression was
+now animated, her face aglow.
+
+Frank was sitting with his eyes fixed upon the fair musician. He had
+never imagined that an instrument could be made to express such
+feelings.
+
+He noticed that Adèle would have to turn a leaf. He could read
+music, so he rose, scanned the music, was soon on the track, and
+turned the leaf in due time.
+
+Adèle finished playing soon after.
+
+Her face was slightly flushed and triumphant.
+
+Frank congratulated her warmly in a select speech which he finished
+thus: "In short, your playing seems to have as much power over my
+feelings as Timotheus' had over Alexander's."
+
+The farmer's face was ominous. He had begun to entertain suspicions
+when Adèle had looked at him reproachfully before tea-time. Now his
+imagination had ripened into certainty--so he thought. The young
+people must be for ever separated. He said roughly: "There are other
+things which are more important than fiddling, one of them is to
+know how to live."
+
+Frank looked at Adèle, she looked back at him. Their astonishment
+was diverting to witness.
+
+Quoth the farmer gruffly to Frank, "I am going to retire, I think
+you had better do the same."
+
+"Is the man going mad?" thought Frank. He looked at Adèle, then
+suddenly took his hat and his departure.
+
+The young lady followed him to the door. She was extremely vexed at
+her father's demeanour. She spoke a few words to Frank as he stepped
+outside.
+
+"I hope you will not take my father's words too seriously," she
+said, "I am very sorry--it's shocking--I am exceedingly angry with
+him--a fine way of thanking you--you to whom he owes so much."
+
+As he pressed the delicate hand which she tended in farewell, Frank
+said: "I quite forgive Mr. Rougeant, there are strange natures," and
+he walked away.
+
+He had gone by the back door, why, he did not know. As he passed the
+stable, he saw a man engaged in cleaning, a horse. "Come what may,"
+he said to himself, "I must have a chat with this fellow."
+
+"Good evening," he said, speaking in French, "cleaning up a bit?"
+
+"Good evening, sir," replied Jacques, speaking in broken English.
+"You needn't talk in French, I know English; I learnt it when Jim
+Tozer worked here."
+
+Said Frank inly: "Jim Tozer, the name seems familiar to me. Of
+course, my step-mother's brother." Aloud: "You are the only workman
+here now!"
+
+"Yes, you've been payin' a visit to Mr. Rougeant, you're the
+gentleman as rescued him from drowning. Lucky for him, old chap,
+that you were round about there, for it's dead certain he'd ha' gone
+to bottom."
+
+"You take care of this horse?"
+
+"I take care of pretty nearly everything round about here, for the
+bos doesn't do much now, but he gives a reg'lar 'go at it' now and
+then though."
+
+"I suppose you like this job," remarked Frank, meanwhile scanning
+the horse and forming his opinion of this member of the equine
+genus. Here is his judgment: "A famous trotter! a spirited
+steed!--indeed!--an old nag not worth half-a-guinea."
+
+"What job?" said Jacques.
+
+"Working about here, I mean, working for Mr. Rougeant."
+
+"Well, ye-yes, but you've got to know how to tackle the guv'nor;
+he's a quair sort. I've worked for the Rougeants for forty-two
+years, and the old fellow's never given me more than my day's
+wage." Then he added in an undertone, "He's a reg'lar miser, he's
+got some tin! They say he's worth four hundred quarters."
+
+Four hundred pounds income, was to old Jacques a large fortune.
+
+"Ah," he went on, "if only I had four hundred pounds capital, with
+the little that I have scraped together, I would not trouble to work
+any more, I would have enough for the rest of my days. We live on
+thirty pounds a year, me and my old missus.
+
+"We're not allu's feastin', you see; besides, the house we live in
+is ours. Built with my savin's when I married, it was----"
+
+"Mrs. Rougeant is dead, is she not?" questioned Frank, anxious to
+learn more about the family.
+
+"Dead! o' course she's dead," said Jacques, "she's been dead now
+for--let me see--twelve--thirteen--fourteen years!--her daughter was
+about four years old then."
+
+"So Miss Rougeant is now eighteen."
+
+"Yes, Sir, an' a fine girl she is,"--this was said with a wink and a
+nod.
+
+"She seems to have been very well educated," said Frank.
+
+"I should think so," said the labourer, opening his eyes wide. "Why,
+bless you, Sir, she's been at a boarding-school all her life; she
+only came to live here last year, after having been absent for
+nearly ten years. I bet she don't get on too well with the guv'nor,
+he's such an old feller for brass. She's a good 'un, too; now and
+then she goes to see my old missus, and she isn't partic'lar about
+givin' my daughter's mites a tanner, although I'll lay ten to one
+she's not allowed too much. And her flowers; have you seen 'em? Why
+there's not many a gardener as 'u'd arrange 'em in sich a bloomin'
+style."
+
+"Has Mr. Rougeant always been the sort of man that he is now?"
+inquired Frank.
+
+"No, not when the lady was alive; I s'pose it was her as made him
+spend some money on improvements. The year before she died, he took
+off the thatched roofs and put slate instead, then he built that
+there little conservatory, but as soon as she was gone, he began to
+pinch and screw; why, fancy, he used to shave himself, but now his
+razor's broke, he says he doesn't care to buy one, the bloke."
+Jacques heard a clock strike. "I must make haste to finish this," he
+said, "then I'll put on my togs and go home; my missus'l jaw if I'm
+not in time for the grub."
+
+"Good-night, then," said Frank.
+
+"Good-night, Sir," shouted Jacques.--"Whog back old mare--steady!"
+Frank heard him say as he walked away.
+
+Going home, he wrapped himself up in deep thought. The way which
+seemed clear yesterday, was now full of obstacles. Mr. Rougeant was
+rich; judging from his demeanour he had probably already chosen his
+daughter a husband--would that she were poor.
+
+He looked to see what redeeming feature he could find on his side.
+None. He had never felt so little as he now did.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+
+AN UNPLEASANT VISIT.
+
+
+When Adèle came back from shutting the door after Frank, her father
+looked at her with a hard, scrutinizing gaze, but did not say a
+word.
+
+It was just like him. He very rarely spoke when he was angry; he
+would mope about for whole days, his face covered with innumerable
+wrinkles.
+
+This anger on her father's part did not pain Adèle so much as it had
+formerly done. Her heart revolted at the thought of being always
+made to bend under her father's stern will.
+
+Like the terror-stricken few who would do battle for their rights,
+but are awed by countless numbers, Adèle had up to this time quietly
+submitted to her father's iron rule; but now she felt inclined to
+rebel.
+
+Accordingly, instead of trying to coax her father into wearing his
+ordinary face, which was none too pleasant, she pouted.
+
+The old man noticed this and chuckled to himself: "Ah, ah, you think
+a great deal of this young fellow. I'll teach you to keep up the
+honour of the family."
+
+He was so delighted at the prospect of an easy victory that he did
+not sulk nearly as long as usual, but, to the young girl's
+astonishment, was quite talkative the next day.
+
+"Your aunt asked me if you would go and take tea with her
+to-morrow," he said when they were at dinner.
+
+Adèle did not answer.
+
+Heedless of her silence, her father went on: "You must go, because
+you do not go often."
+
+The daughter answered: "No, I do not go often." She thought: "Often
+enough," for she did not at all relish the idea of a visit to her
+aunt.
+
+The inmates of the "Prenoms" did not please her. There was her
+uncle, Mr. Soher, morose and stern. He was one of this class of
+people who seem to be continually looking upwards, their mind so
+much occupied in contemplating the upper regions that they
+continually stumble against the blocks which lie in life's path. He
+lived, partly on his income, partly on the commission which he
+secured as agent to a firm of agricultural implement manufacturers,
+and partly on the money which he made by selling his property bit by
+bit. He had also advertised himself as auctioneer, house and estate
+agent, etcetera, but no one seemed to require his services in this
+line. Averse to manual labour, he could not properly cultivate such
+a small farm without submitting himself to this "slavish work," as
+he called it. Accordingly, he was, if slowly, surely drifting
+towards bankruptcy. He saw this, so did his wife, but neither seemed
+to care much; they were buoyed up by a false hope, always waiting
+for something unexpected to turn up, which would rescue them from
+this abyss.
+
+Mrs. Soher was Mr. Rougeant's sister.
+
+They were the only children of the late Charles Rougeant, of "Les
+Marches."
+
+She was short of stature, rather stout, her round little face
+always assuming a certain air of dignity, her light blue eyes
+wearing a fixed gaze and her tongue always ready to slander. She
+pretended to be religious, because her husband was so; had he been
+otherwise, she would certainly have been otherwise too.
+
+Then came her twenty-four year old daughter Amelia, the only member
+of the family with which the reader is not acquainted; and Tom,
+grown into a lazy, bad-tempered and slouching young man. Old Mrs.
+Soher was dead.
+
+The home at the "Prenoms" was not a bright one. Mr. Soher did not
+believe in education. He and his wife were often absent from home in
+the evening. They went to some meeting, and their two children were
+left alone. When the parents were gone, Tom left the house, leaving
+his sister alone and returning about half an hour before his parents
+came in. His sister said she would tell her father, but, upon Tom
+threatening her, she kept silent, for she feared her brother who was
+of a very violent temper.
+
+One day, Tom came in later than usual. When he entered the house, he
+was astonished to see his father sitting near the fire.
+
+"Well," said Mr. Soher, "what does this mean?"
+
+"I've just been out a little," said Tom.
+
+"I hope you will not repeat this, my son," said the father. Then he
+showed him how wicked it was to associate with bad companions, the
+probable results of it; how, when he had once acquired bad habits,
+he would find it nearly impossible to break with them; how he would
+be enticed into disreputable places, and a host of other
+admonishments.
+
+Tom did not answer; he felt culpable, but not repentant. He did not
+tell his father that this same evening he had entered a public-house
+for the first time.
+
+The days went by. Mr. Soher and his spouse continued to attend to
+their meetings and their son continued to go out, returning boldly
+after his parents had come in.
+
+One evening, he came in drunk. Then his father became really
+alarmed. He felt that he had not done towards his son all that he
+might have done.
+
+This did not, however, make him remain at home.
+
+"I must attend to my Master's work," he would say. Once, he took his
+son in the parlour, and after having exhorted him to turn a new leaf
+he lifted up his voice in prayer. But the son continued to drink and
+the father to pray, while the mother did as much as she could to
+shield her dear boy.
+
+Tom had neither the force of will, nor the desire to amend. His home
+was so dull; there was nothing about it which attracted him; he did
+not care at all for the mother who tried to screen his faults. She
+was so narrow minded; always speaking ill of everyone. She knew they
+were slowly sinking towards bankruptcy, and it was a consolation to
+her to imagine others in the same position. She saw other people's
+defects as if through a microscope.
+
+Foolish woman. Even as thou art scandalizing others, thine own
+nature is being abased, whilst those whom thou dost backbite remain
+the same.
+
+One glance at the daughter. She was taller and fairer than her
+mother. Her character was the same as her mother's. Alas! under
+such tutorship, how could she be expected to be otherwise.
+
+When the time came for Adèle to set out to pay her visit to the
+"Prenoms," she did so reluctantly. It was not a pleasure to her, it
+was a duty. If she did not go, she thought they would think her too
+proud. So she made the sacrifice, and went. She determined to show a
+bright face and to be as pleasant as she possibly could. She arrived
+at the house of her hosts rather late.
+
+Mrs. Soher welcomed her in a piping voice. She wore her everyday
+apparel, and that was not of the brightest.
+
+"Come in, my dear; you see, my dear, I have not had time yet to
+change clothes, but I'll be ready in a few minutes.
+
+"Sit down, my dear; why are you so late? I thought you would come
+sooner."
+
+Adèle thought: "What a state the house would have been in, if I had
+arrived an hour earlier."
+
+Mrs. Soher began to dust a secretaire, talking all the while to her
+niece. "Amelia will soon be down; she ran upstairs when she heard
+you knock at the door; she does not like for anyone to see her when
+she is not properly dressed, but _I_ don't care, not when it is you,
+at any rate."
+
+"A pretty compliment," thought the visitor.
+
+When they were all assembled round the table partaking of their tea,
+Adèle tried over and over again to lead the conversation into a
+pleasant channel, but all to no purpose. The inmates of the
+"Prenoms" had to be taught to converse properly before they could do
+so. Mrs. Soher began to babble in her ordinary way. Her daughter
+supported her foolish statements. Adèle made no remark. Her aunt
+noticed this, and after a most scornful remark about Mrs. B.'s
+character, she said to her niece: "Don't you think so?"
+
+Although considerably annoyed, Adèle had not so far made any remark,
+but she was now directly appealed to. She spoke: "I do not know,"
+she said. She noticed the two women smiling and exchanging glances.
+
+Said Mrs. Soher sarcastically: "I thought you knew Mrs. B."
+
+"Yes," answered her niece, "I know her, but I am continually
+detecting faults in my temper which have to be overcome; and I find
+that I have quite enough to do to look after myself without
+bothering about others."
+
+If ever you saw two people looking six ways for Sunday, it was Mrs.
+Soher and her daughter.
+
+After a few moments of embarrassing silence, Mr. Soher, who had not
+yet spoken a word, said something about young people being
+respectful to their superiors; while Tom laughed at the two women
+and smiled approvingly at his cousin.
+
+Adèle took her departure early and was not asked to remain longer.
+When she was once more in the open, she felt a great weight lifted
+from her breast. She was now free, free to entertain herself with
+nature, away from the stagnant atmosphere of the "Prenoms." She
+walked along, her whole being revolting against the useless, ay,
+more than useless talk she had heard. But when she looked at the
+flowers that grew on the hedges which bordered the lane in which she
+was walking, her soul was filled with a sweet balm. Here was the ivy
+climbing upwards taking its support and some of its nourishment from
+the hedge which it was scaling, always gaining fresh ground. Such is
+the man who has risen in the world; he avails himself of his
+success for a nobler, higher, and mightier effort. There some meek
+ferns were hiding in a shady nook, away from the sun's piercing
+rays.
+
+The young girl felt a twofold joy: that of being alone with nature,
+and that of being away from her aunt's house.
+
+At last, she reached "Les Marches." How happy she felt. Not the sort
+of home she hoped to have some day; but still, it was home. Her
+father was there, as dumb and as severe as usual, but, to her, he
+looked quite a nice old man now.
+
+While she was thus engaged in rapturous joy, Mrs. Soher and her
+daughter were having a fine time of it. "Ah! she _is_ a well-bred
+girl; to interrupt me like that, to answer and lecture me in that
+way," said Adèle's aunt, then she added: "Fancy that little brat, to
+try and give me a lesson about my duty towards my neighbour. If she
+has enough to do to look after herself, let her do it; for my part
+I'll do as I like. It won't be a young girl who is not yet out of
+her teens who is going to teach me how to live."
+
+The daughter scornfully remarked: "She has been to a
+boarding-school, you know."
+
+At which the two women laughed and Mr. Soher smiled, while Tom,
+profiting by the general interest displayed in the conversation,
+slipped out of the room and slouched to the nearest public-house.
+
+After having most unduly run down their departed guest, the two
+women resolved never again to invite her.
+
+And they never did.
+
+Had Adèle heard their decision, she would have felt even more
+cheerful than she now did.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+
+DECEPTIONS.
+
+
+On the anniversary of his mother's death, Frank Mathers resolved to
+visit her tomb. He had not been before; why, he could not explain.
+However, he determined to make up for past deficiencies.
+Accordingly, he went with a small bunch of flowers which he placed
+upon his mother's tomb. He felt a deep veneration for her. He now
+knew more than ever what she had done for him, and, in his heart, he
+thanked heaven that had given him such a mother. He could not help
+wishing that she were still alive, but he felt happy for all that,
+his soul was full of thankfulness.
+
+This visit did him so much good that he thought he would like to go
+oftener.
+
+When he came home he was astonished to see his step-mother. She was
+in a dreadful fit of jealousy. "The booby," she said to her husband,
+so that Frank could hear; "he was not a little attached to his
+mother's apron-strings."
+
+Frank did not say a single word and the storm soon abated.
+
+A few days afterwards found him walking near "Les Marches," hoping
+to meet Adèle Rougeant. He was not successful. Still, he continued
+his visits, hoping to meet her some day.
+
+He was at last rewarded for his pains. On turning a sharp corner he
+suddenly met her. The meeting was so unexpected that Frank's
+nervous system was quite upset. He had come hoping to talk to her.
+He was to enquire about Mr. Rougeant's health.
+
+But now, his courage failed him. He raised his hat, his lips
+muttered a faint: "How d'ye do?" he smiled in a ludicrous manner and
+passed on. The young girl who thought he was about his business
+bowed and went on her way. "He might have said a few words," she
+thought.
+
+Frank was vexed with himself.
+
+He thought of retracing his steps, but after a moment's reflection
+he decided not to do so.
+
+The weather began to look threatening. The sun was setting. Huge
+black clouds were rising from the horizon while an occasional flash
+of lightning announced the approach of the coming storm.
+
+Frank hastened as fast as he could toward the Rohais. But, he had
+not gone very far before a heavy shower overtook him.
+
+After all his pains, the only thing which he at last secured was a
+thorough drenching.
+
+When he came back home, he was down-hearted. Next morning he,
+however, determined to make one more attempt.
+
+A few days afterwards saw him leisurely promenading round the farm
+of "Les Marches." It was in the evening and the moon was rising.
+
+He went round by the back of the house through the fields. As he
+approached, he saw, on the opposite side to the stables, a small
+garden enclosed with high walls. One entrance, on the side of which
+he now stood, was by a door. He went towards it. The door was ajar.
+He entered the garden. Then, and only then, did he begin to reason.
+What if someone found him there? They would take him for a thief.
+"I must go," he said to himself; "if Mr. Rougeant found me here,
+there would be a fine row." But his lips uttered what his heart had
+not dictated, and he remained in the garden. It was sweet to be near
+her, it was refreshing to his weary brain to behold the paths which
+she paraded every day. He was plunged into a deep reverie, when he
+saw a light at one of the windows. It was she. Immediately after,
+there appeared another light at the other window. It was he. Frank
+only cast a glance at the man. He looked at the slender form that
+approached the window. Adèle looked at the stars for a few moments,
+then lowered the blind. He saw her shadow for a time, then _it_ also
+disappeared. His heart was beating at a very fast rate. He felt
+intoxicated. He had seen her; she had appeared to him as an angel.
+How she had gazed towards heaven! What grace; what bearing!
+
+Happening to turn his eyes towards the other window, he saw that
+there was no light.
+
+"The old fellow wants to spare his candle," he said to himself; "he
+is trying to save a farthing."
+
+This was not the case however. The farmer had suddenly thought of
+the garden door which he had forgotten to bolt as usual. He took his
+candlestick and went down stairs. Then he put on his boots, and
+leaving the candlestick on the table he went through the back door
+and stepped into the garden.
+
+Frank was gazing with fixed eyes at the stars, drinking in the balmy
+air, when he heard footsteps. Hastily looking in the direction from
+whence the sound came, he was horrified to see a man coming towards
+him. There was not time to flee, so he quickly crouched away from
+the path. Luckily, he was in that part of the garden which was in
+the shade.
+
+He trembled as the farmer approached. Would he see him? He was
+breathing through his nose; then he fancied he made too much noise.
+He opened his mouth wide, then he found that his breathing was not
+even audible to himself. He squeezed his body into the least
+possible space, and watched the farmer with anxious eyes.
+
+Mr. Rougeant passed by without noticing him. Frank heard him shut
+the door, bolt it, and--oh, misery--turn a key in a latch. Mr.
+Rougeant again directed his steps towards him. When he came near to
+him, Frank was dreadfully alarmed to see the farmer looking straight
+in his direction. The young man was in the shade, while the moon
+shone fully on Mr. Rougeant's face. The latter looked straight at
+the crouching figure, then, suddenly quickening his pace, he went
+towards the house.
+
+This man was a coward. He had seen the contracted silhouette, but
+had not had the courage to go up to it; he went hurriedly towards
+his house, seized an old gun which hung on two rusty nails and
+walked back into the garden. The gun was loaded for shooting
+rabbits.
+
+As soon as Frank saw that the man was out of his way, he proceeded
+to try and find out some means of escape. "He will be back soon," he
+said to himself, "I must be out of his way when he returns." He went
+to the door. Impossible to open it. He scrutinized the walls.
+Impossible to scale them. Time was passing. What was to be done? He
+heard the door of the house close. The master of the garden was
+advancing. He saw a pear-tree nailed against the wall. There was
+not a moment to lose. He climbed the pear-tree. He broke a few
+branches in doing so, and knocked down a dozen pears. He regretted
+doing any damage, but he knew it would be better for him, and indeed
+for both of them, if he got out of the way in time.
+
+Just as he let himself drop to the ground on the other side of the
+wall, the farmer entered the garden. While Mr. Rougeant was engaged
+in searching for the supposed thief with cocked gun, Frank was
+walking quickly towards his home.
+
+Of course, the farmer did not find the intruder, but he found the
+broken Chaumontel pear-tree, and he saw the pears scattered on the
+ground.
+
+"The unmitigated scoundrel," he muttered, "if I saw him now--looking
+at his gun--I'd make him decamp. I'd send a few shots into his dirty
+hide."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X.
+
+'TWIXT LOVE AND DUTY.
+
+
+One evening--it was the first week in June, about nine months after
+Frank's adventure in the garden--Adèle Rougeant was tending her
+flowers.
+
+She had been sewing for a time, and now, feeling a want of
+relaxation, she went to her parterre. Her violin and her flowers
+were her only companions. No wonder she fled to them when inclined
+to be sorrowful.
+
+How beautiful the flower-bed looked in the twilight! The weather had
+been very warm, the earth which had been previously battered down by
+heavy rains was now covered with small cracks, little mouths as it
+were, begging for water.
+
+Adèle supplied them plentifully with the precious liquid.
+
+Then she armed herself with a pair of gardening gloves, and an old
+mason's trowel (any instrument is good to a woman), and began to
+plant a row of lobelias all around her pelargoniums.
+
+This done, she looked at her work. There is a pleasure in gazing
+upon well-trimmed borders, but this pleasure is increased tenfold
+when one thinks that the plants have been arranged by one's own
+hands.
+
+The young lady felt this delight: she felt more, she experienced the
+soothing influence of nature's sweet converse. She looked at the
+primroses, whose slender stalks were bent and which touched each
+other as if engaged in silent intercourse. And thus they would die,
+she thought, locked in each others fond embrace, their task
+accomplished, their life but one stretch of mutual love.
+
+"Ah love! What is love?" she said to herself. But immediately a
+score of answers came; a dozen vague definitions presented
+themselves. "Certainly," she mused, "the parents who toil for their
+children without thinking of reward; love." Then another self within
+her answered: "It is their duty." "Their duty, yes, but they are not
+often actuated by a sense of duty; I think it is love."
+
+Then she thought about another kind of love--the love she felt for
+Frank Mathers. She asked herself why she loved him. He was not bold,
+and she admired boldness. That she loved him, however, she was
+certain. Did he love her? "Yes," she thought he did. Then what kept
+them apart? Who was the cause of it? Her father. "What a pity I have
+such a father," she sighed; "not content with making himself
+miserable, he makes me pass a life of anxiety."
+
+At this stage of her soliloquy, she perceived a young man, whom she
+quickly recognized as Tom, her cousin from the "Prenoms." He came
+walking towards the house.
+
+As he opened the little gate he smiled broadly. His smile was not a
+pleasant one, because it was undefined. "Good-evening, Adèle," he
+said when he came near to her. "How are you?"
+
+"Quite well thank you," she said, "and how are you?"
+
+"Well enough, thanks," he returned, a little cooled down, for she
+did not take the preferred hand which he was tending towards her.
+
+"Are you afraid to shake hands with me?" he asked, half smiling,
+half vexed.
+
+"My gloves are soiled," replied she, taking off her right hand
+glove; afterwards shaking hands with him.
+
+"Oh, I see," he said, quite satisfied with the excuse.
+
+In reality, Adèle had not seen the preferred hand; she was busy with
+her thoughts just then. His manner seemed repulsive to her; she knew
+not why. She opened the front door and showed him into the parlour.
+Her father was there, evidently expecting Tom, for he received him
+with a warmth which he had not shown for a long time. She left them
+to themselves and was proceeding towards her parterre when her
+father called out to her.
+
+"What! are you going, Adèle, when Mr. Soher is here; come and keep
+us company."
+
+The girl retraced her steps. What could her father mean? He had not
+told her a word about her cousin's visit, and yet, it was evident he
+was expecting him.
+
+"Where's your violin?" questioned her father.
+
+Adèle fetched the desired instrument. She felt very much like an
+instrument herself. "Father takes me for a toy," she thought, and
+then as she looked at the two men engaged in close conversation, a
+sudden light beamed upon her--he was going to force her into a
+_marriage de raison_, as the French call it. Everything had been
+arranged beforehand.
+
+It was all conjecture on her part, but she felt it to be the truth.
+The more she thought over it, the more she felt convinced of the
+fact.
+
+"Oh, it's disgusting," she thought; and a sickening sensation crept
+over her.
+
+"Will you give us a tune?" said Mr. Rougeant.
+
+"Do;" entreated Tom.
+
+Adèle took the violin from the table upon which she had placed it,
+passed the bow over the strings to ascertain if it was properly
+tuned, then slowly began playing.
+
+It was a simple piece, which did not demand exertion. She did not
+care what to play. "They cannot distinguish 'Home, Sweet Home' from
+'Auld Lang Syne,'" she thought. Besides, they were not half
+listening; why should she give them good music.
+
+She felt like the painter, who, having completed a real work of art,
+refuses to exhibit it to the public, on the ground that it is a
+profane thing to exhibit it to the gaze of unartistic eyes.
+
+When she had finished playing, Tom looked at her. "That's capital
+music," he said, assuming the air of a connoisseur, then he added:
+"I s'pose you practice a good bit."
+
+"The grin," thought Adèle, "it's awful; and his eyes resemble those
+of a wild cat. I wonder if he has a soul; if it shines through those
+eyes, it cannot be spotless;" then, recollecting herself, she said:
+"I have been practising now for ten years."
+
+"No wonder you can rattle it," was the rejoinder.
+
+Now Tom was not half so ugly as Adèle imagined him to be. Indeed, he
+looked well enough this evening, for he had come on purpose to
+exhibit himself, and was as a matter of fact as well dressed up as
+he could. His manners were not refined, but they were not absolutely
+rude.
+
+But the girl, whose whole being revolted against this scheme of her
+father's fabrication, felt naturally indignant and could not help
+exaggerating his faults.
+
+She felt greatly relieved when her father told her to prepare the
+supper.
+
+It may here be noted that Mr. Rougeant had now altogether dispensed
+with his Breton servant. Now that Adèle was growing up, a servant
+was altogether superfluous, he said. The truth was that this enabled
+him to save a few pounds every year.
+
+When the table was laid, the three sat down to supper. It being
+over, the two men returned to the parlour. Adèle was a long, very
+long time in putting away the supper things.
+
+Her father noticed this, and when she entered the parlour, he
+remarked: "You've been long enough."
+
+"Provided she has not been too long," put in his nephew, trying to
+win his cousin's good will.
+
+After one of the most miserable evenings that Adèle had ever spent,
+Tom took leave of the family.
+
+When he was fairly out of the way, Adèle ventured to ask her father
+what he had come for.
+
+"He came to see us," he replied, then, after a pause, he added
+abruptly: "Have you ever thought of marrying?"
+
+"I, marry! you forget that I am but a child."
+
+"A child! why, you will soon be of age."
+
+There was a deep silence for a time, then the father spoke: "Mr.
+Soher (emphasizing the Mr.) is a nice young man. He means to ask
+your hand when he is better acquainted with you."
+
+"He drinks."
+
+"Not now, I know he used to do so, but he is quite steady now--I
+knew you would object, I saw it in your manner, the way in which you
+answered him; somehow or other, you don't seem to take to
+respectable people. But mind you; if ever you marry anyone else, not
+a penny of mine shall you have; not one double."
+
+"He is my _cousin-germain_."
+
+"Well, what does it matter? the law does not prevent you from
+marrying your _cousin-germain_." His tone became bitter. He went on:
+"I made a great mistake when I promised your mother on her death-bed
+that I would send you to a boarding-school. What other objection
+have you to state?"
+
+His daughter looked down, coloured and replied almost inaudibly: "I
+do not love him."
+
+"Bah! if it's only that, you will get to love him soon enough; I
+know you will."
+
+Then thinking by her demeanour that he had nearly won her over, he
+asked: "Shall I ask him to dinner next Sunday?"
+
+"You would only increase the contempt that I feel for him."
+
+Mr. Rougeant was not prepared for this. "I knew it," he said in a
+vexed tone of voice; "this is the satisfaction you give me for
+having brought you up like a lady, spending a great part of my
+income towards your education. I tell you, you are a foolish girl, a
+simpleton; I won't have any of your nonsense. I will see to this
+later on."
+
+They retired for the night; Mr. Rougeant enraged at his daughter's
+abhorrence of Tom, and Adèle deeply grieved at the condition of
+affairs.
+
+Alas! she knew her father well.
+
+She felt that a terrible battle would have to be fought some day; a
+conflict for love and liberty.
+
+And, raising her eyes to heaven, she prayed that she might have
+strength to support the fight.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+
+BUSINESS.
+
+
+While these things were going on at "Les Marches," a great change
+had come over Frank's life.
+
+His father was one day descending a ladder, when one of the rounds
+of the latter broke and his body received a nasty jerk. He placed
+his hand on his heart and muttered. "I have felt something, I have
+felt something here." Two days afterwards he died from internal
+hemorrhage.
+
+So Frank was left to live with his step-mother.
+
+He had now a little money and was considering how he should lay it
+out. Finally, he decided to build one or two greenhouses. But he
+wanted some land upon which to build them, and this he did not
+possess.
+
+There was a field situated behind his garden which belonged to a Mr.
+Fallon. "This field would exactly suit me," he said to himself, "I
+must try to buy it."
+
+Accordingly, he set out towards "La Chaumière"--this was the name of
+Mr. Fallon's residence. When he arrived there, he saw the farmer
+coming out of his stable and at once asked him if his field was for
+sale. Now, Mr. Fallon thought himself too much of a business man to
+answer either "Yes" or "No." "I do not think," he said, "but I can't
+tell. I must mention it to my wife and think over it, for it's a
+serious thing to sell one's property."
+
+Frank nodded.
+
+Would he call the next evening? the man asked.
+
+Frank promised to call.
+
+The farmer immediately told his wife about the young man's proposal.
+The worthy couple decided to sell the piece of land, "but," said the
+cautious husband, "we must sell it at a high price, if we can. I
+wish it were sold though," he continued, "it's such an out of the
+way place, and so far from here."
+
+The next evening saw Frank sitting near the hearth of the kitchen of
+"La Chaumière." The following conversation took place.
+
+"Well, Mr. Fallon," said Frank, "I have come to see if the field is
+really for sale."
+
+"I hardly know, one doesn't like to do away with one's property."
+
+"You told me you would tell me this evening."
+
+"Yes, I know, but, it's a good field."
+
+"It may be."
+
+"There's a stream running through it."
+
+"I know."
+
+"You would not have to dig a well, and a well costs a great deal of
+money."
+
+"Sometimes."
+
+"I have a mind to keep it."
+
+"Indeed!"
+
+"Ah! but such good land, it's a pity to give it away."
+
+"I don't want to have it for nothing."
+
+"Perhaps not, but I don't think you would give me my price."
+
+"What is it?"
+
+"Much too cheap. Land is very dear just now, and the prices will
+always go up."
+
+"I don't know about that."
+
+"No, but I do, people are very eager to purchase such fine little
+plots. This one has all the advantages that it can have,
+situation----"
+
+"What do you mean?"
+
+"It's situated just behind your garden; where can you have anything
+better."
+
+"The field is well situated for me, but it's not worth anything as
+building land to others, it does not border the road," Frank
+ventured to remark.
+
+"It's a splendid piece of land," continued the farmer, "light, open
+and yet damp soil, just the sort of thing for tomatoes, I fancy I
+can see them, as big as my fist----"
+
+"We have not done much business yet."
+
+"I don't know if I shall sell it."
+
+"If that's the case, when will you make up your mind; shall I call
+again to-morrow?"
+
+"I hardly know"--scratching his head--"such a fine plot, let me see;
+aloud: It's worth a lot of money."
+
+"How much would you require?"
+
+"Oh! I don't know."
+
+"Well, I'll call again this day week," said Frank, tiring of this
+useless talk and guessing what the farmer's intentions were. He rose
+and added: "I hope you will have made up your mind by then."
+
+Quoth the farmer: "I should be very sorry for you to have had to
+come here for nothing, perhaps we may yet come to terms."
+
+"Will you sell it? 'Yes' or 'No,'" said the young man re-seating
+himself.
+
+"If you don't mind giving me my price."
+
+"What _is_ your price?"
+
+"Land is very dear. This piece is situated quite close to town, it
+ought to fetch top price. There's two and a half vergées to that
+field. I have heard that some land has been sold for eight quarters
+a vergée."
+
+"I won't give as much for this one; it's twice too much."
+
+"I should require some money."
+
+"How much?"
+
+"At least one hundred pounds."
+
+"Perhaps I might give you as much, but do state the price of the
+whole."
+
+"Six quarters a vergée."
+
+"No."
+
+"It would be worth that to you."
+
+"I will give you five quarters."
+
+"It's too low, the field would only amount to two hundred and fifty
+pounds."
+
+"Two hundred and fifty pounds for two and a half vergées, that is
+about an acre, is, I should think, a very good price."
+
+"That would only make, besides the one hundred pounds cash, seven
+and a half pounds per annum. Such a fertile soil. Such a splendid
+stream. No well to dig. Hundreds of tomatoes weighing half-a-pound
+each. It's ridiculously low."
+
+"It's time for me to part. Will you accept my price, Mr. Fallon,
+'Yes' or 'No?'"
+
+After much grumbling and protestations on the part of the farmer,
+with assertions that he would be ruined giving away his land like
+that, the transaction was agreed to.
+
+Going home, Frank reviewed in his mind the state of his finance.
+
+He possessed the house, garden, greenhouse and workshop, minus his
+step-mother's dowry, and plus five hundred pounds cash. "I cannot do
+much with that," he thought, "but I have enough to begin with."
+
+And now where were his ambitious castles; where was the successful
+inventor, the possessor of hundreds of thousands--contemplating to
+build two span-roofed greenhouses in which he would have to work and
+perspire when the thermometer would often stand at from eighty to
+ninety degrees.
+
+However, he was full of hope, his ambition had received a severe
+blow, but it still clung to him. He feared to aim too high now, and
+failures he dreaded. "I must begin at the bottom of the ladder," he
+said to himself, "and, with God's help, I shall succeed."
+
+He resolved to work with his brains as well as with his hands. "I
+have some education," he thought, "and I will seize the
+opportunities as they present themselves. I do not care for riches
+now. If only I could succeed in securing enough money to put me out
+of the danger of want, I should be satisfied."
+
+Since his adventure in the garden, he had not dared to go again near
+"Les Marches."
+
+He thought that Mr. Rougeant had perhaps recognised him, but,
+fortunately for him, Adèle's father had failed to discern his
+crouching figure.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+
+A STRANGE MEETING.
+
+
+Three months afterwards, Frank was planting his tomatoes in his
+greenhouses. He had two span-roofs, each one hundred and forty feet
+long by forty feet wide.
+
+He had sold the workshop which was situated a few yards to the north
+of the house, and had thus been enabled to build larger houses than
+he at first intended.
+
+He heard vague rumours about his step-mother going to marry again.
+If the truth must be said, Frank felt delighted at the prospect of
+getting rid of her. He had never cared for her much, and, recently,
+the gap that had always existed between them had been considerably
+enlarged.
+
+He had been out on business and had arrived rather late in the
+evening, at which Mrs. Mathers was terribly displeased. "I am not
+going to sit up all night waiting for you," she said, and then she
+added in a most sarcastic tone of voice: "Perhaps you have been at
+the cemetery."
+
+Frank was moved to the quick. He was of a rather passionate temper
+and he felt nothing but contempt for the person who had made this
+remark. "I have not been," he said hotly, "I have been about my
+business."
+
+"I thought that perhaps you had been crying there," she continued
+with the same irritating smile on her features.
+
+Frank answered: "I might have done worse."
+
+"Who would think that of a man of twenty-one," she said. "Of course,
+you do not care for your poor father; your mother gets all the
+tears."
+
+Frank quite forgot himself. He looked at her defiantly and said in a
+low tone half fearing and yet wishing to be heard: "You are a
+Jezabel," then turned round and left the room.
+
+When he came to think over the last words which he had used towards
+his step-mother, he felt ashamed of himself. He felt he had not
+behaved as a man, much less as a Christian. He had gone much too
+far; he owed her respect.
+
+He thought of going straight to her, and of asking her pardon, but
+his pride prevented him from taking this wise step. Only for a
+minute, however; he soon overcame it and resolutely re-entered the
+room where Mrs. Mathers was.
+
+"I was very rude to you," he began, "I was rather excited, and----"
+
+Without saying a word Mrs. Mathers left the room and, slamming the
+door after her, proceeded upstairs.
+
+Frank felt relieved. He had attempted a reconciliation. She had
+refused. He felt a sense of duty done.
+
+We may add that Mrs. Mathers pouted for more than a week.
+
+The second anniversary of his father's death having arrived, Frank,
+profiting by his step-mother's absence, took a small bunch of sweet
+scented flowers and proceeded towards the Foulon Cemetery, where his
+parents were buried.
+
+As he was about to open the gate, he thought he saw the form of a
+lady which he knew, coming down the road after him. He arrested his
+steps. The young lady stopped likewise, as if to examine the
+cottage situated on her left, and, in doing so, she turned her back
+towards Frank.
+
+He did not stay there long, but proceeded up the gravel walk towards
+the grave, but as he advanced, he thought no more of his mission.
+"Where have I seen that face?" he thought, "it seems familiar to
+me."
+
+He was now beside the grave, he placed the flowers near the
+tombstone, but his thoughts were not with the dead, they were with
+the living.
+
+All at once, it flashed upon him, he remembered that person. That
+form, that face, belonged to Adèle Rougeant.
+
+He hastily left the graveyard and almost ran down the walk.
+
+One of the two persons who were standing near the gate said: "That
+man has seen a ghost."
+
+Frank smiled as he overheard the remark, and, thinking that the
+young lady had proceeded past the gate, he went in that direction.
+
+He walked for a quarter of an hour, but neither saw her nor anyone
+resembling her. At last, he gave up the chase in despair. "I must
+have construed wrongly," he said to himself, "perhaps the person who
+was standing near the entrance to the cemetery was right, it was her
+ghost." He mournfully retraced his steps.
+
+It was really Adèle Rougeant that he had seen. She was returning
+from town, when, instead of going straight home by St. Martin's
+mill, she went up the Grange, took a peep at her former home, then
+proceeded by the Rocquettes down the Rohais. Why; the lady readers
+will easily guess.
+
+She espied Frank, just as he was turning down Foulon Vale.
+
+He was so intent on his mission that he did not notice her.
+
+As soon as she saw his eager look and the bunch of flowers which he
+carried in his hands, a feeling of exasperating jealousy seized her.
+Where was he going with those flowers? "Alas!" she thought bitterly,
+"he has a rendezvous with some pretty lass. I will follow him and
+ascertain, if possible, the truth."
+
+She walked after him, and when he turned round to look at her, she
+hastily looked the other way. Fearing lest he might recognise her,
+she retraced her steps and continued her journey homewards down the
+Rohais, muttering: "A fine place for a rendezvous."
+
+Something within her tried to reason: "He is nothing to you, you
+have no claims upon him." But what of her future, what of her
+projected plans, her ideas, her sweet dreams; they were mown down in
+this huge and single sweep. Life seemed very dark. Up to this, hope
+had kept her radiant and cheerful, and now, hope was gone, and in
+its stead, there was a blank.
+
+Arrived home, she fetched her violin and poured forth all her
+feelings.
+
+She commenced in a plaintive tone, then this changed to reproach,
+and the conclusion was a wail of despair.
+
+Again she tried to rouse herself; again she tried to reason. "Why am
+I so concerned about him?" she asked herself. "I must put these
+foolish thoughts aside."
+
+But love denied what reason would dictate, and she found herself
+continually sighing.
+
+Meanwhile, Tom continued his visits from time to time, and she
+received him with as much coldness as she dared.
+
+But when she came to think that Frank was an acquaintance to be
+forgotten, she slightly changed her manner towards her cousin.
+
+Her father was not slow to notice the change. He laughed inly and
+chuckled: "I knew she would come to love him; but I must not hurry
+her, she is by nature a slow coach; everything will yet come all
+right in the end."
+
+The days were lengthening and Tom continued to come as early as he
+used to do in the depth of winter.
+
+It was now quite daylight when he put in an appearance. One evening
+he took Adèle for a walk round the garden. Poor girl; she did not
+love him, but she did not like to speak roughly to him. She felt
+that she was wronging him. She knew that at each meeting his hope
+increased. Still, what was she to do? She began to persuade herself
+that he was not so bad as she had imagined. He was now a reformed
+man; her father had told her so, and she could see it. If the
+passion for drink which was still probably strong within him should
+return! She paused, mused and said with a sigh: "Alas! I do not feel
+that I love him."
+
+Still; she hardly knew if in the end she would accept him. He would
+be so deeply grieved if she refused, and then, if she accepted him,
+her father would perhaps become once more what he was when she was
+quite a child. She remembered how he used to take her on his knee,
+and call her his dear little girl.
+
+She went on thinking: "How many people marry without what is
+generally called love? Certainly, the greater portion. The French
+have what they call _marriages de raison_, and they seem to agree
+as well as others."
+
+Poor Adèle. How many have reasoned thus, how many are daily giving
+themselves away in marriage to men for whom they feel nought but
+friendship; how many give their hand to one, while their heart
+yearns for another.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+
+SUPERSTITION.
+
+
+While Adèle was thus pondering over her natural shocks, Frank was
+working, full of hope for the future.
+
+His step-mother married, and he was left in possession of the house.
+He let it to an old couple, Pierre Merlin and his wife. Maît Pierre,
+as Frank called him, was a man of about sixty years of age. He
+worked for Frank who found that it was impossible for him to keep
+things ship-shape without re-enforcement.
+
+This old man gloried in being a true Guernseyman, one of the old
+stock, of direct descent from those who fought for their country
+against the band of adventurers who invaded the island under Ivan of
+Wales. He did not say that the islanders had the worst of the fight.
+He only spoke in the patois, which Frank understood very well.
+
+This species of the genus "homo" hailed from the parish of Torteval,
+and, being an old peasant and very illiterate, there is no cause for
+being astonished that he was superstitious.
+
+Frank perceived this only a few days after he had engaged him. It
+was a Friday, and the old man who was told to go and gather a few
+tomatoes--the first of the season--exclaimed: "What! begin on a
+Friday, but you forget yourself, Mr. Mathers."
+
+Frank laughed at him and told him to go all the same, adding that
+he was surprised people believed in such nonsense. Old Pierre obeyed
+muttering: "He is a young man, and he will lose a nice lot of money
+on his crops, defying fate in that way. But it's as the proverb
+says: 'Experience is a thing which is bought.'"
+
+Although Frank did not believe in any of the old man's notions, the
+continual remarks which he heard made him eager to know more. When
+they had dined, the two men proceeded to a garden seat and while the
+elder smoked his pipe, the younger questioned him.
+
+Pierre was very reticent in his information. What was the use of
+telling this young man anything; he would not believe him.
+
+As time passed on, he began to have more confidence in his employer,
+and seeing that he never laughed at what he said, he gradually
+became more talkative.
+
+One day, when Frank was questioning him, the old man asked: "Have
+you ever seen the _feu bellanger_?"
+
+"I don't think so," responded Frank, "at any rate, I had never heard
+that name mentioned before."
+
+"Well," said Maît Pierre, "if you care to listen, I shall tell you
+all about it; you appear eager to know everything."
+
+He took his pipe from between his teeth; well emptied the bowl, and
+put the blackened clay pipe in his pocket with studied carefulness.
+Then he began: "The _feu bellanger_ is one of the devil's angels
+which takes the shape of fire, and goes about at night, generally
+when it is very dark, and tries to pounce upon some victim."
+
+Here, he stopped and looked inquiringly at Frank, who, in his
+desire to hear what old Pierre had to say, kept a very grave face.
+
+Apparently satisfied at the young man's appearance, the narrator
+continued: "I have often seen it myself, and once, very clearly. I
+will never forget it to my dying day. It was pitch-dark and a
+drizzling rain was falling. I was walking hastily towards my home,
+when, on my right, I beheld a light. It danced up and down, now it
+came towards me, then it receded. I confess that I was nailed to the
+spot. I already seemed to feel its deathly grip. I was powerless to
+move. I could not scream. It was the old fellow who was already
+fascinating me. Fortunately, I remembered the words which my father
+had once told me: 'If ever you meet the _feu bellanger_, my boy,
+take off your coat, turn the sleeves inside out, and put it on so;
+it means that you will have nothing to do with it, and that you will
+resist its efforts to seize you.' I found strength enough to follow
+my father's advice. Hope must have sustained me. The bluish light
+remained about there for a few minutes more, then disappeared
+entirely."
+
+"How thankful did I feel. With all speed, I hastened home to tell my
+parents of my narrow escape. They congratulated me; my father even
+took my hand and welcomed me as one risen from the dead."
+
+"How does it kill the people it attacks?" Frank inquired.
+
+"It flies with them to the seaside, or to the nearest pool and
+drowns them there."
+
+"I once knew a man who was a downright ne'er do well. He was very
+much addicted to drink. One morning, he was found drowned in a
+stream."
+
+"But," interposed Frank, "he might have stumbled in the stream
+whilst in a state of intoxication."
+
+"No--no--no," said Pierre, "it was not that; the _feu bellanger_ was
+seen that very night near this spot where the corpse was afterwards
+found. Some people said that they had heard a scream. I quite
+believe it. It was the horrible monster's triumphal shout. He was
+celebrating his victory."
+
+"You don't think it was the poor inebriate's cry for help," said
+Frank, forcing back a smile.
+
+"I told you it was a shout of triumph," said old Pierre, losing
+patience and already angry at Frank's demeanour. "Moreover," he
+added, "I'll tell you something else, I have not finished yet.
+
+"It's a well-known fact that the _feu bellanger_ dislikes sharpened
+tools, and fights with them if he happens to meet them. Being aware
+of this, my brother and I went to a place where we had seen the
+monster on the previous night. We had a sharp knife. We placed it
+with the handle in the ground and the keen blade sticking out."
+
+"We watched from a distance to see if the _feu bellanger_ would pass
+that way, and seeing that it did not appear; when midnight came, we
+went home. But a neighbour told us on the morrow that he had seen it
+in the early hours of the morning, fighting against the knife.
+
+"We straightway proceeded to the place where the knife was. Imagine
+our horror on finding that the blade was covered with blood."
+
+"Some poor stray animal _did_ suffer," Frank could not help
+remarking. Old Pierre was terribly displeased. He rose to go about
+his work, muttering: "Wait till he sees it, when he gets caught, I
+bet he'll turn blue."
+
+Frank thought about his labourer's story during the whole of the
+afternoon. "These superstitions do a great deal of harm to these
+poor people," he said in a soliloquy.
+
+He therefore resolved to try and root out all these strange notions
+from Pierre's head. He soon felt a kind of ecstacy. It was a
+glorious thing to help bring about the time when science would sweep
+away all traces of ignorance.
+
+If the theory of evolution was true, those times would come, so he
+decided to set to work at once upon this man.
+
+It was a beginning, small perhaps, but he now believed in small
+beginnings.
+
+He had not yet experienced what it is to try and convert a
+superstitious man.
+
+It is very difficult to convince an ignorant person.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+
+FAILURE.
+
+
+Having made up his mind to rescue Maît Pierre from his
+superstitions, Frank at once set to work.
+
+So, the day following his decision, he advanced to the attack.
+
+When they were both seated as usual having their after-dinner
+conversation, Frank began: "Do you really believe all you told me
+about the _feu bellanger_, Maît Pierre?"
+
+"If I believe it? why, certainly I do."
+
+Frank knew he did believe it, but he wanted to fix the conversation
+at once. "I'll tell you what this fire is," continued the young man;
+"it is a light which comes out of the soil, more especially in the
+marshy places. It is called 'Will-o'-the-Wisp' by some of the
+country folk in England, 'Jack-o'-Lantern' by others. The true name
+of this ignited gas is _ignis fatuus_."
+
+The old man smiled. His look at Frank was one of pity. "What a poor
+young simple-minded, inexperienced person," he thought, and in the
+voice of a man quoting a passage from Horace he said aloud: "I have
+seen it on the top of a hill."
+
+"It may be," answered Frank, and, seeing old Pierre's triumphant
+attitude, he added: "Do you not think that there is a Maker who
+watches over us? how foolish to think that he would let the evil
+one go about like that and drown people at his will----"
+
+Pierre suddenly interrupted him: "And Job," he said.
+
+"Oh! that was in the olden times," said Frank; "besides, it's poetic
+language, you must not take it so literally as you seem to do. Do
+you know what lies at the bottom of all these superstitions?
+Ignorance; nothing but the lack of education. Among men of
+knowledge, nothing of this sort is ever heard of. They do not
+believe in witches riding on broomsticks. Ah!" he added, seeing
+Pierre was getting excited; "you believe in witches too?"
+
+"Mr. Mathers," said the old man looking steadily at Frank, "you're a
+young man, you should not try so to rail at people who have
+experience; you should not try to make me disbelieve things which I
+have seen with both my eyes; when you are older, when you have
+passed through all that I have passed; ah, when you have, as we say
+proverbially 'dragged the harrow where I have dragged the plough';
+then, and only then, will you attempt to remonstrate with elderly
+people. I think the proper thing for you to do now is to wait till
+you have gained some experience and not to try and speak about
+things which you know nothing of."
+
+Frank was astonished at the serious tone in which this little speech
+was delivered. He began to see how deep-rooted were Pierre's
+beliefs, but if the difficulties multiplied in his path, his fervour
+rose also. He had decided to show this man the fallacy of his
+arguments, and he must accomplish his self-imposed task. He was now
+very determined; the more so, as he noticed the air of superiority
+old Pierre assumed.
+
+"You have no proofs whatever in support of what you advance," he
+said, "while I can prove to you that this light seen over or near
+bogs and sometimes over cemeteries, is nothing but '_ignis fatuus_.'
+This man found drowned, and all that nonsense, is nothing but what
+would happen under ordinary circumstances. In a state of
+intoxication, he walked in the pool and was drowned. Is not that
+plain enough?
+
+"The knife covered with blood was the result of some beast cutting
+its leg with the sharpened edge, every sensible man will acknowledge
+that; prove to me the contrary, and I will believe you; until then,
+never.
+
+"And these witches, by the by, you have not told me if you believed
+in them."
+
+The old man met his gaze defiantly as he answered: "Yes, I do. I do
+not know if, as you say, they ride on broomsticks; but I'll tell you
+this: My father was no fibber. He told me one day that a certain
+woman went at their house from time to time. They never saw her come
+in at the door like one might see another person do, but she simply
+fell plump in the middle of the kitchen. She found herself there,
+none knew how; I do not know whether it was through the ceiling or
+otherwise, but my father assured me he had seen her come in this
+fashion more than once."
+
+"Stop," cried Frank, "I never thought it would come to this. It
+beats all that I have yet heard. And you believe that, Maît Pierre,
+you who think yourself----"
+
+"My father always spoke the truth," interrupted Pierre, "if a man
+is not to believe what he has seen, what must he confide in, then?"
+
+"You ought to use your reasoning faculties; but, tell me, have you
+ever been an eye-witness to any of these things?"
+
+"If I've seen any? why, certainly, by the dozen almost. I'll tell
+you one. I was working some few years ago for a Mr. Fouret. One of
+his cows having died from milk fever, it was found necessary to
+replace it. Now old Mrs. X. had two for sale at that time, and
+knowing that my master wanted to buy one, she offered him hers.
+
+"I must tell you that this woman had the reputation of having the
+evil eye. Mr. Fouret did not care to refuse her, so he said he would
+go and see them. He went. When he came back, he told us he would not
+take them even if Mrs. X. gave them to him for nothing; they were
+very lean and deformed. So he resolved to risk being bewitched and
+bought one from Mr. Paslet.
+
+"When he came back to the farm he said to me: 'Pierre, go and fetch
+the cow which I have bought at Mr. Paslet's farm.'
+
+"'All right sir,' answered I, and I started.
+
+"As I was coming back quietly with the beast, whom should I meet but
+Mrs. X.
+
+"'Oh, it's you, Pierre,' she said grinning; 'where have you had that
+cow from?'
+
+"I explained: 'Master had bought the animal in the morning from Mr.
+Paslet and had sent me to fetch it.'
+
+"'Ah, indeed,' she said, patting the animal; 'she's a fine beast.'
+
+"When I saw her laying her hand on the poor creature, I said to
+myself, 'she's giving it her.' But what could I do? I said nothing,
+and the old woman went away.
+
+"I had not proceeded more than one hundred yards when the animal
+began to show signs of illness. However, I managed to lead her to
+the farm which was not very far. But the beast got worse and worse.
+Mr. Fouret came to examine her. 'What's the matter with the brute?'
+he said, 'you've made her walk too fast I'm afraid; she seems to be
+tired and exhausted.'
+
+"'Mr. Fouret,' I responded, 'I came along very slowly, but on the
+road I met Mrs. X.'
+
+"'Did she touch the cow?' he inquired.
+
+"'Yes,' I answered.
+
+"'What a nuisance,' he exclaimed, and turning to the servant-boy who
+was there he said: 'take a horse and fetch the vet. as quickly as
+you possibly can.'
+
+"The veterinary surgeon came. Of course, he was not going to say he
+did not know what was the matter with the beast, so he said it
+was----I forget the name now, it was a queer word he said, I know, a
+name which he was sure we should not remember anyone of us,--and
+told us to fetch some medicine.
+
+"We gave her the drug. She seemed a little bit better and we left
+her for the night. In going to have a look at her on the following
+morning, I found the poor animal dead."
+
+"Well," said Frank, "what proofs have you that it was really this
+woman who caused your cow to give up the ghost?"
+
+"What proofs?" ejaculated the old man; "well, I think there were
+proofs enough; but, to be quite sure, Mr. Fouret consulted a white
+witch. She told him it was an old woman who was jealous of him, and
+gave my employer a powder to burn. 'You may be certain that the
+culpable person will come to you, when you have burnt that powder,'
+she said to him.
+
+"Mr. Fouret did as he had been told to do, and Mrs. X. came on the
+following morning. She said: 'I thought I would call so as to have a
+look at your new acquisition.'"
+
+"I do not care to hear any more," interrupted Frank; "science and
+reasoning will in time do away with all this."
+
+It was now time for them to attend to their work. They went. Not one
+word did they exchange. There seemed to be a gap between them. Old
+Pierre was vexed at being rebuked by a young man. Frank was in
+despair.
+
+The next day when they were seated as usual having a chat after
+dinner, Pierre quietly produced from his pocket the _Gazette de
+Guernesey_. He had not said a word about superstition during the
+morning, but silently handed the paper to Frank, pointing with his
+finger at a paragraph.
+
+Not a word was exchanged. The young man took the paper and read
+aloud: "Spiritualism. Another convert to spiritualism is reported,
+the learned ----. He is well known as the able and energetic editor
+of the ----."
+
+The old man looked at Frank and in a deep voice said: "Is it
+ignorance?"
+
+"This is a different thing altogether," he responded; "it is not
+that base superstition about which we were speaking yesterday.
+Besides, learned people are not always the first to discover
+trickery."
+
+Then he thought of the superstitious, albeit educated people who
+frequent the gambling hell at Monte Carlo; and stopped short.
+
+Pierre looked at him; "Is it only ignorance?" he again asked.
+
+"Bah," said Frank as he waved his hand with a gesture of supreme
+contempt; "I don't care what it is, it's very ridiculous and
+unreasonable."
+
+The old man shook his head. "I believe what I've seen," he said.
+
+Frank waxed hot. "You are then determined to remain in that state of
+narrow-mindedness, believing in all this nonsense. But, my man, you
+_must_ be miserable."
+
+Again the stolid answer came: "I believe what I've seen."
+
+"Listen," said Frank: "One day, when I was about nine years of age,
+I was looking at a pig which had been, to all appearances, killed.
+As I was about to go nearer, the brute jumped down and came running
+after me. I, in my ignorance, thought it was a dead pig pursuing me,
+and when my mother told me the contrary, I said as you do: 'I
+believe what I have seen.'"
+
+Quoth old Pierre: "As you say, it's a different thing altogether."
+
+"Let us go about our work," said Frank; "we are losing our time I
+fear."
+
+His hope of converting this man was almost extinguished.
+
+"What are my decisions coming to?" he said to himself. "I had once
+determined to be an inventor, etcetera, and here I am with a face
+like the tan and tomato-stained hands. When I try to change Maît
+Pierre's notions, I fail. Notwithstanding, I will not be
+disheartened. Knowledge is power; if I fail here, I shall not fail
+everywhere."
+
+Frank Mathers felt himself strong, rather too much so perhaps.
+
+It is one of the defects of the self-educated, that they generally
+imagine themselves much more learned than they really are. Not
+having anyone to compete with, or a master to show them their
+imperfections, they rather over-estimate their capacities.
+
+There is also another disadvantage in self-culture. The
+self-educated man is often only acquainted with the elements of a
+great many different sciences, but it is seldom that he is
+thoroughly versed in any single one. There are exceptions to this
+rule. One is when the student has a decided talent for something,
+and energy to pursue his studies.
+
+Frank had studied something of almost everything and imagined
+himself a savant.
+
+From this it must not be inferred that he was uneducated.
+
+But, he lacked that knowledge of the world which is only acquired by
+mixing with the world.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+
+DARK DAYS.
+
+
+It was winter, dull winter, when nature rests and green fields are
+no more.
+
+There was not much work to do now in the greenhouses at "the
+Rohais."
+
+Frank was one evening taking a walk towards the Câtel Church.
+
+He had some business to settle with his carpenter, who lived near
+"Woodlands."
+
+Presently, a man who had dogged his steps for some time, exclaimed:
+"It's you, Mr. Mathers, I thought it was."
+
+Turning round, Frank recognised Jacques, Mr. Rougeant's workman. He
+thought his heart had stopped beating, so sudden was the thrill of
+satisfaction that shook its tendrils.
+
+"Yes, it is I," he at last answered; and he shook hands with Jacques
+as if he had been his most intimate friend.
+
+"He was so glad to see him," he said. "And how are they all at 'Les
+Marches,'" he inquired.
+
+"Oh, jolly-like," said the man who had boasted that he could speak
+English; "the squire's in a reg'lar good mood this week."
+
+"Indeed!" said Frank.
+
+"Well, you see, it's no wonder after all; the young Miss's engaged
+to a young fellow; Tom Soher, I think his name is. I don't like the
+look o' the chap. He used to drink and there's no sayin'----."
+
+He stopped short on perceiving Frank who was leaning against the
+wall for support; his face of an ashen hue.
+
+Jacques eyed him anxiously. "One'd say you'd be ill," he remarked.
+
+"I don't feel exactly well," said Frank.
+
+"Shall I see you home?"
+
+"No, thank you, I can easily walk there."
+
+"I think I'd better come with you; I know my missus'l be waitin' for
+me, but I'll come if you think I must."
+
+"No, thank you," again responded Frank; "there are a great many
+people about----. There! I feel slightly better."
+
+"As you like," said Jacques, who by-the-by was not in the least
+inclined to accompany the young man.
+
+"I'll go alone," said Frank; "Good-night."
+
+"Good-night, Sir, I hope you'll be better soon," said Jacques, as
+each one betook himself towards his home.
+
+Frank was completely weighed down with this piece of unexpected and
+unwelcome news. He did not go to the carpenter's residence; he
+forgot all about it. He went straight home. How he arrived there,
+which road he took, which door he entered by, he did not know; but
+he found himself in his bedroom, seated on a chair and gazing into
+space in blank despair.
+
+This was the end of everything.
+
+He pictured to himself her lover. He did not know him, but he
+succeeded in forming in his mind one of the biggest monsters that
+ever inhabited the globe in the shape of man.
+
+And Adèle; he knew she must have been forced into it by her father.
+"How she must groan under this yoke. To have to listen to that
+vicious being with the prospect of one day being his wife." Why had
+it come to this, why was the world so formed. Ah! the wicked world
+we live in, the abominable, corrupted world. When would the
+millennium come. When would all this unhappiness be swept away from
+the earth's surface.
+
+Alas! he would die before that time; so would thousands and millions
+of others.
+
+What had the world done that it must thus be continually sacrificed.
+What had he done. Others were happy; surely no one had ever met such
+a deception before. People had to suffer sometimes, but not such
+intense, heart-rending suffering as he now endured.
+
+He was full of despair. Before him, there was nothing but darkness.
+The more he thought over his misfortunes, the more hopeless life
+seemed to be.
+
+The candle was now nearly burnt out, but he heeded it not. He waved
+his hand near his face as if to scatter his thoughts. "Why did I
+rescue him when he was drowning. (He was thinking of Mr. Rougeant.)
+I risked being pulled into the water, I might have been drowned; and
+this is the reward." Ah! how humanity must suffer. If there was no
+joy, no real happiness on this earth, why live, why continue to
+endure all this. Schopenhauer was quite right when he said life was
+not worth living. Henceforth, he would be a pessimist. Three cheers
+for pessimism!
+
+Ah! the wicked world we live in.
+
+The candle had now burnt itself out but the young man remained
+seated, his hands thrust in his pockets, his eyes gazing at the
+floor, and his heart in "kingdom come."
+
+When the clock struck twelve, he awoke. He had fallen asleep and was
+a little more composed than before. He undressed and went to bed.
+
+He awoke early in the morning. He was crying. What was the matter
+with him. It dawned upon him: he was going to have a fit of
+melancholy.
+
+He felt it, but he was powerless to prevent its intrusion. He was
+like the man who stands between the rails, and suddenly sees a train
+advancing at full speed towards him and remains with his eyes
+riveted on the instrument of his destruction, seemingly powerless to
+move, till the engine crushes him in its onward course.
+
+When Frank descended to breakfast, old Pierre and his spouse noticed
+his wan look. "I think master's going mad," said the man to his
+wife, when Frank was out of the room. "I don't know what ails him,
+but he seems very pale and strange."
+
+The young man wandered aimlessly. Nothing interested him, not even
+his books, these companions which he had cherished so much. He tried
+to find pleasure in them. "If I had something to do, something to
+occupy my thoughts," he said to himself, "I would be much better.
+Work is the balm which heals my wounds, it sets me on my feet again.
+I will work, I will study."
+
+He soon found out that work in itself could not heal his wounds.
+Then he grew still more despondent. What was the use of working if
+work did not bring a reward. It was all very well to toil, but to
+work like a slave, without the prospect of utilizing one's power
+after having continually striven to acquire it, was discouraging.
+
+He therefore put his books aside and his melancholy grew deeper and
+deeper.
+
+One day he was seized with anxiousness for his soul's future. He had
+not done what he ought to have done. He greatly frightened Mrs.
+Merlin, when he entered the house and exclaimed: "I'm lost; I'm
+lost."
+
+"Don't say that, Mr. Mathers," she said. "You have always been a
+good man."
+
+"Good!" he exclaimed, his eyes dilated, the muscles of his face
+working convulsively; "good, yes, for my sake, because I hoped in my
+selfishness to reap ten times the outlay. Don't you see," he
+continued, "that I have only worked for my own selfish interest. I
+have made sacrifices, because I hoped to reap a rich reward. And
+now, I am well punished; I deserve all this, I certainly do. I have
+done nothing for others. I have not been altruistic."
+
+The woman stared at him. She knew almost as much about altruism as a
+dog does about the celestial sciences. After a few moments of
+silence she spoke: "You have been very good to us, you rescued a man
+from drowning once at great risk, you----"
+
+"Ha, ha!" he laughed, "fine talk, to come and speak like that to me.
+I am going to die, and do you hear;" he added in an undertone,
+catching hold of Mrs. Merlin's arm and terrifying her; "I am afraid,
+oh, so afraid."
+
+The old woman began to cry. "You must not talk like that," she said,
+"you really must not. Why don't you pray?"
+
+"Pray! what is the use; no, not now. I am being punished for my
+sins. I must atone, I must atone."
+
+He continued in this sad state for a few days, weighed down with
+this strange malady, which, alas, often preys upon our finest
+intellects.
+
+Then, a reaction set in, and he began to improve gradually.
+
+He felt quite well at times, then re-assumed his moody ways; rays of
+sunshine sometimes darted from behind the clouds. "I wish the sun
+would disperse the clouds," he sighed.
+
+One evening, when his head was tolerably clear, he was seized with a
+desire to visit his parents' grave.
+
+Without consulting anyone, he immediately proceeded towards the
+Foulon. When he came to the iron gate, it was closed. He was
+bitterly disappointed. By climbing over it, he would risk being
+empaled on the iron spikes, or otherwise injured.
+
+Presently he thought of the wooden wicket situated a little lower
+down. He proceeded thither and climbed over it without difficulty. A
+stream confronted him. He crossed it on a plank thrown across the
+rill. It was very dark, but he did not think of it. He was alone in
+this graveyard, but he experienced no fear. He felt happier than he
+had done for a long time. "Had he not adopted the pessimistic view
+of life."
+
+He walked straight to the grave where his father and mother lay
+buried and seated himself near it. Just then, a gentle breeze caused
+the stately trees surrounding the graveyard to waft their leafy tops
+to and fro. Nature was rocking itself to sleep.
+
+Even as it slumbered, it now and then heaved a sigh, sympathizing
+with the lonely man who pondered near his parents' grave.
+
+He soliloquized: "Around me, the dead; beneath that turf, the dead;
+above me, beyond those glimmering stars, somewhere in that infinity
+of space, in which man with his very limited understanding loses
+himself, the departed souls...."
+
+Suddenly, he perceived a white form advancing towards him. If hair
+stands on end, Frank's did. His heart beat at a fearful rate. What
+could this be? It certainly must be a ghost. "I have laughed at
+apparitions, but I am now going to be punished for my incredulity,"
+he said to himself.
+
+The ghost moved and came nearer. Frank trembled from head to foot.
+When he had recovered sufficient courage to scrutinize this form, it
+suddenly disappeared.
+
+The young man fixed his eyes on the place where the ghost had
+vanished, for ten minutes; then turned his gaze in another
+direction. He soon recovered his senses, and fell into a reverie.
+
+Again he soliloquized: "We all travel towards the grave. We all
+shall one day be like these around me. Why work, why trouble
+oneself. Why have I taken so much pains about my education? I have
+been ambitious, I have worried myself, I have been anxious to
+acquire wealth and fame. Here, the rich and the poor, the famous,
+the unfamous, and the infamous, the ignorant and the educated, are
+resting in the same ground, surrounded by the same scenery. I have
+been foolish to worry myself thus.
+
+"Do I not daily meet ignorant and uncivilised people who live a life
+of contentment and happiness? Not caring for the future, not
+aspiring after getting on in life, living from hand to mouth, they
+manage to show a radiant countenance.
+
+"Is ignorance bliss? Perhaps, in one sense; still I would not be
+without education.
+
+"What must I do to be happy? I will shut mine eyes to all ambition,
+I will live a quiet life. Alas! even as I pronounce these words, my
+heart belies them. I cannot annihilate the acute brain which
+tortures me. Since all my hopes of happiness seem to shun me, I will
+continue in my new religion--pessimism; and when the hour of death
+comes, I will smile."
+
+He thought of the hopeful days he had once known. He rose from his
+seat, cast a farewell glance on his parents' grave and proceeded
+down the gravel walk. He then thought of the ghost which he had
+seen, and felt a vague sense of fear. "I am no coward," he muttered
+as he straightened himself and tried to assume an air of
+indifference. But he felt nervous. He glanced anxiously behind him
+every other moment, and increased his pace.
+
+He perceived, among the trees, near the gate over which he had to
+pass--a light.
+
+It was as if a thunderbolt had passed through his body.
+
+He looked more attentively. Yes, there was a light, a strange,
+fantastic light, dancing amongst the trees. His feverish brain
+caused him to lose all power of reasoning.
+
+"What is this?" he said to himself. He felt his heart beating
+heavily against the walls of its prison as if trying to escape. His
+legs seemed to give way under him. A big lump stuck in his throat.
+
+"It is only an _ignis fatuus_," he said to himself. "No, it cannot
+be, it does not burn with a bluish light. Why this terror, why this
+fear; it must be the _feu bellanger_."
+
+The light changed. It was approaching.
+
+A sense of horripilation stole over him. A cold perspiration bathed
+him.
+
+The light changed again. It really receded this time, but to Frank's
+agitated mind, it was simply one of its tactics to induce him to
+come nearer.
+
+He suddenly bethought himself of the stream. His terror reached its
+climax. "Ah! there it was, waiting for him to pass that way, and
+then with a shout of triumph, it would plunge him in."
+
+He remembered old Pierre's words: "Wait till he gets caught." How he
+wished he had not mocked him so. Perhaps this _feu bellanger_ was
+preparing to revenge itself.
+
+Again, the light approached. It came nearer to him than it had yet
+come. The supreme moment had arrived. He already felt himself being
+dipped in the stream, with no one to rescue him. Ah! the horror of
+being killed by one of the devil's angels.
+
+Here he remembered Pierre Merlin's advice: "Turn your coat sleeves
+inside out and put on your garment so." Without a moment's
+hesitation he divested himself of his coat. As he was turning the
+sleeves, the object of his dread disappeared. A sigh of relief
+escaped him.
+
+In a minute, he had bounded over the stream and gate into the road.
+He put on his coat, and was proceeding towards his home, when he
+perceived the cause of his fears. It was simply a ray of light
+coming through the windows of the guardian's house. He could see it
+now. A woman was standing on a chair with a small lamp in her hand
+seeking for something on a shelf. As she moved the lamp, the
+reflection on the trees moved also.
+
+He began to laugh. "The _feu bellanger_, forsooth. How old Pierre
+would have smiled if he had beheld him taking off his coat. But the
+ghost, _that_ was what puzzled him."
+
+The ghost came bounding over the wicket and passed by him.
+
+It was a white dog.
+
+This adventure had taught him a great lesson. What could he say now,
+he, the educated and civilized young man? No wonder if the people
+who had been accustomed to hear strange tales from their earliest
+infancy, believed in them.
+
+He went home, determined to deal leniently with Pierre in the
+future.
+
+"I must have been in a dreadful state of mind to have acted thus,"
+he thought. "I have done more than I ever meant to do."
+
+When he came home, he was quite cheerful. He did not say that he had
+seen a ghost, neither did he tell the spouses Merlin that he had
+nearly been attacked by the _feu bellanger_.
+
+Pierre noticed his joyous look. He gave a wink to his wife as if to
+say: "He's taken a glass or two."
+
+It was not so; the shock which he had received had completely
+dislodged the last trace of melancholy.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI.
+
+SHADOW AND SUNSHINE.
+
+
+What was Adèle doing? She was not engaged. It was one of Jacques'
+inventions, or rather deductions, from what he saw.
+
+She was being gradually drawn towards the abyss, where her soul
+would lose all that it possessed that was divine, and into which, to
+all appearances, she was finally to plunge, pushed by an unseen
+hand, drawn thither by a magic power.
+
+She shuddered. After all her dreams of happiness, Fate had condemned
+her to this. How often had she pictured herself, the possessor of
+true love, streams of happiness flowing into her heart. She had
+formed a high ideal of life; the present did not satisfy her. Hope
+had sustained her, and that hope, that idea of a pure, refined,
+elevated and noble life, chastened by love, was now dwindling away
+and she seemed destined to join the great multitude of ordinary
+beings.
+
+Still, she hesitated. She dared not trust her future happiness to a
+man for whom she barely felt friendship.
+
+One day, her father, being in a better mood than was his wont, told
+her that she ought to make up her mind about whom she wanted to
+marry.
+
+"It is not my intention to marry young," she said; "I want you to
+leave me quiet for a whole year."
+
+"Nonsense;" replied her father, "but if you promise me that in a
+year you will be Tom Soher's betrothed, I shall be satisfied."
+
+"I cannot promise you that," she replied; "but I shall tell you what
+I intend to do; perhaps I shall never marry."
+
+"Tom Soher is a sensible man," said her father, satisfying himself
+with her answer. "When he was younger, he did drink a little too
+much perhaps, but he is altogether reformed now. We must not blame
+people who try to lead a new life. I know he can still drink a few
+glasses of cider, but what do you want? Was not cider made to be
+drunk? For my part, I prefer a man like him to half-a-dozen of those
+white-faced teetotalers. They look as if they had just been dug
+up--like a fresh parsnip."
+
+"I think Tom Soher would do much better to abstain from alcohol
+altogether, especially as he has been one of its slaves," remarked
+Adèle.
+
+Pretending not to hear her, or thinking this remark unworthy of
+notice, the farmer went on with unusual fervour: "Marry him, Adèle;
+save our family and his from ruin and disgrace, and make your old
+dad happy. I will teach him to work and to be thrifty; we shall get
+along splendidly."
+
+There was some more talk, and the father went about his work.
+
+Adèle had now a year's liberty before her. She determined to make
+use of it. Recently, upon reflection, she had begun to entertain
+doubts as to her suspicions about Frank. "He might have been
+visiting some dear relative's grave;" she said to herself. She again
+began to hope, and her spirits rose.
+
+Three months of the year's truce had elapsed; as yet, she had learnt
+nothing. She looked with terror at the abyss opened before her. She
+shuddered at the thought that there were only nine months left. How
+rapidly time seemed to be gliding.
+
+About this time, Frank Mathers began to experience a dull sensation
+in the region of the heart. He did not attach any importance to it
+at first, but as time wore on, the fluttering increased. He grew
+anxious. For about a week, his health remained the same, when one
+day, after dinner, he was quite alarmed to feel his heart thumping
+vigorously against his chest. "What is this coming to?" he said to
+himself.
+
+The heart resumed its normal state. Frank tried to satisfy himself
+that it was only a partial indisposition. A week passed. The disease
+had increased rapidly. He was very anxious now. Sometimes, he would
+stop his work and listen. He felt his heart distinctly beating
+against the walls of his chest. He placed his hand over the region
+of the heart. How this organ thumped and heaved. His nervousness was
+intense. He quickly unbuttoned his garments and looked at his chest.
+His heart seemed to be trying to burst through its prison walls.
+
+He gazed on it for a time, then buttoned his clothes and walked to
+and fro trying to pacify the agitated organ. In the midst of his
+walk, he stopped; mechanically, his hand was placed over his heart,
+and he listened, anxious, agitated, and holding his breath.
+
+That same evening, when he was falling asleep, he suddenly jumped up
+in bed. His heart had given a heavy abnormal beat, and was now
+quietly working, as if ignorant and innocent of everything.
+
+After a while, he fell asleep. Next day, he was worse than ever.
+
+"Am I going to die?" he said to himself. "Life is sweet, it is hard
+to die so young, when before me lies the future which I would fain
+penetrate. I should like to accomplish some task before I depart
+from this world."
+
+Frank! where art thou come to? Didst not thou say, only a few weeks
+back: "I will smile when the hour of death comes," and now thou art
+craving for life, and thou art shrinking from death.
+
+Frank Mathers thought that his complaint was _Angina Pectoris_. He
+consulted a book on Pathology. He learnt that even with this
+terrible disease a person might, by careful living, attain a certain
+age.
+
+This did not satisfy him. He consulted a doctor. When he was seated
+in the medical man's waiting-room, it seemed to him that the doctor
+was going to pronounce his doom. He fancied he could already hear
+him: "You may, by taking care of yourself, live another year or
+two."
+
+The door of the room in which he was, opened. His heart gave a great
+leap. "I wish you to auscultate me," he said, addressing the doctor
+who entered the room.
+
+Dr. Buisson looked at him with a scrutinizing glance as he replied:
+"Very well, sir; step in the next room."
+
+Frank followed the doctor into the room adjoining.
+
+The medical man proceeded to auscultate his patient. After he had
+completed his examination, Frank looked at him inquiringly. "_Angina
+Pectoris_?" he questioned anxiously.
+
+"No."
+
+A sigh of relief escaped him.
+
+Quoth Dr. Buisson: "You have already sighed a great deal too much.
+You have overtaxed your strength. You must not live on passion, but
+you ought to take life more easily, young man. Rest and
+cheerfulness, with a few bottles of physic, will put you on your
+legs again. Stimulants would benefit you."
+
+"I do not wish to drink any alcohol," interrupted Frank.
+
+"Who talks about alcohol? Do without stimulants. You do not need
+them."
+
+"I thought----" began Frank.
+
+The grave voice of the doctor interrupted him. "Young man, you must
+be careful about your diet; eat slowly--masticate well. Pass into
+the dispensing room."
+
+"What an odd man," thought Frank, as he wended towards his home.
+
+He passed the next few weeks resting nearly all the time, taking
+very little exercise and a great deal of physic. He gradually grew
+better, his nervousness ceased, his heart resumed its normal
+condition, it palpitated no more.
+
+He tried to be cheerful, but he still had great faith in pessimism.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII.
+
+THE EFFECTS OF A SERMON.
+
+
+One Sunday, contrary to his habit, Frank betook himself to one of
+the country churches. He had several reasons for doing so. He wanted
+to hear a French sermon; he wanted to be quiet, away from the world,
+etcetera.
+
+As he went on his way, he dropped into a none too pleasant reverie.
+
+"What a queer animal man is," he thought; "what a study. It is true
+that 'the proper study of mankind is man.'
+
+"But, the more one meditates on humanity, the more one becomes
+disgusted with its artificialness and bad taste. People flock after
+trifles, they are devoid of refinement, a conjuror will have an
+immense number of admirers, a third-rate music-hall will fill, even
+to suffocation, while the man of genius, unless he be rich, often
+remains unnoticed. He who produces most exquisite poetry, soaring
+high above his fellow countrymen, carrying them out of life's dusty
+ways into a pure atmosphere, dies of starvation in a garret."
+
+He arrived at the church of St. ----. He entered the sanctuary and
+seated himself in a place from which he would be able to see the
+minister.
+
+"This is a very comfortable position," he said to himself.
+
+He began to examine the people as they took their seats. Very
+different from one another were those who entered. The men took
+their seats with a deal of looking round and lifting of coat-tails.
+They finally settled down, drawing a deep breath as they did so, as
+if the act of sitting was a prodigious effort.
+
+Frank was, with his accustomed curiosity, examining an old woman who
+trudged in, wrapped up in an enormous shawl, when a lady touched him
+lightly on the shoulder. He turned round.
+
+"Sir, this is my pew," she said, "you may go in any of those,"
+pointing to the left.
+
+"I beg your pardon," said Frank, and he hastily left his seat and
+went in one of the pews which the lady had pointed out to him. Then
+he remembered that in his haste, he had forgotten to take his hat
+with him. He proceeded to fetch it. The lady who was occupying the
+pew with her husband and daughter handed him his hat, smiling as she
+did so.
+
+"She might have allowed me to remain where I was," thought the young
+man. He went on thinking: "Perhaps, they have some superstition
+about worshipping in their own pew."
+
+He fancied everyone of the countryfolks was superstitious. He
+wondered if Adèle believed in these things. A sudden pang passed
+through him, as he thought of her. His brow clouded as he
+recollected Jacques' words: "The young Miss's engaged to a young
+fellow."
+
+The minister entered the church. No one rose. No formalities of any
+kind. He took his place quietly. The service began.
+
+When the sermon came, instead of the old minister who had read the
+prayers, Frank was astonished to see a young man, who, directly he
+stepped into the pulpit, impressed him most favourably. He had a
+very intelligent face and a cheerful countenance.
+
+He took for his text the words of St. Paul: "Rejoice evermore."
+
+He began: "There is a class of people, the followers of
+Schopenhauer, who declare that life is not worth living.
+
+"They say this world is almost the worst possible place we could
+live in, and that, if it were a shade worse, it would be impossible
+to live in it, and people would willingly end their existence. This
+doctrine is called 'pessimism.'"
+
+Frank felt very interested. Every word which the preacher said,
+seemed directly addressed to him.
+
+The young minister continued: "There is another class of pessimists
+who have never thought of following this Schopenhauer, but who,
+nevertheless, find life a burden and this world almost an inferno."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"This class of people (the pessimists) pull long faces and go about
+their work sighing. They see everything turned upside down but it is
+they who are cross. 'Life is not worth living,' they say, 'this
+world is a miserable dwelling place;' but it is they who cause their
+lives to be not worth living, who make themselves miserable."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"Some of them who profess to be good, do a great deal of harm to
+Christianity; more than is perhaps generally imagined. People
+examine them and nod their heads. 'Christianity is a failure,' they
+say."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"Help to put down Schopenhauer's wretched doctrines. Look at the
+bright side of life."
+
+"You will meet with difficulties, but do not despond; to every
+cloud, there is a silver lining."
+
+He declared he was an optimist. He invited his hearers, one and all
+to adopt the optimistic view of life, and help to bring the kingdom
+of God upon earth. He pointed out the causes which should help to
+make us cheerful, beautiful nature, healthy mental and physical
+occupations and distractions....
+
+He told them to remember that time would be followed by eternity; to
+hopefully prepare for the life to come, and to help others to do the
+same.
+
+Once out of the church, Frank felt very much puzzled. Both the
+discourse and the manner in which it had been delivered, had
+impressed him. What would he do? It certainly was a matter for
+consideration. Was there a silver lining to the cloud that was
+floating around him? Would he hope? Would he, in spite of
+everything, try and be cheerful?
+
+When he came home, he had formed a decision. He would try. He would
+answer the invitation of this young clergyman, who seemed so full of
+hope and joy.
+
+The preacher had said: If you feel--as you will feel--that you are
+unable to fight unaided; pray. Frank prayed. It was not a request in
+which the lips took a very active part, but he poured forth his
+whole soul through his heart, to Him who could and would help those
+who were unable to help themselves.
+
+When he had finished, he felt quite equipped for the fight. For he
+would have to battle.
+
+"I must try to be cheerful, I must set aside all my gloomy
+thoughts," he said to himself. "I must endeavour to change my whole
+former view of the world. I feel strong. Welcome optimism. Three
+cheers for optimism."
+
+Young man, thou art a new convert, and, like every new convert, thou
+art enthusiastic.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII.
+
+SUCCESS AFTER SUCCESS.
+
+
+Having adopted the optimistic view of life, Frank found that it was
+not easy to eradicate his dismal turn of mind.
+
+He fought bravely. It was not his first fight. He had been, when
+younger, passionate and a trifle ill-tempered, but he had, while
+still in his teens, successfully overcome these defects.
+
+He often thought of Adèle. He dared not go near "Les Marches." He
+knew full well that the sight of the house in which he had first
+known love, would arouse in him sentiments of jealousy and grief; so
+he satisfied himself with continuing to work at the reformation of
+his character. Each victory which he achieved made him feel stronger
+and wiser, and every day added to his success.
+
+Let us return to Adèle Rougeant. Six out of the twelve months' truce
+had now elapsed.
+
+Tom's visits at Les Marches were few and far between.
+
+Adèle had chanced to overhear a part of the conversation which took
+place between her father and cousin, after she had asked the former
+for a year's peaceful solitude.
+
+Quoth Mr. Rougeant: "You will have to wait another year."
+
+"Indeed!" said his nephew.
+
+"Adèle says she wishes to think the matter over."
+
+"Oh!" said Tom, biting his nails; with which operation he was very
+familiar--"a year will soon pass away."
+
+"Yes," answered the uncle.
+
+Adèle's business took her to another room, and she had too much
+good-breeding to stay and listen. Eavesdropping was not in her line.
+She laughed all to herself. Liberty was so sweet.
+
+When she went out, she could listen with more than ordinary delight
+to the songs of the birds. Some were singing with everchanging
+variety, others were somewhat more laboriously endeavouring to
+imitate the whistle of the farmer-boys.
+
+Adèle Rougeant sympathized with birds; she felt attracted towards
+them, for she too was a bird. She had been, for a time, caged; but
+now she was perfectly free, for six more months at least. She
+trusted to be out of the difficulty by then. Why; she did not know;
+something within her seemed to assure her that it would be so.
+
+When, a week afterwards, Tom Soher was taken ill, she thought of
+that strange certainty which she had had. Was he going to die?
+Something within her said: "If he could, I then should be saved."
+Adèle grew angry with herself for wishing such an abominable thing.
+She dispersed the wicked thought which had formed into a wish, with
+all the energy which she was capable of displaying.
+
+To think that she had had such a desire. She was ashamed of herself.
+
+Next day, when she heard that Tom's condition was worse than ever,
+involuntarily her heart leapt with joy. How sinful is the heart of
+man!
+
+Adèle's better nature rose against these feelings. Finally she
+overcame them. She tried to pity her cousin and partly succeeded in
+doing so. When she fancied herself freed from him, she felt
+relieved; when she pictured herself dying in his place, she
+immediately pitied him. And she put this question to herself: "Is
+sympathy a virtue?" No. Most often, when people sympathize with
+others they say: "Just imagine if we were in their place; they
+really think for themselves."
+
+This was now her view of the matter. Perhaps it was not quite
+correct, but there was a great deal of truth in it.
+
+Tom Soher was not to die this time. The crisis passed. He rallied
+almost as rapidly as he had lost strength.
+
+Mr. Rougeant visited him daily. His daughter listened to the news of
+Tom's recovery, with attention. The farmer was pleased. "She takes
+more interest in him than she cares to show;" he said to himself.
+
+One fine afternoon, in summer, Adèle, whose spirits were as bright
+as the weather, was sitting in a chair--thinking. Her thoughts flew
+hither and thither. They were full of bright hope. She sat where she
+was for nearly one hour, her head full of vague thoughts,
+aspirations after perfect womanhood.
+
+As her thoughts rambled, she recalled to mind a flower and fruit
+show that was to take place that afternoon in the Vegetable Markets.
+
+"I think I shall go," she said to herself.
+
+She spoke to her father about it. He answered her not unkindly: "I
+believe you would travel twenty miles to see a flower; if you wish
+to go, you may."
+
+She dressed herself in a dainty costume, set out, and arrived in St.
+Peter-Port just as the clock of the Town Church struck five. Going
+to the market, she paid the entrance fee, and proceeded leisurely to
+examine the flowers.
+
+While she was doing so, Frank Mathers entered the exhibition,
+utterly unconscious of her being there. He was walking about in the
+crowd, which, as evening approached, was getting thicker and
+thicker, when he perceived Adèle intently bent upon examining the
+cut flowers.
+
+He was quite upset. When he had recovered sufficiently to think;
+"She is alone, why is not her lover with her," he mused. He could
+not unravel this mystery.
+
+Hope sprang within him; he shook it off. "He will be back
+presently," he said to himself; "she is waiting for him while
+pretending to examine the flowers."
+
+He gazed upon her with admiration, unheeding the throng that
+continually jostled him.
+
+Suddenly, he was startled by a burst of laughter behind him. He
+turned round to ascertain its cause.
+
+Two burly fellows who were watching him, were having a merry time of
+it at his expense.
+
+He moved from his place and walked away, passing quite close to
+Adèle, who did not notice him. He stopped a few paces from her,
+watching her narrowly all the time.
+
+She looked up, saw him, recognised him, and nodded. He raised his
+hat; then, a strange delicacy of feeling overcoming him, he walked
+away.
+
+Adèle saw him go and felt stung. Why had he not spoken to her? he
+might have done so. She had been on the point of advancing towards
+him, and he seemed to have deliberately avoided her.
+
+"I was not mistaken when I fancied he loved another one," she said
+to herself. In spite of that, she walked in a contrary direction to
+him, hoping to meet him, a thing which she could not fail to do if
+they both kept advancing in contrary directions. She did not stop to
+think that he would perhaps pass haughtily by her. Love is blind.
+
+Like the two gentlemen who circumnavigated the globe, the two young
+people met. Frank inquired after Mr. Rougeant's health, and made a
+few remarks about the exhibition. He always expected to see her
+intended appear on the scene. Finally, he ventured to ask: "Are you
+quite alone?" "Yes, quite," she answered.
+
+They walked together for fully one hour, examining the flowers and
+fruit. "Is not this a beautiful specimen of the Dahlia?" Adèle
+asked, pointing to a flower of that name.
+
+"I am afraid I do not possess the necessary qualifications to form
+an opinion," he said; "I have not studied botany."
+
+"I think you would find the study very captivating," she said; "our
+little island contains quite a number of beautiful specimens. There
+are a great many hard names to learn, but I feel certain that you
+would soon overcome that difficulty."
+
+"You have a rather high opinion of my intellectual powers," he said;
+"I feel quite flattered. For the present, I will abide by your
+decisions. The flowers that you will praise, I shall call beautiful;
+those that you will condemn, I shall call ugly."
+
+"I shall not condemn any," said she, "all flowers are beautiful to
+my eyes, only some are more perfect than others."
+
+"You love flowers?" he questioned.
+
+"Immensely, they are almost my constant companions; I should like
+to possess the whole of this collection," said Adèle.
+
+"All to yourself. Is it not a trifle selfish?" he said, looking at
+her with a pair of laughing blue eyes.
+
+"Perhaps it is. Look at this beautiful collection of ferns." She
+began to name them. "This one on the left is _Adiantum Capillus
+Veneris_, or _Maiden Hair_, a rare European species; this one is
+_Adiantum Pedantum_, of American origin, and that one behind there,
+which is partly hidden, is _Adiantum Cuneatum_."
+
+"I will not learn botany," he said; "you have quite frightened me
+with all those Latin names; when I wish to know the name of some
+plant, I shall come and ask you."
+
+"I shall be delighted if I can be of any service to you," she said
+ingenuously. Frank thought these words were significant, but they
+were not.
+
+Adèle was anxious to get home early. Frank saw "Les Marches" that
+evening with hopeful eyes.
+
+Afterwards, they often met. One day, Tom Soher, who was now
+completely cured, came face to face with his cousin Adèle, who was
+accompanied by Frank. He stopped short, looked hard at his cousin,
+then resumed his walk.
+
+When Tom was a little way off, Frank said to Adèle: "What a queer
+fellow, one would think he was insane." "He is a cousin of mine,"
+she said.
+
+"Ah! doubtless he was surprised at seeing you in such company."
+
+"Why?" she questioned.
+
+"Perhaps he is afraid of losing caste," said Frank, anxious to know
+the cause of Tom's sullen countenance.
+
+Adèle laughed; "Losing caste!" she said, "the idea is preposterous."
+
+"Miss Rougeant," said Frank, suddenly becoming grave, "do you want
+to oblige me?"
+
+She looked up. "Of course I do," she replied.
+
+"And will you answer my question?" he continued.
+
+She looked down. "What can he mean?" she said inly. The twilight
+partly hid the deep blush that suffused her cheek.
+
+He noticed her embarrassment and hastily spoke: "I was going to say
+this. Some time ago, I heard that you were engaged to a young man
+named Tom Soher. Would you be kind enough to explain me the riddle.
+But, you need not do so, if you do not feel inclined to."
+
+Her manner suddenly changed. She had imagined that he had something
+of far greater importance to ask her. She replied: "I have never
+been engaged to him; you must have heard false news."
+
+"Probably," he said, "it was Old Jacques who told me so."
+
+"Ah, I see," said she, "he saw my cousin coming home to visit us
+rather often, and he invented that little piece of news. It was
+he--Tom Soher--whom we met just now, and who scrutinized us so."
+Then Adèle told him all about her father's intentions. She tried to
+look bright, but Frank saw what she endeavoured to conceal: a
+painful contraction of the forehead at times. When she had finished,
+she asked smilingly: "What do you think of my father's mode of
+procedure?"
+
+Frank looked at her anxiously. "I hope it will never be," he said.
+
+"Indeed!"
+
+"Because," he continued, "I should be extremely grieved to see you
+forced into an union without love."
+
+"How do you know that it would be such an one?" she asked.
+
+"Because," responded he, "when you told me about your father's
+plans, I saw your face. If there is any truth in physiognomy, you
+recoil with horror at the prospect of one day marrying Tom Soher."
+
+She changed the subject of the conversation and nothing more was
+said about it that evening.
+
+Going home; Frank thought of the difficulties that were rising
+before him. He soliloquized: "It is always the same old story; a
+greedy, avaricious, grasping father, sacrificing his daughter's
+happiness for the sake of his pride. But it must not be. I can and
+will save her from such a terrible fate."
+
+He was full of indignant wrath against her father. "To think that
+she shudders at the thought of it," he muttered.
+
+Meanwhile, Tom Soher was pondering heavily. He was in a terrible
+passion. When he entered his father's house, he wore an angry look.
+He walked straight upstairs without even partaking of supper. His
+mother and sister who were downstairs laughed. The young man was not
+much of a favourite at home.
+
+Tom sat for a long time on his bed, his face covered with
+perspiration, his limbs agitated. He was not yet very strong after
+his illness, and the shock which he had received had completely
+upset him.
+
+He meditated a plan of revenge. A dozen ideas struck him, but none
+seemed good enough. Finally, he thought of one, which, if carried
+out, would completely crush his detestable rival.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX.
+
+TOM'S INTERVIEW WITH MRS. VIDOUX.
+
+
+Five minutes' walk from the "Prenoms," there might once be seen a
+small, badly built, one-storeyed cottage, the walls of which were
+built of stone, with clay serving instead of mortar. In the walls,
+were three small windows, opening like French windows. They were of
+different sizes, contained numerous small rectangular panes of
+glass, and were situated irregularly; two in front of, and one
+behind the house.
+
+Inside, the walls were white-washed, the floor was of clay, the
+ceiling was black with smoke. One of the two rooms served as a
+bedroom, while the other one was badly fitted up to resemble a
+kitchen.
+
+A wretchedly thatched roof, surmounted by a single stone chimney,
+covered the whole.
+
+Situated behind this hovel, was a small piece of land called a
+garden. In it grew cabbages, potatoes, fruits and weeds; the latter
+predominating.
+
+In this cottage, there lived an old woman, whose age none seemed to
+know. The fact that she never attended divine service, coupled with
+the tales of her being in the habit of attending the witches'
+sabbath, was enough to make her pass amongst her superstitious
+neighbours as a being possessed of supernatural powers.
+
+She was aware of this, and consequently avoided, as far as it was
+practicable, having anything to do with her species.
+
+At first she had felt very angry at her countrymen's insinuations,
+and almost wished she did possess supernatural powers; but gradually
+she had cooled down, and now she was indifferent.
+
+Mrs. Vidoux--such was the appellation of this woman--was not
+attractive. Her face was of a colour much resembling Vandyke Brown.
+It was a woman's face, yet it resembled a man's, not excepting the
+whiskers, which seemed to grow vigourously, as it fertilized by the
+dirt which her uncleanly habits allowed to accumulate on her face.
+
+She had but two companions; they were cats. She very often ate
+limpets (_Patella Vulgata_). When she descended to the beach to
+collect the shell fish she took exactly one hundred.
+
+A proof that she could reckon up to one hundred.
+
+Arrived home, she cooked her limpets, gave twenty to each of her
+cats, and reserved sixty for herself.
+
+A proof that she had gastronomic tendencies.
+
+There was but one young man to whom she spoke freely.
+
+One evening, this man tumbled near her doorstep. He was intoxicated.
+She took him inside, laid him on her own bed, and when he had slept
+and sobered, she gave him a cup of tea and escorted him to his home.
+Ever since, they had been friends.
+
+This man's name was Tom Soher.
+
+We have seen that an idea had struck him which he intended to carry
+out. He, too, believed in Mrs. Vidoux's power of bewitching.
+
+So the day following his unpleasant discovery, Tom Soher directed
+his steps towards the old woman's cottage.
+
+He knocked at the door. No one answered. "She must be in the
+garden," he said to himself. He accordingly went round the back of
+the house and espied her, laboriously occupied in trying to dig a
+few parsnips.
+
+"Good morning, Mrs. Vidoux," he said; then perceiving her useless
+efforts, he took the spade from her bony hands, and dug up a few of
+the esculent roots.
+
+"Thank you very much," said the old woman, leaning heavily on her
+walking-stick.
+
+"I wonder, why she, who possesses such magic powers, does not make
+those parsnips fly out of the ground without even touching them,"
+thought Tom.
+
+Then a conversation followed between them.
+
+"It's fine weather," said Tom, feeling embarrassed about the
+introduction of his subject.
+
+"Beautiful."
+
+"You have a great deal of trouble to work as you do, cultivating
+your own vegetables?"
+
+"Yes, but I cannot afford to buy some."
+
+"Don't you feel lonely at times?"
+
+"No, I am accustomed to solitude."
+
+"You did me a good turn once."
+
+"I am glad of it."
+
+"Yes, I shall always remember it."
+
+"I am happy to see that you don't forget, you are the only sensible
+man in this parish."
+
+"That's praising me rather too much, I'm sure I don't deserve it,
+but what I think I deserve less is the nasty fix in which I now am."
+
+"You are in a fix?"
+
+"You know my cousin, Adèle Rougeant?"
+
+"Miss Rougeant, let me see--oh--yes, I knew her once, but I am
+afraid I should not recognise her now, she must be a fine lady by
+this time."
+
+"Fine; she's simply charming."
+
+"I should think so; I don't doubt you at all, Mr. Soher."
+
+"There is a young man who is paying his attentions to her."
+
+"He is very fortunate."
+
+"That does not suit me. I intended to marry her."
+
+"You! her cousin."
+
+"Why not?"
+
+"I don't know, only it seemed improbable."
+
+"This fellow stands in my way."
+
+"Of course, you shall have to try and supplant him."
+
+"That's impossible, she's too fond of him."
+
+"Well, I suppose you must give her up then."
+
+"I don't mean to."
+
+"What do you intend doing?"
+
+"Can't you guess? Thrust him out of my way forcibly. Either he or I
+must sink."
+
+"You look strong enough to fight a giant."
+
+"I do not mean to fight him."
+
+"Are you afraid of him? Is he stronger than you?"
+
+"He looks rather too much of an athlete for me; I thought that
+perhaps you would help me."
+
+"I! help you."
+
+"Yes."
+
+"How?"
+
+Tom looked anxiously round, then said in a low tone: "I must get rid
+of him, I must."
+
+"Yes."
+
+"And you can help me a great deal."
+
+"I will do anything for you."
+
+"Well, will you settle him?"
+
+"What do you mean?"
+
+"Make him jump, of course."
+
+"Make him jump!"
+
+"Yes; you know, bewitch him."
+
+Mrs. Vidoux suddenly became erect, her eyes were fixed on Tom with
+an expression that made him recoil, but before he had time to get
+out of her way, she had raised her walking-stick high above her head
+with both her hands and brought it to bear with all her strength on
+Tom's head.
+
+The blow was by no means a slight one. Tom staggered and fell.
+Without even pretending to notice him the old woman walked towards
+her dwelling. He soon rallied, and in less time than it had probably
+ever been done before, he cleared the fence and vaulted in the road.
+He went home, swearing that he would avenge himself, not of Mrs.
+Vidoux, but of his cousin.
+
+Next morning, he decided to tell his uncle all that he knew. He had
+not dared to do it before for fear of offending his cousin; but now,
+he acted in a blind fury.
+
+He had a great deal of confidence in his uncle. He knew the enormous
+influence which he exercised over his daughter. Mr. Rougeant had
+once told him that with a single look he could make her tremble, and
+that she would as soon think of refusing him as of refusing to grow
+older.
+
+Tom Soher smiled when he thought of his uncle's demeanour upon
+hearing the news which he had to impart.
+
+How he was to incite him. He must make his wrath rise to the highest
+pitch. If he could go at "Les Marches" when his cousin was gone and
+set his uncle to watch for their return, what a scene, what a
+spectacle to laugh at; even as he thought of it now he could not
+help laughing.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX.
+
+TOM'S VISIT TO HIS UNCLE.
+
+
+Tom Soher was now constantly on the watch to see if he might catch
+his uncle alone. He was soon satisfied on that account.
+
+One evening, he saw Adèle come out of the farm-house. He hid himself
+and let her go by, then he went towards "Les Marches."
+
+He walked straight in, and was not surprised to see his uncle busily
+engaged cleaning carrot seed.
+
+Tom was in such a state of excitement and rage, that he hardly knew
+what he was saying.
+
+"Good evening, uncle," he said, "busy?"
+
+"Good evening, Tom," was the reply, with the addition: "Yes, you
+know the French proverb: 'Do not lose a single hour, since you are
+not certain of a minute.'"
+
+"Quite right uncle; shall I help you?"
+
+"No, thank you, now that you are here, we shall talk, and I'll do
+that job to-morrow."
+
+The farmer fetched a mug of cider and placed it on the table between
+them. Tom was delighted.
+
+"I am glad that you are here," quoth Mr. Rougeant. "It is not that I
+generally care for visitors, but you are always welcome. Besides,
+Adèle is gone and we shall pass the evening agreeably."
+
+"That's what I thought, uncle."
+
+Mr. Rougeant looked, at his nephew and wondered what ailed him.
+
+"Did you know she was gone?" he asked, and added: "Perhaps you met
+her down the road."
+
+"No; is she gone?" asked Tom.
+
+Said the farmer inly: "Is the fellow mad?" aloud; "Yes; she is gone
+to a concert."
+
+"Where?" questioned the nephew.
+
+"I don't know, I did not ask her."
+
+"You let her go all alone when it is dark!"
+
+"Yes; she's not particularly timid. She is so fond of music, poor
+girl, I did not care to refuse her, and, as she has fallen in with
+my views, or very nearly so, I must allow her a little freedom."
+
+"Perhaps she has a companion," said Tom.
+
+"No; she says she prefers going alone; it will not be for long,
+however; in another month she will, I hope, be your betrothed."
+
+Tom felt a pang of vexation run through him. He was ready to
+explode, but succeeded in showing a good exterior and said jokingly:
+"Suppose she came accompanied by some young fellow."
+
+"She never would dare to do so."
+
+"I would not say so if I were you, uncle; it's not a good sign when
+a young girl is always out like that. Haven't you noticed that she
+very often goes out in the evening lately?"
+
+The old man's suspicions were beginning to be aroused. "I had not
+even thought of it," he said "but, indeed, it's as you say; she has
+been going out often lately."
+
+"I hope there is no one supplanting me," said his nephew.
+
+"You need not fear, Tom--pass me the mug."
+
+They both drank out of the same coarse vessel, and Tom, who was
+warming up, continued: "I have strange presentiments, uncle; when I
+went to school, I remember having read in an English book about,
+'Coming events casting their shadows before.' Now, just as I met
+Miss Rougeant this evening, I saw a cat cross the road. Now, you
+know as well as I do, that it means discord betwixt her and me."
+
+"This sounds very strange," said the farmer, "but I thought you told
+me you had not seen her."
+
+"Did I? really, I hardly knew what I was doing." And, desirous of
+finding an excuse for his singular behaviour, he added in the most
+dejected tone imaginable: "I have a rival."
+
+"What do you mean?" fairly howled the farmer.
+
+"I mean," replied Tom, in the most wretched tone he could assume; "I
+mean that my cousin loves another fellow, an Englishman, who has not
+a single penny which he can call his own, a wretched cur, a beggarly
+fortune-hunter. I fancy I can see him. He is one of those fellows
+who walk bearing all their fortunes on their backs. He was dressed
+in faultless evening dress; light kid gloves, patent leather boots,
+and a tall silk hat." (This was all false.) "If I am not mistaken,
+this fellow has not a particularly bright character."
+
+The farmer was looking at Tom. His lips were apart, his teeth
+closed, his eyes shone with an ominous light. He did not say a word.
+Tom continued: "Ah! your fortune will soon be gone to the dogs, all
+the money that you have honestly earned, that you have had so much
+trouble to scrape together, will disappear in the twinkling of an
+eye, and your ruined daughter will have to end her days in the
+hospital at the Castel."
+
+"Never, never;" shouted the farmer.
+
+"And I, who meant to attend to your business," said Tom; "I, who was
+going to work your farm; I, who meant to save our family from ruin
+and you from the shame that will necessarily fall partly on you as a
+member of that family; I, who am her cousin and who would have done
+anything and everything for her, I am put aside as worthless stuff."
+
+"Oh!" groaned the farmer; "Do you know him?" he asked.
+
+"I have seen him but once, I do not know where he lives."
+
+"Do you think he will accompany her this evening?"
+
+"Certainly, that's why she has gone out."
+
+"Oh! the dog--pass me the mug."
+
+Tom gave him the mug. The farmer took a long pull and handed it to
+his nephew who drank so well that he completely emptied it, and
+afterwards said: "We ought to lie in wait for their arrival and
+attack the ninny."
+
+"That's what I'll do, and--" clenching his fists--"he'll be lucky if
+he escapes."
+
+"You ought to give him a lesson which he won't forget soon."
+
+"I ought to, still, when one comes to think of it, he might have me
+flung in prison for assault."
+
+"You wait till he is alone, then you can settle him."
+
+"If I were sentenced to a term of imprisonment, my reputation would
+be ruined. However, I'm master of my daughter, I will give this
+young fellow a good shaking, and, as for her; I shall see."
+
+"I shall be hiding behind the hedge; if you require any help, I will
+give it you."
+
+"I think I can frighten him alone--my daughter marry one of those
+white-faced spendthrifts, why my throat dries up at the thought of
+it;--pass me the mug."
+
+Tom did as he was requested, feeling very uneasy. The farmer was
+about to drink, but he exclaimed: "Why, its empty."
+
+"Indeed," said Tom, "let me see; so it is, I was in such a state of
+mind that I did not know I had drunk all."
+
+"Never mind," said his uncle, "I will fetch some more." And he
+proceeded towards the cellar.
+
+Tom chuckled all to himself, "What a splendid piece of fun; I knew
+him, he's the man to act."
+
+Mr. Rougeant came back with the mug brimming. The conversation
+continued to flow, so did the cider. The men were getting excited.
+
+"It's time for us to go out and choose a hiding-place," said Tom.
+
+"Yes, let us go," said his uncle.
+
+They went out. The farmer hid himself behind a hedge, Tom went
+opposite him on the other side of the road also taking advantage of
+the cover which a hedge afforded him. They waited. Not a breath of
+wind disturbed the grass or brambles, not a word was exchanged
+between the men on the watch. The air was stiff, but they felt it
+not. The cider which they had drunk kept them warm.
+
+Not one of them knew exactly how they were to operate. Tom counted
+on his uncle and Mr. Rougeant thought he would act according to
+circumstances.
+
+"They will never come," said Tom to himself. He stretched himself at
+full length on the grass. In less than five minutes he was sleeping
+soundly.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI.
+
+THE ENCOUNTER.
+
+
+The two young people were returning from the concert that had been
+given in St. Julian's Hall. They were walking. It was a beautiful
+evening. Not a breath of wind, not a cloud in the sky. Both nature
+and humanity slumbered. A deep silence prevailed along the lane in
+which the young couple were walking.
+
+'Twas a charming spot, these lanes, bordered on either side by high
+hedges of stone and earth, on which grew furze and grass, while here
+and there, a solitary primrose--it was the month of March,--was
+bending its slender stalk, loaded as it was with dew.
+
+Conversation is an art. So is silence. The latter is even less known
+than the former.
+
+Both the young people were now silent as they proceeded towards "Les
+Marches," but it was a silence which spoke. They knew each other's
+thoughts, one heart spoke to the other; they were both impressed
+with the supreme beauty of nature and filled with love, for that
+same evening they had plighted their troth.
+
+It was Frank who first broke the silence: "How beautifully serene
+the sky is, Adèle; almost as clear as your forehead."
+
+"What an immense number of stars," she said, "astronomy must be a
+beautiful pursuit."
+
+"It must be," he replied. "To soar far above this earth, to
+contemplate those worlds, to feel oneself lifted into space, to
+visit the moon with its mountains and rivers, plateaux and lakes; to
+accompany Venus and Mars and all the other planets in their course;
+to float, as it were, amongst these gigantic masterpieces of the
+Creator, to calculate their dimensions, to measure their course, to
+weigh those monsters; to bring to light the treasures of metal which
+they contain, by the aid of Spectrum. Analysis, all this and a great
+deal more which is associated with the science must be indeed full
+of wonderful exhiliration."
+
+"To hear you talk, one would imagine that you yearn to be amongst
+all those stars and planets," said Adèle.
+
+"It is not the case," he answered, "because--I'll tell you why--I am
+content to have Venus so near to me."
+
+"I am afraid you will have to be Mars," she said somewhat anxiously.
+
+"Not a bit of it," he replied cheerfully, "Mars is generally
+represented with a long beard, and look, I have but a slight
+moustache; have you ever noticed," he continued, "that all these
+planets move in circles. I think the circle is the ideal figure of
+the Creator. Man cannot measure a circle or sphere."
+
+"I thought the heavenly bodies moved in ellipses," she interrupted.
+
+"Yes, but ellipses are but a form of circles."
+
+"Of course, I had never thought about it before, one has so much to
+learn in life. Nature's wonders are numerous and full of instruction
+for the thoughtful student. It seems to me sometimes that my soul
+converses with nature. A cloud obscures the sky, and I feel that
+cloud passing over my heart; a ray of sunshine illumines the earth,
+and causes my flowers to open their petals and the dew-drops on the
+grass to shine like millions of diamonds, and I smile."
+
+"You have the soul of a poetess," he said.
+
+She laughed a rippling laugh. "I do not know, but I think the study
+of nature, the proper study of man."
+
+"Others,--with a less poetic soul, doubtless--seem to differ from
+you. I think Pope did. But you love nature, and do not care for
+man."
+
+Her pearly teeth saw the light.
+
+When Adèle bade good-night to Frank that evening, a strange
+presentiment of coming evil overcame her.
+
+She walked inside her father's house. When she entered the kitchen
+she was surprised at finding it empty. The lamp was on the table. It
+was lighted. Beside it was an empty mug. She lighted a candle, went
+into the parlour, and divested herself of her hat and jacket,
+thinking her father would soon return.
+
+She did not feel at ease, however. Every other minute she turned
+round nervously, half afraid of finding someone in the room. Where
+could her father be? She grew anxious. Going at the foot of the
+stairs, she called out: "Father, father."
+
+Not a sound, save that of her voice which sounded funereally.
+
+She went to the door, opened it, and looked outside. Everything was
+still. All at once she heard something. It was not a shout, it was a
+scream, a shriek, an entreaty; it came again, much louder this time,
+she could distinctly hear the word: "Help."
+
+She distinguished that voice; there was no mistaking it, she would
+have discerned its sound amongst ten thousand. This voice was
+Frank's. He had cried, he had implored, there was but one thing for
+her to do--to run to his aid.
+
+Without even taking the trouble to fetch her hat, she hastily ran in
+the direction from whence the sound came.
+
+Breathless, she arrived upon the scene. There, on the ground, lay
+the prostrate figure of a man, his head supported on the knee of
+another one.
+
+The prostrate figure was her father's, the other man was Frank.
+
+When he saw her with her hair dishevelled and her frantic look,
+Frank looked astonished. He then beckoned to her and said: "It is
+only a faint, and I hope only a slight bleeding of the nose. I think
+he will soon regain consciousness. Is there any water about here?"
+
+"Not that I know of," she said, "but I will hasten home and bring
+some."
+
+While she was gone, Mr. Rougeant opened his eyes. "Where am I?" he
+said, after in vain trying to recollect his thoughts.
+
+"With a friend," answered Frank, bending over him.
+
+The farmer closed his eyes, then opened them again and fixed them on
+Frank. He quickly shut them again, however. He had recognized the
+young man and a pang of remorse shot through his hard heart.
+
+Adèle soon came with a small can full of water; and a basin. Her
+father kept his eyes closed. He had not the courage to open them.
+She poured the water in a basin and began to wash his face.
+
+When she had finished, he opened his eyes resolutely and said: "Now
+that I am washed and the bleeding has ceased, I had better go home."
+Without having the courage to look at Frank he said: "I think I can
+do with my daughter."
+
+He tried to rise, but uttered a cry of pain. "My foot hurts me
+fearfully," he said, "I cannot move without your aid."
+
+Thereupon they both helped him to his feet, while he kept a frowning
+look and a silent tongue.
+
+"Do you think you can walk leaning on my shoulder?" said Frank.
+
+"Perhaps," he replied, and, placing his hand on the preferred
+shoulder, he began to hobble along; stopping often and speaking
+seldom.
+
+When the farmer was comfortably installed near the fire, his leg
+carefully placed on a footstool, Frank, knowing he was not wanted,
+took his leave, expressing a hope that the injured limb would soon
+be all right again.
+
+The farmer shook his head sadly, and gave a look at Frank that was
+very significant.
+
+Then he shrank for some time into a state of complete silence, but
+his face was clouded and his bushy eyebrows were more prominently
+drawn over his eyes than they had been for a long time.
+
+He hardly spoke a word to Adèle that evening, barely answering her
+questions.
+
+How had the tables thus been turned? When Mr. Rougeant heard Frank
+pass by alone, he hastily vaulted over the hedge, intending to
+attack him, if not with his fists, at least with his tongue. But
+Providence directed otherwise. He miscalculated the height of the
+hedge on the side of the road,--for the field was higher than the
+road--and fell flat on his nose and face, one of his feet twisting
+under him and getting sprained.
+
+The blow which he sustained in falling and the pain caused by his
+sprained ankle caused him to faint. Frank ran to his aid, lifted him
+carefully, and placed his head on his own knee.
+
+It was in this position, as we have already seen, that Adèle
+discovered them.
+
+When Frank saw the farmer's nose bleeding so profusely, and the
+deathly paleness on his face, he cried for help. It was this cry
+which the young lady heard. The same cry aroused Tom, who was
+sleeping soundly, doubtless dreaming of his fair cousin. He looked
+carefully over the hedge, and when he saw how matters stood and how
+his uncle lay, he took to his heels and fled. Cowardice lent him
+wings.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII.
+
+FATHER AND DAUGHTER.
+
+
+The morning after the accident, Mr. Rougeant, whose wrath was
+terrible, began to abuse his daughter.
+
+"You are the cause of all this," he said, as he surveyed the injured
+limb.
+
+"Very indirectly, I should think," she replied.
+
+"What do you mean? How dare you disobey me as you have done lately;
+you have made me suffer; you have, under my very eyes, been making a
+fool of me--your father." He paused, as if unable to frame his next
+sentence.
+
+"I beg your pardon, father," said the young lady respectfully; "but
+I have not been trying to 'make a fool' of you, as you say. I
+conscientiously think that I am right in encouraging the attentions
+of such an upright----"
+
+"Stop your nonsense," he cried imperatively, his face assuming a
+terrible aspect, "you are an idiotic girl, you are trying to ruin me
+by listening to this pasteboard fellow, this scoundrel, this
+flippant rascal."
+
+Adèle was stung with her father's bitter sarcasm against one whom
+she loved. She looked straight at her father; she knew he was unable
+to move from his place, and this made her bolder than she would
+otherwise have been. She answered with a firm and steady voice: "He
+saved your life once."
+
+"Saved my life, how? Only for his presence yesterday, I should not
+now be lying idle."
+
+"I am not talking about yesterday," she replied; "I mean, when he
+saved you from drowning in the quarry at the risk of being himself
+dragged in."
+
+"What has that to do with it?"
+
+"It means that he is not a 'pasteboard fellow,' as you say; it means
+that you ought to acknowledge his kindness; it means that you should
+be thankful for the great service which he rendered you."
+
+"If I owe him anything, let him say so and I will pay him," he
+replied. He had not the slightest intention of doing so.
+
+"You owe him a debt of gratitude, and you should bless him; instead
+of that you curse him," she said, her lips quivering and the tears
+rushing to her eyes. The idea of her beloved being cursed.
+
+"Yes, I hate him," said the farmer, "I cordially distaste that dirty
+rat; he is the worm that eats my bones; but, you never shall marry
+him; do you hear? never."
+
+"I will never marry anyone else," she said, her face assuming a
+desperate calmness.
+
+"Yes you will."
+
+"Father," she said, her face almost as white as the cloth which she
+was spreading on the table, "it is useless to speak any more about
+it, it pains me to have to speak thus to you, but I will never marry
+Tom Soher."
+
+She heard the grinding of her father's teeth.
+
+"If I did so," she continued; "I feel that I should commit a great
+sin; I never could love him, therefore his life with me would be
+miserable; he would feel lonely, and, I am afraid, would soon
+return to his former habits of intemperance. Then I should be
+breaking my word, for I have promised----"
+
+"You have!" howled the father.
+
+She did not go on; her father's eyes were riveted on her with a
+terrible look. She feared he was going mad. She could not proceed,
+mesmerized as she seemed to be under that awful gaze.
+
+At last she turned her attention to her work.
+
+Not another word was spoken on the subject that day.
+
+Neither of them ate much that evening. It was almost impossible for
+Adèle to swallow anything. What she attempted to eat, stuck in her
+throat. Her father, who was seated near the fire in his accustomed
+place, seemed also to have lost his appetite.
+
+At last, he thrust his food away from him with a gesture of
+impatience, and began moodily to contemplate the embers that were
+glowing in the grate. When nine o'clock--his usual hour for
+retiring--struck, Adèle helped him into the parlour.
+
+It was there on a sofa that he insisted on sleeping while his foot
+hurt him as it now did.
+
+While the conversation was going on between father and daughter,
+Frank was crossing the fields near "Les Marches," and soon found
+himself beneath Adèle's window. It was open. He took out his pocket
+book, and hastily writing a few lines on a leaf, tore off the piece
+of paper, rolled it into a ball, and threw it straight through the
+window.
+
+Then he cautiously glided away.
+
+When Adèle retired for the night, she did not perceive the ball of
+paper that lay on the floor of her room. Her brain was so occupied
+with her thoughts that it failed to fulfil its functions towards
+the eyes.
+
+She fixed her optics for a moment on the crumpled piece of paper,
+but she saw it not. She was undressing, but she knew it not; she did
+it mechanically, as if by instinct. Her thoughts were with her
+father and the unhappy home she was condemned to share with him.
+Home! alas! it was more like a hell. She shuddered at the thought.
+She was of a naturally quiet temperament, and she abhorred these
+awful scenes.
+
+She earnestly hoped that the time would soon come when she would
+once more sail in smooth waters.
+
+As she was moving about, her foot trod upon some object. "What is
+this?" she said to herself, as she stooped to pick it up. By whom
+that piece of paper had been placed there, she could not imagine.
+
+By the light of the candle, she managed to read the missive. How her
+heart gladdened. She read it over and over again. It contained a
+message from Frank telling her that he hoped to hear from her at her
+earliest convenience. "So you will," she said half aloud as she
+carefully folded the small piece of paper.
+
+She slept peacefully that night.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII.
+
+A SECRET CORRESPONDENCE.
+
+
+On the following day she wrote to Frank and gave the letter to
+Jacques, asking him to carry it in the evening at the Rohais. The
+old man smiled at her, and carefully pocketing the piece of silver
+which she thrust into his hand, he remarked: "I s'pose you don't
+care for the guv'nor to know anything about this 'ere business."
+
+"How dare you call my father so?" she said, pretending to be
+offended; "no; don't let him have any knowledge of this or any other
+message I may entrust you with in the future."
+
+"He won't; look 'ere Miss, I'll do anything for you, you're a good
+'un; and as for your father gettin' anything out of me; I'd as well
+have the last bone in my body pulled out afore I'd say anything
+against you or your young man. You're the very picture of your
+mother, that you are, she was a good woman----."
+
+"Jacques, if you cannot express yourself in English, talk in
+Guernsey French, as you used to do," she said, for Jacques was
+showing forth his knowledge.
+
+"What have I said?" he questioned in his native tongue, then he
+added: "I thought I was speaking well, I beg your pardon if I have
+offended you, Miss."
+
+"You have not displeased me," she said. "I must go now, or my
+father will be fretting about my absence. I can trust you?"
+
+"Yes, I will do anything for you. Good-night, Miss."
+
+"Good-night, Maît Jacques."
+
+And, with a light step and a cheerful countenance, she entered the
+room in which her father was. He was seated in an armchair before
+the fire-place, his attention centred on a halter which he was
+endeavouring to manufacture. He did not fail to notice the laughing
+eyes and the radiant expression of his daughter.
+
+"What has she been about?" he mused, "has she been speaking to that
+smooth-tongued, stuck-up son of a ragamuffin."
+
+His face assumed a sour expression as the suspicion crossed his
+mind. After a few moments of silence, he raised his small and
+constantly flickering eyes, and asked in a sour tone: "Where have
+you been all this time?"
+
+"I have been speaking to Maît Jacques," she replied.
+
+"The whole time."
+
+"Yes, all the time."
+
+"Only to him?"
+
+"Yes, to him alone."
+
+Mr. Rougeant was satisfied. The idea of disbelieving his daughter
+never entered his head. He knew she would never debase herself by
+uttering a falsehood, and he quietly resumed his work. Then, after a
+few minutes of silence, he turned again to her: "Is Jacques gone?"
+he enquired.
+
+"I do not know," she replied.
+
+"Well run and see, and, if he is not, tell him to come and speak to
+me."
+
+An anxious look passed over Adèle's face. Fortunately, she was able
+to slip out of the room before her father noticed it.
+
+"He wants to question him," she said to herself; "I shall have to
+warn him. My father is almost sure to find him out. Oh! I do hope
+that he is gone." She approached the stable, where Jacques usually
+spent his last half-hour. She went towards the door, opened it and
+called out: "Jacques."
+
+No answer.
+
+She joyously tripped towards the house. After a few steps she
+stopped. "I have not called out very loudly," she thought, "if
+Jacques were still here and my father were to see him, his
+suspicions would be aroused."
+
+She retraced her steps, and in a half-frightened tone, wishing with
+all her heart that her cry might not be answered, she called out
+again in a louder voice: "Maît Jacques; are you about there?"
+
+She listened eagerly. Her summons were not answered. She went
+towards the house and entered it, saying: "He's gone, I have not
+seen him."
+
+"It does not matter much," said her father, "I will tell him what I
+have to say to-morrow."
+
+Her anxiety recommenced. She looked at her father and tried to read
+his thoughts. In this she failed. He had one of those hard set faces
+the owners of which seem devoid of soul or sentiment.
+
+When she awoke the following morning, Adèle's first thoughts were
+about her father and his workman. What was he going to question him
+about? Ah! he had perhaps seen her through the window, giving a
+letter to the old man and cautioning him.
+
+When they had finished breakfasting, Adèle, who began to hope her
+father had completely forgotten all about his workman, was very
+much annoyed when Mr. Rougeant told her to tell Jacques to come and
+speak to him.
+
+She searched out the old man, and, having found him, she said to
+him: "Did you see Mr. Mathers yesterday evening?"
+
+"Yes, Miss," he answered, taking care to speak in his native tongue
+this time; "I saw him. He thanked me and asked a few questions about
+your health and Mr. Rougeant's foot."
+
+"I am very much obliged to you," said Adèle, "and now, you must come
+and talk to my father. I think he means to question you, but you
+will be on your guard; will you not?"
+
+"Oh, he is not the man to take me in. If he asks me if you gave me a
+letter yesterday, or anything else concerning you, I know what to
+answer him."
+
+"You will speak the truth?"
+
+"Speak the truth and be taken in, not I; there's no harm in fibbing
+when it's for doing good, Miss."
+
+"If you are prepared to utter falsehoods, Jacques, for the sake of
+shielding me, you will lose my approbation. I shall be very angry
+with you if you do so. You understand; you must not swerve from the
+path of truth."
+
+"Well, I never," said Jacques, "and it was all for your sake. We
+shall see. I'm not going to let your father learn anything from me.
+Jerusalem, I would rather pull the hair off my head."
+
+"The plain truth," said Adèle, shaking her forefinger at him and
+looking very severe.
+
+"I know my work, Miss," he replied as he followed her into the
+house.
+
+The farmer was seated near the fire. He did not even turn round when
+Jacques entered. The latter went straight up to his employer and
+said: "You wanted me to come and speak to you."
+
+Adèle tried to look composed, but her nerves were unsteady. She
+could not bear to leave the room, while the men were talking about
+her. No, she must hear her doom; at any rate, she must be there to
+try and defend herself.
+
+"Yes," said the farmer after a while, "what was it about now? oh!
+this evening----."
+
+"Yesterday evening;" thought Adèle, "he is making a mistake."
+
+"This evening," the farmer went on, "you will carry my boots to the
+shoemaker's."
+
+"All right, Sir," answered Jacques.
+
+The young lady could not restrain a sigh of relief.
+
+Jacques looked at her and winked--a most rude thing to do--but then
+Jacques did not know better.
+
+Quoth Mr. Rougeant, his eyes fixed on the grate: "You will tell him
+to be as quick as he can about mending them; I mean to walk in a few
+days."
+
+"All right, Sir."
+
+"I don't want anything expensive; in fact, I want him to mend them
+as cheaply as he possibly can. But, you understand, I want him to
+repair them well."
+
+"A good job costs money," Jacques ventured to interpose.
+
+"I told you I don't want anything expensive," retorted the farmer
+angrily.
+
+"Oh, that's all right, Sir; I'll tell him so, Sir," said the
+workman, frightened at Mr. Rougeant's sour tone.
+
+"Well, you will fetch them this evening and be careful to tell him
+what I require; a good and inexpensive job, or I won't pay him."
+
+"All right, Sir," said Jacques, and he left the room muttering:
+"He's growing from bad to worse; he is a stingy old niggard."
+
+What was Tom Soher doing all this time? He was drinking.
+
+He had never loved Adèle Rougeant, and when he saw that there was
+not much chance of winning her, he took to drink. In reality, he
+preferred his bottle to his cousin. Of course, he put all the blame
+on the misfortunes which he had encountered.
+
+Once, and only once, his father tried timidly to rebuke him. "No,"
+he said, "there is nothing for me to do but to drown my sorrow.
+Welcome ruin."
+
+"Why not turn a new leaf?" pleaded Mr. Soher.
+
+"Bah!" he replied as he walked away, "what's the use!--no; good-bye
+to everything."
+
+Spoilt child; he little knew the terrible death that awaited him.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV.
+
+MR. ROUGEANT GOES TO CHURCH.
+
+
+The first Sunday after Mr. Rougeant's recovery, Adèle said she
+intended to go to church. The farmer's eyes flickered more than
+usual. "I think I shall accompany you," he said.
+
+His daughter started. What could he mean? He had not been to church
+these last three years or more; besides, he had not a decent suit of
+clothes to put on. Oh! it was disgusting.
+
+"He is afraid of my meeting Frank on the road," she said to herself;
+"he need not fear, I am green, but not quite so much as he seems to
+think." "You have not even a suit of clothes that is fit to wear,"
+she said aloud.
+
+"They will do well enough."
+
+"Your coat is as green as grass, and your trousers quite yellow. If
+it was in the evening, I should perhaps go with you, but in the
+morning--no."
+
+"If you don't come with me, I suppose I shall have to come with
+you."
+
+"You shall not come with me this morning, Sir."
+
+"How dare you----"
+
+"I will not go."
+
+"Do as you like."
+
+"I shall go this evening," she said, "the lamps will be lighted. I
+hope that stock of bad oil which they have is not used up, because I
+do not want the church to be well-lighted."
+
+"How is that?"
+
+"How is that?" she said in a grieved tone. "People might take you
+for a rag picker."
+
+Her father was not a bit angry at her for saying this. She knew it,
+hence her boldness.
+
+He almost smiled, a very--very rare thing for him to do; he was
+proud to think that people would say to each other: "Look, there is
+Mr. Rougeant, he is not a proud man."
+
+On the evening in question, the clergyman almost lost his speech and
+his senses when he saw Mr. Rougeant sitting beside his daughter.
+
+The worshippers thought not of the prayers as they were being read,
+or the audience of the sermon, as it was being delivered; they
+thought of Mr. Rougeant.
+
+And, when the people came out of the church, instead of the usual
+remarks about the weather, folks said to one another: "Have you seen
+Mr. Rougeant." "Yes," answered the more composed, "it is not often
+one sees him about here."
+
+"Oh!" answered the others, "how shocking."
+
+A party of elderly ladies were assembling just outside the
+churchyard gates.
+
+"Have you seen Mr. Rougeant?" they asked unanimously, as they
+approached one another.
+
+"Oh, yes," replied Mrs. Martin, "I was quite astounded when I saw
+him enter."
+
+"Yes, but you see," remarked another, "he has been ill, and maybe he
+has felt the need of worshipping in the house of God."
+
+"What a shabby coat," said a third. "His trousers were worn out and
+threadbare," put in Miss Le Grove, who was not able to approach very
+near the group on account of her immense corpulence.
+
+"His daughter seemed rather ill at ease," said No. Three.
+
+"I think there is some of her fault," said Mrs. Martin, "she
+encourages a young man of bad reputation."
+
+The whole group held up their hands and assumed an horror-stricken
+attitude.
+
+"Impossible!", exclaimed No. Two.
+
+"Shocking!" declared Miss Le Grove.
+
+"We must be very careful about what we advance'" remarked No. Two,
+who generally passed for being a very Christian lady; then she added
+after a pause: "Miss Rougeant is, as everyone of us knows, good,
+well-bred and of refined taste."
+
+"I only recited what I had heard, of course I don't believe it,"
+said Mrs. Martin, a little disconcerted.
+
+"If she marries and goes away from home, there will only be one
+thing for her father to do, and that will be to marry again,"
+remarked Miss Le Grove, who found the state of forced celibacy
+unendurable.
+
+The others looked at each other. Some could not force back the smile
+that rushed to their lips. Miss Le Grove noticed the suppressed
+mirth and blushed. Then losing her presence of mind, and wishing to
+explain the why and wherefore of her face being so red, she said,
+slightly retiring: "Isn't the weather warm."
+
+There was a hoar-frost.
+
+Fortunately, or unfortunately, an accident occurred, while Miss Le
+Grove was backing her voluminous self, which sufficed to disperse
+the assemblage.
+
+A little boy was standing with his back to the obese woman. He was
+busily engaged, endeavouring to count the stars, when that most
+worthy spinster backed against him and sent him sprawling. She did
+not even feel the rencontre; it was like an iron-clad coming in
+collision with a fishing-smack.
+
+The little parish school-boy was none the less irritated. He planted
+himself before Miss Le Grove, to make sure she would see him, made a
+frightful grimace and shouted: "You're an old half-a-ton." Then he
+decamped.
+
+The other ladies giggled.
+
+The company dispersed.
+
+A group of youths who were standing near shouted "Well said,
+_gamin_."
+
+Going home, the topic of the conversation was Miss Le Grove,
+garnished with a sprinkling of Mr. Rougeant.
+
+As for the lady whom the little rogue had styled "half-a-ton" she
+walked alone muttering execrations against this "little wretch," and
+telling herself that there were no Christians, that these women
+laughed at her, because she chose to remain what Providence had
+directed she should be, and that Mr. Rougeant was perfectly right in
+keeping away from people, who had nothing to do when they came out
+of church but to backbite their neighbours.
+
+In future, she too would shun these sophisticated people.
+
+And--puffing and blowing; gesticulating and perspiring;
+soliloquizing and threatening, she retook possession of her home,
+sweet home.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV.
+
+LOVE TRIUMPHS.
+
+
+"Good-morning, Mr. Rougeant," said Jacques on the Monday morning, as
+he perceived his employer walking about the farmyard.
+
+"Good-morning, Jacques," responded the farmer.
+
+"Your foot is better then?" said the workman, eager to commence the
+conversation, for Mr. Rougeant was already moving in a contrary
+direction.
+
+"Yes, it's quite better now," replied the farmer, arresting his
+steps.
+
+"Where's Miss Rougeant?" questioned Jacques.
+
+"Rummaging the house; do you want to speak to her?"
+
+"My wife told me that there was a long time she had not seen her.
+She says she is lonely and would very much like to see Miss
+Rougeant. She says your daughter is so kind and so much like her
+mother, that she would be very thankful if Miss Rougeant would
+condescend to visit her once or twice while she is laid up."
+
+At the mention of his wife, Mr. Rougeant felt sorrow in his heart.
+He had loved once, but now, his nature was changed; he used to be
+happy and full of contentment then, although a struggling young
+farmer, for he had a bright, lovable and loving wife to cheer him
+up.
+
+Now he was worth ten thousand pounds, and he felt the most miserable
+of men.
+
+He stood still, the very picture of abject misery, not uttering a
+single word.
+
+"Perhaps you will not mind telling her," said Jacques, breaking the
+silence.
+
+The farmer looked up; "I shall tell her," he said, and walked away.
+
+"Our little affair is coming off splendidly," said Adèle as she
+tripped into the garden to speak to Jacques. "Yes, Miss, you are so
+clever, you deserve to succeed."
+
+"We must not rejoice too soon; did you see Frank last night?"
+
+"Yes, Miss."
+
+"And he told you that he would come?"
+
+"Yes, Miss; he gave me a letter for you but I must not give it to
+you now, I fancy Mr. Rougeant is watching us."
+
+"You are quite right, leave it in the stable when you go there and I
+will fetch it. Has my father asked any questions?"
+
+"Not one; he looks very sad."
+
+"He is. It surprises me that he never questions you; he has such
+confidence in you; he would never think of suspecting you."
+
+"If he asks me any questions, I'll know how to answer them. But,"
+added the workman, laughing, "I must go and see how the horse is
+getting on. You will find the letter under the old saddle."
+
+"Thank you very much for all your trouble," said Adèle as she
+disappeared through the doorway.
+
+After having read the letter which she had fetched from the stable,
+Adèle smiled. "He will meet me near Jacques' cottage at six o'clock
+this evening," she said to herself. "I must try and hide my joy as
+much as I can, for my father will grow suspicious if he reads my
+happiness."
+
+She had to keep a continual vigilance to prevent herself from
+smiling during the day. When evening approached, she dressed
+herself and proceeded towards the cottage.
+
+The sun was setting beautifully in the west. When she reached the
+top of the hill, she could see him, gently sinking, as it were, into
+the sea, illuminating the horizon and the ocean in a flood of
+splendour. As it disappeared, the Hanois Lighthouse displayed its
+beacon light.
+
+The visit to Mrs. Dorant was of short duration.
+
+At half-past six, a young couple might be seen wending their way
+slowly through the beautiful country lanes. They talked in soft
+accents. Now and then Adèle's low, silvery laugh sounded on the
+tranquil evening air.
+
+They wandered thus for two hours. "I thought we had been out only
+about one hour," said Adèle as Frank returned his watch to his fob.
+
+"Love takes no account of time," he said. "Now, let us talk
+business. I profess to be a business man you know."
+
+They talked about the obstacles to be vanquished, of Mr. Rougeant's
+wrath, of Tom Soher's jealousy.
+
+"Be of good cheer. _Amor vincit omnia_," were Frank's last words to
+her that evening.
+
+When she opened the wicket gate, Adèle gave a horror-stricken start.
+She perceived the form of a man, stretched at full length before the
+front door. She could not restrain a cry of alarm. Frank, who had
+followed her, hastily advanced to see what was the matter. He had
+not gone far, before he saw the front-door open, and Mr. Rougeant
+come out, holding a lighted candle in his hand.
+
+He hastily retreated farther away and watched the trio. He could
+easily see them without being seen. The light that came from inside
+the house, and that from the candle, shone full on the group.
+
+He saw Mr. Rougeant pick up the prostrate figure, set the man on his
+feet, and, after having shut the gate after him, return inside.
+
+This man, who walked with such an unsteady gait, was Tom Soher.
+Frank took the trouble to follow him home. He feared for his safety,
+accidents are so common with people in his state. He set his
+conscience at ease by seeing the tottering figure enter the house of
+the "Prenoms."
+
+He pitied this slave to intemperance. He shuddered at the immense
+per cent. of his countrymen who were like this man.
+
+How had Tom Soher happened to be lying before the threshold of "Les
+Marches?" We shall see.
+
+That same evening, he was with a few of his sort, drinking at the
+"Forest Arms." He was more than half-intoxicated, when, without a
+word, he left the bar-room.
+
+"Where are you going?" shouted his comrades.
+
+"Bring him back," said some.
+
+"Let him go," said the others.
+
+Tom did not heed their talk, but directed his steps towards uncle
+Rougeant's farm-house.
+
+He opened the door, walked straight in, and seated himself in a
+chair near the long bare table, without saying a word to his uncle.
+
+The latter was in a dreadful state of mental excitement. He was
+walking up and down the room with his hands thrust deeply into his
+trousers' pockets, uttering execrations, blaming everyone and
+everything. He was so occupied with his ravings that he only cast a
+glance at his nephew, who stood, or rather sat, wondering what the
+dickens his uncle was about.
+
+"Ah, this generation," said the farmer, "this generation is a mass of
+spoilt and pampered dolls"--he was thinking of his daughter--"they
+only think about running here and there; paying visits to friends,
+taking tea with cousins, or walks with dressed-up mashers.
+
+"They do not care if they leave a poor old devil"--the appellation
+was appropriate enough--"all alone, with not even a dog to keep him
+company or a cat which he could kick; off they go, dressed in the
+garments for which you have paid out of your own pockets; ay, and
+for which you have toiled and perspired----"
+
+"You're quite right, uncle," came from Tom.
+
+The farmer gave a sudden start. He had altogether forgotten his
+nephew's presence. He went on:--"People are as proud as if they were
+all of blood royal. Even the poorest women, one sees pass in the
+afternoon with perambulators in which sleeps some little urchin who,
+mayhap, is brought up nearly all on the charity of saving people
+like me.
+
+"It's a curse to have to pay taxes for this vermin. I say it's a
+downright injustice to make us, who attach ten times more value to a
+penny than they do, pay for the education of their brats.
+
+"Ah! in my time, in the good old time, which is alas, gone for ever,
+we, the respectable people, were rolled about in clumsy little
+wooden carts, and the children of the labourers were carried in
+their mother's arms and placed between two bundles of ferns, while
+their mother went about her work. For, poor women went to work in
+those days. Ay! they had to do it or starve. But now, what do we
+see? These labourers' wives with servants."
+
+He stamped, his foot impatiently. "And when they are destitute and
+homeless from sheer want of foresight, they are kept and fed out of
+the taxes which come out of our pockets. So-called civilisation and
+education are ruining the present generation."
+
+"That's where you're right, uncle," interposed his nephew.
+
+Mr. Rougeant went on: "Farmers' sons do not want to work now. Every
+one rails at manual labour. If this state of things goes on, the
+island will soon be a mass of ruined and dissipated human beings.
+The honourable people who have a pedigree they can boast of, are
+mixing with foreigners, whom no one knows whence they have sprung
+from. If you drink a glass of cider now a days, you are termed a
+drunkard by a lot of tea-drinkers, teetotalers and----."
+
+"A glass of cider would do good, one is thirsty this weather,"
+interrupted Tom, who, although half asleep, had caught the word
+cider.
+
+Without even casting a glance at his nephew, so absorbed was he, the
+farmer continued: "One hears nothing but bicycle-bells. These
+bicycles are the greatest nuisance yet invented. I am surprised that
+people rack their brains in order to invent such worthless rubbish.
+Every one must have a bicycle. There may not be any bread in the
+house, the children may not be able to go to school or the wife to
+church for want of a decent pair of boots, but, 'I will have a
+bicycle.' And then, it is so very easy to have one, there's the hire
+system. Another curse of civilisation that is ruining the poor man.
+If our peasantry knew how to put by for a rainy day, like the French
+country-folk do, we should not have so many applications for relief,
+our hospitals would well nigh be empty."
+
+"_Vere dia_, uncle."
+
+"Poor people now are not half so polite as they used to be when I
+was young. They call each other Mess. instead of Maît., and they
+style their superiors Maît. when they ought to say Mess.
+
+"The insolent rogues, they only have a smooth tongue when they come
+to beg. People may say what they like, foolish men may talk about
+the State establishing scholarships, for the talented poor; let them
+work. I have worked all my life, and hard too, and here I am, better
+than any of them."
+
+"Educate them with the States' revenue. Indeed! Bring them up like
+gentlemen, for them to laugh at you later on, to look down upon you
+as if you were so much stubble."
+
+"That's what they like. Give young people a few pence to rattle in
+their trousers' pockets, a collar, cuffs, a sixpenny signet ring on
+the little finger, a nickel-silver mounted cane and a pair of
+gloves, and there they go, not caring a fillip whether their parents
+have toiled and struggled to rise to their present position,
+ignoring the necessity of thrift, a happy-go-lucky generation. And
+then, at the end of it all, a deep chasm, into which they will all
+fall headlong; an immense pyre that will consume all their vanities
+and profligacies."
+
+"They deserve to be burnt, indeed they do, uncle."
+
+"Someone was even talking of establishing a public library here.
+Well let them complete the ruin. It is as well. I hope to be dead by
+that time though. Life, then, will be intolerable. I hope to sleep
+with those worthy champions of labour--my ancestors--in the
+churchyard yonder.
+
+"Books!--what do they want books for? I never yet knew a man who
+read books that was worth a farthing.
+
+"I knew one once who was versed in book-lore, but, worse luck to
+him, he could not bind a wheat-sheaf or weed a perch of parsnips,
+and the result--bankruptcy; failure. That's what it comes to.
+
+"Books!--do they want to make schoolmasters of us all, or do they
+wish us to be always reading our eyes out instead of attending to
+our business?
+
+"Books!--they are only good for idle loafers; they offer an excuse
+for shunning one's duty. 'I want to read a bit,' they say when told
+to do something. 'Oh, let me just finish this page, it is so
+interesting,' they plead, when asked to quickly fetch some article.
+This is what Adèle used to do, but I nipped this slothful tendency
+in the bud. I would have none of it."
+
+He stopped his discourse and his walk, gazed at his nephew who had
+fallen across the table and was now sleeping soundly; then
+recommenced his peregrinations.
+
+"I am disgusted with the world; I don't know what it will all come
+to. Some of these modern farmers are even discarding the _grande
+charrue_. Oh! shades of our ancestors. The great plough--the only
+feast of the year that is worth anything, mutton and roast beef, ham
+and veal, cider by the gallon and a jovial company of good old sons
+of the soil.
+
+"It is horrible thus to see our old routine trampled underfoot, our
+ancestors' customs sneered at."
+
+Mr. Rougeant was extremely animated. Like nearly every other country
+Guernseyman, he was opposed to change.
+
+He walked about with distorted features, his eyes shining with a
+strange light.
+
+He thought of his family dwindling away; of his daughter
+disregarding his commands and disobeying him. In his innermost soul
+he felt convinced that she would never marry his nephew. He cast his
+eyes in the direction of the latter. What! he was sleeping while
+_he_ was enduring all the agony of a king who is being dethroned; of
+a general, whose army is in open mutiny against him; of a
+millionaire who sees his whole fortune disappear through some awful
+catastrophe! It was unendurable.
+
+He again began to pace the room. Having finally arrived at a
+decision as to his future conduct, and thinking just then of his
+daughter's disregard for his tastes, he shouted in a voice of
+thunder, bringing down his fist upon the table with an awful crash.
+
+"_Palfrancordi!_ let her act according to her own stubborn will, but
+she'll not inherit a penny of mine, not one double."
+
+He was now quite close to his nephew and the latter, aroused by the
+noise which his uncle had made, raised his head and yawningly
+drawled out: "You're quite right, uncle."
+
+The farmer stood straight in front of Tom Soher, his arms folded,
+his penetrating eye fixed scrutinizingly on his nephew. He perceived
+the latter's state; his wrath increased. "What!" he ejaculated; "you
+are drunk!"
+
+Tom was in such a plight that he understood not his uncle, neither
+did he perceive his anger. He muttered: "You're quite right, uncle."
+
+"Then begone, you wretched inebriate. I'll not have intoxicated
+brutes about my house."
+
+So saying, he seized bewildered Tom, dragged him through the
+vestibule and hurled him outside, slamming the door after his nephew
+without even waiting to see what became of him.
+
+Then, wearied and tired out by his exertions, he sank into a chair
+and began to ponder about this new discovery. He mentally resolved
+that he would never have a drunkard for his son-in-law.
+
+Then he gradually grew calmer. The reaction was setting in.
+
+He was still engaged in his reflections when he heard a cry. 'Twas
+his daughter's. He lightened a candle and hastened to open the door,
+wondering what could have happened. The sight of his nephew lying
+there, chilled him with terror. Was he dead? Had he killed him? If
+so, it was the crowning point of all his woes.
+
+How he raised him and sent him home we have already seen.
+
+When Mr. Rougeant was again with his daughter, he kept a dogged
+silence. She gathered from his demeanour that he had had a frightful
+shock, but took great care not to question him. Hardly a word was
+exchanged between them that evening.
+
+Adèle was glad of it, for she had her thoughts occupied with her
+wedding which was to come off in three weeks.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVI.
+
+WEDDED.
+
+
+After all the commotion, the wedding was a very quiet one.
+
+Adèle left the house early one bright summer morning.
+
+The sun was rising, illuminating the sky with all its various
+colours; the lark was soaring towards heaven's gates; the mowers
+could already be heard sharpening their scythes in the hay fields,
+and Mary and Louisa, the tenant's daughters, were busily engaged
+milking their father's cows.
+
+A carriage, drawn by two grey horses, carried the heiress of "Les
+Marches" to be married to Frank Mathers.
+
+The beautifying properties of love shone on the bride's and
+bridegroom's countenances as they stepped out of the church of St.
+----.
+
+In both their souls was a paradise.
+
+From time to time, Mrs. Mathers assumed a thoughtful expression.
+
+"I cannot help thinking of my father," she said, as the
+carriage-wheels rattled over the road near "Les Gravées."
+
+"Let not this mar your happiness," he answered joyfully, "perhaps he
+will relent when he sees that it is of no use grumbling."
+
+Adèle smiled, for, in spite of everything, she would be happy. "I
+_am_ joyful," she said, "but as for his pardoning me, well--you do
+not know him as well as I do."
+
+The next day while Mr. and Mrs. Mathers were enjoying a snug little
+_tête-à-tête_, the postman brought them a letter. It was from Mr.
+Rougeant.
+
+"I told you he would be glad to renew his acquaintance," said Frank,
+as soon as he saw the signature.
+
+"What's this?" he said. "A cheque, Adèle; a cheque for one hundred
+pounds! It's our wedding present, I suppose; let me read the
+letter:"
+
+     "To my Daughter,--I have heard that you have been married. You
+     think that I will bend. You are mistaken. Moreover, as I warned
+     you before you took that rash step that I would take care you
+     would not inherit a single penny of mine; I send you this
+     cheque. It is the last money which you will ever receive from
+     me.
+
+     "ALFRED ROUGEANT."
+
+Frank's face was a blank. "Fancy to come and tell you that you took
+a rash step," he said.
+
+"Did not I tell you that he was stubborn?" said his wife.
+
+"He says that he will not bend," continued Frank, perusing the
+letter for a second time. "My father-in-law, you will probably
+break, then. Those one hundred pounds are welcome all the same."
+
+"I was thinking of sending them back," said Mrs. Mathers, "but,
+perhaps, we had better keep them; father would only be too glad to
+have them back. I cannot conceive how he mustered sufficient
+resolution to part with his god. He must have made a supreme
+effort."
+
+Said Frank: "To pocket both our pride and the cheque, is, I think,
+the best course which we can pursue. We must, however, acknowledge
+his kind remittance and thank him for it. What do you think of
+inviting him to tea some afternoon?"
+
+"You are joking."
+
+"As far as regards the invitation, yes; but as for acknowledging
+receipt of the cheque, no. I leave you to decide whether you shall
+do so. Of course, I am not supposed to have anything to do in the
+matter."
+
+"Since you leave it to me, go and open the lights of your
+greenhouses, the sun is getting warm. While you are absent, I shall
+write an answer. I cannot do it while you are here; I want to be
+very serious."
+
+Frank went out of the room. He came back after a few minutes'
+absence.
+
+"Sit you down and listen," said his wife. The letter which she had
+written ran thus;--
+
+     "My Dear Father,--I have received the cheque which you were
+     kind enough to send me. I thank you for it."
+
+     "Your letter, however, pained me. You seem to think that I have
+     wantonly disobeyed you. I have not; I have only acted
+     honourably and conscientiously."
+
+     "I cannot but feel sorry for you when I think of the useless
+     and self-inflicted sufferings which you endure."
+
+     "As for your property, I am happy to state that we have enough,
+     and to spare.
+
+     "Father; if ever you require our aid; if ever you feel that you
+     would like to speak to us or to see us, do not hesitate; a
+     daughter's and a son-in-law's love will you always find in us."
+
+  "Your affectionate daughter,
+
+  "ADÈLE."
+
+
+Frank was smiling. "I think that will do very nicely," he said.
+
+When Mr. Rougeant read his daughter's missive, he uttered a cry of
+contempt. "Require your aid,--well, I shall have to sink low. You
+love me."--He banished the thought from him, for his heart was
+already softening under the influence of those words.
+
+Although he and his daughter had lived a life of mutual
+misunderstanding during the last years of her stay at "Les Marches,"
+he felt her absence much more keenly than he had anticipated.
+
+The days that followed were for him days of inexpressible ennui. He
+would saunter up and down the kitchen for half-an-hour at a time. He
+conversed with Jacques; he tried to take interest in something; he
+counted his money, his gold, his god.
+
+Formerly, he found great pleasure in doing so; but now, the sound of
+the precious metal awoke no feeling of satisfaction within his heart
+as it used to do, but rung in his ears with a funereal sound. He
+thought it foretold his doom.
+
+He continued thus for weeks, a miserable, ill-humoured, irritated
+and troubled man.
+
+The month of August came, warm almost to suffocation. Mr. Rougeant
+often felt cold. He would sit for hours before the fire, his feet
+stretched at full length, his hands buried in his pockets, and his
+drooping chin resting on his bosom. His eyes were closed.
+
+As he sat thus one afternoon, a flood of anger roused him up; he
+rose, waxed warm, his tottering steps feverishly paced the room for
+a time, then sunk back into his chair, a passion-beaten, exhausted
+and perspiring man.
+
+He had strange thoughts sometimes. Willingly would he "have shuffled
+off his mortal coil; but that the dread of something after death,
+that undiscovered country, from whose bourne no traveller returns,
+puzzled his will, and made him rather bear the ills he had, than fly
+to others that he knew not of."
+
+One day, Mrs. Dorant, whom he had engaged to look after the house,
+found him meditatively examining a piece of rope, which he held in
+his hand. She was alarmed and beckoned to her husband, who was near.
+
+He went up to his employer, who, directly he saw that he was being
+observed, threw the rope away from him excitedly.
+
+"You look ill, Mr. Rougeant," said Jacques, as he scrutinized the
+pale face and haggard look of the farmer.
+
+"So I am," was the answer.
+
+"Shall I fetch a doctor, or----."
+
+"Go about your work," angrily commanded Mr. Rougeant.
+
+Jacques did as he was bid. He, however, watched the farmer. Every
+morning, he expected to find him hanging from a beam. But as time
+passed on, Mr. Rougeant seemed to improve.
+
+He had, in fact, abandoned the horrible thought of putting an end to
+his existence.
+
+He continued thus to live for more than four years; when his health
+once more gave way.
+
+At the thought of death, he shuddered. To die alone, with no friend
+to close his eyelids, to die like a dog, ay worse, to leave behind
+him the reward of his labours and thrift to persons who had defied
+him, was intolerable.
+
+For they had had the impudence to tell him at the solicitor's
+office that he could not make a will giving his property to others;
+he could not disinherit his daughter.
+
+All this vexed him. He sank on the _jonquière_ exclaiming "Alas!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVII.
+
+RECONCILIATION.
+
+
+Mr. Rougeant's condition continued to aggravate. The thought of
+death struck his heart with terror. Behind him, he left a life of
+selfishness and bigotry. No good deed, no act of self-denial to
+soften the pangs of a stricken conscience.
+
+Before him, everything seemed dark, mysterious, awe-inspiring,
+despairing; for aught he knew, a just chastisement awaited him.
+
+He had toiled for gold; he had obtained it. What a man soweth that
+shall he also reap.
+
+In spite of his avarice and the knowledge that a consultation to the
+doctor would cost him something, Mr. Rougeant's terror overcoming
+all these; he resolved to see a physician.
+
+He did not send Jacques to fetch one, the visit of the medical man
+would have cost him too much; he drove thither in his phaeton.
+
+The doctor who was consulted said the disease was of long standing.
+
+He gave Mr. Rougeant a bottle of medicine for which the latter
+grudgingly paid three francs, and told the farmer to come and see
+him again in a few days.
+
+As Mr. Rougeant was descending the Rohais, his old horse trotting
+slowly and joggedly, an unwelcome thought flashed across his mind.
+"I must be in the vicinity of their house," he said to himself,
+then he made a gesture with his right hand. "Bah! what have I to do
+with them."
+
+He felt very lonely, his spirits were depressed, the doctor's
+remarks did not tend to enliven him.
+
+He heard a cry. He thought he recognized the voice of his little
+Adèle.
+
+Was he dreaming? He roused himself. His horse had stopped short. He
+looked to see what was the matter. In front of his horse, a child
+lay crying. What a flood of memories that childish wail had the
+effect of forcing upon him.
+
+He jumped off his vehicle, picked up the child and asked: "Are you
+hurt?" He intended to have spoken softly, but his voice seemed to
+have completely lost that power or any approach to it. The child
+looked up half afraid, and did not answer. "Are you hurt, my little
+man?" he again asked, endeavouring to soften his voice. Vain
+attempt; he only succeeded in speaking low.
+
+The "little man" who, by the by, was a girl, ceased crying, looked
+at his interlocutor and answered: "No."
+
+The child had only been knocked down by the horse's knee whilst
+crossing the road; and thanks to the sagacity of the old mare, had
+escaped unhurt.
+
+Mr. Rougeant again bent towards the child: "Where do you live?" he
+questioned.
+
+"Vere," said the child with such a vague wave of the hand that any
+of the three corners of the island might have been implicated in her
+childish, "There."
+
+"But where is it. Down that way"--pointing with his finger,--"or up
+that way."
+
+The child made a little gesture with her mouth, "a _moue_" as the
+French call it, and pointed with her lips towards the bottom of the
+hill. The farmer mounted his carriage, holding the child in his
+arms, and drove away. Meanwhile, the child felt quite at home; she
+was examining this rough man attentively.
+
+An indescribable something was passing within the farmer's soul.
+
+That little child clinging confidently to him, her large blue eyes
+expressing thankfulness and contentment filled him with a queer, but
+by no means unpleasant sensation. He was catching a glimpse of the
+joy that is reaped through performing a good action.
+
+There was something more than this, some power at work which he
+could not analyze. There was something in that childish voice and
+mien; that penetrated his soul and reminded him of former days.
+
+He felt a tender sensation gradually overwhelming him. His heart of
+stone melted, a tear rolled down that hard featured and deep
+wrinkled visage.
+
+"You cry," said the child, "are you hurt?"
+
+He roused himself, brushed away the tell-tale tear with a quick
+movement of his right arm and whipped up his horse.
+
+"Are you hurt?" repeated the little girl who was not to be put off
+so easily.
+
+"No;" he answered, almost softly.
+
+"Trot; I like to see a horse trot," said the child.
+
+But Mr. Rougeant was looking round to see if he could discern
+someone searching for the child.
+
+"What is your father's name?" asked the farmer.
+
+"Papa."
+
+"Humph! and your mother's?"
+
+"Mamma."
+
+He tried another expedient. "What do people say to your papa, Mr.
+What."
+
+"Yes; I fink it's Mr. What."
+
+The farmer looked puzzled. He saw a man approaching. "I will ask him
+if he knows where the child lives," he was saying to himself, when
+the little girl exclaimed: "Ah! there's 'ma; look, she's looking
+frough the window."
+
+"'Ma;" she cried, "I've had a ride."
+
+Mr. Rougeant looked round. So this was where the child lived. He
+descended from the phaeton holding the little girl in his arms and
+stood confronting----his daughter.
+
+They recognized each other. There was a moment of embarrassment.
+
+Then the farmer, without a word, not a muscle of his face betraying
+his emotion, handed over the parcel, turned on his heels and
+mounting the conveyance was soon out of view.
+
+He did not even cast a glance behind him. His daughter watched him
+disappear, then re-entered the house.
+
+"Poor father," she sighed, "what a great change, what an emaciated
+figure; he has already the appearance of a ghost."
+
+Then, seating herself upon a sofa, she meditated a long time.
+Finally, her face assumed a determined expression; "Come what may,"
+she said to herself; "I will not leave him descend thus into the
+grave. I will make at least one real effort at reconciliation. If I
+do not succeed, I shall be free from remorse."
+
+She talked the matter over with her husband when he came home.
+
+"You look terribly in earnest," said he. "If only your father
+possessed a heart, I should hope. I think that with the zeal which
+you now show you would melt a heart of stone. However, the task is a
+noble one, and if you succeed, I shall only be too glad to welcome
+my father-in-law."
+
+Next morning, Mrs. Mathers directed her steps towards "Les Marches."
+She had undertaken what seemed to be a stupendous task, and she
+resolved to pursue it energetically.
+
+This was why she went to her father's house in person.
+
+While she was nearing her birth-place her father was lying in his
+bed, ill. Mrs. Dorant watched near him as he tossed about his couch.
+
+At times he was calmer than at others; one could discern the traces
+upon his face softening. For he was thinking of the time when a
+little girl used to nestle upon his knee, a little child exactly
+resembling the one with which he had talked on the previous day.
+
+He could not help thinking: "I was happier then than I now am. I had
+a loving wife, a child whose innocence softened my heart; but now, I
+am abandoned by everyone."
+
+He set his teeth, he again tossed about his couch and muttered: "It
+is all through my daughter's fault; she might be respectably
+married. Still, she looked happy and contented. I know these
+fellows, they eat and drink everything which is not spent in
+superfluities."
+
+As Mrs. Mathers approached the front door of "Les Marches," she felt
+a tremor pass through her whole frame. The once familiar
+surroundings and the ennobling object of her visit inspired her with
+strangely tender feelings.
+
+Her soul was deeply moved as she entered the house. There was the
+kitchen with its primitive and quaint furniture. It was deserted.
+She seated herself on a chair and began to ponder.
+
+Soft was to be her voice, tender were to be her appeals to his
+conscience, earnest her entreaties, she was to plead with patience,
+and appeal to his most heart-melting sentiments.
+
+She heard someone coming downstairs. "It is he," she said to
+herself, and she braced herself for the encounter.
+
+"How you frighten me Miss--I beg your pardon--Madam."
+
+It was Mrs. Dorant who uttered these words as she stood in the
+doorway seemingly afraid to enter, fearing the visitor might turn
+out to be a ghost.
+
+"It is you, Mrs. Dorant," said Mrs. Mathers; "is my father
+upstairs?"
+
+"Yes, ma'am."
+
+"Is he ill?"
+
+"Yes, ma'am."
+
+"Dangerously?"
+
+"Not very; he does not want us to fetch the doctor. But what have
+you come here for? If Mr. Rougeant saw you--oh--;" here she threw up
+both her hands and opened her mouth and eyes wide--"oh--" she
+continued, "master would swallow you."
+
+"Do you think so; but I mean to go upstairs and to talk to him."
+
+"Oh, don't go," she entreated, fixing her supplicating eyes upon
+Adèle, "he might kill you."
+
+Mrs. Mathers laughed. "No," she said, "he is my father; he is ill
+and needs me. I am going to discharge my duty towards him." And so
+saying she ascended the creaky staircase.
+
+To this day, she cannot explain the sensation which she felt as she
+entered the room where her father lay.
+
+She went straight up to her father's bedside, sank on her knees,
+took the hand that was lying on the bedclothes between both hers and
+began to weep.
+
+Mr. Rougeant quickly withdrew his hand, he contracted his brow, his
+lips slightly curved, he looked on her with contempt.
+
+"What do you want?" he said roughly. "You come to beg, you pauper,
+your angry creditors are clamouring for their money, you are on the
+verge of bankruptcy. I knew it;" he added triumphantly.
+
+"Father, it is true, I come to beg, but not for money. I am not
+poor."
+
+He looked at her suspiciously.
+
+She turned upon him her tearful eyes and softly said: "Father, you
+are miserable, I want to render you happy once more."
+
+To her great surprise, he did not answer, but his countenance fell.
+"Who has told her that I am miserable and that I wish to be happy
+once more?" he mused.
+
+His daughter seized this opportunity. She took the tide at the
+flood. She pleaded earnestly and tenderly.
+
+Then, as he balanced between pride and prejudice on one side, and a
+life of peace and contentment on the other, her persuasive voice
+made the tendrils of his heart move uneasily.
+
+This stone-hearted man wept.
+
+So did his daughter. And amidst this flood of tears, father and
+daughter were reconciled once more.
+
+Mr. Rougeant grew rapidly better. He had something to live for now.
+He, however, would not quit his farm.
+
+"Why don't you come and live here?" he said to Frank one evening as
+they sat near a blazing fire in the parlour of "Les Marches."
+
+The idea struck Frank as being quite practicable. He was already
+prevented, from want of room, to extend his business at the Rohais.
+
+"You would not like to see greenhouses in your fields yonder;" he
+said.
+
+"Yes, I would; besides, I have a lot of capital which might be
+profitably used up. We might form a partnership."
+
+"I must think it over," said Frank. He cast a look towards Adèle,
+and as he met her beseeching eyes, he added smilingly: "I think we
+may as well consider the matter as settled."
+
+Frank's property at the Rohais was let. The farm at "Les Marches"
+underwent a complete transformation.
+
+For fully three months, there was such a rubbing and scrubbing,
+painting and papering, that everything was turned completely
+topsy-turvy.
+
+Order was at last evoked, the furniture from the Rohais was brought
+in and the farm-house was made a model of snugness and comfort
+within.
+
+Without, during those three months, nothing was heard but the noise
+of the carpenter's hammers and the click of the glazier's tools.
+
+Mr. Rougeant was as completely transformed as his farm. He looked
+upon the whole with such an air of complacency that the neighbours
+remarked: "He is in his second infancy."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVIII.
+
+A SAD END OF A MISPENT LIFE.
+
+
+In one of the numerous public-houses in the town of St. Peter-Port,
+surrounded by a gang of "roughs," a man, still young, sat on a
+stool.
+
+His face was terribly emaciated, and on it, one could discern all
+the traces of that demon, _alcohol_.
+
+In one of his agitated hands, he held a half-filled glass, in the
+other, a short, blackened clay-pipe.
+
+His glassy eyes had a strange look.
+
+He made an effort to carry the tumbler which he was holding to his
+lips, but his nerves and muscles refused to act.
+
+Here, we may as well say that this man's name was Tom Soher.
+
+"What's the matter, Tom?" said one of the men.
+
+"Nothing," responded he, making use of a very old form of lie.
+
+At this reassuring statement, the company resumed their
+conversation, and their drink.
+
+But Tom, after placing his glass on the counter, retired to one
+corner of the room, sat himself on an empty barrel and was soon fast
+asleep.
+
+It was a profound sleep, and, from time to time, the young man
+trembled convulsively. He opened a gaping mouth, he muttered some
+unintelligible words, but his "pals" noticed it not.
+
+They were accustomed to such scenes,--the sight of man, who is no
+more man; an animal, lower in many respects than the brute.
+
+The sleeper was dreaming. He dreamt that he saw the same
+public-house in which he now was. But, instead of being built of
+granite,--as it really was,--its walls were one mass of human
+beings, piled one on top of the other.
+
+He could recognize some former companions who now were deceased.
+
+Their bodies served instead of stones, and their souls he discerned,
+placed in lieu of windows.
+
+Amidst the horrible mass of human flesh, he saw his father's body,
+crushed and terribly mangled; his face wore an expression of
+suffering, his whole body seemed borne down by a heavy and
+oppressive weight.
+
+Tom Soher looked at his father. The latter cast a sad and troubled
+look at his son.
+
+All at once, the drunken man saw himself seated upon his father's
+back. So this was the load that crushed him. He gazed upon his
+resemblance; a mere shadow of his former self.
+
+As he contemplated this sad picture, he saw, issuing out of his
+mouth--his soul.
+
+An inexpressible fear and a sense of suffocation seized him.
+
+He tried to explain to himself this curious vision. "Bah! 'tis but a
+dream," he muttered; "ah! someone is grasping my throat. I am
+dying." He lifted his eyes towards heaven. They encountered the
+ceiling.
+
+As he sought in vain to rouse himself from that awful state of
+lethargy, something within him whispered: "This house is built with
+the price of bodies and of souls."
+
+He listened eagerly. The voice was silent.
+
+Then the awful interpretation of this strange vision dawned upon his
+troubled mind. "Is it possible that I have given both my body and my
+soul in exchange for drink. My soul! Alas!"
+
+He struggled to shake himself free. Another fit of suffocation
+seized him in its deathly embrace. He tried to shout or to entreat
+mercy, but his tongue refused to utter a sound and his heart was as
+hard and as cold as the stones over which the vehicle in which he
+was lying rolled.
+
+For Tom Soher was in a closed carriage. When closing time came, the
+owner of the public-house had him placed in a conveyance and sent
+home.
+
+He realised this, as a dull, but deep-seated pain, caused him to
+open his eyes. He looked wildly round.
+
+The carriage rattled over the newly macadamized road, and he was
+dying, unable to cry for help, incapable of articulating a single
+sound.
+
+He struck his fist frantically out, intending to smash the window,
+but his blow fell an inch short of its intended mark.
+
+Then all his past life seemed to roll before his eyes, a mispent,
+futile, licentious life, in which the bad passions had predominated,
+and finally hustled him to his doom. A dreadful sense of fear seized
+him. He raised himself upon one of his elbows, his eyes were wide
+open, and in them, there was not the expression that is seen in
+those of a dying beast, which seems to say "It is finished;" his
+eyes expressed a conviction of something yonder, coupled with a look
+of blank despair.
+
+The elbow upon which he was supporting himself gave way, and he fell
+back--dead.
+
+As the driver approached the "Prenoms," he whistled gaily. He little
+dreamt of the surprise which awaited him. He drove straight through
+the open gate into the farmyard.
+
+When Mrs. Soher heard the sound of the carriage wheels, she went to
+the door of the house, opened it and said: "Here he comes again, the
+poor inebriate."
+
+"Now, ma'am, here's your son; he's had a glass too much, but he'll
+be right enough after a bit o' sleep;" and so saying, the driver
+opened the carriage door while Mrs. Soher approached, lantern in
+hand. Her daughter followed her.
+
+They came close to the driver, who stood stock-still, his mouth half
+open, his whole body trembling like an aspen leaf. At last, he
+recovered himself sufficiently to speak. "Jerusalem--he's dead," he
+muttered in a hoarse and frightened tone.
+
+The dead man's mother let fall the lantern which she was holding,
+her legs gave way under her, and she fell down and fainted.
+
+Her daughter was also greatly moved. She began to sob.
+
+"What must we do?" questioned the man.
+
+"Oh, I don't know," she answered, crying; then, after a few moments'
+pause, she said: "Call the neighbours."
+
+The man gave a shout. Two men from the house on the other side of
+the road appeared at the door.
+
+"This way, please, be quick;" shouted the driver.
+
+The men precipitated themselves towards the spot. Mrs. Soher was
+carried to her room upstairs and left to the care of her daughter
+who applied restoratives.
+
+The corpse was carried into another room and laid upon a bed. The
+eyes remained wide open.
+
+The neighbours sent away the carriage and its owner; one of them
+remained in the house while the other went for a doctor.
+
+Mrs. Soher regained consciousness, and as her senses returned to
+her, she cried bitterly: "My poor son, my dear son."
+
+At this stage, Mr. Soher came home. He was surprised to find his
+neighbour seated near the fire in the kitchen. His surprise was
+changed into anguish, when the neighbour, in a few words, informed
+him of Tom's sad fate.
+
+Mr. Soher was horrified. With a blanched face and tottering steps he
+ascended the stairs and entered the room in which lay his wife. Upon
+seeing him, his wife uttered heart-rending cries: "Oh, Thomas, what
+are we going to do; our only son." Her sobs choked her.
+
+Her husband did not say a word. He turned on his heels, closed the
+door after him, and entered the room in which lay his son's corpse.
+
+As he glanced at those dilated eyes, a chill ran through his frame.
+"Great God; is it possible?" he exclaimed, raising his eyes to
+heaven; "my son, my son."
+
+He paced up and down the room with feverish steps, a prey to the
+most poignant grief. His conscience upbraided him loudly. It said:
+
+"Behold your son whose education you have overlooked; behold him
+whom you have left to grow in vice, without an effort worth the name
+to save him from the ruinous bent of his bad passions."
+
+"I know it; 'tis all my fault," exclaimed the grief and
+conscience-stricken man. "I have not done half of what I might have
+done for him.
+
+"Animated by a false pride, I desired to shine among my
+fellow-worshippers, and have been continually away from home,
+neglecting my duty there, to satisfy my ambition. Miserable man that
+I am."
+
+He cast his eyes towards the lifeless body of which the eyes met his
+and seemed to reproach him for having shirked his duty.
+
+"Oh, God! wilt thou ever forgive me?" he cried in wild despair;
+"what can I do to atone? If one half, if a tenth part of the energy
+which I have displayed elsewhere had been employed in bringing up my
+son as I ought to have done, this would not be."
+
+He continued thus to soliloquize, now and then stopping abruptly in
+his nervous walk to gaze upon those reproachful eyes, then resuming
+his wanderings, blaming himself continually.
+
+He was in the midst of his peregrinations when his daughter entered
+the room.
+
+"Father," she said, "a woman who is downstairs wishes to speak with
+you."
+
+The troubled man did not answer. What was this to him; what was all
+the world to him compared with his grief?
+
+"She says her daughter, who is dying, wishes to see you," continued
+the young woman.
+
+"Tell her I am coming," said Mr. Soher.
+
+A dying woman wishing to see him. How could he refuse that? Perhaps
+he would be the means of doing some good to this person. If he could
+thus begin to atone for his want of dutifulness towards his son.
+
+He went downstairs.
+
+"My daughter wishes to see you now," said his visitor. "You will
+come, Sir; you will not refuse a dying woman's request?"
+
+"Refuse; certainly not," he said, and he immediately accompanied his
+visitor.
+
+They walked the whole distance which separated the two houses
+without a word being exchanged between them.
+
+Mr. Soher's thoughts were with the dead; his companion was already
+grieving for the daughter which she felt sure she was about to lose.
+
+Mr. Soher was ushered near the dying woman's bed. The latter was
+raving, but directly she perceived him she fixed her gaze upon him,
+her wild, rambling talk ceased, her mind seemed to regain its
+lucidity. She exclaimed: "I have not found it, therefore I am lost
+for ever."
+
+"What have you not found?" he said kindly.
+
+"Listen," said she. "Some time ago, I entered a small place of
+worship in which a man was delivering an address, or, as he called
+it, a testimonial.
+
+"He said that when he had been converted, he had felt a heavenly ray
+of light flooding his very soul. He said he felt as if an electric
+battery had come in contact with his entrails. At the same time, he
+heard a voice clearly saying: 'My son, thy sins are forgiven thee.'
+
+"This man, who was no other than you, Sir, said that if his hearers
+had not clearly heard this divine voice and experienced this shock,
+they were doomed. He exhorted the congregation to seek for these
+blessings.
+
+"I went home impressed. I decided to seek for these things of which
+you spoke. I prayed, I hoped, I waited, but I have never felt half
+of what you promised your audience they would find.
+
+"Now, I am then to understand that I am rejected.
+
+"Rejected! oh Heaven."
+
+The poor woman burst into tears and uttered a wail of despair.
+
+Mr. Soher tried to soothe her.
+
+"No," she said, "you are trying to deceive me, you are not speaking
+the truth."
+
+He protested. "It was then, that I did not speak the truth," he
+said. "I was exalted, I went too far."
+
+"Is it true?" said the dying woman.
+
+"Oh yes, do believe me."
+
+"I believe you," she said sneeringly.
+
+The fever was again coming upon her. She began to wander in her
+speech.
+
+Mr. Soher, at a sign from the mother, who had followed him into the
+room, withdrew.
+
+His brain was on fire. His heart was full of the deepest and keenest
+anguish.
+
+"What have I done?" he muttered. "I wanted to be thought a saint.
+Not being one, I acted the hypocrite. Now, here I am, maimed,
+afflicted, weighed down with grief."
+
+He reached his home--a wreck.
+
+A few days afterwards, poor Tom's body was buried in the churchyard.
+
+From that day, life at the "Prenoms" was completely changed.
+
+Mr. Soher examined himself and his surroundings.
+
+He saw that he was drifting towards bankruptcy. He resolved--he did
+more--he went to work, to try and avert the catastrophe. He
+succeeded in all that he undertook, for he worked with a will.
+
+His lost son was not brought back to life, neither was the land
+which he had sold redeemed, but he managed to supply his wants and
+those of his family, besides putting something by for a rainy day.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIX.
+
+DOMESTIC HAPPINESS.
+
+
+They had had a hard day's work at "Les Marches," packing tomatoes
+for the English markets.
+
+It was the month of September. The days were growing short and the
+nights long.
+
+After the day's occupations were over, the family assembled in the
+neatly furnished parlour. Frank wrote his letters of advice to his
+fruit merchants. Then he took a German book, "Hauff's stories," and
+proceeded to read the diverting history of "Little Mudj," making
+frequent use of the vocabulary.
+
+Afterwards, to relax his mind, he took a French book. It was one of
+the works of Blaise Pascal, his "Lettres Provinciales." He admired
+their originality, the trenchant satire, and the galling blows of
+this man whom Châteaubriand called a "frightful genius."
+
+As he read the beautiful passages which had issued from this great
+man's mind, he became imbued with some of the flame that had
+inspired the author of the book.
+
+He placed the volume on the table, rested his head upon his hand and
+began to think of his past life.
+
+He thought of his ambition to acquire riches, and of how he had been
+deceived. Providence had ordered otherwise and baffled him.
+
+He was very well off now, but how differently from what he had
+anticipated, he had acquired his present position.
+
+He thought of his mental sufferings, the acute brain, the
+deep-seated ambition torturing him.
+
+He no longer asked himself why he had endured pain. Had he never
+suffered, he would never have attained the moral position in which
+he now was. It was when he was disgusted with the world, when he
+experienced an aversion for earthly things, that his firmest
+resolves had been formed and his determination to do good
+solidified. It was then that he attempted to rise above the dusty,
+monotonous and weary walks of ordinary life; it was then that his
+virtuous sensibility had been awakened, and that his lofty
+conceptions had been framed. And now, having aimed at something
+noble, he was leading a useful, happy, and dignified life.
+
+He was cheerful, and possessed of some of that supreme happiness
+which brightens the soul, and accompanies it through immortality.
+
+He had said: "Why endure pain?" But it was with the same senses that
+he now enjoyed pleasure.
+
+He had said: "Why suffer physically?" "Why," he thought, "if that
+little child did not feel, and had not experienced the pangs of
+hunger, it would now be dead; so would I, if, when I was wrapped in
+thick smoke, the foul gases had not irritated my bronchial tubes and
+my eyes.
+
+"As for the remainder, I am satisfied to leave it to Him who has
+cared for and protected me so far through life. Perhaps the day will
+come when I shall also know the why and wherefore of things which I
+almost dared to accuse an all-wise Providence of having sent into
+the world."
+
+While her husband was soliloquizing thus, Mrs. Mathers was busily
+engaged in stitching a smart little pinafore of diaper.
+
+Grandpapa was resting upon the sofa with little Adèle seated on his
+knee.
+
+He held both the child's hands in his, the left one he held in his
+left hand, and the right one he held in his right hand. Taking
+Adèle's right-hand forefinger and placing it in her left hand, he
+began to tell her a little story about a lark, which he remembered
+his mother used to recite to him when he was a little boy.
+
+"A little lark built its nest there," he began.
+
+"Here, in my hand?" said the child.
+
+"We shall suppose the little bird did so," answered Mr. Rougeant.
+"It passed this way, and the thumb caught it."
+
+"Ah-ha," laughed little Adèle.
+
+"This finger plucked its feathers, this one cooked it, and--this one
+ate it."
+
+Frank made some remark.
+
+Mr. Rougeant looked up.
+
+"And the little one," said Adèle, pulling impatiently on her
+grandfather's sleeve, "you have not told me what the little one
+did."
+
+"Indeed! well, the little one was left without a single crumb."
+
+"Poor little one," said the child.
+
+END.
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Silver Lining, by John Roussel
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+  <head>
+    <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=iso-8859-1" />
+    <title>
+      The Project Gutenberg eBook of THE SILVER LINING, by JOHN ROUSSEL.
+    </title>
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+<pre>
+
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Silver Lining, by John Roussel
+
+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: The Silver Lining
+       A Guernsey Story
+
+Author: John Roussel
+
+Release Date: January 13, 2009 [EBook #27798]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SILVER LINING ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by StevenGibbs, KarenD, and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+
+
+
+
+</pre>
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1">[Pg 1]</a></span></p>
+<h1>THE SILVER LINING</h1>
+
+<hr class="third" />
+
+<h2><i>A GUERNSEY STORY.</i></h2>
+
+<hr class="third" />
+
+<h2>
+<br />
+<span class="small">BY</span><br />
+<br />
+JOHN ROUSSEL.
+<br />
+</h2>
+
+<hr class="third" />
+
+
+<div class="center">
+<br />
+<b>Guernsey:</b><br />
+<b>FREDERICK BLONDEL GUERIN,</b><br />
+<b><span class="medium">"THE SUN" OFFICE, HIGH STREET.</span></b>
+</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="center">
+<b>1894.</b>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2">[Pg 2]</a></span></p>
+<hr class="section" />
+
+<h3>INDEX.</h3>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div style="margin-left: 4.5em; margin-bottom: -4.2em;"><span class="smcap">Chapter</span></div>
+<ol>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">The Results of Disobedience</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_3'>3</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">A Little Girl's Change of Life</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_15'>15</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">The Boarding School</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_24'>24</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">The Influences of a Good Home</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_33'>33</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">The Reward of Inordinate Ambition</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_45'>45</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">New Acquaintances</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_54'>54</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">An Abrupt Dismissal</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_62'>62</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">An Unpleasant Visit</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_72'>72</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">Deceptions</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_79'>79</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">'Twixt Love and Duty</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_84'>84</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">Business</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_91'>91</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">A Strange Meeting</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_96'>96</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">Superstition</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_102'>102</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">Failure</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_107'>107</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">Dark Days</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_115'>115</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">Shadow and Sunshine</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_125'>125</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">The Effects of a Sermon</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_130'>130</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">Success after Success</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_135'>135</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">Tom's Interview with Mrs. Vidoux</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_143'>143</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">Tom's Visit to his Uncle</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_148'>148</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">The Encounter</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_153'>153</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">Father and Daughter</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_159'>159</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">A Secret Correspondence</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_163'>163</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">Mr. Rougeant goes to Church</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_169'>169</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">Love Triumphs</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_173'>173</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">Wedded</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_183'>183</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">Reconciliation</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_189'>189</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">A Sad End of a Mispent Life</span></span><span class="linenum"><a href='#Page_197'>197</a></span></li>
+<li><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&mdash;<span class="smcap">Domestic Happiness</span></span><span class="linenum"> <a href='#Page_205'>205</a></span></li>
+</ol>
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[Pg 3]</a></span></p>
+<hr class="section" />
+<h1>THE SILVER LINING.</h1>
+<hr class="third" />
+<h2>A GUERNSEY STORY.</h2>
+<hr class="third" />
+
+<h3>CHAPTER I.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">The Results of Disobedience.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 83px;">
+<img src="images/img_o.jpg" width="83" height="89" alt="O" title="" />
+</div><p>ne fine summer afternoon&mdash;it was the month of June&mdash;the sea was
+calm, the air was still, and the sun was warm.</p>
+
+<p>The mackerel boats from Cobo (a bay in the island of Guernsey) were
+setting sail; an old woman was detaching limpets from the rocks, and
+slowly, but steadily, filling up her basket. On the west side of the
+bay, two air-starved Londoners were sitting on the sand, basking in
+the sunshine, determined to return home, if not invigorated, at
+least bronzed by the sea air. On the east side, a few little boys
+were bathing. A middle-aged man, engaged in searching for sand-eels,
+completed the picture.</p>
+
+<p>A little boy, who might have been nine years of age, was standing in
+the road gazing upon this scene. The way in which he was clothed,
+betokened that he was not one of the lads that lived in the vicinity
+of that bay. He was dressed in a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[Pg 4]</a></span> well-fitting knickerbocker suit,
+and his polished boots, his well combed hair, denoted that he was an
+object of especial care at home. He possessed a very intelligent
+air, a fine forehead, rather large eyes which were full of
+expression, and his frowning look, the way in which he stamped his
+little foot, denoted that he was of an impulsive temperament. This
+little fellow had some very good ideas. He had determined to be
+good, and unselfish; and he tried to learn as much as he possibly
+could. His mother had told him that later on this would help him in
+life.</p>
+
+<p>Once, an inquisitive pedlar, noticing his intelligence, and his
+garrulous disposition, asked him jokingly if he ever intended to
+marry. Upon which Frank Mathers (this was the boy's name) assumed a
+serious air, and giving his head a little toss he answered, "I do
+not know yet, there are so many beautiful little girls everywhere,
+one does not know which one to choose."</p>
+
+<p>A physiognomist might easily have seen that in this little boy's
+soul a struggle was going on. "Shall I go?" he was saying to
+himself; "shall I go and amuse myself?" His conscience had a great
+power over him; but the beautiful sea was tempting, each wave as it
+fell produced a sound which was sweeter to his ears than the
+sweetest music.</p>
+
+<p>"Your mother has forbidden you to go;" said his conscience; "you
+must obey her."</p>
+
+<p>He continued to remain undecided between pleasure and duty, the
+strife going on meanwhile within him. All at once, he espied on his
+extreme left four small boys about his size, who were coming out of
+the water. How they laughed; how joyful they seemed to be; how they
+made the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[Pg 5]</a></span> water splash and foam around them. Frank immediately began
+to run at full speed towards them, and covered the space of sand
+which separated him from the little boys in two minutes. He arrived
+breathless near the group of children who were dressing themselves.
+He looked at them, and was asking himself if he must go nearer to
+them, when one of the group looked at him with a surly air. Little
+Frank translated this into: "What business have you here?" and
+retreated.</p>
+
+<p>He began to examine the man who was looking for sand-eels. The
+fisherman was digging in the gravel with a spade, and now and then a
+few of the little fishes were dislodged from their hiding place.
+They wriggled in such a lively fashion that Frank was greatly
+amused, and forgot, for a time, all about his first desire of a run
+in the sea.</p>
+
+<p>He laughed aloud when he saw a big sand-eel, bigger than any which
+the man had yet captured&mdash;for he took the trouble to go and see in
+his basket&mdash;escape into the water and swim out of the man's reach.</p>
+
+<p>The fisherman was evidently annoyed at having lost this fine
+specimen, and when he saw this little fellow laughing, and standing
+quite close to his basket, he grew angry, and in a rough tone of
+voice, speaking in Guernsey French, he exclaimed: "Begone, you
+impudent little rascal."</p>
+
+<p>Now, little Frank did not know French, and consequently did not
+understand a single word of what this man said, but he hastily
+retreated. "He must have uttered something terrible," he said to
+himself; "what an ugly face. Why is this man vexed with me? I have
+done nothing to grieve him; only bent over his basket and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[Pg 6]</a></span> laughed
+when I saw that fish escape; but why did not the man laugh also? It
+was so amusing."</p>
+
+<p>He looked round to see whether he could discover any of those little
+boys who had attracted his attention when he was in the road, but
+none of them were visible. There were a few persons here and there,
+but no one was near him. He made sure of this by directing his eyes
+successively in the direction of every point of the compass. The
+"sand-eel man" was still busy, but he was far enough. Frank hastened
+behind a small rock and began to undress. As he did so, he
+experienced a series of queer sensations. He was tasting pleasure at
+the expense of his conscience, and, struggle as he would, he felt
+unhappy. It was the first time that he thus openly disregarded his
+mother's commands, and it cost him something to do so.</p>
+
+<p>It did not take him long to divest himself of his clothing. He was
+soon in the water, dancing and romping. The water around him
+resembled that of Lodore.</p>
+
+<p>He now felt happy, having forgotten all about his mother and the
+errand which she had sent him to accomplish.</p>
+
+<p>The water was warm; the little green crabs that walked sideways
+passing quite close to him, amused him considerably. He passed a
+portion of his time chasing them. Then he waded farther into the
+water till it came up to his hips. Ah, this was pleasure indeed! He
+would not have exchanged his place for a suite of rooms in
+Buckingham Palace.</p>
+
+<p>He had been in the water for about a quarter of an hour. He glanced
+round to see if the fisherman was to be seen. No trace of him now.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[Pg 7]</a></span></p>
+<p>"He has gone home," he thought. He began to feel cold. "I must go
+and dress," he said to himself, "or I shall catch cold, and then
+mamma will know that I have been bathing."</p>
+
+<p>Frank proceeded towards the place where he had placed his clothes,
+but as he approached the shore, he found that the water seemed to be
+getting warmer. This discovery was the cause of his staying five
+minutes longer in the water than he would otherwise have done.</p>
+
+<p>Then he again betook himself towards <i>terra firma</i>. "Hullo,
+what's this?" And he held up a boot. "How strange, it looks exactly
+like mine," he muttered. Then a thought&mdash;a flash shot through his
+brain, immediately followed by a pang through his heart. The
+thought&mdash;"where are my clothes?"&mdash;the pang&mdash;the result of his
+disappointing glance towards the place in which he had placed them.
+He was out of the water in the twinkling of an eye. The boot which
+he had found was in his hand. Where were his trousers? where was his
+coat? There was his shirt being knocked about by the waves! He
+rushed upon it, threw it on the gravel near his boot, and began
+tremblingly to search for his other garments. He at last succeeded
+in bringing together the following collection: One pair of trousers,
+one stocking, one boot, one shirt. That was all.</p>
+
+<p>He was now shivering from head to foot, his teeth chattered in his
+mouth, his whole appearance was one of utter wretchedness. He did
+not cry; he was too miserable; he only kept muttering: "I will never
+disobey mamma any more; I will never do it, never, never."</p>
+
+<p>He looked round to ascertain that no one was looking at him. What
+was his vexation to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[Pg 8]</a></span> discover the man with the sand-eels eyeing him,
+a repulsive grin covering his whole face, and a small black pipe
+stuck between his teeth.</p>
+
+<p>This sight, instead of discouraging Frank, made him assume an air of
+bravado. He took his shirt, wrung out the water, shook it and
+proceeded to put it on. How cold it was; how it stuck to his little
+body. It only made him shiver the more. He put his stocking on the
+left foot; then he put on his trousers, and lastly, his boot. This
+boot he put on the right foot so that his feet were both hidden from
+view. Then with a heavy and repentant heart&mdash;what person is not
+repentant when he sees himself in some nasty scrape caused by his
+own sinfulness?&mdash;he directed his irregular steps towards his home. A
+curious sight to gaze upon was this little fellow as he wearily
+plodded on his way.</p>
+
+<p>He had not advanced twenty yards when he took off his boot and put
+it on the other foot. He could not endure the pain that it caused
+him. He had not been accustomed to go without stockings, he had
+never tried the experiment before, and he wondered why his feet were
+so tender. He rose and began to walk once more. It was an unequal
+walk, like that of a person with a short leg. He stopped again. Some
+gravel had found its way into his boot, and the torture which it
+caused him was unendurable. He carefully withdrew all the
+pain-inflicting pebbles, brushed off the gravel that adhered to his
+stocking, and resumed his laborious task of walking. When he came
+into the road, the people which he met laughed at him. "Ah; what
+nasty people there are in these places," he thought. He fancied he
+was being punished. He had hoped to have had<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[Pg 9]</a></span> a lot of fun. He would
+have returned home, invented some pretext for having been longer
+than usual; and now, what a wretched plight he was in. Why was he
+not punished in another way? this was too severe, he had never
+sinned at that amount, he was receiving extra payment.</p>
+
+<p>Thus soliloquized our little man when he arrived near a farm-house
+called "Les Pins." He heard a pig squeak, and hastened along as fast
+as his naked and now sore foot would allow him.</p>
+
+<p>There, in the farmyard, was a sight which he had never before
+witnessed. One man, a butcher, was pulling on a rope which was tied
+around a porker's snout. Three other men were forcibly pushing the
+animal along. They made but little progress however, for master
+piggy placed his feet so firmly on the ground that it required all
+the efforts of the four men to make him move.</p>
+
+<p>At last he was with difficulty brought near the scaffold; the altar
+upon which he was to be sacrificed to supply the voracious appetites
+of man.</p>
+
+<p>He was forcibly lifted upon the wooden bench and firmly held down.
+Then the butcher twisted the piece of rope around his hand and the
+pig's snout, and unsheathing a sharp knife, he plunged it in the
+animal's throat. The porker's life-blood gushed out in a red stream.
+Frank fairly danced with joy. He forgot all his troubles while
+witnessing those of the pig. The latter tried to shake himself free.
+He filled the air with protestations against the treatment to which
+he was being subjected, he invoked his gods, but all in vain. Firmly
+held down by the four men he soon ceased to struggle and lay quite
+still.</p>
+
+<p>"It does not seem to me," Frank heard one of the men remark, "that
+he has given a very violent<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[Pg 10]</a></span> shake before dying, as porkers
+generally do." "Oh, he is dead enough," said the butcher, "fetch the
+water and let us make haste." The men obeyed the order which was
+given rather peremptorily and the half drunk butcher followed them,
+so did a lad of fourteen years (the heir to the estate), who,
+according to a Guernsey custom, had been holding the pig's tail.</p>
+
+<p>Frank was just considering whether he would go nearer to the animal
+when the latter gave a jump. In a moment piggy got down and galloped
+in an awkward fashion straight in the direction of Frank, who
+uttered a cry of terror and ran away as fast as his legs would carry
+him. He forgot all about his exposed foot, and received a few nasty
+bruises and cuts against the sharp stones that were placed in the
+road for macadamizing purposes.</p>
+
+<p>He cast an anxious glance behind him to see if the porker was
+following him, for he had now no other idea but that the pig was
+being sent to complete the punishment which he thought had been
+dealt out to him for his disobedience. But the porker was not to be
+seen. He had fallen dead after having run a few yards. When Frank
+came higher up the road, he proceeded to examine his foot. It hurt
+him considerably. He tied his handkerchief around it and resumed his
+walk. Seeing a great gap in the hedge he looked through it and saw
+that the men were plunging the porker in a great tub full of
+steaming water. Then followed a scraping with ormer shells, and, in
+a few minutes, the black pig was divested of his hairy coat. His
+skin was white and smooth, like those which Frank had seen at the
+meat market.</p>
+
+<p>Not caring to see more, and feeling very cold, he resumed his
+journey homewards. He was so<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[Pg 11]</a></span> excited with what he had witnessed,
+that he did not think so much about his wretched condition as he
+would otherwise have done, and when he arrived in front of his
+father's house, at the Rohais, he was almost cheerful.</p>
+
+<p>But he suddenly stopped short. "If I go inside with this countenance
+on, mamma will punish me severely," he thought.</p>
+
+<p>He therefore called to his aid all the hypocrisy which his years
+were able to muster, and assumed a most miserable expression. But
+this was not enough to satisfy Frank's idea of the exigencies of the
+present situation. He doubled his fists, rubbed his eyes vigorously,
+and uttered a very plaintive and doleful cry.</p>
+
+<p>Thus prepared, he entered the house by the back door, keeping a
+sharp look out through the corner of his eyes for his mother. She
+was not in the kitchen; he opened the door of the parlour; his eyes
+reddened and moistened by the friction to which they were being
+subjected, while his cries were heart-rending. Mrs. Mathers was not
+in the parlour. He stopped his sham crying, sat himself on a chair
+and listened eagerly for the sound of approaching footsteps; ready
+to recommence his little game as soon as his mother entered the
+house.</p>
+
+<p>No sound of approaching footsteps were however heard. Frank Mathers
+was now quite chilled, although the weather was very warm. His
+excitement had abated and he was feeling down-hearted. There was no
+fire in the room. Frank fetched a large coat (his father's) and
+wrapped it around him. He was busily engaged in this operation when
+his mother suddenly appeared upon the scene.</p>
+
+<p>She wore slippers, which accounted for his not having heard her
+footsteps.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[Pg 12]</a></span></p>
+<p>"Well?" she said, wondering what her son was about, "what are you
+wrapping yourself up for?"</p>
+
+<p>Frank was taken by surprise. He looked up with a very confused air.
+His mother misinterpreted his look. "Don't be silly, child," she
+said, "have you carried that letter to Mr. Gavet."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, mamma," mumbled the little fellow, "but&mdash;&mdash;" and he unbuttoned
+his coat and exhibited his dilapidated state before the eyes of his
+astonished mother. "What <i>have</i> you been doing?" she questioned
+anxiously. "My clothes were caught by the sea," he sobbed, and
+genuine tears flowed down his cheeks.</p>
+
+<p>Then he confessed everything to his mother; how he had been tempted
+to enjoy himself despite her orders; how he had watched a man who
+was catching sand-eels; and, finally, how his clothes had been
+washed away by the rising tide.</p>
+
+<p>When he had finished speaking, he raised his eyes to see what kind
+of look his mother wore. Perceiving a cloud of sadness hanging over
+her brow, he jumped up and exclaimed: "Oh, mamma, do not look at me
+so; I will never disobey you any more."</p>
+
+<p>The mother took the now repentant son upon her knees, and, after
+having shown him the consequences of disobedience; after having
+spoken to him of the pain which he caused her through showing a
+disposition to do wrong and of the sin which he committed, she
+instructed him tenderly, and made an impression on his soft heart,
+such as a mother alone knows how to make. Then she kissed her son.
+"You forgive me, then?" said the boy. "Yes, my dear, I forgive you."</p>
+
+<p>Frank Mathers was so impressed with his mother's love that he
+silently determined never<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[Pg 13]</a></span> again to grieve her. "Now let me change
+your clothes. You might catch a severe cold and perhaps be ill for
+weeks after this. Do you feel ill?"</p>
+
+<p>"No, mamma, I am cold, that is all."</p>
+
+<p>When Frank was eating his supper that evening, his heart was full of
+thankfulness. "What a good mother I have," he thought, "I will never
+do anything contrary to her orders any more." He suddenly stopped
+eating. The thought of the porker struck him and he called out
+gently: "Mamma."</p>
+
+<p>"What is it my dear?"</p>
+
+<p>"A dead pig came running after me."</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Mathers looked somewhat anxiously at her son. Was his mind
+going out?</p>
+
+<p>"They had killed a pig at a farm, and when they were gone to fetch
+some water, the porker jumped down and came running after me," said
+the little boy.</p>
+
+<p>The slight shock which the mother had received, had sufficed to
+flush her cheek.</p>
+
+<p>There was something strange in that bright tint on her face, it
+glowed with a strange light. Her eye had a kind, but far away
+glance; an almost divine expression. It was full of tenderness and
+melancholy. She seemed to belong to some other world then; her whole
+soul seemed to shine in that sweet face. This was how she looked as
+she gazed upon her son that evening, while he was finishing his
+supper, seemingly not at all astonished at his mother's silence. He
+had grown accustomed to these moments of pensiveness on his mother's
+part. Of late, she often fell into a strange reverie, and little
+Frank was yet too young to understand these symptoms always followed
+by a short, hollow cough. His mother was attacked with phthisis.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[Pg 14]</a></span></p>
+<p>When he had finished his supper, Frank again turned towards his
+mother.</p>
+
+<p>"How can a dead pig run?" he asked.</p>
+
+<p>"The pig was not dead," said his mother; "now make haste and go to
+bed. I don't want to have to nurse you to-morrow."</p>
+
+<p>The little boy obeyed, muttering to himself: "The pig <i>was</i> dead. I
+believe what I have seen. Mamma must have misunderstood me."</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[Pg 15]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER II.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">A Little Girl's Change of Life.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 106px;">
+<img src="images/img_m.jpg" width="106" height="88" alt="M" title="" />
+</div><p>iss Rader was a tall, stiff, sour-faced lady of four-and-fifty. She
+kept a school for young country ladies at a place called "Fardot,"
+in one of the parishes adjoining the Forest.</p>
+
+<p>Among the pupils who were unfortunate enough to fall under her harsh
+rule was a certain little girl whose name was Ad&egrave;le Rougeant. She
+was the daughter of an avaricious farmer who lived at "Les Marches,"
+in the parish of the Forest.</p>
+
+<p>This little girl's mother had now been dead three years. Ad&egrave;le was
+then only four years of age.</p>
+
+<p>"You will place our daughter at Miss Rader's school till she is
+seven years of age," were the instructions of Mrs. Rougeant to her
+husband on her death-bed.</p>
+
+<p>This was not all; Mr. Rougeant was solicited by his wife to place
+Ad&egrave;le for ten years at a boarding-school in "the town," where she
+would receive an education such as pertained to her rank and
+fortune.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant would gladly have sent his daughter to the parish
+school, till the age of fourteen. Afterwards, he would have had her
+taught to work. He would have had to pay only one penny a week at
+the parish school, whereas he now paid five pence. Soon, he would
+have to disburse<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[Pg 16]</a></span> from fifty to sixty pounds a year for Ad&egrave;le's
+sake. "What extravagance," he muttered between his teeth. But he
+dared not go against his promises to his dying wife. Mr. Rougeant
+was superstitious. "If I fail to fulfil my promises to my dying
+wife, I shall most certainly see her ghost;" he said to himself. So
+he preferred to part with a portion of his income in exchange for a
+life unmolested by apparitions.</p>
+
+<p>It was the month of August of the same year in which the events
+narrated in the preceding chapter occurred. The pupils of Miss Rader
+were all assembled to receive the prizes which they were supposed to
+have won.</p>
+
+<p>The reward-books were handed to the pupils by an elderly lady&mdash;Mrs.
+Lebours. She was standing in front of the row of young girls,
+surrounded by half-a-dozen satellites of her own sex. Miss Rader was
+sitting near the group of "young ladies."</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Lebours began: "First prize for French has been won by Ad&egrave;le
+Rougeant, but the committee of ladies have decided that as she is
+about to pursue her studies elsewhere, she will not receive the
+prize. It will be given to the one next to her, who is going to
+remain under Miss Rader's excellent tuition."</p>
+
+<p>This little speech having been delivered by Mrs. Lebours, who
+meanwhile flourished the reward-book; Miss Rader approached Ad&egrave;le,
+and tapping her unkindly on the shoulder, she whispered to her in a
+whistling tone, her snaky eyes expressing the kindliness of a tiger:
+"You see what you gain through wanting to leave my school; you lose
+a beautiful book."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[Pg 17]</a></span></p>
+<p>Ad&egrave;le was not unhappy. On the contrary; she experienced an
+elevating, martyr-like sensation. She turned towards Miss Rader.</p>
+
+<p>"I have earned it?" she questioned.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, but&mdash;&mdash;."</p>
+
+<p>"I am satisfied," she said; then, quoting as near as she could a
+phrase which had attracted her attention in one of the rare books
+which she had cast her childish eyes upon, she added, "We do not go
+to school to obtain prizes, but to acquire knowledge."</p>
+
+<p>Miss Rader was seated in her former place when Ad&egrave;le finished. Her
+upper lip was slightly curled up, she was gazing upon Ad&egrave;le with a
+look of supreme contempt.</p>
+
+<p>The distribution of prizes was soon finished. The children were
+dismissed for the holidays and sent home. Ad&egrave;le bore her little head
+up proudly. She had been wronged. She felt a thrill of pleasure as
+she entered her home at "Les Marches."</p>
+
+<p>In acting as they had done, the committee of ladies had placed
+themselves lower than her. She felt it, and prided herself upon
+being ever so much better than they were. When her father came in
+she called out to him: "I earned a prize, but they would not give it
+me as I was going to leave school."</p>
+
+<p>"Humph!" he said moodily, "I am afraid you over-estimate your
+intellectual capacities. Carry this letter to your uncle Tom at the
+'Prenoms.'"</p>
+
+<p>And he handed his daughter a scrap of paper.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le did immediately as she was bid, not daring to speak when she
+heard her father's gruff tone.</p>
+
+<p>The farm of the "Prenoms" was only half a mile distant from "Les
+Marches," and Ad&egrave;le did the distance in ten minutes.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[Pg 18]</a></span></p>
+<p>She gave the letter to her uncle. "You will have to wait for a
+reply," he said.</p>
+
+<p>Her uncle was a man who never said more than was absolutely
+necessary.</p>
+
+<p>"Seat yourself; here is a chair for you," said her aunt.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le took the preferred chair, and her aunt began to question her.</p>
+
+<p>"So you are going to a boarding school," she said; and Ad&egrave;le felt
+that there was something sarcastic in her tone.</p>
+
+<p>"Papa wants me to," she mumbled timidly.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, it is not so much Alfred's wish," significantly said Mrs. Soher
+(Ad&egrave;le's aunt), as she turned towards her step-mother who was seated
+on a "<i>jonqui&egrave;re</i>," engaged in mending a pair of stockings.</p>
+
+<p>Near her sat a young boy who looked a little older than Ad&egrave;le. He
+was mischievously occupied in knotting the skein of thread which his
+grandmother was using.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le resented what she knew to be a slight cast upon her dead
+mother's memory, but she did not speak. Her aunt had always been
+hostile to her, she knew not why.</p>
+
+<p>Old Mrs. Soher raised her hoary head and remarked: "In my time,
+young girls like Ad&egrave;le used to learn to read and write,&mdash;and work."</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le felt very uncomfortable. She wished her uncle would make haste
+and write his reply; but he sat at his desk, passing his fingers
+through his hair; a method with which he was familiar when puzzled.
+Then he rose and cast a significant glance at his wife who followed
+him out of the room.</p>
+
+<p>The old woman espied her prankish grandson.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[Pg 19]</a></span> She immediately broke
+out into a violent fit of scolding: too animated to be serious. "Ah!
+but what next, you wicked little rascal. Knotting my thread; but I'm
+sure. I have a mind to slap your face. Just look at what you have
+done. Why did you do it?"</p>
+
+<p>Tommy&mdash;the little boy&mdash;giggled. "I was tired of sitting here doing
+nothing," he answered impudently; "why don't you tell me a story."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, now, be a good boy; do you know where the bad boys will go?"</p>
+
+<p>"With the devil."</p>
+
+<p>"Quite right; now, you will be good."</p>
+
+<p>"Tell me a tale; you know, something about the old witches," said
+Tommy. "How do they make people ill?" he questioned pulling
+impatiently at his grandmother's shawl.</p>
+
+<p>"They give themselves to Satan," answered the grandmother.</p>
+
+<p>"How?"</p>
+
+<p>"They sign their name, writing it backwards with their own blood."</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le shuddered; although she was a country girl, she had never
+heard anything of the sort before. She listened attentively.</p>
+
+<p>"You told me they were given books; did you not?" questioned the
+lad.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes they receive one or two infamous books, which they cannot
+destroy after they have taken them, neither can anyone else do away
+with these bad books. Yet, I remember quite well when there was one
+completely annihilated.</p>
+
+<p>"It was when one of my aunt's died. She was a terrible witch; alas,
+the chairs; and all the cups and saucers, bowls and plates on the
+dresser danced when they carried her body out of the house."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[Pg 20]</a></span></p>
+<p>Ad&egrave;le laughed.</p>
+
+<p>Tommy looked at her. "Oh, it's true," he said, "you can laugh if you
+like&mdash;ain't it grand'ma?"</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Soher went on: "When we cleaned out the house, we found one of
+those awful books. No one dared to open it, yet everyone knew by its
+funny covers, its queer print and its yellow paper, that it was one
+of the 'devil's own.' My sister, who, by the way, was not very
+superstitious took&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Superlicious! what's that?" questioned the boy.</p>
+
+<p>"People who don't believe in all sorts," immediately explained
+grandmamma.</p>
+
+<p>"Now where was I? ah, my sister took the book and threw it into the
+fire but it did not burn!"</p>
+
+<p>"Oo-oo," ejaculated Tommy.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le began to be credulous. It must be borne in mind that she was
+only seven years old.</p>
+
+<p>Grand'ma proceeded: "She snatched it again from the fire and put it
+on the table. Now it happened that on that very day, my brother was
+going to seek for shell-fish at a place called <i>La Banque au
+Mouton</i>. He said that he would take the book and place it under a
+big stone; then, when the tide rose, it would be covered over, and,
+we all hoped, altogether destroyed.</p>
+
+<p>"He took it as he had promised to do (we were gone home to dinner
+then, for we did not care to eat in the house of a witch), and
+placed it, so he told us, under a big stone which he could hardly
+lift."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah, the Evil One was caught," remarked Tommy.</p>
+
+<p>"He is not caught so easily as all that," said his grandmother.
+"When we returned to our work, do you know what we saw?"</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[Pg 21]</a></span></p>
+<p>"No!"</p>
+
+<p>"We beheld the book laid upon the table."</p>
+
+<p>Tommy opened his mouth wide enough as to be in danger of
+dislocation, then he closed it with an exclamation: "Ah-a!"</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le dared scarcely breathe.</p>
+
+<p>"That's not all," continued Mrs. Soher, "we were determined to get
+rid of the book. This is what we did.</p>
+
+<p>"My brother spoke to the minister about it. The clergyman declared
+that the book could only be stamped out of existence by a special
+process. He went to what had been my aunt's house, and summoned my
+brother and those who were there into the kitchen. Then one man
+thrust a bundle of furze into the oven and set it alight. Another
+one threw the book amongst the flames and firmly secured the door.</p>
+
+<p>"'Down on your knees,' commanded the minister. Everyone obeyed. The
+clergyman prayed aloud, when in a few moments, piercing shrieks were
+heard issuing from the oven. The whole company were in a state of
+horripilation. The clergyman ceased praying. He simply said with
+quivering and pale lips: 'The book is burning.'</p>
+
+<p>"The cries ceased. The door of the oven was opened. The book was
+reduced to ashes."</p>
+
+<p>The two children were awe-stricken.</p>
+
+<p>They sat as still as two mice, breathing only as much as was
+absolutely necessary. It was Tommy who first broke the silence.</p>
+
+<p>He was more accustomed to hear these strange tales than his cousin,
+and, consequently, got over his fright sooner.</p>
+
+<p>"How did the book shriek," questioned the boy.</p>
+
+<p>The entrance of Mr. Soher and his spouse <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[Pg 22]</a></span>disturbed the proceedings.
+Ad&egrave;le was very glad of it, for she was anxious to be back home
+before dusk.</p>
+
+<p>Handing her a piece of paper, Ad&egrave;le's uncle bade her be sure to give
+it to her father. He enjoined her not to lose it, but to hold it
+tightly all the way home. "Don't put it in your pocket," he added as
+the little girl was preparing to leave.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le did as she was bid; she could not put the missive in her
+pocket, because&mdash;there was no pocket to the dress which she wore.</p>
+
+<p>She hastened home. The story which Mrs. Soher had recited had shaken
+her nerves.</p>
+
+<p>As she neared her father's house, she was tempted to look at the
+writing on the paper. There was a brief struggle within her. At last
+her conscience prevailed over her curiosity.</p>
+
+<p>She met her father who was waiting for her on the threshold and
+handed him the paper. He ran his eyes over it and muttered audibly:
+"Let him go to the dogs, then, if he wishes to do so."</p>
+
+<p>As soon as Ad&egrave;le was out of the "Prenoms" the two garrulous women
+began to talk about their little visitor. As was their wont, they
+(especially the younger Mrs. Soher) cast upon Ad&egrave;le all the slander
+and scandal which they were capable of. Their epigrams were as
+devoid of wit as they were coarse.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Soher, who sat near, did not join in the conversation. He
+professed to be a very religious man, but he rarely occupied himself
+about his household duties. His wife was just saying: "When one
+thinks that if that little brat of a girl had not been born, we
+should inherit all my brother's property," when the man rose from
+his chair. "I am going to the prayer-meeting," he<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[Pg 23]</a></span> said abruptly,
+and his puritanical form as suddenly left the room.</p>
+
+<p>"Now, it is time for you to go to bed," said Mrs. Soher to her son,
+when her husband was gone.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't want to go yet," replied Tommy.</p>
+
+<p>"But you must go, and you will go now; I'll not listen to your
+nonsense; come, do your hear."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! let me stay a little longer, ma."</p>
+
+<p>"No, not one moment; come along."</p>
+
+<p>"Only one minute," pleaded the spoilt child.</p>
+
+<p>"Bah! what do you want to stay for?" said his mother, re-seating
+herself.</p>
+
+<p>The minute passed away, so did many other minutes, but Tom did not
+stir.</p>
+
+<p>After again trying in vain the power of her pleadings and commands,
+the weak-minded mother took her son by the sleeve of his coat.
+"Come," she said, "to bed with you."</p>
+
+<p>Tommy began to cry.</p>
+
+<p>She dragged him out of the room and up the stairs. He screamed and
+kicked, but was finally placed in his cot. Mrs. Soher had hardly
+stepped into the kitchen, when her son was heard crying.</p>
+
+<p>"I am frightened," he bawled; "the fire&mdash;the witches&mdash;the book."</p>
+
+<p>"Bah!" said his mother, "he'll go to sleep soon." And so he did.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[Pg 24]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER III.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">The Boarding-School.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 106px;">
+<img src="images/img_m.jpg" width="106" height="88" alt="M" title="" />
+</div><p>r. Rougeant had returned early from "the town" on that Saturday
+afternoon. He was now perusing the <i>Gazette Officielle</i>, the only
+newspaper which he ever cast his eyes upon. The servant&mdash;a good old
+Guernsey soul, who had been in the service of the family for ten
+years&mdash;was busily engaged in preparing the dinner. Contrary to the
+farmer's orders, Ad&egrave;le had been sent by Lizette (the servant) to
+fetch the cider.</p>
+
+<p>Unluckily for the little girl, Mr. Rougeant did not care to go to
+the expense of buying a tap. In its stead he had a number of small
+holes bored in one end of the cask. In these holes, which were
+placed vertically, one above the other, tight fitting wooden pegs
+had been driven. One of these pegs he drew out when he required some
+cider.</p>
+
+<p>When Ad&egrave;le entered the cellar, mug in hand, she examined the cask.
+She did not know which peg to take out, neither did she care to
+return into the kitchen with an empty vessel. She ventured
+cautiously to pull out one of the pins. It fitted tightly. She
+jerked on it. The peg came out; so did the cider. She hastily
+replaced the peg in its place, but the cider spurted all over her
+clean white pinafore. Timidly, she went back to the kitchen.</p>
+
+<p>"I did not know how to&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[Pg 25]</a></span></p>
+<p>She did not finish. The servant perceived her plight, and, with a
+gesture, silenced her. She bustled her out into the vestibule, threw
+her a clean apron, bade her put it on, and proceeded to the cellar.
+She speedily caused&mdash;or thought she caused&mdash;all traces of the little
+girl's blunder to disappear.</p>
+
+<p>When she returned, Mr. Rougeant was talking to his daughter. He was
+saying: "Listen, Ad&egrave;le. Miss Euston's collegiate school for ladies
+will re-open on Tuesday next, September the 13th, at half-past two
+o'clock. A few boarders received."</p>
+
+<p>"How would you like to go there?" he asked of his daughter; merely
+for form's sake, however, for he had already resolved that this
+would be, if possible, Ad&egrave;le's future home, for some ten years at
+least.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know," said the little girl, placing her thumb in her
+mouth;&mdash;a sure sign of mingled deep-thought and puzzlement&mdash;a mode
+of expression which, by the bye, she was not to enjoy much longer.
+These gesticulations are not in harmony with boarding-school
+etiquette.</p>
+
+<p>Her father did not make any other remark. He placed the newspaper on
+one side, and fell to work with his dinner.</p>
+
+<p>This important piece of business having been accomplished, he
+started to go to town on foot.</p>
+
+<p>His interview with Miss Euston resulted in Ad&egrave;le being accepted as a
+boarder. She was to be entirely entrusted to the care of Miss
+Euston, and, lastly, Mr. Rougeant was to pay an annual stipend of
+fifty guineas.</p>
+
+<p>When he came back home, Ad&egrave;le's father sank in a chair. He was
+tired. Moreover, he was<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[Pg 26]</a></span> annoyed. The fifty guineas which he had
+promised to pay each year vexed him.</p>
+
+<p>He said to himself: "This daughter of mine will run away with all
+the profit which I am making out of my newly-opened quarry. But,
+since it must be, I cannot allow myself to violate the promises made
+to the dying. I must try and see if I cannot save a little more than
+I have done lately. This servant costs me too much. I must get rid
+of her somehow. Another one, a French one for example, would work
+for four or five pounds less a year."</p>
+
+<p>In this puzzled state he descended to the cellar. He had an implicit
+belief in cider as a general restorative. His scrutinizing glance
+soon detected the ravages caused by Ad&egrave;le's blunder. "What a fine
+excuse," he mumbled&mdash;and he grinned.</p>
+
+<p>He entered the parlour where Lizette was setting things to rights
+and demanded in an imperative and angry tone: "Who has done that
+mess in the cellar?"</p>
+
+<p>"I did," quietly answered the servant, anxious to shield Ad&egrave;le.</p>
+
+<p>That fib she soon repented to have uttered.</p>
+
+<p>"I give you a month's notice," said Mr. Rougeant, and he was about
+to disappear when Lizette, feeling that she was not required any
+more, and moved to the quick, turned towards her master.</p>
+
+<p>"I can go now," she said.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, go; so much the better."</p>
+
+<p>That same evening, Ma&icirc;t. Jacques (Mr. Rougeant's workman) drove
+Lizette in the "spring cart" to her mother's cottage.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le wept. Her father silenced her with a frown. "You will commence
+school on Tuesday next," he said.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[Pg 27]</a></span></p>
+<p>The little girl looked at her father in surprise, and, an inward
+emotion completely mastering her, she recommenced crying.</p>
+
+<p>"How shall I be able to speak to those English people?" she sobbed.</p>
+
+<p>"You can talk English, can't you?" was her father's not
+over-consoling remark.</p>
+
+<p>"Only&mdash;a&mdash;little."</p>
+
+<p>"The person to whom I spoke is a nice lady; now, don't be silly,
+child."</p>
+
+<p>"The little girls will laugh at me," she said, drying her tears with
+her pinafore.</p>
+
+<p>Her father did not answer her, but sat meditatively pulling on his
+enormous nose.</p>
+
+<p>It was nearly midnight when Ad&egrave;le managed to drop to sleep.</p>
+
+<p>Tuesday came. Her father drove her to town in his old phaeton. Then,
+taking her by the hand, he led her at No. &mdash;&mdash;, Grange. The two were
+ushered into a small, but prettily furnished drawing-room.</p>
+
+<p>After a few moments, Mdlle. Parmier entered the room, and after
+having conversed in French for a few minutes with Mr. Rougeant, the
+latter withdrew, bidding good-bye to his daughter who watched him
+disappear with a dazed and stupefied air. "Is this a dream?" she
+thought. "Ah! would that it were." Never before had she spoken to a
+lady from town. She listened to hear Mdlle. Parmier's harsh voice
+bid her follow her, but, instead of doing so, the little French lady
+advanced towards her and in a gentle tone of voice (so soft, that
+Ad&egrave;le stared at her in astonishment) said: "<i>Miss Euston va bient&ocirc;t
+venir. Croyez-vous, ma ch&egrave;re, que cette nouvelle demeure vous
+conviendra?</i>"</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Oui</i>," answered Ad&egrave;le, greatly relieved that<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[Pg 28]</a></span> there was at least
+one person here who could talk in French.</p>
+
+<p>Then, while the lady occupied herself with a book, Ad&egrave;le was busy
+picturing to herself the dreadful Miss Euston. Her father had said
+that she was a nice lady; but, alas, how could she? Did she not
+speak in English? How was she going to answer her? "She will
+certainly laugh at my bad English," Ad&egrave;le thought; and her lips
+moved about uneasily, and her eyes were moist.</p>
+
+<p>She looked towards Mdlle. Parmier. She saw four or five ladies in a
+confused group; she wiped away the tears that obscured her vision.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! if this lady were head mistress?" she went on thinking. "Oh! my
+clothes, they are not so pretty as those which the little girls who
+were in the playground wore." She listened tremblingly for the
+sounds of approaching footsteps. How she wished that the ordeal of
+the first interview would be passed. She grew so excited that she
+would have given anything to be out of that room. Any sudden
+catastrophe which would have averted the terrible ordeal of
+confronting Miss Euston would have been welcomed by her. Had she
+been alone, she would have tried her voice to see how it sounded in
+English, but Mdlle. Parmier was there; so she only coughed a little
+to clear her throat. She tried to cough softly, as she had heard
+Mdlle. Parmier do; but she fancied her voice sounded hoarse and
+vulgar. She cast a gaze towards a mirror placed at one end of the
+room. What a plebeian figure!</p>
+
+<p>Hark! what was that? a soft tread was heard approaching. The French
+lady looked up from her book, and fixing her eyes encouragingly on
+the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[Pg 29]</a></span> little girl, she said: "<i>Miss Euston sera bien aise de vous
+voir; parlez-vous l'anglais?</i>"</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Un peu, mademoiselle</i>," said Ad&egrave;le, and the door opened.</p>
+
+<p>The dreaded form of Miss Euston entered the room.</p>
+
+<p>"Dis is de yong Ma'm'sel Rougeant," said the French lady,
+introducing Ad&egrave;le to the newly-arrived lady.</p>
+
+<p>The latter, a tall, refined and amiable lady, advanced towards Ad&egrave;le
+with a pleasant air, and such a kind smile lighting up her
+intelligent features that the little girl felt immediately drawn
+towards her.</p>
+
+<p>Miss Euston at once saw that Ad&egrave;le was timid and feeling very
+uncomfortable.</p>
+
+<p>She took the child's hand in her own and said kindly: "I am very
+glad you have come, Ad&egrave;le; but, your hands are quite cold; come
+nearer to the fire."</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le stood up. Miss Euston put the chair nearer to the fire, placed
+the child upon it, and began to chat in quite a friendly way.</p>
+
+<p>Mdlle. Parmier retired. Ad&egrave;le's fears had vanished like a cloud of
+smoke. She felt more than simple admiration for Miss Euston; she
+experienced a kind of veneration for her.</p>
+
+<p>Had an angel from heaven entered the room instead of this lady,
+Ad&egrave;le would not have been much more dazzled than she now was.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you understand English?" inquired Miss Euston while helping her
+pupil to warm her hands.</p>
+
+<p>"Not much, ma'am."</p>
+
+<p>"Then you shall soon learn, for I can see a pair of intelligent eyes
+beaming under those chestnut curls."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[Pg 30]</a></span></p>
+<p>Ad&egrave;le smiled. She felt a kind of bitter and sweet happiness. The
+dreaded introduction was over, but now there were the little girls
+to encounter. What kind of reception would <i>they</i> give her?</p>
+
+<p>"I am going to have two new dresses for you to try on presently,"
+said Miss Euston; "now, come, let me show you your bed chamber."</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le was delighted with her bedroom. How neat the little crib
+looked. Miss Rader had told her that the people from town never had
+white linen; they knew not how to wash, and, besides, the smoke
+caused their once white linen to look grimy.</p>
+
+<p>After having asked Ad&egrave;le if she was pleased with her room, and the
+little child having answered: "Yes, ma'am, very much," Miss Euston
+led her into the schoolroom where about twenty young girls were
+assembled. They were being directed to their respective places by
+Mdlle. Parmier.</p>
+
+<p>Miss Euston told Ad&egrave;le that she would not do anything that day but
+familiarize herself with her new surroundings.</p>
+
+<p>She gave her a nice book full of beautiful pictures to look at. Then
+she began to attend to a class of the bigger girls.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le felt her heart sink a little when Miss Euston left her, but
+she managed to pluck up courage and was soon absorbed looking at the
+beautiful pictures in her book. She timidly raised her eyes from
+time to time and gazed upon the young group of girls who were near
+her. Two of them she perceived were looking at her, and exchanging
+glances, after which they tittered.</p>
+
+<p>This made Ad&egrave;le's blood rush to her face. She knew they were
+laughing at her and she felt<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[Pg 31]</a></span> uneasy. "I am as good as they are.
+Just let them wait till I have my new dresses," she thought.</p>
+
+<p>She made up her mind not to look at them and kept steadily looking
+at her book. But the pictures had lost their charm. Her little soul
+revolted against the treatment to which she was being subjected by
+these two little girls.</p>
+
+<p>When the time for recreation arrived, Miss Euston took Ad&egrave;le by the
+hand and led her up to two other girls; one about Ad&egrave;le's age, the
+other two years older. She told them to take care of their new and
+future companion. She was sure, she added, that they would make
+things pleasant for her. "Yes, ma'am,&mdash;come," they said to their new
+acquaintance. They led her out of the schoolroom and amused her
+during the whole time that was set apart for recreation purposes. By
+the time the bell rang for the pupils to form classes, the three
+little girls were as friendly as could be. Ad&egrave;le forgot all about
+the little girls that had laughed at her.</p>
+
+<p>Later on in the evening, she discovered that her two little
+companions were the only boarders beside herself.</p>
+
+<p>The day after her entrance, an event occurred which deserves perhaps
+to be narrated.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le walked alone down the Grange, turned to the right, and not
+knowing where she was going, found herself in a lane called George
+Street.</p>
+
+<p>She was busily engaged contemplating a poor little crippled girl,
+when the latter's crutch slipped and she fell prone on the road.</p>
+
+<p>She got up quickly, however, seized her crutch and looked anxiously
+round to see if someone had perceived her.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le stood near, smiling.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[Pg 32]</a></span></p>
+<p>The girl in rags went up to her. "What'r'yer laughin' at, yer
+dressed up doll?" she said. (Ad&egrave;le had one of her new dresses on.)
+"If you don't stop it," she continued threateningly, "I'll give yer
+such a bloomin' smack as 'l' make you think you're in the beginnin'
+o' next week."</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le did "stop it," and hastily walked away.</p>
+
+<p>"What!" she said to herself, "can these little girls from town beat
+you soundly enough to make you think you are in the beginning of the
+week to come? They <i>must</i> be clever. I will ask Miss Euston about
+it."</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[Pg 33]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER IV.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">The Influences of a Good Home.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 74px;">
+<img src="images/img_t.jpg" width="74" height="88" alt="T" title="" />
+</div><p>en years have elapsed. On a stormy September afternoon, in a room
+of a two-storeyed cottage, situate at the bottom of the Rohais, a
+woman lay dying. Her husband knelt beside her bed, holding his
+wife's hand.</p>
+
+<p>The stillness that prevailed was only disturbed by an occasional sob
+from the husband, and the short irregular breathing of the dying
+woman.</p>
+
+<p>The breathing suddenly became more regular. The husband looked at
+his wife. He saw that she wanted to speak to him, and immediately
+approached his head nearer to her.</p>
+
+<p>"I am going, John," said the woman in a faint tone; "I feel that I
+am rapidly drawing nearer the end. I know you will take care of our
+son, and&mdash;if ever you marry&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>Here she paused as if unable to go on.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! don't mention that, I will never marry again, dearest. I will
+look forward with eagerness to our second meeting. I shall meet you
+there, Annie," he said, and, pressing her hand between both his own,
+he gazed earnestly into his wife's half-closed eyes.</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Mathers sank back on her pillow, exhausted with the effort
+which she had made to speak those few words. Presently a change came
+over her face. Her husband beckoned to Marie, the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34">[Pg 34]</a></span> servant, who
+hardly dared to approach, awed as she was at having to witness a
+person in the grip of death.</p>
+
+<p>The end came, swift and pangless. The soul passed from the body to
+its eternal resting place.</p>
+
+<p>Marie stood beside the bed, her big eyes fixed on the corpse, hardly
+able to believe her senses.</p>
+
+<p>"But, I thought Madame was better, much better," she said, half
+aloud, half to herself.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! unfortunately," said the widower, "'twas only the lull before
+the storm&mdash;a state which is common to people dying from consumption.
+Make haste," he continued to the bewildered Abigail, "put the blinds
+down."</p>
+
+<p>Marie did as she was told and the man proceeded downstairs.</p>
+
+<p>In the kitchen, seated on a chair, a boy was sobbing. His father had
+just told him that death had visited them. And the boy felt
+completely weighed down with grief. His mother had been so good to
+him. "Such an excellent mother," he said to himself; "ah, how I
+shall miss her."</p>
+
+<p>He sobbed silently; the hot tears were few and far between. His
+grief was too intense to be demonstrative.</p>
+
+<p>He stayed there for fully an hour, in the same attitude, bowed down
+as it were by this heavy load which had fallen upon him.</p>
+
+<p>Let us go back into Frank Mathers' history&mdash;for Frank Mathers it was
+who mourned his mother's loss&mdash;for a few years.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Mathers, his wife and only son were seated round the fire one
+evening.</p>
+
+<p>"You will be fourteen years of age to-morrow," said Frank's father,
+"it is time for me to think of finding you a situation."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[Pg 35]</a></span></p>
+<p>Frank did not answer, the idea of leaving school did not please him;
+he looked up from his book for an instant, then pretended to resume
+his reading.</p>
+
+<p>"I shall talk to Mr. Baker, the grain merchant; as you have a liking
+for books, I think you would do well in his office. Would you like
+to go?" said his father.</p>
+
+<p>"If you think I am old enough to leave school," mumbled Frank.</p>
+
+<p>"Certainly you are old enough," said his father, "we can't afford to
+keep you at school all your life."</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Mathers looked at her son sympathetically, she knew he loved
+his school immensely.</p>
+
+<p>"You will only have to be at the office from nine till five, and, if
+you are diligent, you shall be able to study a few hours every day,"
+she said.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," said the boy reluctantly.</p>
+
+<p>In less than a week after this, Frank had left school and was
+settled in Mr. Baker's employment.</p>
+
+<p>The winter was beginning to make itself felt, and the days were
+growing shorter and shorter. Ah! how Frank liked these winter
+evenings. He took his books, and, drawing his chair near a small
+table close to the fire, he kept plodding on, evening after evening,
+educating himself constantly.</p>
+
+<p>At the age of nineteen, he obtained a situation as clerk in a bank.
+He possessed a good knowledge of English and French. He was also
+acquainted with German, Latin and Mathematics.</p>
+
+<p>He had learnt unaided two systems of shorthand: one English and one
+French.</p>
+
+<p>Neither was he ignorant of other useful sciences, of which he had
+striven to acquire at least a few elements.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[Pg 36]</a></span></p>
+<p>Thus armed for the world's battle, he thought himself almost
+invulnerable. "I am bound to succeed," he sometimes said to himself.
+"I have done all that I possibly could do towards that end. I don't
+believe in chance. 'What a man soweth, that shall he also reap.'"</p>
+
+<p>If ever a youth deserved to succeed, it certainly was Frank Mathers.
+He had sacrificed many pleasures for the sake of better fitting
+himself for life's struggle. Often, when his companions invited him
+to spend an evening in questionable pleasures; "No, he would answer,
+I have no time for that." At last, they ceased to torment him.</p>
+
+<p>He liked these evenings spent at home, quietly, near the fire, alone
+with his mother, who sometimes lifted her eyes from her knitting or
+sewing, and affectionately gazed for a few moments upon her son.</p>
+
+<p>They were nearly always alone, mother and son; for the father, who
+was a carpenter, spent his evenings in the workshop.</p>
+
+<p>As her son neared his twentieth birthday, Mrs. Mathers felt that she
+would never live to see it. She was very anxious for her son's
+future. After all, would he always keep in the path in which he was
+now walking?</p>
+
+<p>One evening when she felt worse than usual, her anxiousness for her
+son's welfare rose to such a pitch that she ventured to speak a few
+words to him.</p>
+
+<p>"Frank," she began, "you know that I am not in very good health."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, mother."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't think I shall live long," continued she, "and, I should so
+much like to know if you have<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[Pg 37]</a></span> formed a decision to be a noble,
+good, and upright man."</p>
+
+<p>"You are not going to die," said the youth in a half-frightened
+tone, "you will be better soon, I hope."</p>
+
+<p>"No," she said, "I am slowly but steadily declining;" then she added
+in a very affectionate tone: "Will you promise me, Frank, that you
+will always strive to do what is right?"</p>
+
+<p>"Mother," replied the son, his voice quivering with emotion: "I will
+be good."</p>
+
+<p>Neither of them said another word for a few minutes. Their hearts
+were too full. Affectionate love, grief and resignation were filling
+their souls.</p>
+
+<p>Soon, the father entered and the family retired.</p>
+
+<p>Next day Mrs. Mather's prophecies were fulfilled. She felt much
+worse and stayed in bed. In less than a week, she was dead and
+buried.</p>
+
+<p>Thus deprived of his mother, Frank Mathers felt intensely lonely. He
+suppressed his grief as much as possible, but it could be seen that
+he suffered.</p>
+
+<p>He had his father, 'tis true, but Mr. Mathers was a man of a gloomy
+temperament. But a young man of nineteen ought not to be attached to
+his mother's pinafore! The house seemed so empty, it seemed quite
+large now, a roomy house with no furniture. The air he breathed was
+not perfumed with the sweet breath of love as it was wont to be.</p>
+
+<p>He grew melancholy. He had never been of a very bright temperament,
+and the life of self-sacrifice which he had hitherto led, had not
+helped him towards being cheerful.</p>
+
+<p>Besides, there was no one to cheer him now, no kind word to spur him
+on. "Ah! life without<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[Pg 38]</a></span> love," he sighed, "life without love is
+hardly worth living."</p>
+
+<p>From bad he went to worse. He almost ceased to eat. He lost a great
+deal of his former activity and was often absent-minded. His
+employers noticed this, for he often made false entries in the
+books.</p>
+
+<p>One morning, the manager of the bank thought fit to speak to him. "I
+cannot make out what ails you," he said, "but you will have to be
+more careful in the future."</p>
+
+<p>"Pull yourself up, Mr. Mathers, try and take more interest in your
+work, or I shall feel obliged to dispense with your services
+altogether."</p>
+
+<p>"I must try," answered Frank. "I <i>will</i> try, Sir."</p>
+
+<p>And try he did, but all to no purpose.</p>
+
+<p>A cloud seemed to hang over him; he was in a state of lethargy. "Am
+I going mad?" he said to himself more than once. No! he was not
+insane, not yet at any rate; he simply took no interest in life.
+Nothing seemed to distract him; he cared for nothing, spoke to no
+one except when questioned.</p>
+
+<p>His father and Marie often tried to coax him into conversation.</p>
+
+<p>In answer he sometimes said "Bah! life is but an empty bubble,"
+oftener, he said nothing at all, but gazed fixedly at the floor all
+the time.</p>
+
+<p>A few days after the manager had spoken to him, he ceased to go to
+work altogether. He did not send a letter to his employers, telling
+them of his intention to leave; of what use was it? everything was
+nothing to him.</p>
+
+<p>It was not for his departed mother that he grieved. He grieved not.
+He hardly gave her a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[Pg 39]</a></span> thought now, and, when he did, his eyes seemed
+to brighten up and his lips muttered: "Thou art happy."</p>
+
+<p>The doctor who examined him shrugged his shoulders. "Hypochondria,"
+he said as he met the enquiring glance of Mr. Mathers; then he
+added: "He will probably be better in a few weeks."</p>
+
+<p>The neighbours, without being consulted, said: "He is mad."</p>
+
+<p>The days came and went, and after a few months of melancholiness he
+grew a little bit better. His father noticed that he began to take
+an interest in the culture of the garden.</p>
+
+<p>"I shall have to find work for him," thought Mr. Mathers, and, one
+day, when his son seemed in a more joyous mood than usual, he spoke
+to him.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you think that if I built a greenhouse you could take care of
+it?" he questioned.</p>
+
+<p>"I think so," said his son.</p>
+
+<p>"Work is slack just now," went on Mr. Mathers, "I might as well put
+up one in the garden as do nothing."</p>
+
+<p>"I think I should very much like to grow tomatoes and grapes," Frank
+remarked.</p>
+
+<p>"You feel better now, then," said the father. These were the first
+words which he ventured to speak to his son about his health, now
+that the latter's senses seemed to have returned to him.</p>
+
+<p>"Have I been ill?" said Frank; and then after a pause&mdash;&mdash;"Of course,
+I have not been very well lately,&mdash;yes, I am better, I think I am
+myself again."</p>
+
+<p>"Well;" said his father, "it is agreed, we shall have a greenhouse.
+I think you had better go in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[Pg 40]</a></span> the garden and see if you can find
+something to do there."</p>
+
+<p>Frank did as he was requested. The garden at the back of the house
+was a small one, covering some twenty-five perches; of these eight
+were to be blessed, or cursed, with a glass covering.</p>
+
+<p>While Frank was engaged in tying up some Chrysanthemums, he was
+joined by Marie, the servant.</p>
+
+<p>"Doin' a bit o' work, Master Frank," she said.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, a little," he replied.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, that's better than mopin' about doing nothing," was the not
+over-particular rejoinder.</p>
+
+<p>Frank smiled. "Well," he said, "a fellow must do something when he
+can, but there are times when he cannot."</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps," said Marie, rather absent-mindedly, as if she had not
+understood the meaning of his words.</p>
+
+<p>She glanced around her, to make sure that there was no one about;
+then she came quite close to Frank. "Have you heard the news?" she
+said.</p>
+
+<p>"What news?" questioned Frank.</p>
+
+<p>"Why, they say your father is goin' to marry; didn't you know?"</p>
+
+<p>Frank's face became livid, his lips tightened, his pruning knife
+dropped from his hand.</p>
+
+<p>"What?" he exclaimed, as if he had not fully understood.</p>
+
+<p>"Your father's going to marry again," said the servant in an
+undertone, "and I'll tell you who told me so, it was Jim Tozer, her
+brother; he ought to know."</p>
+
+<p>"The brother of whom?" questioned Frank mechanically.</p>
+
+<p>"The brother of Miss Tozer," informed Marie.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[Pg 41]</a></span></p>
+<p>"I should have thought that your father would have stuck a little
+more to his word, for when your poor, dear mother was dying, she
+mentioned something to your father about marrying. He pretended to
+cry, and bawled out: 'Don't mention it, I'll never marry again; I'll
+never marry again.'"</p>
+
+<p>"And mother been dead only five months," said Frank, more to himself
+than otherwise.</p>
+
+<p>"But it won't be yet, you know," said Marie. "Jim Tozer told me they
+would probably wait till next year."</p>
+
+<p>Then seeing Mr. Mathers coming towards them, she pretended to gather
+some parsley close by, and quickly re-entered the house.</p>
+
+<p>Frank's father did not talk to his son then, but began taking
+measures for the greenhouse.</p>
+
+<p>As for Frank, he was extremely angry with his father. He thought
+that his mother's memory was being slighted; but he resolved not to
+say a word about it to his father, and to let matters stand as they
+were.</p>
+
+<p>Time passed on. The winter was over. It was the month of April. The
+birds sang in the trees, the grass was springing up, the fields were
+being clothed in verdure. Nature, which had lain so long dormant,
+was awakening. From the trees which looked dead a few weeks ago
+little buds were peeping forth, taking their first view of the
+world.</p>
+
+<p>Frank Mathers was filled with delight as he watched this development
+of nature.</p>
+
+<p>One evening when he had just finished planting some tomatoes, he was
+surprised to see his father enter the greenhouse.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Mathers' face was rather pale. He looked agitated.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[Pg 42]</a></span></p>
+<p>"They look well," said the father, meaning the tomato plants.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, they <i>do</i> look well," answered his son; "I was just thinking
+as much before you came in."</p>
+
+<p>There was a long silence here. Frank knew that his father had
+something to communicate to him, and he guessed what it was.
+However, he did not help him out of his embarrassment.</p>
+
+<p>Finally, after several preliminary hems to clear his throat, Mr.
+Mathers began: "It is a good thing that the tomatoes are planted;
+to-morrow you will not work, I suppose."</p>
+
+<p>"I hope I shall, I have all these boxes to clear away."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, yes, but to-morrow I am going to be married."</p>
+
+<p>Frank did not answer. He raised his eyes and looked straight at his
+father. His lips quivered and refused to utter a sound.</p>
+
+<p>The son's gaze was more than a match for the father's. Mr. Mathers
+was not yet so hardened as to laugh and look back defiantly at his
+son. He, however, recovered his self-composure, tried to make
+himself believe that he was in his perfect right, and in a
+well-feigned voice&mdash;"Well?" he said interrogatively.</p>
+
+<p>Not a word came from the son's lips; a deep sigh escaped him. He
+stepped forward and walked out of the greenhouse, leaving his father
+there&mdash;alone.</p>
+
+<p>The couple were quietly married at the Greffe the next day.</p>
+
+<p>Frank went about his work as usual, and when he came in to dine, his
+step-mother was awaiting him, her face beaming with smiles.</p>
+
+<p>When Frank found himself thus confronted by<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[Pg 43]</a></span> Mrs. Mathers No. 2, he
+did not feel nearly so hostile to her as he had felt towards his
+father.</p>
+
+<p>He could not however welcome her warmly when his heart clamoured
+otherwise. He was not a hypocrite.</p>
+
+<p>When the husband advanced with his wife, the youth took the
+outstretched hand and in a cold tone, his lips still uttering what
+his heart did not inspire, he said, as if welcoming a stranger: "I
+am happy to make your acquaintance, madam."</p>
+
+<p>He soon perceived that he had gone rather too far. He had acted on
+the impulse of the moment. In fact, he had dug the abyss that was
+ever to lie between his step-mother and himself.</p>
+
+<p>"After all," he said to himself, "it is better to obey one's heart."
+He did not even stop to think that there were two powers at work.</p>
+
+<p>He was more to be pitied than blamed. He had loved his mother
+dearly, and now that she was dead, he revered her memory.</p>
+
+<p>He now perceived the influence of a good home. It had rescued him
+from a life of idleness and perhaps of vice. The genial atmosphere
+of their little parlour had kept him at home even more than his
+books, which he, however, cared a good deal for.</p>
+
+<p>But now, it was all finished. This place would no more be home. It
+was a house, a comfortable dwelling place; that was all. He would
+now have to live amongst unattractive and semi-hostile surroundings.</p>
+
+<p>Through his own fault, he would suffer. One thought however
+strengthened him. Thousands of others had suffered for conscience's
+sake. He remembered how his blood rushed to his face, when he read
+about the tortures of the martyrs of religion;<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[Pg 44]</a></span> or the driving into
+exile of the patriots of Poland.</p>
+
+<p>Strengthened with these thoughts, he rose, more determined than ever
+to do right; to champion the good; to work; to study; to strive to
+acquire wisdom.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[Pg 45]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER V.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">The Reward of Inordinate Ambition.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 73px;">
+<img src="images/img_f.jpg" width="73" height="87" alt="F" title="" />
+</div><p>rank Mathers had hours of dejection. Like every other person, he
+had his faults. In one of these fits of depression he grew
+impatient. Then, his ambition turned in the wrong direction. He was
+seized with a mania for getting rich quickly.</p>
+
+<p>How to proceed, he did not know.</p>
+
+<p>At last he thought that if he could invent something useful, and
+patent it, he would soon acquire what he so much desired to possess.
+Now, there are thousands who are constantly trying to do as much,
+but they are as likely to succeed as they were when they first
+began.</p>
+
+<p>Frank was one day walking along a country lane when he perceived a
+cow which had broken loose.</p>
+
+<p>She galloped about, her tail erect, her head lowered.</p>
+
+<p>He pursued the animal, and after a prolonged chase and much dodging
+and capering on the part of both, he managed to grasp the rope which
+was tied round the brute's horns. He held it tightly and proceeded
+to tether his captive. But when he had driven the peg in the ground,
+he noticed that it was very easily pulled up.</p>
+
+<p>He pondered over this as he proceeded towards his home. Suddenly, he
+slapped his forehead. "I have it," he said to himself. "I will have
+a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46">[Pg 46]</a></span> peg, which, when being driven, will go all right, but when pulled
+about, will release two small prongs at the sides. This will make it
+impossible for anyone to pull it up; a small knob will be affixed
+which, when turned, will replace the prongs, and the peg will come
+out in a jiffy."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah!" he went on thinking, "this would be a useful thing, an article
+which would command a ready sale. Besides, it would be used wherever
+a good gripping peg would be necessary."</p>
+
+<p>He was enthusiastic. His mind was already full of different schemes
+which he would start when he had acquired fame and riches.</p>
+
+<p>When he came home, he was so sure of success that he imparted his
+idea to his step-mother, with whom he was not generally very
+confidant.</p>
+
+<p>Poor Frank! the volley of mockery which he received quite baffled
+him.</p>
+
+<p>"So you think to make your fortune in that way," she said. "No, no,
+my boy, you never will."</p>
+
+<p>"But don't you see that it's a most useful thing, that&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Stop, stop," she interrupted, "don't make me laugh. Do you think
+that people are going to listen to your nonsense? Why! your peg
+would get clogged with earth and would not act."</p>
+
+<p>"Wouldn't it though, at any rate, it's worth thinking over, so I'll
+do that."</p>
+
+<p>"If you choose to spend your money in that fashion, you can do so,"
+retorted the lady, smiling contemptuously.</p>
+
+<p>"You won't laugh at me this day month," thought Frank as he made his
+exit.</p>
+
+<p>Once alone again, he grew more determined than ever. His mind was
+completely dazzled with the bright future before him.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[Pg 47]</a></span></p>
+<p>Next morning, he posted a letter to an inventor's agency in London.
+He stated that he had invented something he knew would be useful,
+and very much in demand if manufactured. The letter went on to
+detail in full length the "safety peg." Then he went on to say that
+he would very much like to have it patented and if they would kindly
+send terms and advice in the course of a mail or two, he would be
+thankful.</p>
+
+<p>Two days afterwards, he hoped to receive the joyful news. "They will
+certainly write soon,&mdash;such a valuable article&mdash;besides, they have
+an interest in its being patented," he said to himself.</p>
+
+<p>He accordingly watched for the postman, and as soon as he saw him,
+his heart beat wildly. To think that he had the precious missive. He
+approaches, and now he is going to open the gate,&mdash;no, he passes
+without even looking in the direction of the house.</p>
+
+<p>"Surely he must be forgetting," thought Frank, and he shouted: "Mr.
+Pedvin, have you any letter for me?"</p>
+
+<p>"No; not to day," said the postman&mdash;and he went on his way.</p>
+
+<p>"What are they up to now?" thought the youth, "they ought to make
+haste. I'll wait till to-morrow, and if I don't receive any news,
+I'll send them a note, and a pretty sharp one too."</p>
+
+<p>Next day he again watched for the postman's arrival. He felt
+miserable; the state of uncertainty in which he was, caused him to
+be depressed. Still he could not imagine that the letter would
+contain anything contrary to his hopes.</p>
+
+<p>The idea was so far from his wishes that he shook it away at once;
+he could not even bear to think of it.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48">[Pg 48]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>But the postman came not, and it was now ten o'clock. He remembered
+with pain that the day before he had passed by at half-past nine.</p>
+
+<p>"I must attend to my work," he thought, "he will come presently." He
+went about the greenhouse, watering his plants, but every other
+minute he opened the door and anxiously watched for the bringer of
+good news to put in an appearance.</p>
+
+<p>He came at last. He handed a letter to Frank who ran towards him to
+receive it.</p>
+
+<p>"You seem very much in earnest," remarked the postman, "maybe it's a
+love-letter. And from London too," he added noticing the post mark.</p>
+
+<p>"I'm not so foolish as that," said Frank; as if such letters were
+below his dignity; "this is about an invention which I am going to
+have patented."</p>
+
+<p>The postman showed the whites of his eyes, then turned on his heels
+and continued his journey.</p>
+
+<p>Frank tore open the envelope, unfolded the letter and read:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="blockquot"><p>"London.</p>
+
+<p>"We are in receipt of your letter of the 3rd instant, and have
+much pleasure in informing you that your invention has not, to
+our best knowledge, been patented or manufactured.</p>
+
+<p>"We think it would prove very well in rural districts.</p>
+
+<p>"The best way for you, would be to secure it by provisional
+protection for nine months.</p>
+
+<p>"Please forward us &pound;2 10s., and we will send you, at our
+earliest possible convenience, the necessary documents."</p></div>
+
+<p>"Hurrah!" shouted Frank joyfully. "I'll send them the money as soon
+as I can."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[Pg 49]</a></span></p>
+<p>He read the letter a second time to make sure that his eyes had not
+deceived him. Suddenly he stopped reading. No, it was not in the
+letter. A thought had struck him. "I will have to mention the money
+matter to my step-mother, for she keeps the keys of my drawer," he
+said in a soliloquy.</p>
+
+<p>He went into the kitchen. Mr. and Mrs. Mathers were there. Frank
+flourished the letter in his hand and exclaimed: "My invention is
+likely to be a success." And, holding the letter in both his hands,
+he read it to his parents.</p>
+
+<p>He emphasized the points that were in his favour, with all the force
+which he was capable of displaying.</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Mathers looked satisfied enough till her step-son came to the
+money matter. Here her face lengthened and as soon as he had
+finished reading she said: "Clever people; they think they are going
+to pocket all this money with a few words of flattering."</p>
+
+<p>"Someone must pay for the one pound stamp and other expenses,"
+answered Frank.</p>
+
+<p>"After all this spending of money, perhaps it would not prove,"
+rejoined Mrs. Mathers.</p>
+
+<p>"We won't know if we don't try," retorted Frank; "people don't make
+fortunes staring about them with their hands in their pockets."</p>
+
+<p>"But you don't mean to say," almost angrily said Mrs. Mathers, "that
+you would send them your money in that fashion?"</p>
+
+<p>"I do," answered the young man in a decided tone. He was growing
+impatient at what he thought to be a wanton check of progress on his
+step-mother's part.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[Pg 50]</a></span></p>
+<p>Here, Mr. Mathers left the room without having said a word.</p>
+
+<p>Frank watched him disappear and then remarked: "Do you think these
+people are going to work for nothing? They would be fools."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! 'tis not <i>they</i> who are fools," sarcastically remarked his
+step-mother.</p>
+
+<p>The young man waxed hot. His whole being was rising in wrath within
+him. He, however, mastered his passions. It was his duty to bend,
+and he did so. "If I could convince her, if I could make her feel as
+I myself feel," he thought.</p>
+
+<p>For one minute he was silent, not knowing how to begin the speech
+that was to bring conviction into her soul.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah!" he thought as he looked at his step-mother who had resumed her
+work as if the debate was settled, "she checks me when I try to push
+myself; she tries to nip my plans in the bud. When, with a few words
+of encouragement, I might soon be a rising man. But I must convince
+her&mdash;I must. If I don't succeed in doing it, I will act alone. The
+money is mine, why should I not be able to do what I like with it.
+If, however, I could bring her to think as I do."</p>
+
+<p>"I have always tried to push myself," he began in a somewhat tender
+and pleading tone, "and you never give me one word of encouragement
+or praise."</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Mathers looked up: "You try in the wrong direction," she said,
+"earn money by all means, but don't throw it away like a simpleton."</p>
+
+<p>Unheeding this, Frank resumed: "If I do not try and make life a
+success I don't know anyone who will do it for me. I have studied.
+Many an evening have I sat up with my books thinking of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[Pg 51]</a></span> the use my
+knowledge would be to me in future life; many an outing have I
+denied myself for the sake of studying; many a pleasure have I
+sacrificed for the sake of acquiring knowledge. I did not care, work
+did not seem heavy, because it carried with it a hope of future
+happiness. I worked on till late in the evening. I rose early in the
+morning to resume my studies. And, if sometimes I felt discouraged,
+worn out by the ceaseless toil, I said to myself: 'Take
+courage&mdash;science is bitter but its fruit is sweet.' I have tried to
+cultivate myself as much as possible, to fill my mind with all that
+is noble, pure, and elevating&mdash;to acquire good habits by shunning
+bad society and by reading good books&mdash;in short, I have sacrificed
+my past self for the sake of my future self.</p>
+
+<p>"And now (his tone grew inexpressibly sad), when I try to gather a
+few of the fruits which I have grown, you throw yourself between
+fortune and me.</p>
+
+<p>"It is exactly as I was reading in a book the other day, in which
+the writer said: 'The cause of many failures is that men wait for
+something to turn up instead of turning up something for
+themselves'&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"You and your books," ejaculated Mrs. Mathers,&mdash;"but I'll have no
+more of this begging and grumbling; do as you like, throw your money
+to the dogs, give it to whomsoever you choose. Perhaps, when you
+know the value of money, you will learn to appreciate it more. For
+my part, I will have nothing more to do about this tomfoolery."</p>
+
+<p>Frank left the room with a light heart. He was free, at liberty to
+do whatever he chose. He chuckled to himself: "Liberty <i>is</i> sweet. I
+will<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[Pg 52]</a></span> now show them what I can do when I have no one to hinder me.
+However, I will wait a day or two before sending the money. I must
+not act too quickly,&mdash;I will think it over."</p>
+
+<p>He went about his work. He felt that manual labour was almost below
+his dignity now. What! he, an inventor&mdash;a benefactor of mankind&mdash;the
+probable millionaire of years to come&mdash;he, who would soon be looked
+upon as the foremost man of the island, pointed at and envied by
+everyone&mdash;watering tomatoes. Oh! it certainly was below his rank.
+However, he would work yet for a few days and then, well then he
+would appear in his proper sphere.</p>
+
+<p>Poor fellow, he had yet another of life's lessons to learn. He
+little imagined the crushing blow that was to fall on him and
+scatter all his hopes.</p>
+
+<p>That evening he went to bed with his head brim full of ideas and
+plans for the future. His heart overflowed with delight. He dreamt
+of nothing but inventions, huge fortunes and fame.</p>
+
+<p>Next morning, when he awoke, his head had cleared, but his ideas
+were the same. He never doubted for a moment the certainty of his
+success.</p>
+
+<p>During the course of the morning there were instants in which he
+felt less confident. What if he did not succeed&mdash;what would his
+step-mother say&mdash;what would he himself do, he who had made this
+scheme part of his being. But he would prosper, why, here (looking
+at the letter) was the opinion of people who had been amongst
+inventions for years.</p>
+
+<p>A shadow seemed to cross the path of the greenhouse. "I think
+someone has passed by," he thought, "I will go and see." Suiting the
+action to the thought, he sprang at the door and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[Pg 53]</a></span> opened it. What
+was his astonishment to see the postman. Two days following! it was
+an event, for they seldom received letters.</p>
+
+<p>On hearing the noise which Frank made on opening the door, the
+postman turned round and handed him a letter. He was agreeably
+surprised to see that it was from the inventors' agency, but his
+delight was soon changed into bitter anger and bitterest
+disappointment when he had read its contents. It was worded thus:</p>
+
+<div class="blockquot"><p>"London.</p>
+
+<p>"<span class="smcap">Dear Sir</span>,&mdash;We are sorry to inform you that the invention we
+were about to patent for you, had, we have just found out, been
+patented before.</p>
+
+<p>"The inventor, we have learned, ruined himself in trying to
+push it."</p></div>
+
+<p>He read it twice over. Alas! it was too true. Sadly and mournfully
+he went into the house, there to think of his misfortune.</p>
+
+<p>He entered the little parlour, threw himself on a chair, took the
+letter from his pocket and re-read it.</p>
+
+<p>He crumpled the letter in his hand and exclaimed: "'Tis too true,
+there is not the slightest hope; ah! this is indeed a cloud with no
+silver lining."</p>
+
+<p>He rose, paced the room in an agitated state and muttered: "But
+yesterday, I thought myself a rising man, now, I have utterly
+failed; that upon which I had set my heart, upon which my thoughts
+had dwelt and upon which my hopes had been built, has fallen to the
+ground."</p>
+
+<p>"Such joy ambition finds," something seemed to echo within him.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[Pg 54]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER VI.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">New Acquaintances.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 73px;">
+<img src="images/img_f.jpg" width="73" height="87" alt="F" title="" />
+</div><p>or a week or so Frank Mathers grieved about his misfortune. At the
+end of that time, an event occurred which completely distracted him.</p>
+
+<p>He was taking a walk a few miles from his home, not far from the
+Forest Church. When he came near the farm of "Les Marches," he
+perceived a man, who, seated on a branch, was sawing it. This branch
+projected over a quarry which was filled with water.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly, the branch gave way, and Mr. Rougeant (such was this man's
+name), fell into the water.</p>
+
+<p>Frank at once ran towards the spot, taking off his coat as he
+hastened along. He was a good and plucky swimmer. When he came near
+the quarry, the drowning man was struggling for dear life. Frank
+seized the position in a moment. He saw that it would be useless to
+jump into the water, because, when once in, he would not be able to
+reach the edge of the quarry, for the water's surface was quite four
+feet below that of the ground. There was not a moment to lose. The
+man had already gone down twice; he was coming up for the second
+time. Frank took his coat in one hand, and, leaning over the edge of
+the quarry at the risk of falling in himself, he caught hold of a
+tuft of grass with the other hand, and awaited the drowning man's
+appearance.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[Pg 55]</a></span></p>
+<p>The farmer rose to the surface, struggling. His eyes were dilated,
+his whole countenance presented a frightened and imploring
+appearance.</p>
+
+<p>He uttered a cry, 'twas a cry in which he poured forth all his soul;
+his last and supreme appeal to heaven and earth; but one word, but
+ah! what a deep prayer to one, what an earnest appeal to the other,
+were centred in that word: "Help."</p>
+
+<p>"Seize this, seize this," cried Frank.</p>
+
+<p>The drowning man saw the dangling sleeve, his last chance of
+salvation. Frantically he clutched at it. Ah! he has missed it. No,
+as he was going down for the third time he threw out his arm once
+more. It was a forlorn hope, but it was successful. He caught hold
+of the coat with both his hands and raised himself. He found a creek
+in which he placed his foot, and with Frank's manly help, was soon
+extricated from his perilous position.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant was panting for breath, and exhausted, but saved from a
+watery grave.</p>
+
+<p>Frank bent over the man he had rescued, dried his face and took off
+his boots, examining him meanwhile. Mr. Rougeant, whom we did not
+describe when we first met him, was a man of medium height. He had
+broad shoulders, a powerful chest, an almost square head and a
+formidable nose. Under his nasal organ, there bristled a short
+moustache.</p>
+
+<p>When he had partly recovered his senses, he looked around him.
+"Where is my saw?" he questioned, then he added: "My hat, where is
+it?"</p>
+
+<p>The hat, probably a leaky one, had gone to the bottom.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[Pg 56]</a></span></p>
+<p>Frank was as much amused as he was astonished to hear him. He
+replied: "I suppose they must both be given up as lost."</p>
+
+<p>"It is a pity," said the prostrate man, "it was a good saw, and a
+brand new one too."</p>
+
+<p>The man spoke in the patois of the island, a kind of old Norman
+French which the young man understood very well. He, therefore,
+answered in the same language.</p>
+
+<p>"Shall I go and call your people?" Frank said after a while.</p>
+
+<p>"No, thank you, I think I can walk home."</p>
+
+<p>He stood up and they both proceeded towards the farm-house.</p>
+
+<p>"Not a word of thanks," soliloquized Frank, as he surveyed the
+strong frame and the powerful limbs of his companion.</p>
+
+<p>Just then the farmer turned abruptly to him: "A good thing you were
+passing near at the time of the accident. I might have been
+drowned," he said.</p>
+
+<p>"I am very glad of having been of service to you," answered Frank.</p>
+
+<p>"You're a good fellow," resumed the farmer looking at him and
+nodding. "It's not everybody," he continued, "who would have had the
+sense to do as you have done."</p>
+
+<p>They arrived at the farm-house, a two-storeyed house, without any
+pretence at architecture, and with a slate covering: the house was
+surrounded by stables, pig-sties, a small garden and a conservatory.
+In front of the house was a parterre, most tastefully arranged with
+flowers which surrounded an immense fuschia, five feet in height and
+covering an area of about fifty square feet.</p>
+
+<p>The two men entered by the front door. Mr.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[Pg 57]</a></span> Rougeant led his rescuer
+into the kitchen. Here was Jeanne, a French servant, occupied in
+poking the fire.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah, but dear me," she exclaimed as she caught sight of the pair,
+"what has Mr. Rougeant been doing now?"</p>
+
+<p>"I fell in the quarry," said the farmer gruffly, "go and prepare
+some dry clothing, be quick, make haste."</p>
+
+<p>Jeanne immediately did as she was bid. She did not leave the room,
+however, without casting an inquisitive glance at Frank.</p>
+
+<p>"Ad&egrave;le," shouted Mr. Rougeant in a voice of thunder, "where are
+you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Miss Rougeant is gone, she told me she would not be long," answered
+the servant from upstairs.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, yes, always gone," said the father of Ad&egrave;le, in none too
+pleasant a tone; "those young girls are always out when most
+wanted."</p>
+
+<p>Then he began to talk about his quarry. "Only a year ago that quarry
+was being worked. There were twenty men employed in it. It paid well
+then. But it's all over now. The man who worked it found a little
+bit of rubbish in his way, and, like a fool, he got frightened and
+left working it, and now you see it's full of water. Are the clothes
+ready?" This was said, or rather shouted to the servant.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, Sir, they're ready; I'm coming," said Jeanne.</p>
+
+<p>"It's time," said Mr. Rougeant rising, "I am trembling all over
+now." He had been shivering for the last quarter of an hour.</p>
+
+<p>When he was half way up the stairs he called out: "Of course you
+will wait till I come down again, I shall not be long Mr. &mdash;&mdash;."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58">[Pg 58]</a></span></p>
+<p>"All right, Sir, don't hurry," answered Frank.</p>
+
+<p>Left alone in the kitchen, the young man had time to examine the
+room. He had never been in a farm-house before.</p>
+
+<p>On one side, ranged along the wall, was an oblong table which was
+bare. Above it, against the wall, was a shelf on which Frank could
+discern three or four big home-made loaves of bread.</p>
+
+<p>On the opposite side, was a deal dresser on which were ranged
+saucers and plates, while cups and mugs were hung upon nails driven
+into the edge of the shelves; He was in the midst of his examination
+when someone entered the house by a back door. "Is it the girl of
+whom Mr. Rougeant spoke?" he wondered. Then he pictured her to
+himself: a tall overgrown country-lass, with hands like a working
+man's, and feet! well, one might just as well not think about them,
+they were repulsively large; it was a blessing that they were hidden
+from view.</p>
+
+<p>He was in the midst of his imaginations when Ad&egrave;le Rougeant stepped
+into the kitchen. On perceiving Frank she was a little astonished,
+but soon recovered her self-control and assumed a well-bred smile.</p>
+
+<p>The young man immediately hastened to explain the cause of his
+presence. He was greatly astonished. Here, then, was the corpulent
+country-girl his imagination had fancied! Before him stood a young
+lady altogether different to anything he had pictured her to be. "A
+girl of about seventeen," he tells himself, but later on he
+discovered that she was one year older than that; plainly, but well
+dressed. Her gown fitted her slender form to perfection. Every
+detail in her dress was arranged with such taste, her small<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59">[Pg 59]</a></span> shoes,
+the exquisite lace round her throat and such a charming face peeping
+out of it all. She was not beautiful, but she was pretty and
+attractive, she opened her mouth when she smiled as well as when she
+spoke.</p>
+
+<p>"Pray be seated," said the young lady to Frank who had risen on her
+approach.</p>
+
+<p>Frank sat down, quite confused and ready to run out of the room. He
+felt very timid, so far, as to be uncivil; in the presence of Ad&egrave;le.
+A young man who has spent most of his time alone, studying, will be
+timid when he meets a representative of the softer sex.</p>
+
+<p>He scarcely lifted his eyes from the floor. He knew she would think
+him ill-bred, he was ashamed of himself, but he could not help it.
+He was full of bashfulness. Now, bashfulness is almost always a sure
+sign of <i>amour-propre</i>.</p>
+
+<p>He scolded himself, but his red face grew redder. It was soon of a
+colour resembling peacock-blue.</p>
+
+<p>Noticing his discomposure, Miss Rougeant could not help sharing some
+of it, and, doubtless, things would soon have come to an awkward
+point for both, if Mr. Rougeant had not put in an appearance.</p>
+
+<p>"So this is the gentleman who saved your life?" said his daughter,
+speaking in English.</p>
+
+<p>In the same language Mr. Rougeant replied: "Yes, this is he."</p>
+
+<p>She had now regained all her former ease, and knowing her father's
+manners, thanked Frank most cordially.</p>
+
+<p>He stammered out a few words of acknowledgement.</p>
+
+<p>Seeing that her visitor cast glances at the quaint furniture, and
+anxious to break the confusing<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60">[Pg 60]</a></span> silence, Ad&egrave;le went on: "Doubtless
+you had not seen a kitchen like this before Mr. &mdash;&mdash;."</p>
+
+<p>"My name is Frank Mathers," interposed the young man.</p>
+
+<p>"And mine is Ad&egrave;le Rougeant," said she.</p>
+
+<p>"Fancy, putting you in such a kitchen. We must go into the parlour
+directly."</p>
+
+<p>"This is indeed very quaint and certainly primitive furniture. I
+must explain the use of&mdash;&mdash;, that is if&mdash;&mdash;."</p>
+
+<p>"I should be greatly obliged," said Frank, "but it really is giving
+yourself too much trouble."</p>
+
+<p>"On the contrary, it gives me pleasure. This"&mdash;pointing to a low
+kind of bedstead&mdash;"was the sofa of our forefathers. We call it a
+<i>jonqui&egrave;re</i>. It was formerly stuffed with a weed which still grows
+near the coast; called jonquier&mdash;hence its name. These rods were
+used to hang the <i>cras&eacute;aux</i> on them. A <i>cras&eacute;</i>, the singular of
+<i>cras&eacute;aux</i>, is a lamp of the most primitive type."</p>
+
+<p>"A vessel with a beak in which some oil is poured, and in the beak
+is placed a wick, while underneath the vessel another one is
+suspended as a receptacle for the oil which falls from the upper
+one. Only ten years ago we still used them. I remember it quite
+well."</p>
+
+<p>"And these are what we call '<i>lattes</i>,'" she said, pointing to a
+wooden rack which hung suspended from the ceiling and parallel to
+it. "As you see, the bacon is kept there."</p>
+
+<p>She stopped here, and looked anxiously at her father. He was pale
+and trembling. "Are you ill, father?" questioned his daughter.</p>
+
+<p>"No, I'm not ill, although I do not feel quite well. Make me a
+<i>tota&iuml;e</i>," he said, "then I'll go to bed and try to sleep off my
+indisposition."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61">[Pg 61]</a></span></p>
+<p>His daughter did as her father requested.</p>
+
+<p>When she was out of the room, Frank asked Mr. Rougeant what he meant
+by a <i>tota&iuml;e</i>.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, it's a capital thing," responded the latter, "toasted bread
+soaked in warm cider. You swallow cider and all; if that does not
+drive a cold away, nothing will."</p>
+
+<p>While the young lady was busily engaged in toasting the bread, Frank
+thought it best to take his leave.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant asked him to pay them a visit on the morrow. The young
+man promised to call. He managed to overcome his timidity
+sufficiently to raise his eyes as he took leave of Ad&egrave;le. Her eyes
+met his, she blushed and immediately dropped her eyelids.</p>
+
+<p>Through the eyes the souls had spoken.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62">[Pg 62]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER VII.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">An Abrupt Dismissal.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 93px;">
+<img src="images/img_n.jpg" width="93" height="89" alt="N" title="" />
+</div><p>ext day Frank Mathers prepared to pay his promised visit.</p>
+
+<p>He fancied that he felt very much like William the Conqueror when he
+set out from Normandy to fight against the English. And probably he
+did.</p>
+
+<p>While he was dressing with more than ordinary care, his thoughts
+were all about Ad&egrave;le.</p>
+
+<p>"'Tis strange," he soliloquized, "such a well-bred, educated and
+refined young lady in this strange place. She is a rose among
+thistles,"&mdash;he had already formed his opinion of the master of "Les
+Marches."</p>
+
+<p>"How lonely she must feel living with these two people, one a
+big-headed, and in proportion bigger-nosed man, the other, an
+old ignorant hag, her face of a dirty yellow, and her jaw! it
+reminds me of a species of fish which have a mouth that opens
+vertically&mdash;'Melanocetus Johnstoni'&mdash;I think the name is."</p>
+
+<p>Here he finished soliloquizing and dressing.</p>
+
+<p>He cast a glance over his clothes. "They don't appear to fit very
+well," he thought. "How strange that I had not noticed this before.
+I feel disposed to put on my best coat instead of this one."</p>
+
+<p>Then he tried to scoff these thoughts away and when they would not
+leave him, he called himself a simpleton, scolded himself for his
+fastidious taste, and resolved to start as he was.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63">[Pg 63]</a></span></p>
+<p>It was two o'clock when he called out to his step-mother: "Mother!"
+(this was a delicate piece of flattery); "I am going to see how the
+man I saved from drowning yesterday is getting on."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, all right, Frank," answered Mrs. Mathers, pleased to hear him
+calling her "mother."</p>
+
+<p>The young man stepped out into the open air with a decided gait.
+After an hour's walk he arrived at the farm-house, heated by his
+rapid journey.</p>
+
+<p>He was courteously received by Ad&egrave;le at the door. On her devolved
+the duties of hostess, which she endeavoured to discharge
+conscientiously.</p>
+
+<p>She led her guest into the parlour where Mr. Rougeant was seated
+before a fire in an easy-chair. Frank shook hands with him and
+inquired how he felt.</p>
+
+<p>"Not too bad, thank you," he replied, and beckoning Frank to a chair
+close to him, he began to converse about his farm.</p>
+
+<p>Frank listened and answered as well as he could, making a remark now
+and then about agriculture which astonished the farmer considerably.
+He had the tact to respect Mr. Rougeant's feelings, and the latter
+was not slow in showing his appreciation of it.</p>
+
+<p>"You seem to know more about farming than I do," remarked Mr.
+Rougeant.</p>
+
+<p>Frank felt flattered. He began to talk about agricultural chemistry,
+but he was soon stopped by his host.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't believe in theory," interrupted Mr. Rougeant, "give me
+facts, show me results. A great many people write about farming who
+can hardly distinguish a parsnip from a carrot."</p>
+
+<p>The young man dared not go against the farmer.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64">[Pg 64]</a></span> He saw, by his
+manner, that he was not a man to be contradicted. He looked at
+Ad&egrave;le. She was smiling, but directly her father looked round towards
+her, her face became as grave as a nun's.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant continued triumphantly to talk about his farm. It was
+all the world to him, and almost the only thing about which he could
+converse.</p>
+
+<p>He never read a book.</p>
+
+<p>During the conversation Frank learnt that he had about one hundred
+verg&eacute;es of land, one fifth of which he kept, the remainder was let
+to other farmers. He had but one workman, a man about sixty years
+old, who had worked for the Rougeants for more than forty years. His
+name was Jacques Dorant. Then, there was his horse; it was old now,
+but still good. Ah! when he was younger, he was a splendid horse,
+such strength, such form, such a fast trotter, frisky, but as gentle
+as a lamb.</p>
+
+<p>Thought Frank: "If he is to be credited, there has never been such a
+horse since the days of Bucephalus, the famous horse of Alexander."</p>
+
+<p>During the whole time that they had been in the parlour, the young
+man had not found courage to address a word to Ad&egrave;le. He was very
+careful about his tenure. He spoke in a voice which he endeavoured
+to soften; he uttered the best English which he could frame,&mdash;for
+Mr. Rougeant spoke in English this time&mdash;and when there was an
+opportunity of displaying his talents, he availed himself of it with
+eagerness.</p>
+
+<p>Once, he made a serious blunder. He talked about turnips which he
+had seen growing in a field close by. At which the farmer laughed:
+"Well, I never, turnips, ha-ha...."</p>
+
+<p>Frank felt stung. His face coloured deeply, his<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65">[Pg 65]</a></span> head was on fire.
+What did <i>she</i> think of him? Through the mist that seemed to gather
+before his eyes, he managed to glance rapidly in the direction of
+Ad&egrave;le. A thrill of delight shot through his veins. She was looking
+at her father with an offended air, her lustrous eyes seemed to
+issue forth a censuring light.</p>
+
+<p>"Of course, you will stay in to tea, Mr. Mathers," said the farmer
+after a few minutes of silence.</p>
+
+<p>Frank accepted the invitation thankfully.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le left the room to help to prepare the tea things.</p>
+
+<p>Left alone with the farmer, the young man looked about him more
+freely. He noticed that the room was very plainly furnished. His
+eyes alighted on a painting which represented a cow standing near a
+cattle-shed. "What a shocking display of art," he said to himself.
+"Infringement of the rules of perspective, shocking chiaroscuro, bad
+composition...."</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant casually noticed him. "So you are having a look at my
+cow," he said, "a friend of mine painted that picture; he was a real
+artist." Then he paused, examined it like one who understands his
+business, and continued: "Yes, yes, exactly like her, the little
+white patches and that little bump on her back. I gave my friend ten
+shillings for that painting; just think, ten shillings, seven pounds
+of butter. But," he added by way of consoling himself,&mdash;for his
+avaricious heart was already revolting against this useless
+expenditure of money; "it's well worth that, it's the very likeness
+of my 'Daisy.' My daughter had the impudence to tell me once that I
+ought to put it<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66">[Pg 66]</a></span> in the wash-house. Alas! young people will always
+be young people."</p>
+
+<p>Struggle as he would, Frank could not refrain from smiling. His host
+took it for a genuine smile of admiration and looked at him
+approvingly.</p>
+
+<p>At this stage, Ad&egrave;le announced that the tea was served.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst they were at the meal, Frank was in great perplexity as to
+how he should avoid breaking any of the rules of etiquette in
+Ad&egrave;le's presence.</p>
+
+<p>He was so much in earnest about doing things properly that he
+committed several blunders. Once he almost overturned his cup, then
+he blushed till his face was all discoloured, and bit his under lip
+savagely. A minute after that, while gallantly passing a plate
+containing <i>g&acirc;che &agrave; corinthe</i> to Ad&egrave;le, he knocked it against the
+sugar basin, overset the latter, and sent the pieces of sugar and
+cake flying in all directions. He grew angry with himself, and
+completely lost his head. Mr. Rougeant complained of not being
+hungry. Frank, who misunderstood him, answered: "Ah! I see." Another
+blunder.</p>
+
+<p>At last the meal was over. The two men rose and returned to the
+parlour. The first remark of the farmer was: "In my time, servants
+used to eat at the same table as their masters, but our Miss says
+that she will not have it. I let her have her own way sometimes; it
+does not cost me more, so I do not care."</p>
+
+<p>He called out to his daughter: "Ad&egrave;le, make haste, so that the
+gentleman may hear your playing."</p>
+
+<p>"I am coming soon," was the reply.</p>
+
+<p>The farmer went on to Frank: "The instrument which she plays is a
+violin. For my part, I do not<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67">[Pg 67]</a></span> care for it. It does not make enough
+noise. Give me a harmonium or a cornet. But my daughter persists in
+saying that she will not learn anything but the violin. Perhaps it's
+better after all," he added, suddenly thinking of the outlay
+required for a new instrument.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le came in with her violin, which she at once carefully tuned.
+She appeared confident of success. She placed herself opposite her
+father and nearly alongside the young man.</p>
+
+<p>"Fire away!" said the father, "what are you doing now?"</p>
+
+<p>"I was just seeing if the strings were well tuned," she said. "It is
+of no use trying to play if the instrument is out of tune." These
+last words were spoken to Frank.</p>
+
+<p>"I cannot play on the violin," said he.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! then you won't criticize me," said she.</p>
+
+<p>She bent her head over her instrument, and began playing. She forgot
+the outward world, her whole attention was concentrated on her
+violin as her slender and nervous fingers guided the bow or pressed
+the strings.</p>
+
+<p>It was a sweet soft tune&mdash;like her voice&mdash;her face wore a tender
+expression. Then the music swelled, became louder and louder till it
+reached its climax; the bow bounded over the strings, the fingers of
+the left hand rose and fell in quick succession, her expression was
+now animated, her face aglow.</p>
+
+<p>Frank was sitting with his eyes fixed upon the fair musician. He had
+never imagined that an instrument could be made to express such
+feelings.</p>
+
+<p>He noticed that Ad&egrave;le would have to turn a leaf. He could read
+music, so he rose, scanned<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68">[Pg 68]</a></span> the music, was soon on the track, and
+turned the leaf in due time.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le finished playing soon after.</p>
+
+<p>Her face was slightly flushed and triumphant.</p>
+
+<p>Frank congratulated her warmly in a select speech which he finished
+thus: "In short, your playing seems to have as much power over my
+feelings as Timotheus' had over Alexander's."</p>
+
+<p>The farmer's face was ominous. He had begun to entertain suspicions
+when Ad&egrave;le had looked at him reproachfully before tea-time. Now his
+imagination had ripened into certainty&mdash;so he thought. The young
+people must be for ever separated. He said roughly: "There are other
+things which are more important than fiddling, one of them is to
+know how to live."</p>
+
+<p>Frank looked at Ad&egrave;le, she looked back at him. Their astonishment
+was diverting to witness.</p>
+
+<p>Quoth the farmer gruffly to Frank, "I am going to retire, I think
+you had better do the same."</p>
+
+<p>"Is the man going mad?" thought Frank. He looked at Ad&egrave;le, then
+suddenly took his hat and his departure.</p>
+
+<p>The young lady followed him to the door. She was extremely vexed at
+her father's demeanour. She spoke a few words to Frank as he stepped
+outside.</p>
+
+<p>"I hope you will not take my father's words too seriously," she
+said, "I am very sorry&mdash;it's shocking&mdash;I am exceedingly angry with
+him&mdash;a fine way of thanking you&mdash;you to whom he owes so much."</p>
+
+<p>As he pressed the delicate hand which she tended in farewell, Frank
+said: "I quite forgive Mr. Rougeant, there are strange natures," and
+he walked away.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69">[Pg 69]</a></span></p>
+<p>He had gone by the back door, why, he did not know. As he passed the
+stable, he saw a man engaged in cleaning, a horse. "Come what may,"
+he said to himself, "I must have a chat with this fellow."</p>
+
+<p>"Good evening," he said, speaking in French, "cleaning up a bit?"</p>
+
+<p>"Good evening, sir," replied Jacques, speaking in broken English.
+"You needn't talk in French, I know English; I learnt it when Jim
+Tozer worked here."</p>
+
+<p>Said Frank inly: "Jim Tozer, the name seems familiar to me. Of
+course, my step-mother's brother." Aloud: "You are the only workman
+here now!"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, you've been payin' a visit to Mr. Rougeant, you're the
+gentleman as rescued him from drowning. Lucky for him, old chap,
+that you were round about there, for it's dead certain he'd ha' gone
+to bottom."</p>
+
+<p>"You take care of this horse?"</p>
+
+<p>"I take care of pretty nearly everything round about here, for the
+bos doesn't do much now, but he gives a reg'lar 'go at it' now and
+then though."</p>
+
+<p>"I suppose you like this job," remarked Frank, meanwhile scanning
+the horse and forming his opinion of this member of the equine
+genus. Here is his judgment: "A famous trotter! a spirited
+steed!&mdash;indeed!&mdash;an old nag not worth half-a-guinea."</p>
+
+<p>"What job?" said Jacques.</p>
+
+<p>"Working about here, I mean, working for Mr. Rougeant."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, ye-yes, but you've got to know how to tackle the guv'nor;
+he's a quair sort. I've worked for the Rougeants for forty-two
+years, and the old<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70">[Pg 70]</a></span> fellow's never given me more than my day's
+wage." Then he added in an undertone, "He's a reg'lar miser, he's
+got some tin! They say he's worth four hundred quarters."</p>
+
+<p>Four hundred pounds income, was to old Jacques a large fortune.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah," he went on, "if only I had four hundred pounds capital, with
+the little that I have scraped together, I would not trouble to work
+any more, I would have enough for the rest of my days. We live on
+thirty pounds a year, me and my old missus.</p>
+
+<p>"We're not allu's feastin', you see; besides, the house we live in
+is ours. Built with my savin's when I married, it was&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Mrs. Rougeant is dead, is she not?" questioned Frank, anxious to
+learn more about the family.</p>
+
+<p>"Dead! o' course she's dead," said Jacques, "she's been dead now
+for&mdash;let me see&mdash;twelve&mdash;thirteen&mdash;fourteen years!&mdash;her daughter was
+about four years old then."</p>
+
+<p>"So Miss Rougeant is now eighteen."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, Sir, an' a fine girl she is,"&mdash;this was said with a wink and a
+nod.</p>
+
+<p>"She seems to have been very well educated," said Frank.</p>
+
+<p>"I should think so," said the labourer, opening his eyes wide. "Why,
+bless you, Sir, she's been at a boarding-school all her life; she
+only came to live here last year, after having been absent for
+nearly ten years. I bet she don't get on too well with the guv'nor,
+he's such an old feller for brass. She's a good 'un, too; now and
+then she goes to see my old missus, and she isn't partic'lar about
+givin' my daughter's mites a tanner, although I'll lay ten to one
+she's not allowed too much. And<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71">[Pg 71]</a></span> her flowers; have you seen 'em? Why
+there's not many a gardener as 'u'd arrange 'em in sich a bloomin'
+style."</p>
+
+<p>"Has Mr. Rougeant always been the sort of man that he is now?"
+inquired Frank.</p>
+
+<p>"No, not when the lady was alive; I s'pose it was her as made him
+spend some money on improvements. The year before she died, he took
+off the thatched roofs and put slate instead, then he built that
+there little conservatory, but as soon as she was gone, he began to
+pinch and screw; why, fancy, he used to shave himself, but now his
+razor's broke, he says he doesn't care to buy one, the bloke."
+Jacques heard a clock strike. "I must make haste to finish this," he
+said, "then I'll put on my togs and go home; my missus'l jaw if I'm
+not in time for the grub."</p>
+
+<p>"Good-night, then," said Frank.</p>
+
+<p>"Good-night, Sir," shouted Jacques.&mdash;"Whog back old mare&mdash;steady!"
+Frank heard him say as he walked away.</p>
+
+<p>Going home, he wrapped himself up in deep thought. The way which
+seemed clear yesterday, was now full of obstacles. Mr. Rougeant was
+rich; judging from his demeanour he had probably already chosen his
+daughter a husband&mdash;would that she were poor.</p>
+
+<p>He looked to see what redeeming feature he could find on his side.
+None. He had never felt so little as he now did.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72">[Pg 72]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER VIII.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">An Unpleasant Visit.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 125px;">
+<img src="images/img_w.jpg" width="125" height="86" alt="W" title="" />
+</div><p>hen Ad&egrave;le came back from shutting the door after Frank, her father
+looked at her with a hard, scrutinizing gaze, but did not say a
+word.</p>
+
+<p>It was just like him. He very rarely spoke when he was angry; he
+would mope about for whole days, his face covered with innumerable
+wrinkles.</p>
+
+<p>This anger on her father's part did not pain Ad&egrave;le so much as it had
+formerly done. Her heart revolted at the thought of being always
+made to bend under her father's stern will.</p>
+
+<p>Like the terror-stricken few who would do battle for their rights,
+but are awed by countless numbers, Ad&egrave;le had up to this time quietly
+submitted to her father's iron rule; but now she felt inclined to
+rebel.</p>
+
+<p>Accordingly, instead of trying to coax her father into wearing his
+ordinary face, which was none too pleasant, she pouted.</p>
+
+<p>The old man noticed this and chuckled to himself: "Ah, ah, you think
+a great deal of this young fellow. I'll teach you to keep up the
+honour of the family."</p>
+
+<p>He was so delighted at the prospect of an easy victory that he did
+not sulk nearly as long as usual, but, to the young girl's
+astonishment, was quite talkative the next day.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73">[Pg 73]</a></span></p>
+<p>"Your aunt asked me if you would go and take tea with her
+to-morrow," he said when they were at dinner.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le did not answer.</p>
+
+<p>Heedless of her silence, her father went on: "You must go, because
+you do not go often."</p>
+
+<p>The daughter answered: "No, I do not go often." She thought: "Often
+enough," for she did not at all relish the idea of a visit to her
+aunt.</p>
+
+<p>The inmates of the "Prenoms" did not please her. There was her
+uncle, Mr. Soher, morose and stern. He was one of this class of
+people who seem to be continually looking upwards, their mind so
+much occupied in contemplating the upper regions that they
+continually stumble against the blocks which lie in life's path. He
+lived, partly on his income, partly on the commission which he
+secured as agent to a firm of agricultural implement manufacturers,
+and partly on the money which he made by selling his property bit by
+bit. He had also advertised himself as auctioneer, house and estate
+agent, etcetera, but no one seemed to require his services in this
+line. Averse to manual labour, he could not properly cultivate such
+a small farm without submitting himself to this "slavish work," as
+he called it. Accordingly, he was, if slowly, surely drifting
+towards bankruptcy. He saw this, so did his wife, but neither seemed
+to care much; they were buoyed up by a false hope, always waiting
+for something unexpected to turn up, which would rescue them from
+this abyss.</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Soher was Mr. Rougeant's sister.</p>
+
+<p>They were the only children of the late Charles Rougeant, of "Les
+Marches."</p>
+
+<p>She was short of stature, rather stout, her<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74">[Pg 74]</a></span> round little face
+always assuming a certain air of dignity, her light blue eyes
+wearing a fixed gaze and her tongue always ready to slander. She
+pretended to be religious, because her husband was so; had he been
+otherwise, she would certainly have been otherwise too.</p>
+
+<p>Then came her twenty-four year old daughter Amelia, the only member
+of the family with which the reader is not acquainted; and Tom,
+grown into a lazy, bad-tempered and slouching young man. Old Mrs.
+Soher was dead.</p>
+
+<p>The home at the "Prenoms" was not a bright one. Mr. Soher did not
+believe in education. He and his wife were often absent from home in
+the evening. They went to some meeting, and their two children were
+left alone. When the parents were gone, Tom left the house, leaving
+his sister alone and returning about half an hour before his parents
+came in. His sister said she would tell her father, but, upon Tom
+threatening her, she kept silent, for she feared her brother who was
+of a very violent temper.</p>
+
+<p>One day, Tom came in later than usual. When he entered the house, he
+was astonished to see his father sitting near the fire.</p>
+
+<p>"Well," said Mr. Soher, "what does this mean?"</p>
+
+<p>"I've just been out a little," said Tom.</p>
+
+<p>"I hope you will not repeat this, my son," said the father. Then he
+showed him how wicked it was to associate with bad companions, the
+probable results of it; how, when he had once acquired bad habits,
+he would find it nearly impossible to break with them; how he would
+be enticed into disreputable places, and a host of other
+admonishments.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[Pg 75]</a></span></p>
+<p>Tom did not answer; he felt culpable, but not repentant. He did not
+tell his father that this same evening he had entered a public-house
+for the first time.</p>
+
+<p>The days went by. Mr. Soher and his spouse continued to attend to
+their meetings and their son continued to go out, returning boldly
+after his parents had come in.</p>
+
+<p>One evening, he came in drunk. Then his father became really
+alarmed. He felt that he had not done towards his son all that he
+might have done.</p>
+
+<p>This did not, however, make him remain at home.</p>
+
+<p>"I must attend to my Master's work," he would say. Once, he took his
+son in the parlour, and after having exhorted him to turn a new leaf
+he lifted up his voice in prayer. But the son continued to drink and
+the father to pray, while the mother did as much as she could to
+shield her dear boy.</p>
+
+<p>Tom had neither the force of will, nor the desire to amend. His home
+was so dull; there was nothing about it which attracted him; he did
+not care at all for the mother who tried to screen his faults. She
+was so narrow minded; always speaking ill of everyone. She knew they
+were slowly sinking towards bankruptcy, and it was a consolation to
+her to imagine others in the same position. She saw other people's
+defects as if through a microscope.</p>
+
+<p>Foolish woman. Even as thou art scandalizing others, thine own
+nature is being abased, whilst those whom thou dost backbite remain
+the same.</p>
+
+<p>One glance at the daughter. She was taller and fairer than her
+mother. Her character was the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[Pg 76]</a></span> same as her mother's. Alas! under
+such tutorship, how could she be expected to be otherwise.</p>
+
+<p>When the time came for Ad&egrave;le to set out to pay her visit to the
+"Prenoms," she did so reluctantly. It was not a pleasure to her, it
+was a duty. If she did not go, she thought they would think her too
+proud. So she made the sacrifice, and went. She determined to show a
+bright face and to be as pleasant as she possibly could. She arrived
+at the house of her hosts rather late.</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Soher welcomed her in a piping voice. She wore her everyday
+apparel, and that was not of the brightest.</p>
+
+<p>"Come in, my dear; you see, my dear, I have not had time yet to
+change clothes, but I'll be ready in a few minutes.</p>
+
+<p>"Sit down, my dear; why are you so late? I thought you would come
+sooner."</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le thought: "What a state the house would have been in, if I had
+arrived an hour earlier."</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Soher began to dust a secretaire, talking all the while to her
+niece. "Amelia will soon be down; she ran upstairs when she heard
+you knock at the door; she does not like for anyone to see her when
+she is not properly dressed, but <i>I</i> don't care, not when it is you,
+at any rate."</p>
+
+<p>"A pretty compliment," thought the visitor.</p>
+
+<p>When they were all assembled round the table partaking of their tea,
+Ad&egrave;le tried over and over again to lead the conversation into a
+pleasant channel, but all to no purpose. The inmates of the
+"Prenoms" had to be taught to converse properly before they could do
+so. Mrs. Soher began to babble in her ordinary way. Her daughter
+supported her foolish statements. Ad&egrave;le made no remark. Her aunt
+noticed this, and after a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[Pg 77]</a></span> most scornful remark about Mrs. B.'s
+character, she said to her niece: "Don't you think so?"</p>
+
+<p>Although considerably annoyed, Ad&egrave;le had not so far made any remark,
+but she was now directly appealed to. She spoke: "I do not know,"
+she said. She noticed the two women smiling and exchanging glances.</p>
+
+<p>Said Mrs. Soher sarcastically: "I thought you knew Mrs. B."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," answered her niece, "I know her, but I am continually
+detecting faults in my temper which have to be overcome; and I find
+that I have quite enough to do to look after myself without
+bothering about others."</p>
+
+<p>If ever you saw two people looking six ways for Sunday, it was Mrs.
+Soher and her daughter.</p>
+
+<p>After a few moments of embarrassing silence, Mr. Soher, who had not
+yet spoken a word, said something about young people being
+respectful to their superiors; while Tom laughed at the two women
+and smiled approvingly at his cousin.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le took her departure early and was not asked to remain longer.
+When she was once more in the open, she felt a great weight lifted
+from her breast. She was now free, free to entertain herself with
+nature, away from the stagnant atmosphere of the "Prenoms." She
+walked along, her whole being revolting against the useless, ay,
+more than useless talk she had heard. But when she looked at the
+flowers that grew on the hedges which bordered the lane in which she
+was walking, her soul was filled with a sweet balm. Here was the ivy
+climbing upwards taking its support and some of its nourishment from
+the hedge which it was scaling, always gaining fresh ground. Such is
+the man who has risen in the world; he avails<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78">[Pg 78]</a></span> himself of his
+success for a nobler, higher, and mightier effort. There some meek
+ferns were hiding in a shady nook, away from the sun's piercing
+rays.</p>
+
+<p>The young girl felt a twofold joy: that of being alone with nature,
+and that of being away from her aunt's house.</p>
+
+<p>At last, she reached "Les Marches." How happy she felt. Not the sort
+of home she hoped to have some day; but still, it was home. Her
+father was there, as dumb and as severe as usual, but, to her, he
+looked quite a nice old man now.</p>
+
+<p>While she was thus engaged in rapturous joy, Mrs. Soher and her
+daughter were having a fine time of it. "Ah! she <i>is</i> a well-bred
+girl; to interrupt me like that, to answer and lecture me in that
+way," said Ad&egrave;le's aunt, then she added: "Fancy that little brat, to
+try and give me a lesson about my duty towards my neighbour. If she
+has enough to do to look after herself, let her do it; for my part
+I'll do as I like. It won't be a young girl who is not yet out of
+her teens who is going to teach me how to live."</p>
+
+<p>The daughter scornfully remarked: "She has been to a
+boarding-school, you know."</p>
+
+<p>At which the two women laughed and Mr. Soher smiled, while Tom,
+profiting by the general interest displayed in the conversation,
+slipped out of the room and slouched to the nearest public-house.</p>
+
+<p>After having most unduly run down their departed guest, the two
+women resolved never again to invite her.</p>
+
+<p>And they never did.</p>
+
+<p>Had Ad&egrave;le heard their decision, she would have felt even more
+cheerful than she now did.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79">[Pg 79]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER IX.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">Deceptions.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 83px;">
+<img src="images/img_o.jpg" width="83" height="89" alt="O" title="" />
+</div><p>n the anniversary of his mother's death, Frank Mathers resolved to
+visit her tomb. He had not been before; why, he could not explain.
+However, he determined to make up for past deficiencies.
+Accordingly, he went with a small bunch of flowers which he placed
+upon his mother's tomb. He felt a deep veneration for her. He now
+knew more than ever what she had done for him, and, in his heart, he
+thanked heaven that had given him such a mother. He could not help
+wishing that she were still alive, but he felt happy for all that,
+his soul was full of thankfulness.</p>
+
+<p>This visit did him so much good that he thought he would like to go
+oftener.</p>
+
+<p>When he came home he was astonished to see his step-mother. She was
+in a dreadful fit of jealousy. "The booby," she said to her husband,
+so that Frank could hear; "he was not a little attached to his
+mother's apron-strings."</p>
+
+<p>Frank did not say a single word and the storm soon abated.</p>
+
+<p>A few days afterwards found him walking near "Les Marches," hoping
+to meet Ad&egrave;le Rougeant. He was not successful. Still, he continued
+his visits, hoping to meet her some day.</p>
+
+<p>He was at last rewarded for his pains. On turning a sharp corner he
+suddenly met her. The meeting was so unexpected that Frank's
+nervous<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80">[Pg 80]</a></span> system was quite upset. He had come hoping to talk to her.
+He was to enquire about Mr. Rougeant's health.</p>
+
+<p>But now, his courage failed him. He raised his hat, his lips
+muttered a faint: "How d'ye do?" he smiled in a ludicrous manner and
+passed on. The young girl who thought he was about his business
+bowed and went on her way. "He might have said a few words," she
+thought.</p>
+
+<p>Frank was vexed with himself.</p>
+
+<p>He thought of retracing his steps, but after a moment's reflection
+he decided not to do so.</p>
+
+<p>The weather began to look threatening. The sun was setting. Huge
+black clouds were rising from the horizon while an occasional flash
+of lightning announced the approach of the coming storm.</p>
+
+<p>Frank hastened as fast as he could toward the Rohais. But, he had
+not gone very far before a heavy shower overtook him.</p>
+
+<p>After all his pains, the only thing which he at last secured was a
+thorough drenching.</p>
+
+<p>When he came back home, he was down-hearted. Next morning he,
+however, determined to make one more attempt.</p>
+
+<p>A few days afterwards saw him leisurely promenading round the farm
+of "Les Marches." It was in the evening and the moon was rising.</p>
+
+<p>He went round by the back of the house through the fields. As he
+approached, he saw, on the opposite side to the stables, a small
+garden enclosed with high walls. One entrance, on the side of which
+he now stood, was by a door. He went towards it. The door was ajar.
+He entered the garden. Then, and only then, did he begin to reason.
+What if someone found him there?<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81">[Pg 81]</a></span> They would take him for a thief.
+"I must go," he said to himself; "if Mr. Rougeant found me here,
+there would be a fine row." But his lips uttered what his heart had
+not dictated, and he remained in the garden. It was sweet to be near
+her, it was refreshing to his weary brain to behold the paths which
+she paraded every day. He was plunged into a deep reverie, when he
+saw a light at one of the windows. It was she. Immediately after,
+there appeared another light at the other window. It was he. Frank
+only cast a glance at the man. He looked at the slender form that
+approached the window. Ad&egrave;le looked at the stars for a few moments,
+then lowered the blind. He saw her shadow for a time, then <i>it</i> also
+disappeared. His heart was beating at a very fast rate. He felt
+intoxicated. He had seen her; she had appeared to him as an angel.
+How she had gazed towards heaven! What grace; what bearing!</p>
+
+<p>Happening to turn his eyes towards the other window, he saw that
+there was no light.</p>
+
+<p>"The old fellow wants to spare his candle," he said to himself; "he
+is trying to save a farthing."</p>
+
+<p>This was not the case however. The farmer had suddenly thought of
+the garden door which he had forgotten to bolt as usual. He took his
+candlestick and went down stairs. Then he put on his boots, and
+leaving the candlestick on the table he went through the back door
+and stepped into the garden.</p>
+
+<p>Frank was gazing with fixed eyes at the stars, drinking in the balmy
+air, when he heard footsteps. Hastily looking in the direction from
+whence the sound came, he was horrified to see a man coming towards
+him. There was not time to flee, so he quickly crouched away from
+the path. Luckily,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82">[Pg 82]</a></span> he was in that part of the garden which was in
+the shade.</p>
+
+<p>He trembled as the farmer approached. Would he see him? He was
+breathing through his nose; then he fancied he made too much noise.
+He opened his mouth wide, then he found that his breathing was not
+even audible to himself. He squeezed his body into the least
+possible space, and watched the farmer with anxious eyes.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant passed by without noticing him. Frank heard him shut
+the door, bolt it, and&mdash;oh, misery&mdash;turn a key in a latch. Mr.
+Rougeant again directed his steps towards him. When he came near to
+him, Frank was dreadfully alarmed to see the farmer looking straight
+in his direction. The young man was in the shade, while the moon
+shone fully on Mr. Rougeant's face. The latter looked straight at
+the crouching figure, then, suddenly quickening his pace, he went
+towards the house.</p>
+
+<p>This man was a coward. He had seen the contracted silhouette, but
+had not had the courage to go up to it; he went hurriedly towards
+his house, seized an old gun which hung on two rusty nails and
+walked back into the garden. The gun was loaded for shooting
+rabbits.</p>
+
+<p>As soon as Frank saw that the man was out of his way, he proceeded
+to try and find out some means of escape. "He will be back soon," he
+said to himself, "I must be out of his way when he returns." He went
+to the door. Impossible to open it. He scrutinized the walls.
+Impossible to scale them. Time was passing. What was to be done? He
+heard the door of the house close. The master of the garden was
+advancing. He saw a pear-tree nailed against the wall. There<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83">[Pg 83]</a></span> was
+not a moment to lose. He climbed the pear-tree. He broke a few
+branches in doing so, and knocked down a dozen pears. He regretted
+doing any damage, but he knew it would be better for him, and indeed
+for both of them, if he got out of the way in time.</p>
+
+<p>Just as he let himself drop to the ground on the other side of the
+wall, the farmer entered the garden. While Mr. Rougeant was engaged
+in searching for the supposed thief with cocked gun, Frank was
+walking quickly towards his home.</p>
+
+<p>Of course, the farmer did not find the intruder, but he found the
+broken Chaumontel pear-tree, and he saw the pears scattered on the
+ground.</p>
+
+<p>"The unmitigated scoundrel," he muttered, "if I saw him now&mdash;looking
+at his gun&mdash;I'd make him decamp. I'd send a few shots into his dirty
+hide."</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84">[Pg 84]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER X.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">'Twixt Love and Duty.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 83px;">
+<img src="images/img_o.jpg" width="83" height="89" alt="O" title="" />
+</div><p>ne evening&mdash;it was the first week in June, about nine months after
+Frank's adventure in the garden&mdash;Ad&egrave;le Rougeant was tending her
+flowers.</p>
+
+<p>She had been sewing for a time, and now, feeling a want of
+relaxation, she went to her parterre. Her violin and her flowers
+were her only companions. No wonder she fled to them when inclined
+to be sorrowful.</p>
+
+<p>How beautiful the flower-bed looked in the twilight! The weather had
+been very warm, the earth which had been previously battered down by
+heavy rains was now covered with small cracks, little mouths as it
+were, begging for water.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le supplied them plentifully with the precious liquid.</p>
+
+<p>Then she armed herself with a pair of gardening gloves, and an old
+mason's trowel (any instrument is good to a woman), and began to
+plant a row of lobelias all around her pelargoniums.</p>
+
+<p>This done, she looked at her work. There is a pleasure in gazing
+upon well-trimmed borders, but this pleasure is increased tenfold
+when one thinks that the plants have been arranged by one's own
+hands.</p>
+
+<p>The young lady felt this delight: she felt more, she experienced the
+soothing influence of nature's<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85">[Pg 85]</a></span> sweet converse. She looked at the
+primroses, whose slender stalks were bent and which touched each
+other as if engaged in silent intercourse. And thus they would die,
+she thought, locked in each others fond embrace, their task
+accomplished, their life but one stretch of mutual love.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah love! What is love?" she said to herself. But immediately a
+score of answers came; a dozen vague definitions presented
+themselves. "Certainly," she mused, "the parents who toil for their
+children without thinking of reward; love." Then another self within
+her answered: "It is their duty." "Their duty, yes, but they are not
+often actuated by a sense of duty; I think it is love."</p>
+
+<p>Then she thought about another kind of love&mdash;the love she felt for
+Frank Mathers. She asked herself why she loved him. He was not bold,
+and she admired boldness. That she loved him, however, she was
+certain. Did he love her? "Yes," she thought he did. Then what kept
+them apart? Who was the cause of it? Her father. "What a pity I have
+such a father," she sighed; "not content with making himself
+miserable, he makes me pass a life of anxiety."</p>
+
+<p>At this stage of her soliloquy, she perceived a young man, whom she
+quickly recognized as Tom, her cousin from the "Prenoms." He came
+walking towards the house.</p>
+
+<p>As he opened the little gate he smiled broadly. His smile was not a
+pleasant one, because it was undefined. "Good-evening, Ad&egrave;le," he
+said when he came near to her. "How are you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Quite well thank you," she said, "and how are you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Well enough, thanks," he returned, a little<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86">[Pg 86]</a></span> cooled down, for she
+did not take the preferred hand which he was tending towards her.</p>
+
+<p>"Are you afraid to shake hands with me?" he asked, half smiling,
+half vexed.</p>
+
+<p>"My gloves are soiled," replied she, taking off her right hand
+glove; afterwards shaking hands with him.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, I see," he said, quite satisfied with the excuse.</p>
+
+<p>In reality, Ad&egrave;le had not seen the preferred hand; she was busy with
+her thoughts just then. His manner seemed repulsive to her; she knew
+not why. She opened the front door and showed him into the parlour.
+Her father was there, evidently expecting Tom, for he received him
+with a warmth which he had not shown for a long time. She left them
+to themselves and was proceeding towards her parterre when her
+father called out to her.</p>
+
+<p>"What! are you going, Ad&egrave;le, when Mr. Soher is here; come and keep
+us company."</p>
+
+<p>The girl retraced her steps. What could her father mean? He had not
+told her a word about her cousin's visit, and yet, it was evident he
+was expecting him.</p>
+
+<p>"Where's your violin?" questioned her father.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le fetched the desired instrument. She felt very much like an
+instrument herself. "Father takes me for a toy," she thought, and
+then as she looked at the two men engaged in close conversation, a
+sudden light beamed upon her&mdash;he was going to force her into a
+<i>marriage de raison</i>, as the French call it. Everything had been
+arranged beforehand.</p>
+
+<p>It was all conjecture on her part, but she felt it<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87">[Pg 87]</a></span> to be the truth.
+The more she thought over it, the more she felt convinced of the
+fact.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, it's disgusting," she thought; and a sickening sensation crept
+over her.</p>
+
+<p>"Will you give us a tune?" said Mr. Rougeant.</p>
+
+<p>"Do;" entreated Tom.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le took the violin from the table upon which she had placed it,
+passed the bow over the strings to ascertain if it was properly
+tuned, then slowly began playing.</p>
+
+<p>It was a simple piece, which did not demand exertion. She did not
+care what to play. "They cannot distinguish 'Home, Sweet Home' from
+'Auld Lang Syne,'" she thought. Besides, they were not half
+listening; why should she give them good music.</p>
+
+<p>She felt like the painter, who, having completed a real work of art,
+refuses to exhibit it to the public, on the ground that it is a
+profane thing to exhibit it to the gaze of unartistic eyes.</p>
+
+<p>When she had finished playing, Tom looked at her. "That's capital
+music," he said, assuming the air of a connoisseur, then he added:
+"I s'pose you practice a good bit."</p>
+
+<p>"The grin," thought Ad&egrave;le, "it's awful; and his eyes resemble those
+of a wild cat. I wonder if he has a soul; if it shines through those
+eyes, it cannot be spotless;" then, recollecting herself, she said:
+"I have been practising now for ten years."</p>
+
+<p>"No wonder you can rattle it," was the rejoinder.</p>
+
+<p>Now Tom was not half so ugly as Ad&egrave;le imagined him to be. Indeed, he
+looked well enough this evening, for he had come on purpose to
+exhibit himself, and was as a matter of fact as well dressed<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_88" id="Page_88">[Pg 88]</a></span> up as
+he could. His manners were not refined, but they were not absolutely
+rude.</p>
+
+<p>But the girl, whose whole being revolted against this scheme of her
+father's fabrication, felt naturally indignant and could not help
+exaggerating his faults.</p>
+
+<p>She felt greatly relieved when her father told her to prepare the
+supper.</p>
+
+<p>It may here be noted that Mr. Rougeant had now altogether dispensed
+with his Breton servant. Now that Ad&egrave;le was growing up, a servant
+was altogether superfluous, he said. The truth was that this enabled
+him to save a few pounds every year.</p>
+
+<p>When the table was laid, the three sat down to supper. It being
+over, the two men returned to the parlour. Ad&egrave;le was a long, very
+long time in putting away the supper things.</p>
+
+<p>Her father noticed this, and when she entered the parlour, he
+remarked: "You've been long enough."</p>
+
+<p>"Provided she has not been too long," put in his nephew, trying to
+win his cousin's good will.</p>
+
+<p>After one of the most miserable evenings that Ad&egrave;le had ever spent,
+Tom took leave of the family.</p>
+
+<p>When he was fairly out of the way, Ad&egrave;le ventured to ask her father
+what he had come for.</p>
+
+<p>"He came to see us," he replied, then, after a pause, he added
+abruptly: "Have you ever thought of marrying?"</p>
+
+<p>"I, marry! you forget that I am but a child."</p>
+
+<p>"A child! why, you will soon be of age."</p>
+
+<p>There was a deep silence for a time, then the father spoke: "Mr.
+Soher (emphasizing the Mr.) is<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89">[Pg 89]</a></span> a nice young man. He means to ask
+your hand when he is better acquainted with you."</p>
+
+<p>"He drinks."</p>
+
+<p>"Not now, I know he used to do so, but he is quite steady now&mdash;I
+knew you would object, I saw it in your manner, the way in which you
+answered him; somehow or other, you don't seem to take to
+respectable people. But mind you; if ever you marry anyone else, not
+a penny of mine shall you have; not one double."</p>
+
+<p>"He is my <i>cousin-germain</i>."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, what does it matter? the law does not prevent you from
+marrying your <i>cousin-germain</i>." His tone became bitter. He went on:
+"I made a great mistake when I promised your mother on her death-bed
+that I would send you to a boarding-school. What other objection
+have you to state?"</p>
+
+<p>His daughter looked down, coloured and replied almost inaudibly: "I
+do not love him."</p>
+
+<p>"Bah! if it's only that, you will get to love him soon enough; I
+know you will."</p>
+
+<p>Then thinking by her demeanour that he had nearly won her over, he
+asked: "Shall I ask him to dinner next Sunday?"</p>
+
+<p>"You would only increase the contempt that I feel for him."</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant was not prepared for this. "I knew it," he said in a
+vexed tone of voice; "this is the satisfaction you give me for
+having brought you up like a lady, spending a great part of my
+income towards your education. I tell you, you are a foolish girl, a
+simpleton; I won't have any of your nonsense. I will see to this
+later on."</p>
+
+<p>They retired for the night; Mr. Rougeant enraged at his daughter's
+abhorrence of Tom, and Ad&egrave;le deeply grieved at the condition of
+affairs.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_90" id="Page_90">[Pg 90]</a></span></p>
+<p>Alas! she knew her father well.</p>
+
+<p>She felt that a terrible battle would have to be fought some day; a
+conflict for love and liberty.</p>
+
+<p>And, raising her eyes to heaven, she prayed that she might have
+strength to support the fight.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_91" id="Page_91">[Pg 91]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XI.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">Business.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 125px;">
+<img src="images/img_w.jpg" width="125" height="86" alt="W" title="" />
+</div><p>hile these things were going on at "Les Marches," a great change
+had come over Frank's life.</p>
+
+<p>His father was one day descending a ladder, when one of the rounds
+of the latter broke and his body received a nasty jerk. He placed
+his hand on his heart and muttered. "I have felt something, I have
+felt something here." Two days afterwards he died from internal
+hemorrhage.</p>
+
+<p>So Frank was left to live with his step-mother.</p>
+
+<p>He had now a little money and was considering how he should lay it
+out. Finally, he decided to build one or two greenhouses. But he
+wanted some land upon which to build them, and this he did not
+possess.</p>
+
+<p>There was a field situated behind his garden which belonged to a Mr.
+Fallon. "This field would exactly suit me," he said to himself, "I
+must try to buy it."</p>
+
+<p>Accordingly, he set out towards "La Chaumi&egrave;re"&mdash;this was the name of
+Mr. Fallon's residence. When he arrived there, he saw the farmer
+coming out of his stable and at once asked him if his field was for
+sale. Now, Mr. Fallon thought himself too much of a business man to
+answer either "Yes" or "No." "I do not think," he said, "but I can't
+tell. I must mention it to my wife<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[Pg 92]</a></span> and think over it, for it's a
+serious thing to sell one's property."</p>
+
+<p>Frank nodded.</p>
+
+<p>Would he call the next evening? the man asked.</p>
+
+<p>Frank promised to call.</p>
+
+<p>The farmer immediately told his wife about the young man's proposal.
+The worthy couple decided to sell the piece of land, "but," said the
+cautious husband, "we must sell it at a high price, if we can. I
+wish it were sold though," he continued, "it's such an out of the
+way place, and so far from here."</p>
+
+<p>The next evening saw Frank sitting near the hearth of the kitchen of
+"La Chaumi&egrave;re." The following conversation took place.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, Mr. Fallon," said Frank, "I have come to see if the field is
+really for sale."</p>
+
+<p>"I hardly know, one doesn't like to do away with one's property."</p>
+
+<p>"You told me you would tell me this evening."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, I know, but, it's a good field."</p>
+
+<p>"It may be."</p>
+
+<p>"There's a stream running through it."</p>
+
+<p>"I know."</p>
+
+<p>"You would not have to dig a well, and a well costs a great deal of
+money."</p>
+
+<p>"Sometimes."</p>
+
+<p>"I have a mind to keep it."</p>
+
+<p>"Indeed!"</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! but such good land, it's a pity to give it away."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't want to have it for nothing."</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps not, but I don't think you would give me my price."</p>
+
+<p>"What is it?"</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[Pg 93]</a></span></p>
+<p>"Much too cheap. Land is very dear just now, and the prices will
+always go up."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know about that."</p>
+
+<p>"No, but I do, people are very eager to purchase such fine little
+plots. This one has all the advantages that it can have,
+situation&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"What do you mean?"</p>
+
+<p>"It's situated just behind your garden; where can you have anything
+better."</p>
+
+<p>"The field is well situated for me, but it's not worth anything as
+building land to others, it does not border the road," Frank
+ventured to remark.</p>
+
+<p>"It's a splendid piece of land," continued the farmer, "light, open
+and yet damp soil, just the sort of thing for tomatoes, I fancy I
+can see them, as big as my fist&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"We have not done much business yet."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know if I shall sell it."</p>
+
+<p>"If that's the case, when will you make up your mind; shall I call
+again to-morrow?"</p>
+
+<p>"I hardly know"&mdash;scratching his head&mdash;"such a fine plot, let me see;
+aloud: It's worth a lot of money."</p>
+
+<p>"How much would you require?"</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! I don't know."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, I'll call again this day week," said Frank, tiring of this
+useless talk and guessing what the farmer's intentions were. He rose
+and added: "I hope you will have made up your mind by then."</p>
+
+<p>Quoth the farmer: "I should be very sorry for you to have had to
+come here for nothing, perhaps we may yet come to terms."</p>
+
+<p>"Will you sell it? 'Yes' or 'No,'" said the young man re-seating
+himself.</p>
+
+<p>"If you don't mind giving me my price."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[Pg 94]</a></span></p>
+<p>"What <i>is</i> your price?"</p>
+
+<p>"Land is very dear. This piece is situated quite close to town, it
+ought to fetch top price. There's two and a half verg&eacute;es to that
+field. I have heard that some land has been sold for eight quarters
+a verg&eacute;e."</p>
+
+<p>"I won't give as much for this one; it's twice too much."</p>
+
+<p>"I should require some money."</p>
+
+<p>"How much?"</p>
+
+<p>"At least one hundred pounds."</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps I might give you as much, but do state the price of the
+whole."</p>
+
+<p>"Six quarters a verg&eacute;e."</p>
+
+<p>"No."</p>
+
+<p>"It would be worth that to you."</p>
+
+<p>"I will give you five quarters."</p>
+
+<p>"It's too low, the field would only amount to two hundred and fifty
+pounds."</p>
+
+<p>"Two hundred and fifty pounds for two and a half verg&eacute;es, that is
+about an acre, is, I should think, a very good price."</p>
+
+<p>"That would only make, besides the one hundred pounds cash, seven
+and a half pounds per annum. Such a fertile soil. Such a splendid
+stream. No well to dig. Hundreds of tomatoes weighing half-a-pound
+each. It's ridiculously low."</p>
+
+<p>"It's time for me to part. Will you accept my price, Mr. Fallon,
+'Yes' or 'No?'"</p>
+
+<p>After much grumbling and protestations on the part of the farmer,
+with assertions that he would be ruined giving away his land like
+that, the transaction was agreed to.</p>
+
+<p>Going home, Frank reviewed in his mind the state of his finance.</p>
+
+<p>He possessed the house, garden, greenhouse and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[Pg 95]</a></span> workshop, minus his
+step-mother's dowry, and plus five hundred pounds cash. "I cannot do
+much with that," he thought, "but I have enough to begin with."</p>
+
+<p>And now where were his ambitious castles; where was the successful
+inventor, the possessor of hundreds of thousands&mdash;contemplating to
+build two span-roofed greenhouses in which he would have to work and
+perspire when the thermometer would often stand at from eighty to
+ninety degrees.</p>
+
+<p>However, he was full of hope, his ambition had received a severe
+blow, but it still clung to him. He feared to aim too high now, and
+failures he dreaded. "I must begin at the bottom of the ladder," he
+said to himself, "and, with God's help, I shall succeed."</p>
+
+<p>He resolved to work with his brains as well as with his hands. "I
+have some education," he thought, "and I will seize the
+opportunities as they present themselves. I do not care for riches
+now. If only I could succeed in securing enough money to put me out
+of the danger of want, I should be satisfied."</p>
+
+<p>Since his adventure in the garden, he had not dared to go again near
+"Les Marches."</p>
+
+<p>He thought that Mr. Rougeant had perhaps recognised him, but,
+fortunately for him, Ad&egrave;le's father had failed to discern his
+crouching figure.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[Pg 96]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XII.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">A Strange Meeting.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 74px;">
+<img src="images/img_t.jpg" width="74" height="88" alt="T" title="" />
+</div><p>hree months afterwards, Frank was planting his tomatoes in his
+greenhouses. He had two span-roofs, each one hundred and forty feet
+long by forty feet wide.</p>
+
+<p>He had sold the workshop which was situated a few yards to the north
+of the house, and had thus been enabled to build larger houses than
+he at first intended.</p>
+
+<p>He heard vague rumours about his step-mother going to marry again.
+If the truth must be said, Frank felt delighted at the prospect of
+getting rid of her. He had never cared for her much, and, recently,
+the gap that had always existed between them had been considerably
+enlarged.</p>
+
+<p>He had been out on business and had arrived rather late in the
+evening, at which Mrs. Mathers was terribly displeased. "I am not
+going to sit up all night waiting for you," she said, and then she
+added in a most sarcastic tone of voice: "Perhaps you have been at
+the cemetery."</p>
+
+<p>Frank was moved to the quick. He was of a rather passionate temper
+and he felt nothing but contempt for the person who had made this
+remark. "I have not been," he said hotly, "I have been about my
+business."</p>
+
+<p>"I thought that perhaps you had been crying there," she continued
+with the same irritating smile on her features.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_97" id="Page_97">[Pg 97]</a></span></p>
+<p>Frank answered: "I might have done worse."</p>
+
+<p>"Who would think that of a man of twenty-one," she said. "Of course,
+you do not care for your poor father; your mother gets all the
+tears."</p>
+
+<p>Frank quite forgot himself. He looked at her defiantly and said in a
+low tone half fearing and yet wishing to be heard: "You are a
+Jezabel," then turned round and left the room.</p>
+
+<p>When he came to think over the last words which he had used towards
+his step-mother, he felt ashamed of himself. He felt he had not
+behaved as a man, much less as a Christian. He had gone much too
+far; he owed her respect.</p>
+
+<p>He thought of going straight to her, and of asking her pardon, but
+his pride prevented him from taking this wise step. Only for a
+minute, however; he soon overcame it and resolutely re-entered the
+room where Mrs. Mathers was.</p>
+
+<p>"I was very rude to you," he began, "I was rather excited, and&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>Without saying a word Mrs. Mathers left the room and, slamming the
+door after her, proceeded upstairs.</p>
+
+<p>Frank felt relieved. He had attempted a reconciliation. She had
+refused. He felt a sense of duty done.</p>
+
+<p>We may add that Mrs. Mathers pouted for more than a week.</p>
+
+<p>The second anniversary of his father's death having arrived, Frank,
+profiting by his step-mother's absence, took a small bunch of sweet
+scented flowers and proceeded towards the Foulon Cemetery, where his
+parents were buried.</p>
+
+<p>As he was about to open the gate, he thought he saw the form of a
+lady which he knew, coming down the road after him. He arrested his
+steps.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_98" id="Page_98">[Pg 98]</a></span> The young lady stopped likewise, as if to examine the
+cottage situated on her left, and, in doing so, she turned her back
+towards Frank.</p>
+
+<p>He did not stay there long, but proceeded up the gravel walk towards
+the grave, but as he advanced, he thought no more of his mission.
+"Where have I seen that face?" he thought, "it seems familiar to
+me."</p>
+
+<p>He was now beside the grave, he placed the flowers near the
+tombstone, but his thoughts were not with the dead, they were with
+the living.</p>
+
+<p>All at once, it flashed upon him, he remembered that person. That
+form, that face, belonged to Ad&egrave;le Rougeant.</p>
+
+<p>He hastily left the graveyard and almost ran down the walk.</p>
+
+<p>One of the two persons who were standing near the gate said: "That
+man has seen a ghost."</p>
+
+<p>Frank smiled as he overheard the remark, and, thinking that the
+young lady had proceeded past the gate, he went in that direction.</p>
+
+<p>He walked for a quarter of an hour, but neither saw her nor anyone
+resembling her. At last, he gave up the chase in despair. "I must
+have construed wrongly," he said to himself, "perhaps the person who
+was standing near the entrance to the cemetery was right, it was her
+ghost." He mournfully retraced his steps.</p>
+
+<p>It was really Ad&egrave;le Rougeant that he had seen. She was returning
+from town, when, instead of going straight home by St. Martin's
+mill, she went up the Grange, took a peep at her former home, then
+proceeded by the Rocquettes down the Rohais. Why; the lady readers
+will easily guess.</p>
+
+<p>She espied Frank, just as he was turning down Foulon Vale.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_99" id="Page_99">[Pg 99]</a></span></p>
+<p>He was so intent on his mission that he did not notice her.</p>
+
+<p>As soon as she saw his eager look and the bunch of flowers which he
+carried in his hands, a feeling of exasperating jealousy seized her.
+Where was he going with those flowers? "Alas!" she thought bitterly,
+"he has a rendezvous with some pretty lass. I will follow him and
+ascertain, if possible, the truth."</p>
+
+<p>She walked after him, and when he turned round to look at her, she
+hastily looked the other way. Fearing lest he might recognise her,
+she retraced her steps and continued her journey homewards down the
+Rohais, muttering: "A fine place for a rendezvous."</p>
+
+<p>Something within her tried to reason: "He is nothing to you, you
+have no claims upon him." But what of her future, what of her
+projected plans, her ideas, her sweet dreams; they were mown down in
+this huge and single sweep. Life seemed very dark. Up to this, hope
+had kept her radiant and cheerful, and now, hope was gone, and in
+its stead, there was a blank.</p>
+
+<p>Arrived home, she fetched her violin and poured forth all her
+feelings.</p>
+
+<p>She commenced in a plaintive tone, then this changed to reproach,
+and the conclusion was a wail of despair.</p>
+
+<p>Again she tried to rouse herself; again she tried to reason. "Why am
+I so concerned about him?" she asked herself. "I must put these
+foolish thoughts aside."</p>
+
+<p>But love denied what reason would dictate, and she found herself
+continually sighing.</p>
+
+<p>Meanwhile, Tom continued his visits from time<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_100" id="Page_100">[Pg 100]</a></span> to time, and she
+received him with as much coldness as she dared.</p>
+
+<p>But when she came to think that Frank was an acquaintance to be
+forgotten, she slightly changed her manner towards her cousin.</p>
+
+<p>Her father was not slow to notice the change. He laughed inly and
+chuckled: "I knew she would come to love him; but I must not hurry
+her, she is by nature a slow coach; everything will yet come all
+right in the end."</p>
+
+<p>The days were lengthening and Tom continued to come as early as he
+used to do in the depth of winter.</p>
+
+<p>It was now quite daylight when he put in an appearance. One evening
+he took Ad&egrave;le for a walk round the garden. Poor girl; she did not
+love him, but she did not like to speak roughly to him. She felt
+that she was wronging him. She knew that at each meeting his hope
+increased. Still, what was she to do? She began to persuade herself
+that he was not so bad as she had imagined. He was now a reformed
+man; her father had told her so, and she could see it. If the
+passion for drink which was still probably strong within him should
+return! She paused, mused and said with a sigh: "Alas! I do not feel
+that I love him."</p>
+
+<p>Still; she hardly knew if in the end she would accept him. He would
+be so deeply grieved if she refused, and then, if she accepted him,
+her father would perhaps become once more what he was when she was
+quite a child. She remembered how he used to take her on his knee,
+and call her his dear little girl.</p>
+
+<p>She went on thinking: "How many people marry without what is
+generally called love? Certainly, the greater portion. The French
+have<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_101" id="Page_101">[Pg 101]</a></span> what they call <i>marriages de raison</i>, and they seem to agree
+as well as others."</p>
+
+<p>Poor Ad&egrave;le. How many have reasoned thus, how many are daily giving
+themselves away in marriage to men for whom they feel nought but
+friendship; how many give their hand to one, while their heart
+yearns for another.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_102" id="Page_102">[Pg 102]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XIII.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">Superstition.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 125px;">
+<img src="images/img_w.jpg" width="125" height="86" alt="W" title="" />
+</div><p>hile Ad&egrave;le was thus pondering over her natural shocks, Frank was
+working, full of hope for the future.</p>
+
+<p>His step-mother married, and he was left in possession of the house.
+He let it to an old couple, Pierre Merlin and his wife. Ma&icirc;t Pierre,
+as Frank called him, was a man of about sixty years of age. He
+worked for Frank who found that it was impossible for him to keep
+things ship-shape without re-enforcement.</p>
+
+<p>This old man gloried in being a true Guernseyman, one of the old
+stock, of direct descent from those who fought for their country
+against the band of adventurers who invaded the island under Ivan of
+Wales. He did not say that the islanders had the worst of the fight.
+He only spoke in the patois, which Frank understood very well.</p>
+
+<p>This species of the genus "homo" hailed from the parish of Torteval,
+and, being an old peasant and very illiterate, there is no cause for
+being astonished that he was superstitious.</p>
+
+<p>Frank perceived this only a few days after he had engaged him. It
+was a Friday, and the old man who was told to go and gather a few
+tomatoes&mdash;the first of the season&mdash;exclaimed: "What! begin on a
+Friday, but you forget yourself, Mr. Mathers."</p>
+
+<p>Frank laughed at him and told him to go all the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_103" id="Page_103">[Pg 103]</a></span> same, adding that
+he was surprised people believed in such nonsense. Old Pierre obeyed
+muttering: "He is a young man, and he will lose a nice lot of money
+on his crops, defying fate in that way. But it's as the proverb
+says: 'Experience is a thing which is bought.'"</p>
+
+<p>Although Frank did not believe in any of the old man's notions, the
+continual remarks which he heard made him eager to know more. When
+they had dined, the two men proceeded to a garden seat and while the
+elder smoked his pipe, the younger questioned him.</p>
+
+<p>Pierre was very reticent in his information. What was the use of
+telling this young man anything; he would not believe him.</p>
+
+<p>As time passed on, he began to have more confidence in his employer,
+and seeing that he never laughed at what he said, he gradually
+became more talkative.</p>
+
+<p>One day, when Frank was questioning him, the old man asked: "Have
+you ever seen the <i>feu bellanger</i>?"</p>
+
+<p>"I don't think so," responded Frank, "at any rate, I had never heard
+that name mentioned before."</p>
+
+<p>"Well," said Ma&icirc;t Pierre, "if you care to listen, I shall tell you
+all about it; you appear eager to know everything."</p>
+
+<p>He took his pipe from between his teeth; well emptied the bowl, and
+put the blackened clay pipe in his pocket with studied carefulness.
+Then he began: "The <i>feu bellanger</i> is one of the devil's angels
+which takes the shape of fire, and goes about at night, generally
+when it is very dark, and tries to pounce upon some victim."</p>
+
+<p>Here, he stopped and looked inquiringly at<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_104" id="Page_104">[Pg 104]</a></span> Frank, who, in his
+desire to hear what old Pierre had to say, kept a very grave face.</p>
+
+<p>Apparently satisfied at the young man's appearance, the narrator
+continued: "I have often seen it myself, and once, very clearly. I
+will never forget it to my dying day. It was pitch-dark and a
+drizzling rain was falling. I was walking hastily towards my home,
+when, on my right, I beheld a light. It danced up and down, now it
+came towards me, then it receded. I confess that I was nailed to the
+spot. I already seemed to feel its deathly grip. I was powerless to
+move. I could not scream. It was the old fellow who was already
+fascinating me. Fortunately, I remembered the words which my father
+had once told me: 'If ever you meet the <i>feu bellanger</i>, my boy,
+take off your coat, turn the sleeves inside out, and put it on so;
+it means that you will have nothing to do with it, and that you will
+resist its efforts to seize you.' I found strength enough to follow
+my father's advice. Hope must have sustained me. The bluish light
+remained about there for a few minutes more, then disappeared
+entirely."</p>
+
+<p>"How thankful did I feel. With all speed, I hastened home to tell my
+parents of my narrow escape. They congratulated me; my father even
+took my hand and welcomed me as one risen from the dead."</p>
+
+<p>"How does it kill the people it attacks?" Frank inquired.</p>
+
+<p>"It flies with them to the seaside, or to the nearest pool and
+drowns them there."</p>
+
+<p>"I once knew a man who was a downright ne'er do well. He was very
+much addicted to drink. One morning, he was found drowned in a
+stream."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_105" id="Page_105">[Pg 105]</a></span></p>
+<p>"But," interposed Frank, "he might have stumbled in the stream
+whilst in a state of intoxication."</p>
+
+<p>"No&mdash;no&mdash;no," said Pierre, "it was not that; the <i>feu bellanger</i> was
+seen that very night near this spot where the corpse was afterwards
+found. Some people said that they had heard a scream. I quite
+believe it. It was the horrible monster's triumphal shout. He was
+celebrating his victory."</p>
+
+<p>"You don't think it was the poor inebriate's cry for help," said
+Frank, forcing back a smile.</p>
+
+<p>"I told you it was a shout of triumph," said old Pierre, losing
+patience and already angry at Frank's demeanour. "Moreover," he
+added, "I'll tell you something else, I have not finished yet.</p>
+
+<p>"It's a well-known fact that the <i>feu bellanger</i> dislikes sharpened
+tools, and fights with them if he happens to meet them. Being aware
+of this, my brother and I went to a place where we had seen the
+monster on the previous night. We had a sharp knife. We placed it
+with the handle in the ground and the keen blade sticking out."</p>
+
+<p>"We watched from a distance to see if the <i>feu bellanger</i> would pass
+that way, and seeing that it did not appear; when midnight came, we
+went home. But a neighbour told us on the morrow that he had seen it
+in the early hours of the morning, fighting against the knife.</p>
+
+<p>"We straightway proceeded to the place where the knife was. Imagine
+our horror on finding that the blade was covered with blood."</p>
+
+<p>"Some poor stray animal <i>did</i> suffer," Frank could not help
+remarking. Old Pierre was terribly displeased. He rose to go about
+his work, muttering: "Wait till he sees it, when he gets caught, I
+bet he'll turn blue."</p>
+
+<p>Frank thought about his labourer's story during<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_106" id="Page_106">[Pg 106]</a></span> the whole of the
+afternoon. "These superstitions do a great deal of harm to these
+poor people," he said in a soliloquy.</p>
+
+<p>He therefore resolved to try and root out all these strange notions
+from Pierre's head. He soon felt a kind of ecstacy. It was a
+glorious thing to help bring about the time when science would sweep
+away all traces of ignorance.</p>
+
+<p>If the theory of evolution was true, those times would come, so he
+decided to set to work at once upon this man.</p>
+
+<p>It was a beginning, small perhaps, but he now believed in small
+beginnings.</p>
+
+<p>He had not yet experienced what it is to try and convert a
+superstitious man.</p>
+
+<p>It is very difficult to convince an ignorant person.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_107" id="Page_107">[Pg 107]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XIV.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">Failure.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/img_h.jpg" width="98" height="85" alt="H" title="" />
+</div><p>aving made up his mind to rescue Ma&icirc;t Pierre from his
+superstitions, Frank at once set to work.</p>
+
+<p>So, the day following his decision, he advanced to the attack.</p>
+
+<p>When they were both seated as usual having their after-dinner
+conversation, Frank began: "Do you really believe all you told me
+about the <i>feu bellanger</i>, Ma&icirc;t Pierre?"</p>
+
+<p>"If I believe it? why, certainly I do."</p>
+
+<p>Frank knew he did believe it, but he wanted to fix the conversation
+at once. "I'll tell you what this fire is," continued the young man;
+"it is a light which comes out of the soil, more especially in the
+marshy places. It is called 'Will-o'-the-Wisp' by some of the
+country folk in England, 'Jack-o'-Lantern' by others. The true name
+of this ignited gas is <i>ignis fatuus</i>."</p>
+
+<p>The old man smiled. His look at Frank was one of pity. "What a poor
+young simple-minded, inexperienced person," he thought, and in the
+voice of a man quoting a passage from Horace he said aloud: "I have
+seen it on the top of a hill."</p>
+
+<p>"It may be," answered Frank, and, seeing old Pierre's triumphant
+attitude, he added: "Do you not think that there is a Maker who
+watches over us? how foolish to think that he would let the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108">[Pg 108]</a></span> evil
+one go about like that and drown people at his will&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>Pierre suddenly interrupted him: "And Job," he said.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! that was in the olden times," said Frank; "besides, it's poetic
+language, you must not take it so literally as you seem to do. Do
+you know what lies at the bottom of all these superstitions?
+Ignorance; nothing but the lack of education. Among men of
+knowledge, nothing of this sort is ever heard of. They do not
+believe in witches riding on broomsticks. Ah!" he added, seeing
+Pierre was getting excited; "you believe in witches too?"</p>
+
+<p>"Mr. Mathers," said the old man looking steadily at Frank, "you're a
+young man, you should not try so to rail at people who have
+experience; you should not try to make me disbelieve things which I
+have seen with both my eyes; when you are older, when you have
+passed through all that I have passed; ah, when you have, as we say
+proverbially 'dragged the harrow where I have dragged the plough';
+then, and only then, will you attempt to remonstrate with elderly
+people. I think the proper thing for you to do now is to wait till
+you have gained some experience and not to try and speak about
+things which you know nothing of."</p>
+
+<p>Frank was astonished at the serious tone in which this little speech
+was delivered. He began to see how deep-rooted were Pierre's
+beliefs, but if the difficulties multiplied in his path, his fervour
+rose also. He had decided to show this man the fallacy of his
+arguments, and he must accomplish his self-imposed task. He was now
+very determined;<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_109" id="Page_109">[Pg 109]</a></span> the more so, as he noticed the air of superiority
+old Pierre assumed.</p>
+
+<p>"You have no proofs whatever in support of what you advance," he
+said, "while I can prove to you that this light seen over or near
+bogs and sometimes over cemeteries, is nothing but '<i>ignis fatuus</i>.'
+This man found drowned, and all that nonsense, is nothing but what
+would happen under ordinary circumstances. In a state of
+intoxication, he walked in the pool and was drowned. Is not that
+plain enough?</p>
+
+<p>"The knife covered with blood was the result of some beast cutting
+its leg with the sharpened edge, every sensible man will acknowledge
+that; prove to me the contrary, and I will believe you; until then,
+never.</p>
+
+<p>"And these witches, by the by, you have not told me if you believed
+in them."</p>
+
+<p>The old man met his gaze defiantly as he answered: "Yes, I do. I do
+not know if, as you say, they ride on broomsticks; but I'll tell you
+this: My father was no fibber. He told me one day that a certain
+woman went at their house from time to time. They never saw her come
+in at the door like one might see another person do, but she simply
+fell plump in the middle of the kitchen. She found herself there,
+none knew how; I do not know whether it was through the ceiling or
+otherwise, but my father assured me he had seen her come in this
+fashion more than once."</p>
+
+<p>"Stop," cried Frank, "I never thought it would come to this. It
+beats all that I have yet heard. And you believe that, Ma&icirc;t Pierre,
+you who think yourself&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"My father always spoke the truth," interrupted<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_110" id="Page_110">[Pg 110]</a></span> Pierre, "if a man
+is not to believe what he has seen, what must he confide in, then?"</p>
+
+<p>"You ought to use your reasoning faculties; but, tell me, have you
+ever been an eye-witness to any of these things?"</p>
+
+<p>"If I've seen any? why, certainly, by the dozen almost. I'll tell
+you one. I was working some few years ago for a Mr. Fouret. One of
+his cows having died from milk fever, it was found necessary to
+replace it. Now old Mrs. X. had two for sale at that time, and
+knowing that my master wanted to buy one, she offered him hers.</p>
+
+<p>"I must tell you that this woman had the reputation of having the
+evil eye. Mr. Fouret did not care to refuse her, so he said he would
+go and see them. He went. When he came back, he told us he would not
+take them even if Mrs. X. gave them to him for nothing; they were
+very lean and deformed. So he resolved to risk being bewitched and
+bought one from Mr. Paslet.</p>
+
+<p>"When he came back to the farm he said to me: 'Pierre, go and fetch
+the cow which I have bought at Mr. Paslet's farm.'</p>
+
+<p>"'All right sir,' answered I, and I started.</p>
+
+<p>"As I was coming back quietly with the beast, whom should I meet but
+Mrs. X.</p>
+
+<p>"'Oh, it's you, Pierre,' she said grinning; 'where have you had that
+cow from?'</p>
+
+<p>"I explained: 'Master had bought the animal in the morning from Mr.
+Paslet and had sent me to fetch it.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Ah, indeed,' she said, patting the animal; 'she's a fine beast.'</p>
+
+<p>"When I saw her laying her hand on the poor creature, I said to
+myself, 'she's giving it her.'<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_111" id="Page_111">[Pg 111]</a></span> But what could I do? I said nothing,
+and the old woman went away.</p>
+
+<p>"I had not proceeded more than one hundred yards when the animal
+began to show signs of illness. However, I managed to lead her to
+the farm which was not very far. But the beast got worse and worse.
+Mr. Fouret came to examine her. 'What's the matter with the brute?'
+he said, 'you've made her walk too fast I'm afraid; she seems to be
+tired and exhausted.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Mr. Fouret,' I responded, 'I came along very slowly, but on the
+road I met Mrs. X.'</p>
+
+<p>"'Did she touch the cow?' he inquired.</p>
+
+<p>"'Yes,' I answered.</p>
+
+<p>"'What a nuisance,' he exclaimed, and turning to the servant-boy who
+was there he said: 'take a horse and fetch the vet. as quickly as
+you possibly can.'</p>
+
+<p>"The veterinary surgeon came. Of course, he was not going to say he
+did not know what was the matter with the beast, so he said it
+was&mdash;&mdash;I forget the name now, it was a queer word he said, I know, a
+name which he was sure we should not remember anyone of us,&mdash;and
+told us to fetch some medicine.</p>
+
+<p>"We gave her the drug. She seemed a little bit better and we left
+her for the night. In going to have a look at her on the following
+morning, I found the poor animal dead."</p>
+
+<p>"Well," said Frank, "what proofs have you that it was really this
+woman who caused your cow to give up the ghost?"</p>
+
+<p>"What proofs?" ejaculated the old man; "well, I think there were
+proofs enough; but, to be quite sure, Mr. Fouret consulted a white
+witch. She told him it was an old woman who was jealous of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_112" id="Page_112">[Pg 112]</a></span> him, and
+gave my employer a powder to burn. 'You may be certain that the
+culpable person will come to you, when you have burnt that powder,'
+she said to him.</p>
+
+<p>"Mr. Fouret did as he had been told to do, and Mrs. X. came on the
+following morning. She said: 'I thought I would call so as to have a
+look at your new acquisition.'"</p>
+
+<p>"I do not care to hear any more," interrupted Frank; "science and
+reasoning will in time do away with all this."</p>
+
+<p>It was now time for them to attend to their work. They went. Not one
+word did they exchange. There seemed to be a gap between them. Old
+Pierre was vexed at being rebuked by a young man. Frank was in
+despair.</p>
+
+<p>The next day when they were seated as usual having a chat after
+dinner, Pierre quietly produced from his pocket the <i>Gazette de
+Guernesey</i>. He had not said a word about superstition during the
+morning, but silently handed the paper to Frank, pointing with his
+finger at a paragraph.</p>
+
+<p>Not a word was exchanged. The young man took the paper and read
+aloud: "Spiritualism. Another convert to spiritualism is reported,
+the learned &mdash;&mdash;. He is well known as the able and energetic editor
+of the &mdash;&mdash;."</p>
+
+<p>The old man looked at Frank and in a deep voice said: "Is it
+ignorance?"</p>
+
+<p>"This is a different thing altogether," he responded; "it is not
+that base superstition about which we were speaking yesterday.
+Besides, learned people are not always the first to discover
+trickery."</p>
+
+<p>Then he thought of the superstitious, albeit<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_113" id="Page_113">[Pg 113]</a></span> educated people who
+frequent the gambling hell at Monte Carlo; and stopped short.</p>
+
+<p>Pierre looked at him; "Is it only ignorance?" he again asked.</p>
+
+<p>"Bah," said Frank as he waved his hand with a gesture of supreme
+contempt; "I don't care what it is, it's very ridiculous and
+unreasonable."</p>
+
+<p>The old man shook his head. "I believe what I've seen," he said.</p>
+
+<p>Frank waxed hot. "You are then determined to remain in that state of
+narrow-mindedness, believing in all this nonsense. But, my man, you
+<i>must</i> be miserable."</p>
+
+<p>Again the stolid answer came: "I believe what I've seen."</p>
+
+<p>"Listen," said Frank: "One day, when I was about nine years of age,
+I was looking at a pig which had been, to all appearances, killed.
+As I was about to go nearer, the brute jumped down and came running
+after me. I, in my ignorance, thought it was a dead pig pursuing me,
+and when my mother told me the contrary, I said as you do: 'I
+believe what I have seen.'"</p>
+
+<p>Quoth old Pierre: "As you say, it's a different thing altogether."</p>
+
+<p>"Let us go about our work," said Frank; "we are losing our time I
+fear."</p>
+
+<p>His hope of converting this man was almost extinguished.</p>
+
+<p>"What are my decisions coming to?" he said to himself. "I had once
+determined to be an inventor, etcetera, and here I am with a face
+like the tan and tomato-stained hands. When I try to change Ma&icirc;t
+Pierre's notions, I fail. Notwithstanding, I will not be
+disheartened. Knowledge is power; if I fail here, I shall not fail
+everywhere."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_114" id="Page_114">[Pg 114]</a></span></p>
+<p>Frank Mathers felt himself strong, rather too much so perhaps.</p>
+
+<p>It is one of the defects of the self-educated, that they generally
+imagine themselves much more learned than they really are. Not
+having anyone to compete with, or a master to show them their
+imperfections, they rather over-estimate their capacities.</p>
+
+<p>There is also another disadvantage in self-culture. The
+self-educated man is often only acquainted with the elements of a
+great many different sciences, but it is seldom that he is
+thoroughly versed in any single one. There are exceptions to this
+rule. One is when the student has a decided talent for something,
+and energy to pursue his studies.</p>
+
+<p>Frank had studied something of almost everything and imagined
+himself a savant.</p>
+
+<p>From this it must not be inferred that he was uneducated.</p>
+
+<p>But, he lacked that knowledge of the world which is only acquired by
+mixing with the world.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_115" id="Page_115">[Pg 115]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XV.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">Dark Days.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 64px;">
+<img src="images/img_i.jpg" width="64" height="85" alt="I" title="" />
+</div><p>t was winter, dull winter, when nature rests and green fields are
+no more.</p>
+
+<p>There was not much work to do now in the greenhouses at "the
+Rohais."</p>
+
+<p>Frank was one evening taking a walk towards the C&acirc;tel Church.</p>
+
+<p>He had some business to settle with his carpenter, who lived near
+"Woodlands."</p>
+
+<p>Presently, a man who had dogged his steps for some time, exclaimed:
+"It's you, Mr. Mathers, I thought it was."</p>
+
+<p>Turning round, Frank recognised Jacques, Mr. Rougeant's workman. He
+thought his heart had stopped beating, so sudden was the thrill of
+satisfaction that shook its tendrils.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, it is I," he at last answered; and he shook hands with Jacques
+as if he had been his most intimate friend.</p>
+
+<p>"He was so glad to see him," he said. "And how are they all at 'Les
+Marches,'" he inquired.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, jolly-like," said the man who had boasted that he could speak
+English; "the squire's in a reg'lar good mood this week."</p>
+
+<p>"Indeed!" said Frank.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, you see, it's no wonder after all; the young Miss's engaged
+to a young fellow; Tom Soher, I think his name is. I don't like the
+look<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_116" id="Page_116">[Pg 116]</a></span> o' the chap. He used to drink and there's no sayin'&mdash;&mdash;."</p>
+
+<p>He stopped short on perceiving Frank who was leaning against the
+wall for support; his face of an ashen hue.</p>
+
+<p>Jacques eyed him anxiously. "One'd say you'd be ill," he remarked.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't feel exactly well," said Frank.</p>
+
+<p>"Shall I see you home?"</p>
+
+<p>"No, thank you, I can easily walk there."</p>
+
+<p>"I think I'd better come with you; I know my missus'l be waitin' for
+me, but I'll come if you think I must."</p>
+
+<p>"No, thank you," again responded Frank; "there are a great many
+people about&mdash;&mdash;. There! I feel slightly better."</p>
+
+<p>"As you like," said Jacques, who by-the-by was not in the least
+inclined to accompany the young man.</p>
+
+<p>"I'll go alone," said Frank; "Good-night."</p>
+
+<p>"Good-night, Sir, I hope you'll be better soon," said Jacques, as
+each one betook himself towards his home.</p>
+
+<p>Frank was completely weighed down with this piece of unexpected and
+unwelcome news. He did not go to the carpenter's residence; he
+forgot all about it. He went straight home. How he arrived there,
+which road he took, which door he entered by, he did not know; but
+he found himself in his bedroom, seated on a chair and gazing into
+space in blank despair.</p>
+
+<p>This was the end of everything.</p>
+
+<p>He pictured to himself her lover. He did not know him, but he
+succeeded in forming in his mind one of the biggest monsters that
+ever inhabited the globe in the shape of man.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_117" id="Page_117">[Pg 117]</a></span></p>
+<p>And Ad&egrave;le; he knew she must have been forced into it by her father.
+"How she must groan under this yoke. To have to listen to that
+vicious being with the prospect of one day being his wife." Why had
+it come to this, why was the world so formed. Ah! the wicked world
+we live in, the abominable, corrupted world. When would the
+millennium come. When would all this unhappiness be swept away from
+the earth's surface.</p>
+
+<p>Alas! he would die before that time; so would thousands and millions
+of others.</p>
+
+<p>What had the world done that it must thus be continually sacrificed.
+What had he done. Others were happy; surely no one had ever met such
+a deception before. People had to suffer sometimes, but not such
+intense, heart-rending suffering as he now endured.</p>
+
+<p>He was full of despair. Before him, there was nothing but darkness.
+The more he thought over his misfortunes, the more hopeless life
+seemed to be.</p>
+
+<p>The candle was now nearly burnt out, but he heeded it not. He waved
+his hand near his face as if to scatter his thoughts. "Why did I
+rescue him when he was drowning. (He was thinking of Mr. Rougeant.)
+I risked being pulled into the water, I might have been drowned; and
+this is the reward." Ah! how humanity must suffer. If there was no
+joy, no real happiness on this earth, why live, why continue to
+endure all this. Schopenhauer was quite right when he said life was
+not worth living. Henceforth, he would be a pessimist. Three cheers
+for pessimism!</p>
+
+<p>Ah! the wicked world we live in.</p>
+
+<p>The candle had now burnt itself out but the young man remained
+seated, his hands thrust in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_118" id="Page_118">[Pg 118]</a></span> his pockets, his eyes gazing at the
+floor, and his heart in "kingdom come."</p>
+
+<p>When the clock struck twelve, he awoke. He had fallen asleep and was
+a little more composed than before. He undressed and went to bed.</p>
+
+<p>He awoke early in the morning. He was crying. What was the matter
+with him. It dawned upon him: he was going to have a fit of
+melancholy.</p>
+
+<p>He felt it, but he was powerless to prevent its intrusion. He was
+like the man who stands between the rails, and suddenly sees a train
+advancing at full speed towards him and remains with his eyes
+riveted on the instrument of his destruction, seemingly powerless to
+move, till the engine crushes him in its onward course.</p>
+
+<p>When Frank descended to breakfast, old Pierre and his spouse noticed
+his wan look. "I think master's going mad," said the man to his
+wife, when Frank was out of the room. "I don't know what ails him,
+but he seems very pale and strange."</p>
+
+<p>The young man wandered aimlessly. Nothing interested him, not even
+his books, these companions which he had cherished so much. He tried
+to find pleasure in them. "If I had something to do, something to
+occupy my thoughts," he said to himself, "I would be much better.
+Work is the balm which heals my wounds, it sets me on my feet again.
+I will work, I will study."</p>
+
+<p>He soon found out that work in itself could not heal his wounds.
+Then he grew still more despondent. What was the use of working if
+work did not bring a reward. It was all very well to toil, but to
+work like a slave, without the prospect of utilizing one's power
+after having continually striven to acquire it, was discouraging.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_119" id="Page_119">[Pg 119]</a></span></p>
+<p>He therefore put his books aside and his melancholy grew deeper and
+deeper.</p>
+
+<p>One day he was seized with anxiousness for his soul's future. He had
+not done what he ought to have done. He greatly frightened Mrs.
+Merlin, when he entered the house and exclaimed: "I'm lost; I'm
+lost."</p>
+
+<p>"Don't say that, Mr. Mathers," she said. "You have always been a
+good man."</p>
+
+<p>"Good!" he exclaimed, his eyes dilated, the muscles of his face
+working convulsively; "good, yes, for my sake, because I hoped in my
+selfishness to reap ten times the outlay. Don't you see," he
+continued, "that I have only worked for my own selfish interest. I
+have made sacrifices, because I hoped to reap a rich reward. And
+now, I am well punished; I deserve all this, I certainly do. I have
+done nothing for others. I have not been altruistic."</p>
+
+<p>The woman stared at him. She knew almost as much about altruism as a
+dog does about the celestial sciences. After a few moments of
+silence she spoke: "You have been very good to us, you rescued a man
+from drowning once at great risk, you&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Ha, ha!" he laughed, "fine talk, to come and speak like that to me.
+I am going to die, and do you hear;" he added in an undertone,
+catching hold of Mrs. Merlin's arm and terrifying her; "I am afraid,
+oh, so afraid."</p>
+
+<p>The old woman began to cry. "You must not talk like that," she said,
+"you really must not. Why don't you pray?"</p>
+
+<p>"Pray! what is the use; no, not now. I am being punished for my
+sins. I must atone, I must atone."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_120" id="Page_120">[Pg 120]</a></span></p>
+<p>He continued in this sad state for a few days, weighed down with
+this strange malady, which, alas, often preys upon our finest
+intellects.</p>
+
+<p>Then, a reaction set in, and he began to improve gradually.</p>
+
+<p>He felt quite well at times, then re-assumed his moody ways; rays of
+sunshine sometimes darted from behind the clouds. "I wish the sun
+would disperse the clouds," he sighed.</p>
+
+<p>One evening, when his head was tolerably clear, he was seized with a
+desire to visit his parents' grave.</p>
+
+<p>Without consulting anyone, he immediately proceeded towards the
+Foulon. When he came to the iron gate, it was closed. He was
+bitterly disappointed. By climbing over it, he would risk being
+empaled on the iron spikes, or otherwise injured.</p>
+
+<p>Presently he thought of the wooden wicket situated a little lower
+down. He proceeded thither and climbed over it without difficulty. A
+stream confronted him. He crossed it on a plank thrown across the
+rill. It was very dark, but he did not think of it. He was alone in
+this graveyard, but he experienced no fear. He felt happier than he
+had done for a long time. "Had he not adopted the pessimistic view
+of life."</p>
+
+<p>He walked straight to the grave where his father and mother lay
+buried and seated himself near it. Just then, a gentle breeze caused
+the stately trees surrounding the graveyard to waft their leafy tops
+to and fro. Nature was rocking itself to sleep.</p>
+
+<p>Even as it slumbered, it now and then heaved a sigh, sympathizing
+with the lonely man who pondered near his parents' grave.</p>
+
+<p>He soliloquized: "Around me, the dead;<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_121" id="Page_121">[Pg 121]</a></span> beneath that turf, the dead;
+above me, beyond those glimmering stars, somewhere in that infinity
+of space, in which man with his very limited understanding loses
+himself, the departed souls...."</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly, he perceived a white form advancing towards him. If hair
+stands on end, Frank's did. His heart beat at a fearful rate. What
+could this be? It certainly must be a ghost. "I have laughed at
+apparitions, but I am now going to be punished for my incredulity,"
+he said to himself.</p>
+
+<p>The ghost moved and came nearer. Frank trembled from head to foot.
+When he had recovered sufficient courage to scrutinize this form, it
+suddenly disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>The young man fixed his eyes on the place where the ghost had
+vanished, for ten minutes; then turned his gaze in another
+direction. He soon recovered his senses, and fell into a reverie.</p>
+
+<p>Again he soliloquized: "We all travel towards the grave. We all
+shall one day be like these around me. Why work, why trouble
+oneself. Why have I taken so much pains about my education? I have
+been ambitious, I have worried myself, I have been anxious to
+acquire wealth and fame. Here, the rich and the poor, the famous,
+the unfamous, and the infamous, the ignorant and the educated, are
+resting in the same ground, surrounded by the same scenery. I have
+been foolish to worry myself thus.</p>
+
+<p>"Do I not daily meet ignorant and uncivilised people who live a life
+of contentment and happiness? Not caring for the future, not
+aspiring after getting on in life, living from hand to mouth, they
+manage to show a radiant countenance.</p>
+
+<p>"Is ignorance bliss? Perhaps, in one sense; still I would not be
+without education.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_122" id="Page_122">[Pg 122]</a></span></p>
+<p>"What must I do to be happy? I will shut mine eyes to all ambition,
+I will live a quiet life. Alas! even as I pronounce these words, my
+heart belies them. I cannot annihilate the acute brain which
+tortures me. Since all my hopes of happiness seem to shun me, I will
+continue in my new religion&mdash;pessimism; and when the hour of death
+comes, I will smile."</p>
+
+<p>He thought of the hopeful days he had once known. He rose from his
+seat, cast a farewell glance on his parents' grave and proceeded
+down the gravel walk. He then thought of the ghost which he had
+seen, and felt a vague sense of fear. "I am no coward," he muttered
+as he straightened himself and tried to assume an air of
+indifference. But he felt nervous. He glanced anxiously behind him
+every other moment, and increased his pace.</p>
+
+<p>He perceived, among the trees, near the gate over which he had to
+pass&mdash;a light.</p>
+
+<p>It was as if a thunderbolt had passed through his body.</p>
+
+<p>He looked more attentively. Yes, there was a light, a strange,
+fantastic light, dancing amongst the trees. His feverish brain
+caused him to lose all power of reasoning.</p>
+
+<p>"What is this?" he said to himself. He felt his heart beating
+heavily against the walls of its prison as if trying to escape. His
+legs seemed to give way under him. A big lump stuck in his throat.</p>
+
+<p>"It is only an <i>ignis fatuus</i>," he said to himself. "No, it cannot
+be, it does not burn with a bluish light. Why this terror, why this
+fear; it must be the <i>feu bellanger</i>."</p>
+
+<p>The light changed. It was approaching.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_123" id="Page_123">[Pg 123]</a></span></p>
+<p>A sense of horripilation stole over him. A cold perspiration bathed
+him.</p>
+
+<p>The light changed again. It really receded this time, but to Frank's
+agitated mind, it was simply one of its tactics to induce him to
+come nearer.</p>
+
+<p>He suddenly bethought himself of the stream. His terror reached its
+climax. "Ah! there it was, waiting for him to pass that way, and
+then with a shout of triumph, it would plunge him in."</p>
+
+<p>He remembered old Pierre's words: "Wait till he gets caught." How he
+wished he had not mocked him so. Perhaps this <i>feu bellanger</i> was
+preparing to revenge itself.</p>
+
+<p>Again, the light approached. It came nearer to him than it had yet
+come. The supreme moment had arrived. He already felt himself being
+dipped in the stream, with no one to rescue him. Ah! the horror of
+being killed by one of the devil's angels.</p>
+
+<p>Here he remembered Pierre Merlin's advice: "Turn your coat sleeves
+inside out and put on your garment so." Without a moment's
+hesitation he divested himself of his coat. As he was turning the
+sleeves, the object of his dread disappeared. A sigh of relief
+escaped him.</p>
+
+<p>In a minute, he had bounded over the stream and gate into the road.
+He put on his coat, and was proceeding towards his home, when he
+perceived the cause of his fears. It was simply a ray of light
+coming through the windows of the guardian's house. He could see it
+now. A woman was standing on a chair with a small lamp in her hand
+seeking for something on a shelf. As she moved the lamp, the
+reflection on the trees moved also.</p>
+
+<p>He began to laugh. "The <i>feu bellanger</i>, forsooth.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_124" id="Page_124">[Pg 124]</a></span> How old Pierre
+would have smiled if he had beheld him taking off his coat. But the
+ghost, <i>that</i> was what puzzled him."</p>
+
+<p>The ghost came bounding over the wicket and passed by him.</p>
+
+<p>It was a white dog.</p>
+
+<p>This adventure had taught him a great lesson. What could he say now,
+he, the educated and civilized young man? No wonder if the people
+who had been accustomed to hear strange tales from their earliest
+infancy, believed in them.</p>
+
+<p>He went home, determined to deal leniently with Pierre in the
+future.</p>
+
+<p>"I must have been in a dreadful state of mind to have acted thus,"
+he thought. "I have done more than I ever meant to do."</p>
+
+<p>When he came home, he was quite cheerful. He did not say that he had
+seen a ghost, neither did he tell the spouses Merlin that he had
+nearly been attacked by the <i>feu bellanger</i>.</p>
+
+<p>Pierre noticed his joyous look. He gave a wink to his wife as if to
+say: "He's taken a glass or two."</p>
+
+<p>It was not so; the shock which he had received had completely
+dislodged the last trace of melancholy.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_125" id="Page_125">[Pg 125]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XVI.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">Shadow and Sunshine.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 125px;">
+<img src="images/img_w.jpg" width="125" height="86" alt="W" title="" />
+</div><p>hat was Ad&egrave;le doing? She was not engaged. It was one of Jacques'
+inventions, or rather deductions, from what he saw.</p>
+
+<p>She was being gradually drawn towards the abyss, where her soul
+would lose all that it possessed that was divine, and into which, to
+all appearances, she was finally to plunge, pushed by an unseen
+hand, drawn thither by a magic power.</p>
+
+<p>She shuddered. After all her dreams of happiness, Fate had condemned
+her to this. How often had she pictured herself, the possessor of
+true love, streams of happiness flowing into her heart. She had
+formed a high ideal of life; the present did not satisfy her. Hope
+had sustained her, and that hope, that idea of a pure, refined,
+elevated and noble life, chastened by love, was now dwindling away
+and she seemed destined to join the great multitude of ordinary
+beings.</p>
+
+<p>Still, she hesitated. She dared not trust her future happiness to a
+man for whom she barely felt friendship.</p>
+
+<p>One day, her father, being in a better mood than was his wont, told
+her that she ought to make up her mind about whom she wanted to
+marry.</p>
+
+<p>"It is not my intention to marry young," she said; "I want you to
+leave me quiet for a whole year."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_126" id="Page_126">[Pg 126]</a></span></p>
+<p>"Nonsense;" replied her father, "but if you promise me that in a
+year you will be Tom Soher's betrothed, I shall be satisfied."</p>
+
+<p>"I cannot promise you that," she replied; "but I shall tell you what
+I intend to do; perhaps I shall never marry."</p>
+
+<p>"Tom Soher is a sensible man," said her father, satisfying himself
+with her answer. "When he was younger, he did drink a little too
+much perhaps, but he is altogether reformed now. We must not blame
+people who try to lead a new life. I know he can still drink a few
+glasses of cider, but what do you want? Was not cider made to be
+drunk? For my part, I prefer a man like him to half-a-dozen of those
+white-faced teetotalers. They look as if they had just been dug
+up&mdash;like a fresh parsnip."</p>
+
+<p>"I think Tom Soher would do much better to abstain from alcohol
+altogether, especially as he has been one of its slaves," remarked
+Ad&egrave;le.</p>
+
+<p>Pretending not to hear her, or thinking this remark unworthy of
+notice, the farmer went on with unusual fervour: "Marry him, Ad&egrave;le;
+save our family and his from ruin and disgrace, and make your old
+dad happy. I will teach him to work and to be thrifty; we shall get
+along splendidly."</p>
+
+<p>There was some more talk, and the father went about his work.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le had now a year's liberty before her. She determined to make
+use of it. Recently, upon reflection, she had begun to entertain
+doubts as to her suspicions about Frank. "He might have been
+visiting some dear relative's grave;" she said to herself. She again
+began to hope, and her spirits rose.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_127" id="Page_127">[Pg 127]</a></span></p>
+<p>Three months of the year's truce had elapsed; as yet, she had learnt
+nothing. She looked with terror at the abyss opened before her. She
+shuddered at the thought that there were only nine months left. How
+rapidly time seemed to be gliding.</p>
+
+<p>About this time, Frank Mathers began to experience a dull sensation
+in the region of the heart. He did not attach any importance to it
+at first, but as time wore on, the fluttering increased. He grew
+anxious. For about a week, his health remained the same, when one
+day, after dinner, he was quite alarmed to feel his heart thumping
+vigorously against his chest. "What is this coming to?" he said to
+himself.</p>
+
+<p>The heart resumed its normal state. Frank tried to satisfy himself
+that it was only a partial indisposition. A week passed. The disease
+had increased rapidly. He was very anxious now. Sometimes, he would
+stop his work and listen. He felt his heart distinctly beating
+against the walls of his chest. He placed his hand over the region
+of the heart. How this organ thumped and heaved. His nervousness was
+intense. He quickly unbuttoned his garments and looked at his chest.
+His heart seemed to be trying to burst through its prison walls.</p>
+
+<p>He gazed on it for a time, then buttoned his clothes and walked to
+and fro trying to pacify the agitated organ. In the midst of his
+walk, he stopped; mechanically, his hand was placed over his heart,
+and he listened, anxious, agitated, and holding his breath.</p>
+
+<p>That same evening, when he was falling asleep, he suddenly jumped up
+in bed. His heart had<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_128" id="Page_128">[Pg 128]</a></span> given a heavy abnormal beat, and was now
+quietly working, as if ignorant and innocent of everything.</p>
+
+<p>After a while, he fell asleep. Next day, he was worse than ever.</p>
+
+<p>"Am I going to die?" he said to himself. "Life is sweet, it is hard
+to die so young, when before me lies the future which I would fain
+penetrate. I should like to accomplish some task before I depart
+from this world."</p>
+
+<p>Frank! where art thou come to? Didst not thou say, only a few weeks
+back: "I will smile when the hour of death comes," and now thou art
+craving for life, and thou art shrinking from death.</p>
+
+<p>Frank Mathers thought that his complaint was <i>Angina Pectoris</i>. He
+consulted a book on Pathology. He learnt that even with this
+terrible disease a person might, by careful living, attain a certain
+age.</p>
+
+<p>This did not satisfy him. He consulted a doctor. When he was seated
+in the medical man's waiting-room, it seemed to him that the doctor
+was going to pronounce his doom. He fancied he could already hear
+him: "You may, by taking care of yourself, live another year or
+two."</p>
+
+<p>The door of the room in which he was, opened. His heart gave a great
+leap. "I wish you to auscultate me," he said, addressing the doctor
+who entered the room.</p>
+
+<p>Dr. Buisson looked at him with a scrutinizing glance as he replied:
+"Very well, sir; step in the next room."</p>
+
+<p>Frank followed the doctor into the room adjoining.</p>
+
+<p>The medical man proceeded to auscultate his patient. After he had
+completed his examination, Frank looked at him inquiringly. "<i>Angina
+Pectoris</i>?" he questioned anxiously.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_129" id="Page_129">[Pg 129]</a></span></p>
+<p>"No."</p>
+
+<p>A sigh of relief escaped him.</p>
+
+<p>Quoth Dr. Buisson: "You have already sighed a great deal too much.
+You have overtaxed your strength. You must not live on passion, but
+you ought to take life more easily, young man. Rest and
+cheerfulness, with a few bottles of physic, will put you on your
+legs again. Stimulants would benefit you."</p>
+
+<p>"I do not wish to drink any alcohol," interrupted Frank.</p>
+
+<p>"Who talks about alcohol? Do without stimulants. You do not need
+them."</p>
+
+<p>"I thought&mdash;&mdash;" began Frank.</p>
+
+<p>The grave voice of the doctor interrupted him. "Young man, you must
+be careful about your diet; eat slowly&mdash;masticate well. Pass into
+the dispensing room."</p>
+
+<p>"What an odd man," thought Frank, as he wended towards his home.</p>
+
+<p>He passed the next few weeks resting nearly all the time, taking
+very little exercise and a great deal of physic. He gradually grew
+better, his nervousness ceased, his heart resumed its normal
+condition, it palpitated no more.</p>
+
+<p>He tried to be cheerful, but he still had great faith in pessimism.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_130" id="Page_130">[Pg 130]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XVII.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">The Effects of a Sermon.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 83px;">
+<img src="images/img_o.jpg" width="83" height="89" alt="O" title="" />
+</div><p>ne Sunday, contrary to his habit, Frank betook himself to one of
+the country churches. He had several reasons for doing so. He wanted
+to hear a French sermon; he wanted to be quiet, away from the world,
+etcetera.</p>
+
+<p>As he went on his way, he dropped into a none too pleasant reverie.</p>
+
+<p>"What a queer animal man is," he thought; "what a study. It is true
+that 'the proper study of mankind is man.'</p>
+
+<p>"But, the more one meditates on humanity, the more one becomes
+disgusted with its artificialness and bad taste. People flock after
+trifles, they are devoid of refinement, a conjuror will have an
+immense number of admirers, a third-rate music-hall will fill, even
+to suffocation, while the man of genius, unless he be rich, often
+remains unnoticed. He who produces most exquisite poetry, soaring
+high above his fellow countrymen, carrying them out of life's dusty
+ways into a pure atmosphere, dies of starvation in a garret."</p>
+
+<p>He arrived at the church of St. &mdash;&mdash;. He entered the sanctuary and
+seated himself in a place from which he would be able to see the
+minister.</p>
+
+<p>"This is a very comfortable position," he said to himself.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_131" id="Page_131">[Pg 131]</a></span></p>
+<p>He began to examine the people as they took their seats. Very
+different from one another were those who entered. The men took
+their seats with a deal of looking round and lifting of coat-tails.
+They finally settled down, drawing a deep breath as they did so, as
+if the act of sitting was a prodigious effort.</p>
+
+<p>Frank was, with his accustomed curiosity, examining an old woman who
+trudged in, wrapped up in an enormous shawl, when a lady touched him
+lightly on the shoulder. He turned round.</p>
+
+<p>"Sir, this is my pew," she said, "you may go in any of those,"
+pointing to the left.</p>
+
+<p>"I beg your pardon," said Frank, and he hastily left his seat and
+went in one of the pews which the lady had pointed out to him. Then
+he remembered that in his haste, he had forgotten to take his hat
+with him. He proceeded to fetch it. The lady who was occupying the
+pew with her husband and daughter handed him his hat, smiling as she
+did so.</p>
+
+<p>"She might have allowed me to remain where I was," thought the young
+man. He went on thinking: "Perhaps, they have some superstition
+about worshipping in their own pew."</p>
+
+<p>He fancied everyone of the countryfolks was superstitious. He
+wondered if Ad&egrave;le believed in these things. A sudden pang passed
+through him, as he thought of her. His brow clouded as he
+recollected Jacques' words: "The young Miss's engaged to a young
+fellow."</p>
+
+<p>The minister entered the church. No one rose. No formalities of any
+kind. He took his place quietly. The service began.</p>
+
+<p>When the sermon came, instead of the old minister who had read the
+prayers, Frank was<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_132" id="Page_132">[Pg 132]</a></span> astonished to see a young man, who, directly he
+stepped into the pulpit, impressed him most favourably. He had a
+very intelligent face and a cheerful countenance.</p>
+
+<p>He took for his text the words of St. Paul: "Rejoice evermore."</p>
+
+<p>He began: "There is a class of people, the followers of
+Schopenhauer, who declare that life is not worth living.</p>
+
+<p>"They say this world is almost the worst possible place we could
+live in, and that, if it were a shade worse, it would be impossible
+to live in it, and people would willingly end their existence. This
+doctrine is called 'pessimism.'"</p>
+
+<p>Frank felt very interested. Every word which the preacher said,
+seemed directly addressed to him.</p>
+
+<p>The young minister continued: "There is another class of pessimists
+who have never thought of following this Schopenhauer, but who,
+nevertheless, find life a burden and this world almost an inferno."</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p>"This class of people (the pessimists) pull long faces and go about
+their work sighing. They see everything turned upside down but it is
+they who are cross. 'Life is not worth living,' they say, 'this
+world is a miserable dwelling place;' but it is they who cause their
+lives to be not worth living, who make themselves miserable."</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p>"Some of them who profess to be good, do a great deal of harm to
+Christianity; more than is perhaps generally imagined. People
+examine them and nod their heads. 'Christianity is a failure,' they
+say."</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_133" id="Page_133">[Pg 133]</a></span></p>
+<p>"Help to put down Schopenhauer's wretched doctrines. Look at the
+bright side of life."</p>
+
+<p>"You will meet with difficulties, but do not despond; to every
+cloud, there is a silver lining."</p>
+
+<p>He declared he was an optimist. He invited his hearers, one and all
+to adopt the optimistic view of life, and help to bring the kingdom
+of God upon earth. He pointed out the causes which should help to
+make us cheerful, beautiful nature, healthy mental and physical
+occupations and distractions....</p>
+
+<p>He told them to remember that time would be followed by eternity; to
+hopefully prepare for the life to come, and to help others to do the
+same.</p>
+
+<p>Once out of the church, Frank felt very much puzzled. Both the
+discourse and the manner in which it had been delivered, had
+impressed him. What would he do? It certainly was a matter for
+consideration. Was there a silver lining to the cloud that was
+floating around him? Would he hope? Would he, in spite of
+everything, try and be cheerful?</p>
+
+<p>When he came home, he had formed a decision. He would try. He would
+answer the invitation of this young clergyman, who seemed so full of
+hope and joy.</p>
+
+<p>The preacher had said: If you feel&mdash;as you will feel&mdash;that you are
+unable to fight unaided; pray. Frank prayed. It was not a request in
+which the lips took a very active part, but he poured forth his
+whole soul through his heart, to Him who could and would help those
+who were unable to help themselves.</p>
+
+<p>When he had finished, he felt quite equipped for the fight. For he
+would have to battle.</p>
+
+<p>"I must try to be cheerful, I must set aside all<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_134" id="Page_134">[Pg 134]</a></span> my gloomy
+thoughts," he said to himself. "I must endeavour to change my whole
+former view of the world. I feel strong. Welcome optimism. Three
+cheers for optimism."</p>
+
+<p>Young man, thou art a new convert, and, like every new convert, thou
+art enthusiastic.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_135" id="Page_135">[Pg 135]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XVIII.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">Success after Success.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/img_h.jpg" width="98" height="85" alt="H" title="" />
+</div><p>aving adopted the optimistic view of life, Frank found that it was
+not easy to eradicate his dismal turn of mind.</p>
+
+<p>He fought bravely. It was not his first fight. He had been, when
+younger, passionate and a trifle ill-tempered, but he had, while
+still in his teens, successfully overcome these defects.</p>
+
+<p>He often thought of Ad&egrave;le. He dared not go near "Les Marches." He
+knew full well that the sight of the house in which he had first
+known love, would arouse in him sentiments of jealousy and grief; so
+he satisfied himself with continuing to work at the reformation of
+his character. Each victory which he achieved made him feel stronger
+and wiser, and every day added to his success.</p>
+
+<p>Let us return to Ad&egrave;le Rougeant. Six out of the twelve months' truce
+had now elapsed.</p>
+
+<p>Tom's visits at Les Marches were few and far between.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le had chanced to overhear a part of the conversation which took
+place between her father and cousin, after she had asked the former
+for a year's peaceful solitude.</p>
+
+<p>Quoth Mr. Rougeant: "You will have to wait another year."</p>
+
+<p>"Indeed!" said his nephew.</p>
+
+<p>"Ad&egrave;le says she wishes to think the matter over."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_136" id="Page_136">[Pg 136]</a></span></p>
+<p>"Oh!" said Tom, biting his nails; with which operation he was very
+familiar&mdash;"a year will soon pass away."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," answered the uncle.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le's business took her to another room, and she had too much
+good-breeding to stay and listen. Eavesdropping was not in her line.
+She laughed all to herself. Liberty was so sweet.</p>
+
+<p>When she went out, she could listen with more than ordinary delight
+to the songs of the birds. Some were singing with everchanging
+variety, others were somewhat more laboriously endeavouring to
+imitate the whistle of the farmer-boys.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le Rougeant sympathized with birds; she felt attracted towards
+them, for she too was a bird. She had been, for a time, caged; but
+now she was perfectly free, for six more months at least. She
+trusted to be out of the difficulty by then. Why; she did not know;
+something within her seemed to assure her that it would be so.</p>
+
+<p>When, a week afterwards, Tom Soher was taken ill, she thought of
+that strange certainty which she had had. Was he going to die?
+Something within her said: "If he could, I then should be saved."
+Ad&egrave;le grew angry with herself for wishing such an abominable thing.
+She dispersed the wicked thought which had formed into a wish, with
+all the energy which she was capable of displaying.</p>
+
+<p>To think that she had had such a desire. She was ashamed of herself.</p>
+
+<p>Next day, when she heard that Tom's condition was worse than ever,
+involuntarily her heart leapt with joy. How sinful is the heart of
+man!</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le's better nature rose against these feelings. Finally she
+overcame them. She tried to pity her<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_137" id="Page_137">[Pg 137]</a></span> cousin and partly succeeded in
+doing so. When she fancied herself freed from him, she felt
+relieved; when she pictured herself dying in his place, she
+immediately pitied him. And she put this question to herself: "Is
+sympathy a virtue?" No. Most often, when people sympathize with
+others they say: "Just imagine if we were in their place; they
+really think for themselves."</p>
+
+<p>This was now her view of the matter. Perhaps it was not quite
+correct, but there was a great deal of truth in it.</p>
+
+<p>Tom Soher was not to die this time. The crisis passed. He rallied
+almost as rapidly as he had lost strength.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant visited him daily. His daughter listened to the news of
+Tom's recovery, with attention. The farmer was pleased. "She takes
+more interest in him than she cares to show;" he said to himself.</p>
+
+<p>One fine afternoon, in summer, Ad&egrave;le, whose spirits were as bright
+as the weather, was sitting in a chair&mdash;thinking. Her thoughts flew
+hither and thither. They were full of bright hope. She sat where she
+was for nearly one hour, her head full of vague thoughts,
+aspirations after perfect womanhood.</p>
+
+<p>As her thoughts rambled, she recalled to mind a flower and fruit
+show that was to take place that afternoon in the Vegetable Markets.</p>
+
+<p>"I think I shall go," she said to herself.</p>
+
+<p>She spoke to her father about it. He answered her not unkindly: "I
+believe you would travel twenty miles to see a flower; if you wish
+to go, you may."</p>
+
+<p>She dressed herself in a dainty costume, set out, and arrived in St.
+Peter-Port just as the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_138" id="Page_138">[Pg 138]</a></span> clock of the Town Church struck five. Going
+to the market, she paid the entrance fee, and proceeded leisurely to
+examine the flowers.</p>
+
+<p>While she was doing so, Frank Mathers entered the exhibition,
+utterly unconscious of her being there. He was walking about in the
+crowd, which, as evening approached, was getting thicker and
+thicker, when he perceived Ad&egrave;le intently bent upon examining the
+cut flowers.</p>
+
+<p>He was quite upset. When he had recovered sufficiently to think;
+"She is alone, why is not her lover with her," he mused. He could
+not unravel this mystery.</p>
+
+<p>Hope sprang within him; he shook it off. "He will be back
+presently," he said to himself; "she is waiting for him while
+pretending to examine the flowers."</p>
+
+<p>He gazed upon her with admiration, unheeding the throng that
+continually jostled him.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly, he was startled by a burst of laughter behind him. He
+turned round to ascertain its cause.</p>
+
+<p>Two burly fellows who were watching him, were having a merry time of
+it at his expense.</p>
+
+<p>He moved from his place and walked away, passing quite close to
+Ad&egrave;le, who did not notice him. He stopped a few paces from her,
+watching her narrowly all the time.</p>
+
+<p>She looked up, saw him, recognised him, and nodded. He raised his
+hat; then, a strange delicacy of feeling overcoming him, he walked
+away.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le saw him go and felt stung. Why had he not spoken to her? he
+might have done so. She had been on the point of advancing towards
+him, and he seemed to have deliberately avoided her.</p>
+
+<p>"I was not mistaken when I fancied he loved<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_139" id="Page_139">[Pg 139]</a></span> another one," she said
+to herself. In spite of that, she walked in a contrary direction to
+him, hoping to meet him, a thing which she could not fail to do if
+they both kept advancing in contrary directions. She did not stop to
+think that he would perhaps pass haughtily by her. Love is blind.</p>
+
+<p>Like the two gentlemen who circumnavigated the globe, the two young
+people met. Frank inquired after Mr. Rougeant's health, and made a
+few remarks about the exhibition. He always expected to see her
+intended appear on the scene. Finally, he ventured to ask: "Are you
+quite alone?" "Yes, quite," she answered.</p>
+
+<p>They walked together for fully one hour, examining the flowers and
+fruit. "Is not this a beautiful specimen of the Dahlia?" Ad&egrave;le
+asked, pointing to a flower of that name.</p>
+
+<p>"I am afraid I do not possess the necessary qualifications to form
+an opinion," he said; "I have not studied botany."</p>
+
+<p>"I think you would find the study very captivating," she said; "our
+little island contains quite a number of beautiful specimens. There
+are a great many hard names to learn, but I feel certain that you
+would soon overcome that difficulty."</p>
+
+<p>"You have a rather high opinion of my intellectual powers," he said;
+"I feel quite flattered. For the present, I will abide by your
+decisions. The flowers that you will praise, I shall call beautiful;
+those that you will condemn, I shall call ugly."</p>
+
+<p>"I shall not condemn any," said she, "all flowers are beautiful to
+my eyes, only some are more perfect than others."</p>
+
+<p>"You love flowers?" he questioned.</p>
+
+<p>"Immensely, they are almost my constant companions;<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_140" id="Page_140">[Pg 140]</a></span> I should like
+to possess the whole of this collection," said Ad&egrave;le.</p>
+
+<p>"All to yourself. Is it not a trifle selfish?" he said, looking at
+her with a pair of laughing blue eyes.</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps it is. Look at this beautiful collection of ferns." She
+began to name them. "This one on the left is <i>Adiantum Capillus
+Veneris</i>, or <i>Maiden Hair</i>, a rare European species; this one is
+<i>Adiantum Pedantum</i>, of American origin, and that one behind there,
+which is partly hidden, is <i>Adiantum Cuneatum</i>."</p>
+
+<p>"I will not learn botany," he said; "you have quite frightened me
+with all those Latin names; when I wish to know the name of some
+plant, I shall come and ask you."</p>
+
+<p>"I shall be delighted if I can be of any service to you," she said
+ingenuously. Frank thought these words were significant, but they
+were not.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le was anxious to get home early. Frank saw "Les Marches" that
+evening with hopeful eyes.</p>
+
+<p>Afterwards, they often met. One day, Tom Soher, who was now
+completely cured, came face to face with his cousin Ad&egrave;le, who was
+accompanied by Frank. He stopped short, looked hard at his cousin,
+then resumed his walk.</p>
+
+<p>When Tom was a little way off, Frank said to Ad&egrave;le: "What a queer
+fellow, one would think he was insane." "He is a cousin of mine,"
+she said.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! doubtless he was surprised at seeing you in such company."</p>
+
+<p>"Why?" she questioned.</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps he is afraid of losing caste," said Frank, anxious to know
+the cause of Tom's sullen countenance.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_141" id="Page_141">[Pg 141]</a></span></p>
+<p>Ad&egrave;le laughed; "Losing caste!" she said, "the idea is preposterous."</p>
+
+<p>"Miss Rougeant," said Frank, suddenly becoming grave, "do you want
+to oblige me?"</p>
+
+<p>She looked up. "Of course I do," she replied.</p>
+
+<p>"And will you answer my question?" he continued.</p>
+
+<p>She looked down. "What can he mean?" she said inly. The twilight
+partly hid the deep blush that suffused her cheek.</p>
+
+<p>He noticed her embarrassment and hastily spoke: "I was going to say
+this. Some time ago, I heard that you were engaged to a young man
+named Tom Soher. Would you be kind enough to explain me the riddle.
+But, you need not do so, if you do not feel inclined to."</p>
+
+<p>Her manner suddenly changed. She had imagined that he had something
+of far greater importance to ask her. She replied: "I have never
+been engaged to him; you must have heard false news."</p>
+
+<p>"Probably," he said, "it was Old Jacques who told me so."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah, I see," said she, "he saw my cousin coming home to visit us
+rather often, and he invented that little piece of news. It was
+he&mdash;Tom Soher&mdash;whom we met just now, and who scrutinized us so."
+Then Ad&egrave;le told him all about her father's intentions. She tried to
+look bright, but Frank saw what she endeavoured to conceal: a
+painful contraction of the forehead at times. When she had finished,
+she asked smilingly: "What do you think of my father's mode of
+procedure?"</p>
+
+<p>Frank looked at her anxiously. "I hope it will never be," he said.</p>
+
+<p>"Indeed!"</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_142" id="Page_142">[Pg 142]</a></span></p>
+<p>"Because," he continued, "I should be extremely grieved to see you
+forced into an union without love."</p>
+
+<p>"How do you know that it would be such an one?" she asked.</p>
+
+<p>"Because," responded he, "when you told me about your father's
+plans, I saw your face. If there is any truth in physiognomy, you
+recoil with horror at the prospect of one day marrying Tom Soher."</p>
+
+<p>She changed the subject of the conversation and nothing more was
+said about it that evening.</p>
+
+<p>Going home; Frank thought of the difficulties that were rising
+before him. He soliloquized: "It is always the same old story; a
+greedy, avaricious, grasping father, sacrificing his daughter's
+happiness for the sake of his pride. But it must not be. I can and
+will save her from such a terrible fate."</p>
+
+<p>He was full of indignant wrath against her father. "To think that
+she shudders at the thought of it," he muttered.</p>
+
+<p>Meanwhile, Tom Soher was pondering heavily. He was in a terrible
+passion. When he entered his father's house, he wore an angry look.
+He walked straight upstairs without even partaking of supper. His
+mother and sister who were downstairs laughed. The young man was not
+much of a favourite at home.</p>
+
+<p>Tom sat for a long time on his bed, his face covered with
+perspiration, his limbs agitated. He was not yet very strong after
+his illness, and the shock which he had received had completely
+upset him.</p>
+
+<p>He meditated a plan of revenge. A dozen ideas struck him, but none
+seemed good enough. Finally, he thought of one, which, if carried
+out, would completely crush his detestable rival.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_143" id="Page_143">[Pg 143]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XIX.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">Tom's Interview with Mrs. Vidoux.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 73px;">
+<img src="images/img_f.jpg" width="73" height="87" alt="F" title="" />
+</div><p>ive minutes' walk from the "Prenoms," there might once be seen a
+small, badly built, one-storeyed cottage, the walls of which were
+built of stone, with clay serving instead of mortar. In the walls,
+were three small windows, opening like French windows. They were of
+different sizes, contained numerous small rectangular panes of
+glass, and were situated irregularly; two in front of, and one
+behind the house.</p>
+
+<p>Inside, the walls were white-washed, the floor was of clay, the
+ceiling was black with smoke. One of the two rooms served as a
+bedroom, while the other one was badly fitted up to resemble a
+kitchen.</p>
+
+<p>A wretchedly thatched roof, surmounted by a single stone chimney,
+covered the whole.</p>
+
+<p>Situated behind this hovel, was a small piece of land called a
+garden. In it grew cabbages, potatoes, fruits and weeds; the latter
+predominating.</p>
+
+<p>In this cottage, there lived an old woman, whose age none seemed to
+know. The fact that she never attended divine service, coupled with
+the tales of her being in the habit of attending the witches'
+sabbath, was enough to make her pass amongst her superstitious
+neighbours as a being possessed of supernatural powers.</p>
+
+<p>She was aware of this, and consequently avoided, as far as it was
+practicable, having anything to do with her species.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_144" id="Page_144">[Pg 144]</a></span></p>
+<p>At first she had felt very angry at her countrymen's insinuations,
+and almost wished she did possess supernatural powers; but gradually
+she had cooled down, and now she was indifferent.</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Vidoux&mdash;such was the appellation of this woman&mdash;was not
+attractive. Her face was of a colour much resembling Vandyke Brown.
+It was a woman's face, yet it resembled a man's, not excepting the
+whiskers, which seemed to grow vigourously, as it fertilized by the
+dirt which her uncleanly habits allowed to accumulate on her face.</p>
+
+<p>She had but two companions; they were cats. She very often ate
+limpets (<i>Patella Vulgata</i>). When she descended to the beach to
+collect the shell fish she took exactly one hundred.</p>
+
+<p>A proof that she could reckon up to one hundred.</p>
+
+<p>Arrived home, she cooked her limpets, gave twenty to each of her
+cats, and reserved sixty for herself.</p>
+
+<p>A proof that she had gastronomic tendencies.</p>
+
+<p>There was but one young man to whom she spoke freely.</p>
+
+<p>One evening, this man tumbled near her doorstep. He was intoxicated.
+She took him inside, laid him on her own bed, and when he had slept
+and sobered, she gave him a cup of tea and escorted him to his home.
+Ever since, they had been friends.</p>
+
+<p>This man's name was Tom Soher.</p>
+
+<p>We have seen that an idea had struck him which he intended to carry
+out. He, too, believed in Mrs. Vidoux's power of bewitching.</p>
+
+<p>So the day following his unpleasant discovery,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_145" id="Page_145">[Pg 145]</a></span> Tom Soher directed
+his steps towards the old woman's cottage.</p>
+
+<p>He knocked at the door. No one answered. "She must be in the
+garden," he said to himself. He accordingly went round the back of
+the house and espied her, laboriously occupied in trying to dig a
+few parsnips.</p>
+
+<p>"Good morning, Mrs. Vidoux," he said; then perceiving her useless
+efforts, he took the spade from her bony hands, and dug up a few of
+the esculent roots.</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you very much," said the old woman, leaning heavily on her
+walking-stick.</p>
+
+<p>"I wonder, why she, who possesses such magic powers, does not make
+those parsnips fly out of the ground without even touching them,"
+thought Tom.</p>
+
+<p>Then a conversation followed between them.</p>
+
+<p>"It's fine weather," said Tom, feeling embarrassed about the
+introduction of his subject.</p>
+
+<p>"Beautiful."</p>
+
+<p>"You have a great deal of trouble to work as you do, cultivating
+your own vegetables?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, but I cannot afford to buy some."</p>
+
+<p>"Don't you feel lonely at times?"</p>
+
+<p>"No, I am accustomed to solitude."</p>
+
+<p>"You did me a good turn once."</p>
+
+<p>"I am glad of it."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, I shall always remember it."</p>
+
+<p>"I am happy to see that you don't forget, you are the only sensible
+man in this parish."</p>
+
+<p>"That's praising me rather too much, I'm sure I don't deserve it,
+but what I think I deserve less is the nasty fix in which I now am."</p>
+
+<p>"You are in a fix?"</p>
+
+<p>"You know my cousin, Ad&egrave;le Rougeant?"</p>
+
+<p>"Miss Rougeant, let me see&mdash;oh&mdash;yes, I knew<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_146" id="Page_146">[Pg 146]</a></span> her once, but I am
+afraid I should not recognise her now, she must be a fine lady by
+this time."</p>
+
+<p>"Fine; she's simply charming."</p>
+
+<p>"I should think so; I don't doubt you at all, Mr. Soher."</p>
+
+<p>"There is a young man who is paying his attentions to her."</p>
+
+<p>"He is very fortunate."</p>
+
+<p>"That does not suit me. I intended to marry her."</p>
+
+<p>"You! her cousin."</p>
+
+<p>"Why not?"</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know, only it seemed improbable."</p>
+
+<p>"This fellow stands in my way."</p>
+
+<p>"Of course, you shall have to try and supplant him."</p>
+
+<p>"That's impossible, she's too fond of him."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, I suppose you must give her up then."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't mean to."</p>
+
+<p>"What do you intend doing?"</p>
+
+<p>"Can't you guess? Thrust him out of my way forcibly. Either he or I
+must sink."</p>
+
+<p>"You look strong enough to fight a giant."</p>
+
+<p>"I do not mean to fight him."</p>
+
+<p>"Are you afraid of him? Is he stronger than you?"</p>
+
+<p>"He looks rather too much of an athlete for me; I thought that
+perhaps you would help me."</p>
+
+<p>"I! help you."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes."</p>
+
+<p>"How?"</p>
+
+<p>Tom looked anxiously round, then said in a low tone: "I must get rid
+of him, I must."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes."</p>
+
+<p>"And you can help me a great deal."</p>
+
+<p>"I will do anything for you."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, will you settle him?"</p>
+
+<p>"What do you mean?"</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_147" id="Page_147">[Pg 147]</a></span></p>
+<p>"Make him jump, of course."</p>
+
+<p>"Make him jump!"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes; you know, bewitch him."</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Vidoux suddenly became erect, her eyes were fixed on Tom with
+an expression that made him recoil, but before he had time to get
+out of her way, she had raised her walking-stick high above her head
+with both her hands and brought it to bear with all her strength on
+Tom's head.</p>
+
+<p>The blow was by no means a slight one. Tom staggered and fell.
+Without even pretending to notice him the old woman walked towards
+her dwelling. He soon rallied, and in less time than it had probably
+ever been done before, he cleared the fence and vaulted in the road.
+He went home, swearing that he would avenge himself, not of Mrs.
+Vidoux, but of his cousin.</p>
+
+<p>Next morning, he decided to tell his uncle all that he knew. He had
+not dared to do it before for fear of offending his cousin; but now,
+he acted in a blind fury.</p>
+
+<p>He had a great deal of confidence in his uncle. He knew the enormous
+influence which he exercised over his daughter. Mr. Rougeant had
+once told him that with a single look he could make her tremble, and
+that she would as soon think of refusing him as of refusing to grow
+older.</p>
+
+<p>Tom Soher smiled when he thought of his uncle's demeanour upon
+hearing the news which he had to impart.</p>
+
+<p>How he was to incite him. He must make his wrath rise to the highest
+pitch. If he could go at "Les Marches" when his cousin was gone and
+set his uncle to watch for their return, what a scene, what a
+spectacle to laugh at; even as he thought of it now he could not
+help laughing.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_148" id="Page_148">[Pg 148]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XX.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">Tom's Visit to his Uncle.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 74px;">
+<img src="images/img_t.jpg" width="74" height="88" alt="T" title="" />
+</div><p>om Soher was now constantly on the watch to see if he might catch
+his uncle alone. He was soon satisfied on that account.</p>
+
+<p>One evening, he saw Ad&egrave;le come out of the farm-house. He hid himself
+and let her go by, then he went towards "Les Marches."</p>
+
+<p>He walked straight in, and was not surprised to see his uncle busily
+engaged cleaning carrot seed.</p>
+
+<p>Tom was in such a state of excitement and rage, that he hardly knew
+what he was saying.</p>
+
+<p>"Good evening, uncle," he said, "busy?"</p>
+
+<p>"Good evening, Tom," was the reply, with the addition: "Yes, you
+know the French proverb: 'Do not lose a single hour, since you are
+not certain of a minute.'"</p>
+
+<p>"Quite right uncle; shall I help you?"</p>
+
+<p>"No, thank you, now that you are here, we shall talk, and I'll do
+that job to-morrow."</p>
+
+<p>The farmer fetched a mug of cider and placed it on the table between
+them. Tom was delighted.</p>
+
+<p>"I am glad that you are here," quoth Mr. Rougeant. "It is not that I
+generally care for visitors, but you are always welcome. Besides,
+Ad&egrave;le is gone and we shall pass the evening agreeably."</p>
+
+<p>"That's what I thought, uncle."</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant looked, at his nephew and wondered what ailed him.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_149" id="Page_149">[Pg 149]</a></span></p>
+<p>"Did you know she was gone?" he asked, and added: "Perhaps you met
+her down the road."</p>
+
+<p>"No; is she gone?" asked Tom.</p>
+
+<p>Said the farmer inly: "Is the fellow mad?" aloud; "Yes; she is gone
+to a concert."</p>
+
+<p>"Where?" questioned the nephew.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know, I did not ask her."</p>
+
+<p>"You let her go all alone when it is dark!"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes; she's not particularly timid. She is so fond of music, poor
+girl, I did not care to refuse her, and, as she has fallen in with
+my views, or very nearly so, I must allow her a little freedom."</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps she has a companion," said Tom.</p>
+
+<p>"No; she says she prefers going alone; it will not be for long,
+however; in another month she will, I hope, be your betrothed."</p>
+
+<p>Tom felt a pang of vexation run through him. He was ready to
+explode, but succeeded in showing a good exterior and said jokingly:
+"Suppose she came accompanied by some young fellow."</p>
+
+<p>"She never would dare to do so."</p>
+
+<p>"I would not say so if I were you, uncle; it's not a good sign when
+a young girl is always out like that. Haven't you noticed that she
+very often goes out in the evening lately?"</p>
+
+<p>The old man's suspicions were beginning to be aroused. "I had not
+even thought of it," he said "but, indeed, it's as you say; she has
+been going out often lately."</p>
+
+<p>"I hope there is no one supplanting me," said his nephew.</p>
+
+<p>"You need not fear, Tom&mdash;pass me the mug."</p>
+
+<p>They both drank out of the same coarse vessel, and Tom, who was
+warming up, continued: "I have strange presentiments, uncle; when I
+went to school, I remember having read in an English<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_150" id="Page_150">[Pg 150]</a></span> book about,
+'Coming events casting their shadows before.' Now, just as I met
+Miss Rougeant this evening, I saw a cat cross the road. Now, you
+know as well as I do, that it means discord betwixt her and me."</p>
+
+<p>"This sounds very strange," said the farmer, "but I thought you told
+me you had not seen her."</p>
+
+<p>"Did I? really, I hardly knew what I was doing." And, desirous of
+finding an excuse for his singular behaviour, he added in the most
+dejected tone imaginable: "I have a rival."</p>
+
+<p>"What do you mean?" fairly howled the farmer.</p>
+
+<p>"I mean," replied Tom, in the most wretched tone he could assume; "I
+mean that my cousin loves another fellow, an Englishman, who has not
+a single penny which he can call his own, a wretched cur, a beggarly
+fortune-hunter. I fancy I can see him. He is one of those fellows
+who walk bearing all their fortunes on their backs. He was dressed
+in faultless evening dress; light kid gloves, patent leather boots,
+and a tall silk hat." (This was all false.) "If I am not mistaken,
+this fellow has not a particularly bright character."</p>
+
+<p>The farmer was looking at Tom. His lips were apart, his teeth
+closed, his eyes shone with an ominous light. He did not say a word.
+Tom continued: "Ah! your fortune will soon be gone to the dogs, all
+the money that you have honestly earned, that you have had so much
+trouble to scrape together, will disappear in the twinkling of an
+eye, and your ruined daughter will have to end her days in the
+hospital at the Castel."</p>
+
+<p>"Never, never;" shouted the farmer.</p>
+
+<p>"And I, who meant to attend to your business," said Tom; "I, who was
+going to work your farm;<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_151" id="Page_151">[Pg 151]</a></span> I, who meant to save our family from ruin
+and you from the shame that will necessarily fall partly on you as a
+member of that family; I, who am her cousin and who would have done
+anything and everything for her, I am put aside as worthless stuff."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh!" groaned the farmer; "Do you know him?" he asked.</p>
+
+<p>"I have seen him but once, I do not know where he lives."</p>
+
+<p>"Do you think he will accompany her this evening?"</p>
+
+<p>"Certainly, that's why she has gone out."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! the dog&mdash;pass me the mug."</p>
+
+<p>Tom gave him the mug. The farmer took a long pull and handed it to
+his nephew who drank so well that he completely emptied it, and
+afterwards said: "We ought to lie in wait for their arrival and
+attack the ninny."</p>
+
+<p>"That's what I'll do, and&mdash;" clenching his fists&mdash;"he'll be lucky if
+he escapes."</p>
+
+<p>"You ought to give him a lesson which he won't forget soon."</p>
+
+<p>"I ought to, still, when one comes to think of it, he might have me
+flung in prison for assault."</p>
+
+<p>"You wait till he is alone, then you can settle him."</p>
+
+<p>"If I were sentenced to a term of imprisonment, my reputation would
+be ruined. However, I'm master of my daughter, I will give this
+young fellow a good shaking, and, as for her; I shall see."</p>
+
+<p>"I shall be hiding behind the hedge; if you require any help, I will
+give it you."</p>
+
+<p>"I think I can frighten him alone&mdash;my daughter marry one of those
+white-faced spendthrifts, why<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_152" id="Page_152">[Pg 152]</a></span> my throat dries up at the thought of
+it;&mdash;pass me the mug."</p>
+
+<p>Tom did as he was requested, feeling very uneasy. The farmer was
+about to drink, but he exclaimed: "Why, its empty."</p>
+
+<p>"Indeed," said Tom, "let me see; so it is, I was in such a state of
+mind that I did not know I had drunk all."</p>
+
+<p>"Never mind," said his uncle, "I will fetch some more." And he
+proceeded towards the cellar.</p>
+
+<p>Tom chuckled all to himself, "What a splendid piece of fun; I knew
+him, he's the man to act."</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant came back with the mug brimming. The conversation
+continued to flow, so did the cider. The men were getting excited.</p>
+
+<p>"It's time for us to go out and choose a hiding-place," said Tom.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, let us go," said his uncle.</p>
+
+<p>They went out. The farmer hid himself behind a hedge, Tom went
+opposite him on the other side of the road also taking advantage of
+the cover which a hedge afforded him. They waited. Not a breath of
+wind disturbed the grass or brambles, not a word was exchanged
+between the men on the watch. The air was stiff, but they felt it
+not. The cider which they had drunk kept them warm.</p>
+
+<p>Not one of them knew exactly how they were to operate. Tom counted
+on his uncle and Mr. Rougeant thought he would act according to
+circumstances.</p>
+
+<p>"They will never come," said Tom to himself. He stretched himself at
+full length on the grass. In less than five minutes he was sleeping
+soundly.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_153" id="Page_153">[Pg 153]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XXI.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">The Encounter.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 74px;">
+<img src="images/img_t.jpg" width="74" height="88" alt="T" title="" />
+</div><p>he two young people were returning from the concert that had been
+given in St. Julian's Hall. They were walking. It was a beautiful
+evening. Not a breath of wind, not a cloud in the sky. Both nature
+and humanity slumbered. A deep silence prevailed along the lane in
+which the young couple were walking.</p>
+
+<p>'Twas a charming spot, these lanes, bordered on either side by high
+hedges of stone and earth, on which grew furze and grass, while here
+and there, a solitary primrose&mdash;it was the month of March,&mdash;was
+bending its slender stalk, loaded as it was with dew.</p>
+
+<p>Conversation is an art. So is silence. The latter is even less known
+than the former.</p>
+
+<p>Both the young people were now silent as they proceeded towards "Les
+Marches," but it was a silence which spoke. They knew each other's
+thoughts, one heart spoke to the other; they were both impressed
+with the supreme beauty of nature and filled with love, for that
+same evening they had plighted their troth.</p>
+
+<p>It was Frank who first broke the silence: "How beautifully serene
+the sky is, Ad&egrave;le; almost as clear as your forehead."</p>
+
+<p>"What an immense number of stars," she said, "astronomy must be a
+beautiful pursuit."</p>
+
+<p>"It must be," he replied. "To soar far above<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_154" id="Page_154">[Pg 154]</a></span> this earth, to
+contemplate those worlds, to feel oneself lifted into space, to
+visit the moon with its mountains and rivers, plateaux and lakes; to
+accompany Venus and Mars and all the other planets in their course;
+to float, as it were, amongst these gigantic masterpieces of the
+Creator, to calculate their dimensions, to measure their course, to
+weigh those monsters; to bring to light the treasures of metal which
+they contain, by the aid of Spectrum. Analysis, all this and a great
+deal more which is associated with the science must be indeed full
+of wonderful exhiliration."</p>
+
+<p>"To hear you talk, one would imagine that you yearn to be amongst
+all those stars and planets," said Ad&egrave;le.</p>
+
+<p>"It is not the case," he answered, "because&mdash;I'll tell you why&mdash;I am
+content to have Venus so near to me."</p>
+
+<p>"I am afraid you will have to be Mars," she said somewhat anxiously.</p>
+
+<p>"Not a bit of it," he replied cheerfully, "Mars is generally
+represented with a long beard, and look, I have but a slight
+moustache; have you ever noticed," he continued, "that all these
+planets move in circles. I think the circle is the ideal figure of
+the Creator. Man cannot measure a circle or sphere."</p>
+
+<p>"I thought the heavenly bodies moved in ellipses," she interrupted.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, but ellipses are but a form of circles."</p>
+
+<p>"Of course, I had never thought about it before, one has so much to
+learn in life. Nature's wonders are numerous and full of instruction
+for the thoughtful student. It seems to me sometimes that my soul
+converses with nature. A cloud obscures the sky, and I feel that
+cloud passing over<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_155" id="Page_155">[Pg 155]</a></span> my heart; a ray of sunshine illumines the earth,
+and causes my flowers to open their petals and the dew-drops on the
+grass to shine like millions of diamonds, and I smile."</p>
+
+<p>"You have the soul of a poetess," he said.</p>
+
+<p>She laughed a rippling laugh. "I do not know, but I think the study
+of nature, the proper study of man."</p>
+
+<p>"Others,&mdash;with a less poetic soul, doubtless&mdash;seem to differ from
+you. I think Pope did. But you love nature, and do not care for
+man."</p>
+
+<p>Her pearly teeth saw the light.</p>
+
+<p>When Ad&egrave;le bade good-night to Frank that evening, a strange
+presentiment of coming evil overcame her.</p>
+
+<p>She walked inside her father's house. When she entered the kitchen
+she was surprised at finding it empty. The lamp was on the table. It
+was lighted. Beside it was an empty mug. She lighted a candle, went
+into the parlour, and divested herself of her hat and jacket,
+thinking her father would soon return.</p>
+
+<p>She did not feel at ease, however. Every other minute she turned
+round nervously, half afraid of finding someone in the room. Where
+could her father be? She grew anxious. Going at the foot of the
+stairs, she called out: "Father, father."</p>
+
+<p>Not a sound, save that of her voice which sounded funereally.</p>
+
+<p>She went to the door, opened it, and looked outside. Everything was
+still. All at once she heard something. It was not a shout, it was a
+scream, a shriek, an entreaty; it came again, much louder this time,
+she could distinctly hear the word: "Help."</p>
+
+<p>She distinguished that voice; there was no<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_156" id="Page_156">[Pg 156]</a></span> mistaking it, she would
+have discerned its sound amongst ten thousand. This voice was
+Frank's. He had cried, he had implored, there was but one thing for
+her to do&mdash;to run to his aid.</p>
+
+<p>Without even taking the trouble to fetch her hat, she hastily ran in
+the direction from whence the sound came.</p>
+
+<p>Breathless, she arrived upon the scene. There, on the ground, lay
+the prostrate figure of a man, his head supported on the knee of
+another one.</p>
+
+<p>The prostrate figure was her father's, the other man was Frank.</p>
+
+<p>When he saw her with her hair dishevelled and her frantic look,
+Frank looked astonished. He then beckoned to her and said: "It is
+only a faint, and I hope only a slight bleeding of the nose. I think
+he will soon regain consciousness. Is there any water about here?"</p>
+
+<p>"Not that I know of," she said, "but I will hasten home and bring
+some."</p>
+
+<p>While she was gone, Mr. Rougeant opened his eyes. "Where am I?" he
+said, after in vain trying to recollect his thoughts.</p>
+
+<p>"With a friend," answered Frank, bending over him.</p>
+
+<p>The farmer closed his eyes, then opened them again and fixed them on
+Frank. He quickly shut them again, however. He had recognized the
+young man and a pang of remorse shot through his hard heart.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le soon came with a small can full of water; and a basin. Her
+father kept his eyes closed. He had not the courage to open them.
+She poured the water in a basin and began to wash his face.</p>
+
+<p>When she had finished, he opened his eyes<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_157" id="Page_157">[Pg 157]</a></span> resolutely and said: "Now
+that I am washed and the bleeding has ceased, I had better go home."
+Without having the courage to look at Frank he said: "I think I can
+do with my daughter."</p>
+
+<p>He tried to rise, but uttered a cry of pain. "My foot hurts me
+fearfully," he said, "I cannot move without your aid."</p>
+
+<p>Thereupon they both helped him to his feet, while he kept a frowning
+look and a silent tongue.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you think you can walk leaning on my shoulder?" said Frank.</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps," he replied, and, placing his hand on the preferred
+shoulder, he began to hobble along; stopping often and speaking
+seldom.</p>
+
+<p>When the farmer was comfortably installed near the fire, his leg
+carefully placed on a footstool, Frank, knowing he was not wanted,
+took his leave, expressing a hope that the injured limb would soon
+be all right again.</p>
+
+<p>The farmer shook his head sadly, and gave a look at Frank that was
+very significant.</p>
+
+<p>Then he shrank for some time into a state of complete silence, but
+his face was clouded and his bushy eyebrows were more prominently
+drawn over his eyes than they had been for a long time.</p>
+
+<p>He hardly spoke a word to Ad&egrave;le that evening, barely answering her
+questions.</p>
+
+<p>How had the tables thus been turned? When Mr. Rougeant heard Frank
+pass by alone, he hastily vaulted over the hedge, intending to
+attack him, if not with his fists, at least with his tongue. But
+Providence directed otherwise. He miscalculated the height of the
+hedge on the side of the road,&mdash;for the field was higher than the
+road&mdash;and fell flat on his nose and face, one of his feet twisting
+under him and getting sprained.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_158" id="Page_158">[Pg 158]</a></span></p>
+<p>The blow which he sustained in falling and the pain caused by his
+sprained ankle caused him to faint. Frank ran to his aid, lifted him
+carefully, and placed his head on his own knee.</p>
+
+<p>It was in this position, as we have already seen, that Ad&egrave;le
+discovered them.</p>
+
+<p>When Frank saw the farmer's nose bleeding so profusely, and the
+deathly paleness on his face, he cried for help. It was this cry
+which the young lady heard. The same cry aroused Tom, who was
+sleeping soundly, doubtless dreaming of his fair cousin. He looked
+carefully over the hedge, and when he saw how matters stood and how
+his uncle lay, he took to his heels and fled. Cowardice lent him
+wings.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_159" id="Page_159">[Pg 159]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XXII.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">Father and Daughter.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 74px;">
+<img src="images/img_t.jpg" width="74" height="88" alt="T" title="" />
+</div><p>he morning after the accident, Mr. Rougeant, whose wrath was
+terrible, began to abuse his daughter.</p>
+
+<p>"You are the cause of all this," he said, as he surveyed the injured
+limb.</p>
+
+<p>"Very indirectly, I should think," she replied.</p>
+
+<p>"What do you mean? How dare you disobey me as you have done lately;
+you have made me suffer; you have, under my very eyes, been making a
+fool of me&mdash;your father." He paused, as if unable to frame his next
+sentence.</p>
+
+<p>"I beg your pardon, father," said the young lady respectfully; "but
+I have not been trying to 'make a fool' of you, as you say. I
+conscientiously think that I am right in encouraging the attentions
+of such an upright&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Stop your nonsense," he cried imperatively, his face assuming a
+terrible aspect, "you are an idiotic girl, you are trying to ruin me
+by listening to this pasteboard fellow, this scoundrel, this
+flippant rascal."</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le was stung with her father's bitter sarcasm against one whom
+she loved. She looked straight at her father; she knew he was unable
+to move from his place, and this made her bolder than she would
+otherwise have been. She answered with a firm and steady voice: "He
+saved your life once."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_160" id="Page_160">[Pg 160]</a></span></p>
+<p>"Saved my life, how? Only for his presence yesterday, I should not
+now be lying idle."</p>
+
+<p>"I am not talking about yesterday," she replied; "I mean, when he
+saved you from drowning in the quarry at the risk of being himself
+dragged in."</p>
+
+<p>"What has that to do with it?"</p>
+
+<p>"It means that he is not a 'pasteboard fellow,' as you say; it means
+that you ought to acknowledge his kindness; it means that you should
+be thankful for the great service which he rendered you."</p>
+
+<p>"If I owe him anything, let him say so and I will pay him," he
+replied. He had not the slightest intention of doing so.</p>
+
+<p>"You owe him a debt of gratitude, and you should bless him; instead
+of that you curse him," she said, her lips quivering and the tears
+rushing to her eyes. The idea of her beloved being cursed.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, I hate him," said the farmer, "I cordially distaste that dirty
+rat; he is the worm that eats my bones; but, you never shall marry
+him; do you hear? never."</p>
+
+<p>"I will never marry anyone else," she said, her face assuming a
+desperate calmness.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes you will."</p>
+
+<p>"Father," she said, her face almost as white as the cloth which she
+was spreading on the table, "it is useless to speak any more about
+it, it pains me to have to speak thus to you, but I will never marry
+Tom Soher."</p>
+
+<p>She heard the grinding of her father's teeth.</p>
+
+<p>"If I did so," she continued; "I feel that I should commit a great
+sin; I never could love him, therefore his life with me would be
+miserable; he would feel lonely, and, I am afraid, would soon<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_161" id="Page_161">[Pg 161]</a></span>
+return to his former habits of intemperance. Then I should be
+breaking my word, for I have promised&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"You have!" howled the father.</p>
+
+<p>She did not go on; her father's eyes were riveted on her with a
+terrible look. She feared he was going mad. She could not proceed,
+mesmerized as she seemed to be under that awful gaze.</p>
+
+<p>At last she turned her attention to her work.</p>
+
+<p>Not another word was spoken on the subject that day.</p>
+
+<p>Neither of them ate much that evening. It was almost impossible for
+Ad&egrave;le to swallow anything. What she attempted to eat, stuck in her
+throat. Her father, who was seated near the fire in his accustomed
+place, seemed also to have lost his appetite.</p>
+
+<p>At last, he thrust his food away from him with a gesture of
+impatience, and began moodily to contemplate the embers that were
+glowing in the grate. When nine o'clock&mdash;his usual hour for
+retiring&mdash;struck, Ad&egrave;le helped him into the parlour.</p>
+
+<p>It was there on a sofa that he insisted on sleeping while his foot
+hurt him as it now did.</p>
+
+<p>While the conversation was going on between father and daughter,
+Frank was crossing the fields near "Les Marches," and soon found
+himself beneath Ad&egrave;le's window. It was open. He took out his pocket
+book, and hastily writing a few lines on a leaf, tore off the piece
+of paper, rolled it into a ball, and threw it straight through the
+window.</p>
+
+<p>Then he cautiously glided away.</p>
+
+<p>When Ad&egrave;le retired for the night, she did not perceive the ball of
+paper that lay on the floor of her room. Her brain was so occupied
+with her<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_162" id="Page_162">[Pg 162]</a></span> thoughts that it failed to fulfil its functions towards
+the eyes.</p>
+
+<p>She fixed her optics for a moment on the crumpled piece of paper,
+but she saw it not. She was undressing, but she knew it not; she did
+it mechanically, as if by instinct. Her thoughts were with her
+father and the unhappy home she was condemned to share with him.
+Home! alas! it was more like a hell. She shuddered at the thought.
+She was of a naturally quiet temperament, and she abhorred these
+awful scenes.</p>
+
+<p>She earnestly hoped that the time would soon come when she would
+once more sail in smooth waters.</p>
+
+<p>As she was moving about, her foot trod upon some object. "What is
+this?" she said to herself, as she stooped to pick it up. By whom
+that piece of paper had been placed there, she could not imagine.</p>
+
+<p>By the light of the candle, she managed to read the missive. How her
+heart gladdened. She read it over and over again. It contained a
+message from Frank telling her that he hoped to hear from her at her
+earliest convenience. "So you will," she said half aloud as she
+carefully folded the small piece of paper.</p>
+
+<p>She slept peacefully that night.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_163" id="Page_163">[Pg 163]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XXIII.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">A Secret Correspondence.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 83px;">
+<img src="images/img_o.jpg" width="83" height="89" alt="O" title="" />
+</div><p>n the following day she wrote to Frank and gave the letter to
+Jacques, asking him to carry it in the evening at the Rohais. The
+old man smiled at her, and carefully pocketing the piece of silver
+which she thrust into his hand, he remarked: "I s'pose you don't
+care for the guv'nor to know anything about this 'ere business."</p>
+
+<p>"How dare you call my father so?" she said, pretending to be
+offended; "no; don't let him have any knowledge of this or any other
+message I may entrust you with in the future."</p>
+
+<p>"He won't; look 'ere Miss, I'll do anything for you, you're a good
+'un; and as for your father gettin' anything out of me; I'd as well
+have the last bone in my body pulled out afore I'd say anything
+against you or your young man. You're the very picture of your
+mother, that you are, she was a good woman&mdash;&mdash;."</p>
+
+<p>"Jacques, if you cannot express yourself in English, talk in
+Guernsey French, as you used to do," she said, for Jacques was
+showing forth his knowledge.</p>
+
+<p>"What have I said?" he questioned in his native tongue, then he
+added: "I thought I was speaking well, I beg your pardon if I have
+offended you, Miss."</p>
+
+<p>"You have not displeased me," she said. "I<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_164" id="Page_164">[Pg 164]</a></span> must go now, or my
+father will be fretting about my absence. I can trust you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, I will do anything for you. Good-night, Miss."</p>
+
+<p>"Good-night, Ma&icirc;t Jacques."</p>
+
+<p>And, with a light step and a cheerful countenance, she entered the
+room in which her father was. He was seated in an armchair before
+the fire-place, his attention centred on a halter which he was
+endeavouring to manufacture. He did not fail to notice the laughing
+eyes and the radiant expression of his daughter.</p>
+
+<p>"What has she been about?" he mused, "has she been speaking to that
+smooth-tongued, stuck-up son of a ragamuffin."</p>
+
+<p>His face assumed a sour expression as the suspicion crossed his
+mind. After a few moments of silence, he raised his small and
+constantly flickering eyes, and asked in a sour tone: "Where have
+you been all this time?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have been speaking to Ma&icirc;t Jacques," she replied.</p>
+
+<p>"The whole time."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, all the time."</p>
+
+<p>"Only to him?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, to him alone."</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant was satisfied. The idea of disbelieving his daughter
+never entered his head. He knew she would never debase herself by
+uttering a falsehood, and he quietly resumed his work. Then, after a
+few minutes of silence, he turned again to her: "Is Jacques gone?"
+he enquired.</p>
+
+<p>"I do not know," she replied.</p>
+
+<p>"Well run and see, and, if he is not, tell him to come and speak to
+me."</p>
+
+<p>An anxious look passed over Ad&egrave;le's face. Fortunately,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_165" id="Page_165">[Pg 165]</a></span> she was able
+to slip out of the room before her father noticed it.</p>
+
+<p>"He wants to question him," she said to herself; "I shall have to
+warn him. My father is almost sure to find him out. Oh! I do hope
+that he is gone." She approached the stable, where Jacques usually
+spent his last half-hour. She went towards the door, opened it and
+called out: "Jacques."</p>
+
+<p>No answer.</p>
+
+<p>She joyously tripped towards the house. After a few steps she
+stopped. "I have not called out very loudly," she thought, "if
+Jacques were still here and my father were to see him, his
+suspicions would be aroused."</p>
+
+<p>She retraced her steps, and in a half-frightened tone, wishing with
+all her heart that her cry might not be answered, she called out
+again in a louder voice: "Ma&icirc;t Jacques; are you about there?"</p>
+
+<p>She listened eagerly. Her summons were not answered. She went
+towards the house and entered it, saying: "He's gone, I have not
+seen him."</p>
+
+<p>"It does not matter much," said her father, "I will tell him what I
+have to say to-morrow."</p>
+
+<p>Her anxiety recommenced. She looked at her father and tried to read
+his thoughts. In this she failed. He had one of those hard set faces
+the owners of which seem devoid of soul or sentiment.</p>
+
+<p>When she awoke the following morning, Ad&egrave;le's first thoughts were
+about her father and his workman. What was he going to question him
+about? Ah! he had perhaps seen her through the window, giving a
+letter to the old man and cautioning him.</p>
+
+<p>When they had finished breakfasting, Ad&egrave;le, who began to hope her
+father had completely forgotten<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_166" id="Page_166">[Pg 166]</a></span> all about his workman, was very
+much annoyed when Mr. Rougeant told her to tell Jacques to come and
+speak to him.</p>
+
+<p>She searched out the old man, and, having found him, she said to
+him: "Did you see Mr. Mathers yesterday evening?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, Miss," he answered, taking care to speak in his native tongue
+this time; "I saw him. He thanked me and asked a few questions about
+your health and Mr. Rougeant's foot."</p>
+
+<p>"I am very much obliged to you," said Ad&egrave;le, "and now, you must come
+and talk to my father. I think he means to question you, but you
+will be on your guard; will you not?"</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, he is not the man to take me in. If he asks me if you gave me a
+letter yesterday, or anything else concerning you, I know what to
+answer him."</p>
+
+<p>"You will speak the truth?"</p>
+
+<p>"Speak the truth and be taken in, not I; there's no harm in fibbing
+when it's for doing good, Miss."</p>
+
+<p>"If you are prepared to utter falsehoods, Jacques, for the sake of
+shielding me, you will lose my approbation. I shall be very angry
+with you if you do so. You understand; you must not swerve from the
+path of truth."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, I never," said Jacques, "and it was all for your sake. We
+shall see. I'm not going to let your father learn anything from me.
+Jerusalem, I would rather pull the hair off my head."</p>
+
+<p>"The plain truth," said Ad&egrave;le, shaking her forefinger at him and
+looking very severe.</p>
+
+<p>"I know my work, Miss," he replied as he followed her into the
+house.</p>
+
+<p>The farmer was seated near the fire. He did not even turn round when
+Jacques entered. The<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_167" id="Page_167">[Pg 167]</a></span> latter went straight up to his employer and
+said: "You wanted me to come and speak to you."</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le tried to look composed, but her nerves were unsteady. She
+could not bear to leave the room, while the men were talking about
+her. No, she must hear her doom; at any rate, she must be there to
+try and defend herself.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," said the farmer after a while, "what was it about now? oh!
+this evening&mdash;&mdash;."</p>
+
+<p>"Yesterday evening;" thought Ad&egrave;le, "he is making a mistake."</p>
+
+<p>"This evening," the farmer went on, "you will carry my boots to the
+shoemaker's."</p>
+
+<p>"All right, Sir," answered Jacques.</p>
+
+<p>The young lady could not restrain a sigh of relief.</p>
+
+<p>Jacques looked at her and winked&mdash;a most rude thing to do&mdash;but then
+Jacques did not know better.</p>
+
+<p>Quoth Mr. Rougeant, his eyes fixed on the grate: "You will tell him
+to be as quick as he can about mending them; I mean to walk in a few
+days."</p>
+
+<p>"All right, Sir."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't want anything expensive; in fact, I want him to mend them
+as cheaply as he possibly can. But, you understand, I want him to
+repair them well."</p>
+
+<p>"A good job costs money," Jacques ventured to interpose.</p>
+
+<p>"I told you I don't want anything expensive," retorted the farmer
+angrily.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, that's all right, Sir; I'll tell him so, Sir," said the
+workman, frightened at Mr. Rougeant's sour tone.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, you will fetch them this evening and be<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_168" id="Page_168">[Pg 168]</a></span> careful to tell him
+what I require; a good and inexpensive job, or I won't pay him."</p>
+
+<p>"All right, Sir," said Jacques, and he left the room muttering:
+"He's growing from bad to worse; he is a stingy old niggard."</p>
+
+<p>What was Tom Soher doing all this time? He was drinking.</p>
+
+<p>He had never loved Ad&egrave;le Rougeant, and when he saw that there was
+not much chance of winning her, he took to drink. In reality, he
+preferred his bottle to his cousin. Of course, he put all the blame
+on the misfortunes which he had encountered.</p>
+
+<p>Once, and only once, his father tried timidly to rebuke him. "No,"
+he said, "there is nothing for me to do but to drown my sorrow.
+Welcome ruin."</p>
+
+<p>"Why not turn a new leaf?" pleaded Mr. Soher.</p>
+
+<p>"Bah!" he replied as he walked away, "what's the use!&mdash;no; good-bye
+to everything."</p>
+
+<p>Spoilt child; he little knew the terrible death that awaited him.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_169" id="Page_169">[Pg 169]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XXIV.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">Mr. Rougeant goes to Church.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 74px;">
+<img src="images/img_t.jpg" width="74" height="88" alt="T" title="" />
+</div><p>he first Sunday after Mr. Rougeant's recovery, Ad&egrave;le said she
+intended to go to church. The farmer's eyes flickered more than
+usual. "I think I shall accompany you," he said.</p>
+
+<p>His daughter started. What could he mean? He had not been to church
+these last three years or more; besides, he had not a decent suit of
+clothes to put on. Oh! it was disgusting.</p>
+
+<p>"He is afraid of my meeting Frank on the road," she said to herself;
+"he need not fear, I am green, but not quite so much as he seems to
+think." "You have not even a suit of clothes that is fit to wear,"
+she said aloud.</p>
+
+<p>"They will do well enough."</p>
+
+<p>"Your coat is as green as grass, and your trousers quite yellow. If
+it was in the evening, I should perhaps go with you, but in the
+morning&mdash;no."</p>
+
+<p>"If you don't come with me, I suppose I shall have to come with
+you."</p>
+
+<p>"You shall not come with me this morning, Sir."</p>
+
+<p>"How dare you&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"I will not go."</p>
+
+<p>"Do as you like."</p>
+
+<p>"I shall go this evening," she said, "the lamps will be lighted. I
+hope that stock of bad oil which they have is not used up, because I
+do not want the church to be well-lighted."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_170" id="Page_170">[Pg 170]</a></span></p>
+<p>"How is that?"</p>
+
+<p>"How is that?" she said in a grieved tone. "People might take you
+for a rag picker."</p>
+
+<p>Her father was not a bit angry at her for saying this. She knew it,
+hence her boldness.</p>
+
+<p>He almost smiled, a very&mdash;very rare thing for him to do; he was
+proud to think that people would say to each other: "Look, there is
+Mr. Rougeant, he is not a proud man."</p>
+
+<p>On the evening in question, the clergyman almost lost his speech and
+his senses when he saw Mr. Rougeant sitting beside his daughter.</p>
+
+<p>The worshippers thought not of the prayers as they were being read,
+or the audience of the sermon, as it was being delivered; they
+thought of Mr. Rougeant.</p>
+
+<p>And, when the people came out of the church, instead of the usual
+remarks about the weather, folks said to one another: "Have you seen
+Mr. Rougeant." "Yes," answered the more composed, "it is not often
+one sees him about here."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh!" answered the others, "how shocking."</p>
+
+<p>A party of elderly ladies were assembling just outside the
+churchyard gates.</p>
+
+<p>"Have you seen Mr. Rougeant?" they asked unanimously, as they
+approached one another.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, yes," replied Mrs. Martin, "I was quite astounded when I saw
+him enter."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, but you see," remarked another, "he has been ill, and maybe he
+has felt the need of worshipping in the house of God."</p>
+
+<p>"What a shabby coat," said a third. "His trousers were worn out and
+threadbare," put in Miss Le Grove, who was not able to approach very
+near the group on account of her immense corpulence.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_171" id="Page_171">[Pg 171]</a></span></p>
+<p>"His daughter seemed rather ill at ease," said No. Three.</p>
+
+<p>"I think there is some of her fault," said Mrs. Martin, "she
+encourages a young man of bad reputation."</p>
+
+<p>The whole group held up their hands and assumed an horror-stricken
+attitude.</p>
+
+<p>"Impossible!", exclaimed No. Two.</p>
+
+<p>"Shocking!" declared Miss Le Grove.</p>
+
+<p>"We must be very careful about what we advance'" remarked No. Two,
+who generally passed for being a very Christian lady; then she added
+after a pause: "Miss Rougeant is, as everyone of us knows, good,
+well-bred and of refined taste."</p>
+
+<p>"I only recited what I had heard, of course I don't believe it,"
+said Mrs. Martin, a little disconcerted.</p>
+
+<p>"If she marries and goes away from home, there will only be one
+thing for her father to do, and that will be to marry again,"
+remarked Miss Le Grove, who found the state of forced celibacy
+unendurable.</p>
+
+<p>The others looked at each other. Some could not force back the smile
+that rushed to their lips. Miss Le Grove noticed the suppressed
+mirth and blushed. Then losing her presence of mind, and wishing to
+explain the why and wherefore of her face being so red, she said,
+slightly retiring: "Isn't the weather warm."</p>
+
+<p>There was a hoar-frost.</p>
+
+<p>Fortunately, or unfortunately, an accident occurred, while Miss Le
+Grove was backing her voluminous self, which sufficed to disperse
+the assemblage.</p>
+
+<p>A little boy was standing with his back to the obese woman. He was
+busily engaged, endeavouring<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_172" id="Page_172">[Pg 172]</a></span> to count the stars, when that most
+worthy spinster backed against him and sent him sprawling. She did
+not even feel the rencontre; it was like an iron-clad coming in
+collision with a fishing-smack.</p>
+
+<p>The little parish school-boy was none the less irritated. He planted
+himself before Miss Le Grove, to make sure she would see him, made a
+frightful grimace and shouted: "You're an old half-a-ton." Then he
+decamped.</p>
+
+<p>The other ladies giggled.</p>
+
+<p>The company dispersed.</p>
+
+<p>A group of youths who were standing near shouted "Well said,
+<i>gamin</i>."</p>
+
+<p>Going home, the topic of the conversation was Miss Le Grove,
+garnished with a sprinkling of Mr. Rougeant.</p>
+
+<p>As for the lady whom the little rogue had styled "half-a-ton" she
+walked alone muttering execrations against this "little wretch," and
+telling herself that there were no Christians, that these women
+laughed at her, because she chose to remain what Providence had
+directed she should be, and that Mr. Rougeant was perfectly right in
+keeping away from people, who had nothing to do when they came out
+of church but to backbite their neighbours.</p>
+
+<p>In future, she too would shun these sophisticated people.</p>
+
+<p>And&mdash;puffing and blowing; gesticulating and perspiring;
+soliloquizing and threatening, she retook possession of her home,
+sweet home.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_173" id="Page_173">[Pg 173]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XXV.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">Love Triumphs.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 87px;">
+<img src="images/img_g.jpg" width="87" height="88" alt="G" title="" />
+</div><p>ood-morning, Mr. Rougeant," said Jacques on the Monday morning, as
+he perceived his employer walking about the farmyard.</p>
+
+<p>"Good-morning, Jacques," responded the farmer.</p>
+
+<p>"Your foot is better then?" said the workman, eager to commence the
+conversation, for Mr. Rougeant was already moving in a contrary
+direction.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, it's quite better now," replied the farmer, arresting his
+steps.</p>
+
+<p>"Where's Miss Rougeant?" questioned Jacques.</p>
+
+<p>"Rummaging the house; do you want to speak to her?"</p>
+
+<p>"My wife told me that there was a long time she had not seen her.
+She says she is lonely and would very much like to see Miss
+Rougeant. She says your daughter is so kind and so much like her
+mother, that she would be very thankful if Miss Rougeant would
+condescend to visit her once or twice while she is laid up."</p>
+
+<p>At the mention of his wife, Mr. Rougeant felt sorrow in his heart.
+He had loved once, but now, his nature was changed; he used to be
+happy and full of contentment then, although a struggling young
+farmer, for he had a bright, lovable and loving wife to cheer him
+up.</p>
+
+<p>Now he was worth ten thousand pounds, and he felt the most miserable
+of men.</p>
+
+<p>He stood still, the very picture of abject misery, not uttering a
+single word.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_174" id="Page_174">[Pg 174]</a></span></p>
+<p>"Perhaps you will not mind telling her," said Jacques, breaking the
+silence.</p>
+
+<p>The farmer looked up; "I shall tell her," he said, and walked away.</p>
+
+<p>"Our little affair is coming off splendidly," said Ad&egrave;le as she
+tripped into the garden to speak to Jacques. "Yes, Miss, you are so
+clever, you deserve to succeed."</p>
+
+<p>"We must not rejoice too soon; did you see Frank last night?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, Miss."</p>
+
+<p>"And he told you that he would come?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, Miss; he gave me a letter for you but I must not give it to
+you now, I fancy Mr. Rougeant is watching us."</p>
+
+<p>"You are quite right, leave it in the stable when you go there and I
+will fetch it. Has my father asked any questions?"</p>
+
+<p>"Not one; he looks very sad."</p>
+
+<p>"He is. It surprises me that he never questions you; he has such
+confidence in you; he would never think of suspecting you."</p>
+
+<p>"If he asks me any questions, I'll know how to answer them. But,"
+added the workman, laughing, "I must go and see how the horse is
+getting on. You will find the letter under the old saddle."</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you very much for all your trouble," said Ad&egrave;le as she
+disappeared through the doorway.</p>
+
+<p>After having read the letter which she had fetched from the stable,
+Ad&egrave;le smiled. "He will meet me near Jacques' cottage at six o'clock
+this evening," she said to herself. "I must try and hide my joy as
+much as I can, for my father will grow suspicious if he reads my
+happiness."</p>
+
+<p>She had to keep a continual vigilance to prevent herself from
+smiling during the day. When evening<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_175" id="Page_175">[Pg 175]</a></span> approached, she dressed
+herself and proceeded towards the cottage.</p>
+
+<p>The sun was setting beautifully in the west. When she reached the
+top of the hill, she could see him, gently sinking, as it were, into
+the sea, illuminating the horizon and the ocean in a flood of
+splendour. As it disappeared, the Hanois Lighthouse displayed its
+beacon light.</p>
+
+<p>The visit to Mrs. Dorant was of short duration.</p>
+
+<p>At half-past six, a young couple might be seen wending their way
+slowly through the beautiful country lanes. They talked in soft
+accents. Now and then Ad&egrave;le's low, silvery laugh sounded on the
+tranquil evening air.</p>
+
+<p>They wandered thus for two hours. "I thought we had been out only
+about one hour," said Ad&egrave;le as Frank returned his watch to his fob.</p>
+
+<p>"Love takes no account of time," he said. "Now, let us talk
+business. I profess to be a business man you know."</p>
+
+<p>They talked about the obstacles to be vanquished, of Mr. Rougeant's
+wrath, of Tom Soher's jealousy.</p>
+
+<p>"Be of good cheer. <i>Amor vincit omnia</i>," were Frank's last words to
+her that evening.</p>
+
+<p>When she opened the wicket gate, Ad&egrave;le gave a horror-stricken start.
+She perceived the form of a man, stretched at full length before the
+front door. She could not restrain a cry of alarm. Frank, who had
+followed her, hastily advanced to see what was the matter. He had
+not gone far, before he saw the front-door open, and Mr. Rougeant
+come out, holding a lighted candle in his hand.</p>
+
+<p>He hastily retreated farther away and watched the trio. He could
+easily see them without being seen. The light that came from inside
+the house, and that from the candle, shone full on the group.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_176" id="Page_176">[Pg 176]</a></span></p>
+<p>He saw Mr. Rougeant pick up the prostrate figure, set the man on his
+feet, and, after having shut the gate after him, return inside.</p>
+
+<p>This man, who walked with such an unsteady gait, was Tom Soher.
+Frank took the trouble to follow him home. He feared for his safety,
+accidents are so common with people in his state. He set his
+conscience at ease by seeing the tottering figure enter the house of
+the "Prenoms."</p>
+
+<p>He pitied this slave to intemperance. He shuddered at the immense
+per cent. of his countrymen who were like this man.</p>
+
+<p>How had Tom Soher happened to be lying before the threshold of "Les
+Marches?" We shall see.</p>
+
+<p>That same evening, he was with a few of his sort, drinking at the
+"Forest Arms." He was more than half-intoxicated, when, without a
+word, he left the bar-room.</p>
+
+<p>"Where are you going?" shouted his comrades.</p>
+
+<p>"Bring him back," said some.</p>
+
+<p>"Let him go," said the others.</p>
+
+<p>Tom did not heed their talk, but directed his steps towards uncle
+Rougeant's farm-house.</p>
+
+<p>He opened the door, walked straight in, and seated himself in a
+chair near the long bare table, without saying a word to his uncle.</p>
+
+<p>The latter was in a dreadful state of mental excitement. He was
+walking up and down the room with his hands thrust deeply into his
+trousers' pockets, uttering execrations, blaming everyone and
+everything. He was so occupied with his ravings that he only cast a
+glance at his nephew, who stood, or rather sat, wondering what the
+dickens his uncle was about.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah, this generation," said the farmer, "this generation is a mass of
+spoilt and pampered dolls"<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_177" id="Page_177">[Pg 177]</a></span>&mdash;he was thinking of his daughter&mdash;"they
+only think about running here and there; paying visits to friends,
+taking tea with cousins, or walks with dressed-up mashers.</p>
+
+<p>"They do not care if they leave a poor old devil"&mdash;the appellation
+was appropriate enough&mdash;"all alone, with not even a dog to keep him
+company or a cat which he could kick; off they go, dressed in the
+garments for which you have paid out of your own pockets; ay, and
+for which you have toiled and perspired&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"You're quite right, uncle," came from Tom.</p>
+
+<p>The farmer gave a sudden start. He had altogether forgotten his
+nephew's presence. He went on:&mdash;"People are as proud as if they were
+all of blood royal. Even the poorest women, one sees pass in the
+afternoon with perambulators in which sleeps some little urchin who,
+mayhap, is brought up nearly all on the charity of saving people
+like me.</p>
+
+<p>"It's a curse to have to pay taxes for this vermin. I say it's a
+downright injustice to make us, who attach ten times more value to a
+penny than they do, pay for the education of their brats.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! in my time, in the good old time, which is alas, gone for ever,
+we, the respectable people, were rolled about in clumsy little
+wooden carts, and the children of the labourers were carried in
+their mother's arms and placed between two bundles of ferns, while
+their mother went about her work. For, poor women went to work in
+those days. Ay! they had to do it or starve. But now, what do we
+see? These labourers' wives with servants."</p>
+
+<p>He stamped, his foot impatiently. "And when they are destitute and
+homeless from sheer want<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_178" id="Page_178">[Pg 178]</a></span> of foresight, they are kept and fed out of
+the taxes which come out of our pockets. So-called civilisation and
+education are ruining the present generation."</p>
+
+<p>"That's where you're right, uncle," interposed his nephew.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant went on: "Farmers' sons do not want to work now. Every
+one rails at manual labour. If this state of things goes on, the
+island will soon be a mass of ruined and dissipated human beings.
+The honourable people who have a pedigree they can boast of, are
+mixing with foreigners, whom no one knows whence they have sprung
+from. If you drink a glass of cider now a days, you are termed a
+drunkard by a lot of tea-drinkers, teetotalers and&mdash;&mdash;."</p>
+
+<p>"A glass of cider would do good, one is thirsty this weather,"
+interrupted Tom, who, although half asleep, had caught the word
+cider.</p>
+
+<p>Without even casting a glance at his nephew, so absorbed was he, the
+farmer continued: "One hears nothing but bicycle-bells. These
+bicycles are the greatest nuisance yet invented. I am surprised that
+people rack their brains in order to invent such worthless rubbish.
+Every one must have a bicycle. There may not be any bread in the
+house, the children may not be able to go to school or the wife to
+church for want of a decent pair of boots, but, 'I will have a
+bicycle.' And then, it is so very easy to have one, there's the hire
+system. Another curse of civilisation that is ruining the poor man.
+If our peasantry knew how to put by for a rainy day, like the French
+country-folk do, we should not have so many applications for relief,
+our hospitals would well nigh be empty."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_179" id="Page_179">[Pg 179]</a></span></p>
+<p>"<i>Vere dia</i>, uncle."</p>
+
+<p>"Poor people now are not half so polite as they used to be when I
+was young. They call each other Mess. instead of Ma&icirc;t., and they
+style their superiors Ma&icirc;t. when they ought to say Mess.</p>
+
+<p>"The insolent rogues, they only have a smooth tongue when they come
+to beg. People may say what they like, foolish men may talk about
+the State establishing scholarships, for the talented poor; let them
+work. I have worked all my life, and hard too, and here I am, better
+than any of them."</p>
+
+<p>"Educate them with the States' revenue. Indeed! Bring them up like
+gentlemen, for them to laugh at you later on, to look down upon you
+as if you were so much stubble."</p>
+
+<p>"That's what they like. Give young people a few pence to rattle in
+their trousers' pockets, a collar, cuffs, a sixpenny signet ring on
+the little finger, a nickel-silver mounted cane and a pair of
+gloves, and there they go, not caring a fillip whether their parents
+have toiled and struggled to rise to their present position,
+ignoring the necessity of thrift, a happy-go-lucky generation. And
+then, at the end of it all, a deep chasm, into which they will all
+fall headlong; an immense pyre that will consume all their vanities
+and profligacies."</p>
+
+<p>"They deserve to be burnt, indeed they do, uncle."</p>
+
+<p>"Someone was even talking of establishing a public library here.
+Well let them complete the ruin. It is as well. I hope to be dead by
+that time though. Life, then, will be intolerable. I hope to sleep
+with those worthy champions of labour&mdash;my ancestors&mdash;in the
+churchyard yonder.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_180" id="Page_180">[Pg 180]</a></span></p>
+<p>"Books!&mdash;what do they want books for? I never yet knew a man who
+read books that was worth a farthing.</p>
+
+<p>"I knew one once who was versed in book-lore, but, worse luck to
+him, he could not bind a wheat-sheaf or weed a perch of parsnips,
+and the result&mdash;bankruptcy; failure. That's what it comes to.</p>
+
+<p>"Books!&mdash;do they want to make schoolmasters of us all, or do they
+wish us to be always reading our eyes out instead of attending to
+our business?</p>
+
+<p>"Books!&mdash;they are only good for idle loafers; they offer an excuse
+for shunning one's duty. 'I want to read a bit,' they say when told
+to do something. 'Oh, let me just finish this page, it is so
+interesting,' they plead, when asked to quickly fetch some article.
+This is what Ad&egrave;le used to do, but I nipped this slothful tendency
+in the bud. I would have none of it."</p>
+
+<p>He stopped his discourse and his walk, gazed at his nephew who had
+fallen across the table and was now sleeping soundly; then
+recommenced his peregrinations.</p>
+
+<p>"I am disgusted with the world; I don't know what it will all come
+to. Some of these modern farmers are even discarding the <i>grande
+charrue</i>. Oh! shades of our ancestors. The great plough&mdash;the only
+feast of the year that is worth anything, mutton and roast beef, ham
+and veal, cider by the gallon and a jovial company of good old sons
+of the soil.</p>
+
+<p>"It is horrible thus to see our old routine trampled underfoot, our
+ancestors' customs sneered at."</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant was extremely animated. Like nearly every other country
+Guernseyman, he was opposed to change.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_181" id="Page_181">[Pg 181]</a></span></p>
+<p>He walked about with distorted features, his eyes shining with a
+strange light.</p>
+
+<p>He thought of his family dwindling away; of his daughter
+disregarding his commands and disobeying him. In his innermost soul
+he felt convinced that she would never marry his nephew. He cast his
+eyes in the direction of the latter. What! he was sleeping while
+<i>he</i> was enduring all the agony of a king who is being dethroned; of
+a general, whose army is in open mutiny against him; of a
+millionaire who sees his whole fortune disappear through some awful
+catastrophe! It was unendurable.</p>
+
+<p>He again began to pace the room. Having finally arrived at a
+decision as to his future conduct, and thinking just then of his
+daughter's disregard for his tastes, he shouted in a voice of
+thunder, bringing down his fist upon the table with an awful crash.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Palfrancordi!</i> let her act according to her own stubborn will, but
+she'll not inherit a penny of mine, not one double."</p>
+
+<p>He was now quite close to his nephew and the latter, aroused by the
+noise which his uncle had made, raised his head and yawningly
+drawled out: "You're quite right, uncle."</p>
+
+<p>The farmer stood straight in front of Tom Soher, his arms folded,
+his penetrating eye fixed scrutinizingly on his nephew. He perceived
+the latter's state; his wrath increased. "What!" he ejaculated; "you
+are drunk!"</p>
+
+<p>Tom was in such a plight that he understood not his uncle, neither
+did he perceive his anger. He muttered: "You're quite right, uncle."</p>
+
+<p>"Then begone, you wretched inebriate. I'll not have intoxicated
+brutes about my house."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_182" id="Page_182">[Pg 182]</a></span></p>
+<p>So saying, he seized bewildered Tom, dragged him through the
+vestibule and hurled him outside, slamming the door after his nephew
+without even waiting to see what became of him.</p>
+
+<p>Then, wearied and tired out by his exertions, he sank into a chair
+and began to ponder about this new discovery. He mentally resolved
+that he would never have a drunkard for his son-in-law.</p>
+
+<p>Then he gradually grew calmer. The reaction was setting in.</p>
+
+<p>He was still engaged in his reflections when he heard a cry. 'Twas
+his daughter's. He lightened a candle and hastened to open the door,
+wondering what could have happened. The sight of his nephew lying
+there, chilled him with terror. Was he dead? Had he killed him? If
+so, it was the crowning point of all his woes.</p>
+
+<p>How he raised him and sent him home we have already seen.</p>
+
+<p>When Mr. Rougeant was again with his daughter, he kept a dogged
+silence. She gathered from his demeanour that he had had a frightful
+shock, but took great care not to question him. Hardly a word was
+exchanged between them that evening.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le was glad of it, for she had her thoughts occupied with her
+wedding which was to come off in three weeks.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_183" id="Page_183">[Pg 183]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XXVI.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">Wedded.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 93px;">
+<img src="images/img_a.jpg" width="93" height="88" alt="A" title="" />
+</div><p>fter all the commotion, the wedding was a very quiet one.</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le left the house early one bright summer morning.</p>
+
+<p>The sun was rising, illuminating the sky with all its various
+colours; the lark was soaring towards heaven's gates; the mowers
+could already be heard sharpening their scythes in the hay fields,
+and Mary and Louisa, the tenant's daughters, were busily engaged
+milking their father's cows.</p>
+
+<p>A carriage, drawn by two grey horses, carried the heiress of "Les
+Marches" to be married to Frank Mathers.</p>
+
+<p>The beautifying properties of love shone on the bride's and
+bridegroom's countenances as they stepped out of the church of St.
+----.</p>
+
+<p>In both their souls was a paradise.</p>
+
+<p>From time to time, Mrs. Mathers assumed a thoughtful expression.</p>
+
+<p>"I cannot help thinking of my father," she said, as the
+carriage-wheels rattled over the road near "Les Grav&eacute;es."</p>
+
+<p>"Let not this mar your happiness," he answered joyfully, "perhaps he
+will relent when he sees that it is of no use grumbling."</p>
+
+<p>Ad&egrave;le smiled, for, in spite of everything, she would be happy. "I
+<i>am</i> joyful," she said, "but as for his pardoning me, well&mdash;you do
+not know him as well as I do."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_184" id="Page_184">[Pg 184]</a></span></p>
+<p>The next day while Mr. and Mrs. Mathers were enjoying a snug little
+<i>t&ecirc;te-&agrave;-t&ecirc;te</i>, the postman brought them a letter. It was from Mr.
+Rougeant.</p>
+
+<p>"I told you he would be glad to renew his acquaintance," said Frank,
+as soon as he saw the signature.</p>
+
+<p>"What's this?" he said. "A cheque, Ad&egrave;le; a cheque for one hundred
+pounds! It's our wedding present, I suppose; let me read the
+letter:"</p>
+
+<div class="blockquot"><p>"To my Daughter,&mdash;I have heard that you have been married. You
+think that I will bend. You are mistaken. Moreover, as I warned
+you before you took that rash step that I would take care you
+would not inherit a single penny of mine; I send you this
+cheque. It is the last money which you will ever receive from
+me.</p>
+
+<p>"<span class="smcap">Alfred Rougeant.</span>"</p></div>
+
+<p>Frank's face was a blank. "Fancy to come and tell you that you took
+a rash step," he said.</p>
+
+<p>"Did not I tell you that he was stubborn?" said his wife.</p>
+
+<p>"He says that he will not bend," continued Frank, perusing the
+letter for a second time. "My father-in-law, you will probably
+break, then. Those one hundred pounds are welcome all the same."</p>
+
+<p>"I was thinking of sending them back," said Mrs. Mathers, "but,
+perhaps, we had better keep them; father would only be too glad to
+have them back. I cannot conceive how he mustered sufficient
+resolution to part with his god. He must have made a supreme
+effort."</p>
+
+<p>Said Frank: "To pocket both our pride and the cheque, is, I think,
+the best course which we can pursue. We must, however, acknowledge
+his kind<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_185" id="Page_185">[Pg 185]</a></span> remittance and thank him for it. What do you think of
+inviting him to tea some afternoon?"</p>
+
+<p>"You are joking."</p>
+
+<p>"As far as regards the invitation, yes; but as for acknowledging
+receipt of the cheque, no. I leave you to decide whether you shall
+do so. Of course, I am not supposed to have anything to do in the
+matter."</p>
+
+<p>"Since you leave it to me, go and open the lights of your
+greenhouses, the sun is getting warm. While you are absent, I shall
+write an answer. I cannot do it while you are here; I want to be
+very serious."</p>
+
+<p>Frank went out of the room. He came back after a few minutes'
+absence.</p>
+
+<p>"Sit you down and listen," said his wife. The letter which she had
+written ran thus;&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="blockquot"><p>"My Dear Father,&mdash;I have received the cheque which you were
+kind enough to send me. I thank you for it."</p>
+
+<p>"Your letter, however, pained me. You seem to think that I have
+wantonly disobeyed you. I have not; I have only acted
+honourably and conscientiously."</p>
+
+<p>"I cannot but feel sorry for you when I think of the useless
+and self-inflicted sufferings which you endure."</p>
+
+<p>"As for your property, I am happy to state that we have enough,
+and to spare.</p>
+
+<p>"Father; if ever you require our aid; if ever you feel that you
+would like to speak to us or to see us, do not hesitate; a
+daughter's and a son-in-law's love will you always find in us."</p>
+
+<p>
+"Your affectionate daughter,<br />
+<br />
+"<span class="smcap">Ad&egrave;le.</span>"<br />
+</p>
+</div>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_186" id="Page_186">[Pg 186]</a></span></p>
+<p>Frank was smiling. "I think that will do very nicely," he said.</p>
+
+<p>When Mr. Rougeant read his daughter's missive, he uttered a cry of
+contempt. "Require your aid,&mdash;well, I shall have to sink low. You
+love me."&mdash;He banished the thought from him, for his heart was
+already softening under the influence of those words.</p>
+
+<p>Although he and his daughter had lived a life of mutual
+misunderstanding during the last years of her stay at "Les Marches,"
+he felt her absence much more keenly than he had anticipated.</p>
+
+<p>The days that followed were for him days of inexpressible ennui. He
+would saunter up and down the kitchen for half-an-hour at a time. He
+conversed with Jacques; he tried to take interest in something; he
+counted his money, his gold, his god.</p>
+
+<p>Formerly, he found great pleasure in doing so; but now, the sound of
+the precious metal awoke no feeling of satisfaction within his heart
+as it used to do, but rung in his ears with a funereal sound. He
+thought it foretold his doom.</p>
+
+<p>He continued thus for weeks, a miserable, ill-humoured, irritated
+and troubled man.</p>
+
+<p>The month of August came, warm almost to suffocation. Mr. Rougeant
+often felt cold. He would sit for hours before the fire, his feet
+stretched at full length, his hands buried in his pockets, and his
+drooping chin resting on his bosom. His eyes were closed.</p>
+
+<p>As he sat thus one afternoon, a flood of anger roused him up; he
+rose, waxed warm, his tottering steps feverishly paced the room for
+a time, then sunk back into his chair, a passion-beaten, exhausted
+and perspiring man.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_187" id="Page_187">[Pg 187]</a></span></p>
+<p>He had strange thoughts sometimes. Willingly would he "have shuffled
+off his mortal coil; but that the dread of something after death,
+that undiscovered country, from whose bourne no traveller returns,
+puzzled his will, and made him rather bear the ills he had, than fly
+to others that he knew not of."</p>
+
+<p>One day, Mrs. Dorant, whom he had engaged to look after the house,
+found him meditatively examining a piece of rope, which he held in
+his hand. She was alarmed and beckoned to her husband, who was near.</p>
+
+<p>He went up to his employer, who, directly he saw that he was being
+observed, threw the rope away from him excitedly.</p>
+
+<p>"You look ill, Mr. Rougeant," said Jacques, as he scrutinized the
+pale face and haggard look of the farmer.</p>
+
+<p>"So I am," was the answer.</p>
+
+<p>"Shall I fetch a doctor, or&mdash;&mdash;."</p>
+
+<p>"Go about your work," angrily commanded Mr. Rougeant.</p>
+
+<p>Jacques did as he was bid. He, however, watched the farmer. Every
+morning, he expected to find him hanging from a beam. But as time
+passed on, Mr. Rougeant seemed to improve.</p>
+
+<p>He had, in fact, abandoned the horrible thought of putting an end to
+his existence.</p>
+
+<p>He continued thus to live for more than four years; when his health
+once more gave way.</p>
+
+<p>At the thought of death, he shuddered. To die alone, with no friend
+to close his eyelids, to die like a dog, ay worse, to leave behind
+him the reward of his labours and thrift to persons who had defied
+him, was intolerable.</p>
+
+<p>For they had had the impudence to tell him at<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_188" id="Page_188">[Pg 188]</a></span> the solicitor's
+office that he could not make a will giving his property to others;
+he could not disinherit his daughter.</p>
+
+<p>All this vexed him. He sank on the <i>jonqui&egrave;re</i> exclaiming "Alas!"</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_189" id="Page_189">[Pg 189]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XXVII.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">Reconciliation.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 106px;">
+<img src="images/img_m.jpg" width="106" height="88" alt="M" title="" />
+</div><p>r. Rougeant's condition continued to aggravate. The thought of
+death struck his heart with terror. Behind him, he left a life of
+selfishness and bigotry. No good deed, no act of self-denial to
+soften the pangs of a stricken conscience.</p>
+
+<p>Before him, everything seemed dark, mysterious, awe-inspiring,
+despairing; for aught he knew, a just chastisement awaited him.</p>
+
+<p>He had toiled for gold; he had obtained it. What a man soweth that
+shall he also reap.</p>
+
+<p>In spite of his avarice and the knowledge that a consultation to the
+doctor would cost him something, Mr. Rougeant's terror overcoming
+all these; he resolved to see a physician.</p>
+
+<p>He did not send Jacques to fetch one, the visit of the medical man
+would have cost him too much; he drove thither in his phaeton.</p>
+
+<p>The doctor who was consulted said the disease was of long standing.</p>
+
+<p>He gave Mr. Rougeant a bottle of medicine for which the latter
+grudgingly paid three francs, and told the farmer to come and see
+him again in a few days.</p>
+
+<p>As Mr. Rougeant was descending the Rohais, his old horse trotting
+slowly and joggedly, an unwelcome thought flashed across his mind.
+"I must be in the vicinity of their house," he said to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_190" id="Page_190">[Pg 190]</a></span> himself,
+then he made a gesture with his right hand. "Bah! what have I to do
+with them."</p>
+
+<p>He felt very lonely, his spirits were depressed, the doctor's
+remarks did not tend to enliven him.</p>
+
+<p>He heard a cry. He thought he recognized the voice of his little
+Ad&egrave;le.</p>
+
+<p>Was he dreaming? He roused himself. His horse had stopped short. He
+looked to see what was the matter. In front of his horse, a child
+lay crying. What a flood of memories that childish wail had the
+effect of forcing upon him.</p>
+
+<p>He jumped off his vehicle, picked up the child and asked: "Are you
+hurt?" He intended to have spoken softly, but his voice seemed to
+have completely lost that power or any approach to it. The child
+looked up half afraid, and did not answer. "Are you hurt, my little
+man?" he again asked, endeavouring to soften his voice. Vain
+attempt; he only succeeded in speaking low.</p>
+
+<p>The "little man" who, by the by, was a girl, ceased crying, looked
+at his interlocutor and answered: "No."</p>
+
+<p>The child had only been knocked down by the horse's knee whilst
+crossing the road; and thanks to the sagacity of the old mare, had
+escaped unhurt.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant again bent towards the child: "Where do you live?" he
+questioned.</p>
+
+<p>"Vere," said the child with such a vague wave of the hand that any
+of the three corners of the island might have been implicated in her
+childish, "There."</p>
+
+<p>"But where is it. Down that way"&mdash;pointing with his finger,&mdash;"or up
+that way."</p>
+
+<p>The child made a little gesture with her mouth, "a <i>moue</i>" as the
+French call it, and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_191" id="Page_191">[Pg 191]</a></span> pointed with her lips towards the bottom of the
+hill. The farmer mounted his carriage, holding the child in his
+arms, and drove away. Meanwhile, the child felt quite at home; she
+was examining this rough man attentively.</p>
+
+<p>An indescribable something was passing within the farmer's soul.</p>
+
+<p>That little child clinging confidently to him, her large blue eyes
+expressing thankfulness and contentment filled him with a queer, but
+by no means unpleasant sensation. He was catching a glimpse of the
+joy that is reaped through performing a good action.</p>
+
+<p>There was something more than this, some power at work which he
+could not analyze. There was something in that childish voice and
+mien; that penetrated his soul and reminded him of former days.</p>
+
+<p>He felt a tender sensation gradually overwhelming him. His heart of
+stone melted, a tear rolled down that hard featured and deep
+wrinkled visage.</p>
+
+<p>"You cry," said the child, "are you hurt?"</p>
+
+<p>He roused himself, brushed away the tell-tale tear with a quick
+movement of his right arm and whipped up his horse.</p>
+
+<p>"Are you hurt?" repeated the little girl who was not to be put off
+so easily.</p>
+
+<p>"No;" he answered, almost softly.</p>
+
+<p>"Trot; I like to see a horse trot," said the child.</p>
+
+<p>But Mr. Rougeant was looking round to see if he could discern
+someone searching for the child.</p>
+
+<p>"What is your father's name?" asked the farmer.</p>
+
+<p>"Papa."</p>
+
+<p>"Humph! and your mother's?"</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_192" id="Page_192">[Pg 192]</a></span></p>
+<p>"Mamma."</p>
+
+<p>He tried another expedient. "What do people say to your papa, Mr.
+What."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes; I fink it's Mr. What."</p>
+
+<p>The farmer looked puzzled. He saw a man approaching. "I will ask him
+if he knows where the child lives," he was saying to himself, when
+the little girl exclaimed: "Ah! there's 'ma; look, she's looking
+frough the window."</p>
+
+<p>"'Ma;" she cried, "I've had a ride."</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant looked round. So this was where the child lived. He
+descended from the phaeton holding the little girl in his arms and
+stood confronting&mdash;&mdash;his daughter.</p>
+
+<p>They recognized each other. There was a moment of embarrassment.</p>
+
+<p>Then the farmer, without a word, not a muscle of his face betraying
+his emotion, handed over the parcel, turned on his heels and
+mounting the conveyance was soon out of view.</p>
+
+<p>He did not even cast a glance behind him. His daughter watched him
+disappear, then re-entered the house.</p>
+
+<p>"Poor father," she sighed, "what a great change, what an emaciated
+figure; he has already the appearance of a ghost."</p>
+
+<p>Then, seating herself upon a sofa, she meditated a long time.
+Finally, her face assumed a determined expression; "Come what may,"
+she said to herself; "I will not leave him descend thus into the
+grave. I will make at least one real effort at reconciliation. If I
+do not succeed, I shall be free from remorse."</p>
+
+<p>She talked the matter over with her husband when he came home.</p>
+
+<p>"You look terribly in earnest," said he. "If<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_193" id="Page_193">[Pg 193]</a></span> only your father
+possessed a heart, I should hope. I think that with the zeal which
+you now show you would melt a heart of stone. However, the task is a
+noble one, and if you succeed, I shall only be too glad to welcome
+my father-in-law."</p>
+
+<p>Next morning, Mrs. Mathers directed her steps towards "Les Marches."
+She had undertaken what seemed to be a stupendous task, and she
+resolved to pursue it energetically.</p>
+
+<p>This was why she went to her father's house in person.</p>
+
+<p>While she was nearing her birth-place her father was lying in his
+bed, ill. Mrs. Dorant watched near him as he tossed about his couch.</p>
+
+<p>At times he was calmer than at others; one could discern the traces
+upon his face softening. For he was thinking of the time when a
+little girl used to nestle upon his knee, a little child exactly
+resembling the one with which he had talked on the previous day.</p>
+
+<p>He could not help thinking: "I was happier then than I now am. I had
+a loving wife, a child whose innocence softened my heart; but now, I
+am abandoned by everyone."</p>
+
+<p>He set his teeth, he again tossed about his couch and muttered: "It
+is all through my daughter's fault; she might be respectably
+married. Still, she looked happy and contented. I know these
+fellows, they eat and drink everything which is not spent in
+superfluities."</p>
+
+<p>As Mrs. Mathers approached the front door of "Les Marches," she felt
+a tremor pass through her whole frame. The once familiar
+surroundings and the ennobling object of her visit inspired her with
+strangely tender feelings.</p>
+
+<p>Her soul was deeply moved as she entered the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_194" id="Page_194">[Pg 194]</a></span> house. There was the
+kitchen with its primitive and quaint furniture. It was deserted.
+She seated herself on a chair and began to ponder.</p>
+
+<p>Soft was to be her voice, tender were to be her appeals to his
+conscience, earnest her entreaties, she was to plead with patience,
+and appeal to his most heart-melting sentiments.</p>
+
+<p>She heard someone coming downstairs. "It is he," she said to
+herself, and she braced herself for the encounter.</p>
+
+<p>"How you frighten me Miss&mdash;I beg your pardon&mdash;Madam."</p>
+
+<p>It was Mrs. Dorant who uttered these words as she stood in the
+doorway seemingly afraid to enter, fearing the visitor might turn
+out to be a ghost.</p>
+
+<p>"It is you, Mrs. Dorant," said Mrs. Mathers; "is my father
+upstairs?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, ma'am."</p>
+
+<p>"Is he ill?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, ma'am."</p>
+
+<p>"Dangerously?"</p>
+
+<p>"Not very; he does not want us to fetch the doctor. But what have
+you come here for? If Mr. Rougeant saw you&mdash;oh&mdash;;" here she threw up
+both her hands and opened her mouth and eyes wide&mdash;"oh&mdash;" she
+continued, "master would swallow you."</p>
+
+<p>"Do you think so; but I mean to go upstairs and to talk to him."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, don't go," she entreated, fixing her supplicating eyes upon
+Ad&egrave;le, "he might kill you."</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Mathers laughed. "No," she said, "he is my father; he is ill
+and needs me. I am going to discharge my duty towards him." And so
+saying she ascended the creaky staircase.</p>
+
+<p>To this day, she cannot explain the sensation<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_195" id="Page_195">[Pg 195]</a></span> which she felt as she
+entered the room where her father lay.</p>
+
+<p>She went straight up to her father's bedside, sank on her knees,
+took the hand that was lying on the bedclothes between both hers and
+began to weep.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant quickly withdrew his hand, he contracted his brow, his
+lips slightly curved, he looked on her with contempt.</p>
+
+<p>"What do you want?" he said roughly. "You come to beg, you pauper,
+your angry creditors are clamouring for their money, you are on the
+verge of bankruptcy. I knew it;" he added triumphantly.</p>
+
+<p>"Father, it is true, I come to beg, but not for money. I am not
+poor."</p>
+
+<p>He looked at her suspiciously.</p>
+
+<p>She turned upon him her tearful eyes and softly said: "Father, you
+are miserable, I want to render you happy once more."</p>
+
+<p>To her great surprise, he did not answer, but his countenance fell.
+"Who has told her that I am miserable and that I wish to be happy
+once more?" he mused.</p>
+
+<p>His daughter seized this opportunity. She took the tide at the
+flood. She pleaded earnestly and tenderly.</p>
+
+<p>Then, as he balanced between pride and prejudice on one side, and a
+life of peace and contentment on the other, her persuasive voice
+made the tendrils of his heart move uneasily.</p>
+
+<p>This stone-hearted man wept.</p>
+
+<p>So did his daughter. And amidst this flood of tears, father and
+daughter were reconciled once more.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant grew rapidly better. He had<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_196" id="Page_196">[Pg 196]</a></span> something to live for now.
+He, however, would not quit his farm.</p>
+
+<p>"Why don't you come and live here?" he said to Frank one evening as
+they sat near a blazing fire in the parlour of "Les Marches."</p>
+
+<p>The idea struck Frank as being quite practicable. He was already
+prevented, from want of room, to extend his business at the Rohais.</p>
+
+<p>"You would not like to see greenhouses in your fields yonder;" he
+said.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, I would; besides, I have a lot of capital which might be
+profitably used up. We might form a partnership."</p>
+
+<p>"I must think it over," said Frank. He cast a look towards Ad&egrave;le,
+and as he met her beseeching eyes, he added smilingly: "I think we
+may as well consider the matter as settled."</p>
+
+<p>Frank's property at the Rohais was let. The farm at "Les Marches"
+underwent a complete transformation.</p>
+
+<p>For fully three months, there was such a rubbing and scrubbing,
+painting and papering, that everything was turned completely
+topsy-turvy.</p>
+
+<p>Order was at last evoked, the furniture from the Rohais was brought
+in and the farm-house was made a model of snugness and comfort
+within.</p>
+
+<p>Without, during those three months, nothing was heard but the noise
+of the carpenter's hammers and the click of the glazier's tools.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant was as completely transformed as his farm. He looked
+upon the whole with such an air of complacency that the neighbours
+remarked: "He is in his second infancy."</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_197" id="Page_197">[Pg 197]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XXVIII.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">A Sad End of a Mispent Life.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 64px;">
+<img src="images/img_i.jpg" width="64" height="85" alt="I" title="" />
+</div><p>n one of the numerous public-houses in the town of St. Peter-Port,
+surrounded by a gang of "roughs," a man, still young, sat on a
+stool.</p>
+
+<p>His face was terribly emaciated, and on it, one could discern all
+the traces of that demon, <i>alcohol</i>.</p>
+
+<p>In one of his agitated hands, he held a half-filled glass, in the
+other, a short, blackened clay-pipe.</p>
+
+<p>His glassy eyes had a strange look.</p>
+
+<p>He made an effort to carry the tumbler which he was holding to his
+lips, but his nerves and muscles refused to act.</p>
+
+<p>Here, we may as well say that this man's name was Tom Soher.</p>
+
+<p>"What's the matter, Tom?" said one of the men.</p>
+
+<p>"Nothing," responded he, making use of a very old form of lie.</p>
+
+<p>At this reassuring statement, the company resumed their
+conversation, and their drink.</p>
+
+<p>But Tom, after placing his glass on the counter, retired to one
+corner of the room, sat himself on an empty barrel and was soon fast
+asleep.</p>
+
+<p>It was a profound sleep, and, from time to time, the young man
+trembled convulsively. He opened a gaping mouth, he muttered some
+unintelligible words, but his "pals" noticed it not.</p>
+
+<p>They were accustomed to such scenes,&mdash;the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_198" id="Page_198">[Pg 198]</a></span> sight of man, who is no
+more man; an animal, lower in many respects than the brute.</p>
+
+<p>The sleeper was dreaming. He dreamt that he saw the same
+public-house in which he now was. But, instead of being built of
+granite,&mdash;as it really was,&mdash;its walls were one mass of human
+beings, piled one on top of the other.</p>
+
+<p>He could recognize some former companions who now were deceased.</p>
+
+<p>Their bodies served instead of stones, and their souls he discerned,
+placed in lieu of windows.</p>
+
+<p>Amidst the horrible mass of human flesh, he saw his father's body,
+crushed and terribly mangled; his face wore an expression of
+suffering, his whole body seemed borne down by a heavy and
+oppressive weight.</p>
+
+<p>Tom Soher looked at his father. The latter cast a sad and troubled
+look at his son.</p>
+
+<p>All at once, the drunken man saw himself seated upon his father's
+back. So this was the load that crushed him. He gazed upon his
+resemblance; a mere shadow of his former self.</p>
+
+<p>As he contemplated this sad picture, he saw, issuing out of his
+mouth&mdash;his soul.</p>
+
+<p>An inexpressible fear and a sense of suffocation seized him.</p>
+
+<p>He tried to explain to himself this curious vision. "Bah! 'tis but a
+dream," he muttered; "ah! someone is grasping my throat. I am
+dying." He lifted his eyes towards heaven. They encountered the
+ceiling.</p>
+
+<p>As he sought in vain to rouse himself from that awful state of
+lethargy, something within him whispered: "This house is built with
+the price of bodies and of souls."</p>
+
+<p>He listened eagerly. The voice was silent.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_199" id="Page_199">[Pg 199]</a></span></p>
+<p>Then the awful interpretation of this strange vision dawned upon his
+troubled mind. "Is it possible that I have given both my body and my
+soul in exchange for drink. My soul! Alas!"</p>
+
+<p>He struggled to shake himself free. Another fit of suffocation
+seized him in its deathly embrace. He tried to shout or to entreat
+mercy, but his tongue refused to utter a sound and his heart was as
+hard and as cold as the stones over which the vehicle in which he
+was lying rolled.</p>
+
+<p>For Tom Soher was in a closed carriage. When closing time came, the
+owner of the public-house had him placed in a conveyance and sent
+home.</p>
+
+<p>He realised this, as a dull, but deep-seated pain, caused him to
+open his eyes. He looked wildly round.</p>
+
+<p>The carriage rattled over the newly macadamized road, and he was
+dying, unable to cry for help, incapable of articulating a single
+sound.</p>
+
+<p>He struck his fist frantically out, intending to smash the window,
+but his blow fell an inch short of its intended mark.</p>
+
+<p>Then all his past life seemed to roll before his eyes, a mispent,
+futile, licentious life, in which the bad passions had predominated,
+and finally hustled him to his doom. A dreadful sense of fear seized
+him. He raised himself upon one of his elbows, his eyes were wide
+open, and in them, there was not the expression that is seen in
+those of a dying beast, which seems to say "It is finished;" his
+eyes expressed a conviction of something yonder, coupled with a look
+of blank despair.</p>
+
+<p>The elbow upon which he was supporting himself gave way, and he fell
+back&mdash;dead.</p>
+
+<p>As the driver approached the "Prenoms," he whistled gaily. He little
+dreamt of the surprise<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_200" id="Page_200">[Pg 200]</a></span> which awaited him. He drove straight through
+the open gate into the farmyard.</p>
+
+<p>When Mrs. Soher heard the sound of the carriage wheels, she went to
+the door of the house, opened it and said: "Here he comes again, the
+poor inebriate."</p>
+
+<p>"Now, ma'am, here's your son; he's had a glass too much, but he'll
+be right enough after a bit o' sleep;" and so saying, the driver
+opened the carriage door while Mrs. Soher approached, lantern in
+hand. Her daughter followed her.</p>
+
+<p>They came close to the driver, who stood stock-still, his mouth half
+open, his whole body trembling like an aspen leaf. At last, he
+recovered himself sufficiently to speak. "Jerusalem&mdash;he's dead," he
+muttered in a hoarse and frightened tone.</p>
+
+<p>The dead man's mother let fall the lantern which she was holding,
+her legs gave way under her, and she fell down and fainted.</p>
+
+<p>Her daughter was also greatly moved. She began to sob.</p>
+
+<p>"What must we do?" questioned the man.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, I don't know," she answered, crying; then, after a few moments'
+pause, she said: "Call the neighbours."</p>
+
+<p>The man gave a shout. Two men from the house on the other side of
+the road appeared at the door.</p>
+
+<p>"This way, please, be quick;" shouted the driver.</p>
+
+<p>The men precipitated themselves towards the spot. Mrs. Soher was
+carried to her room upstairs and left to the care of her daughter
+who applied restoratives.</p>
+
+<p>The corpse was carried into another room and laid upon a bed. The
+eyes remained wide open.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_201" id="Page_201">[Pg 201]</a></span></p>
+<p>The neighbours sent away the carriage and its owner; one of them
+remained in the house while the other went for a doctor.</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Soher regained consciousness, and as her senses returned to
+her, she cried bitterly: "My poor son, my dear son."</p>
+
+<p>At this stage, Mr. Soher came home. He was surprised to find his
+neighbour seated near the fire in the kitchen. His surprise was
+changed into anguish, when the neighbour, in a few words, informed
+him of Tom's sad fate.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Soher was horrified. With a blanched face and tottering steps he
+ascended the stairs and entered the room in which lay his wife. Upon
+seeing him, his wife uttered heart-rending cries: "Oh, Thomas, what
+are we going to do; our only son." Her sobs choked her.</p>
+
+<p>Her husband did not say a word. He turned on his heels, closed the
+door after him, and entered the room in which lay his son's corpse.</p>
+
+<p>As he glanced at those dilated eyes, a chill ran through his frame.
+"Great God; is it possible?" he exclaimed, raising his eyes to
+heaven; "my son, my son."</p>
+
+<p>He paced up and down the room with feverish steps, a prey to the
+most poignant grief. His conscience upbraided him loudly. It said:</p>
+
+<p>"Behold your son whose education you have overlooked; behold him
+whom you have left to grow in vice, without an effort worth the name
+to save him from the ruinous bent of his bad passions."</p>
+
+<p>"I know it; 'tis all my fault," exclaimed the grief and
+conscience-stricken man. "I have not done half of what I might have
+done for him.</p>
+
+<p>"Animated by a false pride, I desired to shine<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_202" id="Page_202">[Pg 202]</a></span> among my
+fellow-worshippers, and have been continually away from home,
+neglecting my duty there, to satisfy my ambition. Miserable man that
+I am."</p>
+
+<p>He cast his eyes towards the lifeless body of which the eyes met his
+and seemed to reproach him for having shirked his duty.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, God! wilt thou ever forgive me?" he cried in wild despair;
+"what can I do to atone? If one half, if a tenth part of the energy
+which I have displayed elsewhere had been employed in bringing up my
+son as I ought to have done, this would not be."</p>
+
+<p>He continued thus to soliloquize, now and then stopping abruptly in
+his nervous walk to gaze upon those reproachful eyes, then resuming
+his wanderings, blaming himself continually.</p>
+
+<p>He was in the midst of his peregrinations when his daughter entered
+the room.</p>
+
+<p>"Father," she said, "a woman who is downstairs wishes to speak with
+you."</p>
+
+<p>The troubled man did not answer. What was this to him; what was all
+the world to him compared with his grief?</p>
+
+<p>"She says her daughter, who is dying, wishes to see you," continued
+the young woman.</p>
+
+<p>"Tell her I am coming," said Mr. Soher.</p>
+
+<p>A dying woman wishing to see him. How could he refuse that? Perhaps
+he would be the means of doing some good to this person. If he could
+thus begin to atone for his want of dutifulness towards his son.</p>
+
+<p>He went downstairs.</p>
+
+<p>"My daughter wishes to see you now," said his visitor. "You will
+come, Sir; you will not refuse a dying woman's request?"</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_203" id="Page_203">[Pg 203]</a></span></p>
+<p>"Refuse; certainly not," he said, and he immediately accompanied his
+visitor.</p>
+
+<p>They walked the whole distance which separated the two houses
+without a word being exchanged between them.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Soher's thoughts were with the dead; his companion was already
+grieving for the daughter which she felt sure she was about to lose.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Soher was ushered near the dying woman's bed. The latter was
+raving, but directly she perceived him she fixed her gaze upon him,
+her wild, rambling talk ceased, her mind seemed to regain its
+lucidity. She exclaimed: "I have not found it, therefore I am lost
+for ever."</p>
+
+<p>"What have you not found?" he said kindly.</p>
+
+<p>"Listen," said she. "Some time ago, I entered a small place of
+worship in which a man was delivering an address, or, as he called
+it, a testimonial.</p>
+
+<p>"He said that when he had been converted, he had felt a heavenly ray
+of light flooding his very soul. He said he felt as if an electric
+battery had come in contact with his entrails. At the same time, he
+heard a voice clearly saying: 'My son, thy sins are forgiven thee.'</p>
+
+<p>"This man, who was no other than you, Sir, said that if his hearers
+had not clearly heard this divine voice and experienced this shock,
+they were doomed. He exhorted the congregation to seek for these
+blessings.</p>
+
+<p>"I went home impressed. I decided to seek for these things of which
+you spoke. I prayed, I hoped, I waited, but I have never felt half
+of what you promised your audience they would find.</p>
+
+<p>"Now, I am then to understand that I am rejected.</p>
+
+<p>"Rejected! oh Heaven."</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_204" id="Page_204">[Pg 204]</a></span></p>
+<p>The poor woman burst into tears and uttered a wail of despair.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Soher tried to soothe her.</p>
+
+<p>"No," she said, "you are trying to deceive me, you are not speaking
+the truth."</p>
+
+<p>He protested. "It was then, that I did not speak the truth," he
+said. "I was exalted, I went too far."</p>
+
+<p>"Is it true?" said the dying woman.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh yes, do believe me."</p>
+
+<p>"I believe you," she said sneeringly.</p>
+
+<p>The fever was again coming upon her. She began to wander in her
+speech.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Soher, at a sign from the mother, who had followed him into the
+room, withdrew.</p>
+
+<p>His brain was on fire. His heart was full of the deepest and keenest
+anguish.</p>
+
+<p>"What have I done?" he muttered. "I wanted to be thought a saint.
+Not being one, I acted the hypocrite. Now, here I am, maimed,
+afflicted, weighed down with grief."</p>
+
+<p>He reached his home&mdash;a wreck.</p>
+
+<p>A few days afterwards, poor Tom's body was buried in the churchyard.</p>
+
+<p>From that day, life at the "Prenoms" was completely changed.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Soher examined himself and his surroundings.</p>
+
+<p>He saw that he was drifting towards bankruptcy. He resolved&mdash;he did
+more&mdash;he went to work, to try and avert the catastrophe. He
+succeeded in all that he undertook, for he worked with a will.</p>
+
+<p>His lost son was not brought back to life, neither was the land
+which he had sold redeemed, but he managed to supply his wants and
+those of his family, besides putting something by for a rainy day.</p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_205" id="Page_205">[Pg 205]</a></span></p><hr class="section" />
+<h3>CHAPTER XXIX.</h3>
+
+<div class="chaptit">Domestic Happiness.</div>
+
+<hr class="tenth" />
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 74px;">
+<img src="images/img_t.jpg" width="74" height="88" alt="T" title="" />
+</div><p>hey had had a hard day's work at "Les Marches," packing tomatoes
+for the English markets.</p>
+
+<p>It was the month of September. The days were growing short and the
+nights long.</p>
+
+<p>After the day's occupations were over, the family assembled in the
+neatly furnished parlour. Frank wrote his letters of advice to his
+fruit merchants. Then he took a German book, "Hauff's stories," and
+proceeded to read the diverting history of "Little Mudj," making
+frequent use of the vocabulary.</p>
+
+<p>Afterwards, to relax his mind, he took a French book. It was one of
+the works of Blaise Pascal, his "Lettres Provinciales." He admired
+their originality, the trenchant satire, and the galling blows of
+this man whom Ch&acirc;teaubriand called a "frightful genius."</p>
+
+<p>As he read the beautiful passages which had issued from this great
+man's mind, he became imbued with some of the flame that had
+inspired the author of the book.</p>
+
+<p>He placed the volume on the table, rested his head upon his hand and
+began to think of his past life.</p>
+
+<p>He thought of his ambition to acquire riches, and of how he had been
+deceived. Providence had ordered otherwise and baffled him.</p>
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_206" id="Page_206">[Pg 206]</a></span></p>
+<p>He was very well off now, but how differently from what he had
+anticipated, he had acquired his present position.</p>
+
+<p>He thought of his mental sufferings, the acute brain, the
+deep-seated ambition torturing him.</p>
+
+<p>He no longer asked himself why he had endured pain. Had he never
+suffered, he would never have attained the moral position in which
+he now was. It was when he was disgusted with the world, when he
+experienced an aversion for earthly things, that his firmest
+resolves had been formed and his determination to do good
+solidified. It was then that he attempted to rise above the dusty,
+monotonous and weary walks of ordinary life; it was then that his
+virtuous sensibility had been awakened, and that his lofty
+conceptions had been framed. And now, having aimed at something
+noble, he was leading a useful, happy, and dignified life.</p>
+
+<p>He was cheerful, and possessed of some of that supreme happiness
+which brightens the soul, and accompanies it through immortality.</p>
+
+<p>He had said: "Why endure pain?" But it was with the same senses that
+he now enjoyed pleasure.</p>
+
+<p>He had said: "Why suffer physically?" "Why," he thought, "if that
+little child did not feel, and had not experienced the pangs of
+hunger, it would now be dead; so would I, if, when I was wrapped in
+thick smoke, the foul gases had not irritated my bronchial tubes and
+my eyes.</p>
+
+<p>"As for the remainder, I am satisfied to leave it to Him who has
+cared for and protected me so far through life. Perhaps the day will
+come when I shall also know the why and wherefore of things which I
+almost dared to accuse an all-wise Providence of having sent into
+the world."</p>
+
+<p>While her husband was soliloquizing thus, Mrs.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_207" id="Page_207">[Pg 207]</a></span> Mathers was busily
+engaged in stitching a smart little pinafore of diaper.</p>
+
+<p>Grandpapa was resting upon the sofa with little Ad&egrave;le seated on his
+knee.</p>
+
+<p>He held both the child's hands in his, the left one he held in his
+left hand, and the right one he held in his right hand. Taking
+Ad&egrave;le's right-hand forefinger and placing it in her left hand, he
+began to tell her a little story about a lark, which he remembered
+his mother used to recite to him when he was a little boy.</p>
+
+<p>"A little lark built its nest there," he began.</p>
+
+<p>"Here, in my hand?" said the child.</p>
+
+<p>"We shall suppose the little bird did so," answered Mr. Rougeant.
+"It passed this way, and the thumb caught it."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah-ha," laughed little Ad&egrave;le.</p>
+
+<p>"This finger plucked its feathers, this one cooked it, and&mdash;this one
+ate it."</p>
+
+<p>Frank made some remark.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Rougeant looked up.</p>
+
+<p>"And the little one," said Ad&egrave;le, pulling impatiently on her
+grandfather's sleeve, "you have not told me what the little one
+did."</p>
+
+<p>"Indeed! well, the little one was left without a single crumb."</p>
+
+<p>"Poor little one," said the child.</p>
+
+<div class="center">END.</div>
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+<pre>
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Silver Lining, by John Roussel
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+</body>
+</html>
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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Silver Lining, by John Roussel
+
+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: The Silver Lining
+       A Guernsey Story
+
+Author: John Roussel
+
+Release Date: January 13, 2009 [EBook #27798]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SILVER LINING ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by StevenGibbs, KarenD, and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+
+
+
+
+THE SILVER LINING
+
+
+_A GUERNSEY STORY._
+
+
+  BY
+
+  JOHN ROUSSEL.
+
+
+  Guernsey:
+  FREDERICK BLONDEL GUERIN,
+  "THE SUN" OFFICE, HIGH STREET.
+
+  1894.
+
+
+
+
+INDEX.
+
+
+  CHAPTER    I.--THE RESULTS OF DISOBEDIENCE                       3
+            II.--A LITTLE GIRL'S CHANGE OF LIFE                   15
+           III.--THE BOARDING SCHOOL                              24
+            IV.--THE INFLUENCES OF A GOOD HOME                    33
+             V.--THE REWARD OF INORDINATE AMBITION                45
+            VI.--NEW ACQUAINTANCES                                54
+           VII.--AN ABRUPT DISMISSAL                              62
+          VIII.--AN UNPLEASANT VISIT                              72
+            IX.--DECEPTIONS                                       79
+             X.--'TWIXT LOVE AND DUTY                             84
+            XI.--BUSINESS                                         91
+           XII.--A STRANGE MEETING                                96
+          XIII.--SUPERSTITION                                    102
+           XIV.--FAILURE                                         107
+            XV.--DARK DAYS                                       115
+           XVI.--SHADOW AND SUNSHINE                             125
+          XVII.--THE EFFECTS OF A SERMON                         130
+         XVIII.--SUCCESS AFTER SUCCESS                           135
+           XIX.--TOM'S INTERVIEW WITH MRS. VIDOUX                143
+            XX.--TOM'S VISIT TO HIS UNCLE                        148
+           XXI.--THE ENCOUNTER                                   153
+          XXII.--FATHER AND DAUGHTER                             159
+         XXIII.--A SECRET CORRESPONDENCE                         163
+          XXIV.--MR. ROUGEANT GOES TO CHURCH                     169
+           XXV.--LOVE TRIUMPHS                                   173
+          XXVI.--WEDDED                                          183
+         XXVII.--RECONCILIATION                                  189
+        XXVIII.--A SAD END OF A MISPENT LIFE                     197
+          XXIX.--DOMESTIC HAPPINESS                              205
+
+
+
+
+THE SILVER LINING.
+
+A GUERNSEY STORY.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+
+THE RESULTS OF DISOBEDIENCE.
+
+
+One fine summer afternoon--it was the month of June--the sea was
+calm, the air was still, and the sun was warm.
+
+The mackerel boats from Cobo (a bay in the island of Guernsey) were
+setting sail; an old woman was detaching limpets from the rocks, and
+slowly, but steadily, filling up her basket. On the west side of the
+bay, two air-starved Londoners were sitting on the sand, basking in
+the sunshine, determined to return home, if not invigorated, at
+least bronzed by the sea air. On the east side, a few little boys
+were bathing. A middle-aged man, engaged in searching for sand-eels,
+completed the picture.
+
+A little boy, who might have been nine years of age, was standing in
+the road gazing upon this scene. The way in which he was clothed,
+betokened that he was not one of the lads that lived in the vicinity
+of that bay. He was dressed in a well-fitting knickerbocker suit,
+and his polished boots, his well combed hair, denoted that he was an
+object of especial care at home. He possessed a very intelligent
+air, a fine forehead, rather large eyes which were full of
+expression, and his frowning look, the way in which he stamped his
+little foot, denoted that he was of an impulsive temperament. This
+little fellow had some very good ideas. He had determined to be
+good, and unselfish; and he tried to learn as much as he possibly
+could. His mother had told him that later on this would help him in
+life.
+
+Once, an inquisitive pedlar, noticing his intelligence, and his
+garrulous disposition, asked him jokingly if he ever intended to
+marry. Upon which Frank Mathers (this was the boy's name) assumed a
+serious air, and giving his head a little toss he answered, "I do
+not know yet, there are so many beautiful little girls everywhere,
+one does not know which one to choose."
+
+A physiognomist might easily have seen that in this little boy's
+soul a struggle was going on. "Shall I go?" he was saying to
+himself; "shall I go and amuse myself?" His conscience had a great
+power over him; but the beautiful sea was tempting, each wave as it
+fell produced a sound which was sweeter to his ears than the
+sweetest music.
+
+"Your mother has forbidden you to go;" said his conscience; "you
+must obey her."
+
+He continued to remain undecided between pleasure and duty, the
+strife going on meanwhile within him. All at once, he espied on his
+extreme left four small boys about his size, who were coming out of
+the water. How they laughed; how joyful they seemed to be; how they
+made the water splash and foam around them. Frank immediately began
+to run at full speed towards them, and covered the space of sand
+which separated him from the little boys in two minutes. He arrived
+breathless near the group of children who were dressing themselves.
+He looked at them, and was asking himself if he must go nearer to
+them, when one of the group looked at him with a surly air. Little
+Frank translated this into: "What business have you here?" and
+retreated.
+
+He began to examine the man who was looking for sand-eels. The
+fisherman was digging in the gravel with a spade, and now and then a
+few of the little fishes were dislodged from their hiding place.
+They wriggled in such a lively fashion that Frank was greatly
+amused, and forgot, for a time, all about his first desire of a run
+in the sea.
+
+He laughed aloud when he saw a big sand-eel, bigger than any which
+the man had yet captured--for he took the trouble to go and see in
+his basket--escape into the water and swim out of the man's reach.
+
+The fisherman was evidently annoyed at having lost this fine
+specimen, and when he saw this little fellow laughing, and standing
+quite close to his basket, he grew angry, and in a rough tone of
+voice, speaking in Guernsey French, he exclaimed: "Begone, you
+impudent little rascal."
+
+Now, little Frank did not know French, and consequently did not
+understand a single word of what this man said, but he hastily
+retreated. "He must have uttered something terrible," he said to
+himself; "what an ugly face. Why is this man vexed with me? I have
+done nothing to grieve him; only bent over his basket and laughed
+when I saw that fish escape; but why did not the man laugh also? It
+was so amusing."
+
+He looked round to see whether he could discover any of those little
+boys who had attracted his attention when he was in the road, but
+none of them were visible. There were a few persons here and there,
+but no one was near him. He made sure of this by directing his eyes
+successively in the direction of every point of the compass. The
+"sand-eel man" was still busy, but he was far enough. Frank hastened
+behind a small rock and began to undress. As he did so, he
+experienced a series of queer sensations. He was tasting pleasure at
+the expense of his conscience, and, struggle as he would, he felt
+unhappy. It was the first time that he thus openly disregarded his
+mother's commands, and it cost him something to do so.
+
+It did not take him long to divest himself of his clothing. He was
+soon in the water, dancing and romping. The water around him
+resembled that of Lodore.
+
+He now felt happy, having forgotten all about his mother and the
+errand which she had sent him to accomplish.
+
+The water was warm; the little green crabs that walked sideways
+passing quite close to him, amused him considerably. He passed a
+portion of his time chasing them. Then he waded farther into the
+water till it came up to his hips. Ah, this was pleasure indeed! He
+would not have exchanged his place for a suite of rooms in
+Buckingham Palace.
+
+He had been in the water for about a quarter of an hour. He glanced
+round to see if the fisherman was to be seen. No trace of him now.
+
+"He has gone home," he thought. He began to feel cold. "I must go
+and dress," he said to himself, "or I shall catch cold, and then
+mamma will know that I have been bathing."
+
+Frank proceeded towards the place where he had placed his clothes,
+but as he approached the shore, he found that the water seemed to be
+getting warmer. This discovery was the cause of his staying five
+minutes longer in the water than he would otherwise have done.
+
+Then he again betook himself towards _terra firma_. "Hullo,
+what's this?" And he held up a boot. "How strange, it looks exactly
+like mine," he muttered. Then a thought--a flash shot through his
+brain, immediately followed by a pang through his heart. The
+thought--"where are my clothes?"--the pang--the result of his
+disappointing glance towards the place in which he had placed them.
+He was out of the water in the twinkling of an eye. The boot which
+he had found was in his hand. Where were his trousers? where was his
+coat? There was his shirt being knocked about by the waves! He
+rushed upon it, threw it on the gravel near his boot, and began
+tremblingly to search for his other garments. He at last succeeded
+in bringing together the following collection: One pair of trousers,
+one stocking, one boot, one shirt. That was all.
+
+He was now shivering from head to foot, his teeth chattered in his
+mouth, his whole appearance was one of utter wretchedness. He did
+not cry; he was too miserable; he only kept muttering: "I will never
+disobey mamma any more; I will never do it, never, never."
+
+He looked round to ascertain that no one was looking at him. What
+was his vexation to discover the man with the sand-eels eyeing him,
+a repulsive grin covering his whole face, and a small black pipe
+stuck between his teeth.
+
+This sight, instead of discouraging Frank, made him assume an air of
+bravado. He took his shirt, wrung out the water, shook it and
+proceeded to put it on. How cold it was; how it stuck to his little
+body. It only made him shiver the more. He put his stocking on the
+left foot; then he put on his trousers, and lastly, his boot. This
+boot he put on the right foot so that his feet were both hidden from
+view. Then with a heavy and repentant heart--what person is not
+repentant when he sees himself in some nasty scrape caused by his
+own sinfulness?--he directed his irregular steps towards his home. A
+curious sight to gaze upon was this little fellow as he wearily
+plodded on his way.
+
+He had not advanced twenty yards when he took off his boot and put
+it on the other foot. He could not endure the pain that it caused
+him. He had not been accustomed to go without stockings, he had
+never tried the experiment before, and he wondered why his feet were
+so tender. He rose and began to walk once more. It was an unequal
+walk, like that of a person with a short leg. He stopped again. Some
+gravel had found its way into his boot, and the torture which it
+caused him was unendurable. He carefully withdrew all the
+pain-inflicting pebbles, brushed off the gravel that adhered to his
+stocking, and resumed his laborious task of walking. When he came
+into the road, the people which he met laughed at him. "Ah; what
+nasty people there are in these places," he thought. He fancied he
+was being punished. He had hoped to have had a lot of fun. He would
+have returned home, invented some pretext for having been longer
+than usual; and now, what a wretched plight he was in. Why was he
+not punished in another way? this was too severe, he had never
+sinned at that amount, he was receiving extra payment.
+
+Thus soliloquized our little man when he arrived near a farm-house
+called "Les Pins." He heard a pig squeak, and hastened along as fast
+as his naked and now sore foot would allow him.
+
+There, in the farmyard, was a sight which he had never before
+witnessed. One man, a butcher, was pulling on a rope which was tied
+around a porker's snout. Three other men were forcibly pushing the
+animal along. They made but little progress however, for master
+piggy placed his feet so firmly on the ground that it required all
+the efforts of the four men to make him move.
+
+At last he was with difficulty brought near the scaffold; the altar
+upon which he was to be sacrificed to supply the voracious appetites
+of man.
+
+He was forcibly lifted upon the wooden bench and firmly held down.
+Then the butcher twisted the piece of rope around his hand and the
+pig's snout, and unsheathing a sharp knife, he plunged it in the
+animal's throat. The porker's life-blood gushed out in a red stream.
+Frank fairly danced with joy. He forgot all his troubles while
+witnessing those of the pig. The latter tried to shake himself free.
+He filled the air with protestations against the treatment to which
+he was being subjected, he invoked his gods, but all in vain. Firmly
+held down by the four men he soon ceased to struggle and lay quite
+still.
+
+"It does not seem to me," Frank heard one of the men remark, "that
+he has given a very violent shake before dying, as porkers
+generally do." "Oh, he is dead enough," said the butcher, "fetch the
+water and let us make haste." The men obeyed the order which was
+given rather peremptorily and the half drunk butcher followed them,
+so did a lad of fourteen years (the heir to the estate), who,
+according to a Guernsey custom, had been holding the pig's tail.
+
+Frank was just considering whether he would go nearer to the animal
+when the latter gave a jump. In a moment piggy got down and galloped
+in an awkward fashion straight in the direction of Frank, who
+uttered a cry of terror and ran away as fast as his legs would carry
+him. He forgot all about his exposed foot, and received a few nasty
+bruises and cuts against the sharp stones that were placed in the
+road for macadamizing purposes.
+
+He cast an anxious glance behind him to see if the porker was
+following him, for he had now no other idea but that the pig was
+being sent to complete the punishment which he thought had been
+dealt out to him for his disobedience. But the porker was not to be
+seen. He had fallen dead after having run a few yards. When Frank
+came higher up the road, he proceeded to examine his foot. It hurt
+him considerably. He tied his handkerchief around it and resumed his
+walk. Seeing a great gap in the hedge he looked through it and saw
+that the men were plunging the porker in a great tub full of
+steaming water. Then followed a scraping with ormer shells, and, in
+a few minutes, the black pig was divested of his hairy coat. His
+skin was white and smooth, like those which Frank had seen at the
+meat market.
+
+Not caring to see more, and feeling very cold, he resumed his
+journey homewards. He was so excited with what he had witnessed,
+that he did not think so much about his wretched condition as he
+would otherwise have done, and when he arrived in front of his
+father's house, at the Rohais, he was almost cheerful.
+
+But he suddenly stopped short. "If I go inside with this countenance
+on, mamma will punish me severely," he thought.
+
+He therefore called to his aid all the hypocrisy which his years
+were able to muster, and assumed a most miserable expression. But
+this was not enough to satisfy Frank's idea of the exigencies of the
+present situation. He doubled his fists, rubbed his eyes vigorously,
+and uttered a very plaintive and doleful cry.
+
+Thus prepared, he entered the house by the back door, keeping a
+sharp look out through the corner of his eyes for his mother. She
+was not in the kitchen; he opened the door of the parlour; his eyes
+reddened and moistened by the friction to which they were being
+subjected, while his cries were heart-rending. Mrs. Mathers was not
+in the parlour. He stopped his sham crying, sat himself on a chair
+and listened eagerly for the sound of approaching footsteps; ready
+to recommence his little game as soon as his mother entered the
+house.
+
+No sound of approaching footsteps were however heard. Frank Mathers
+was now quite chilled, although the weather was very warm. His
+excitement had abated and he was feeling down-hearted. There was no
+fire in the room. Frank fetched a large coat (his father's) and
+wrapped it around him. He was busily engaged in this operation when
+his mother suddenly appeared upon the scene.
+
+She wore slippers, which accounted for his not having heard her
+footsteps.
+
+"Well?" she said, wondering what her son was about, "what are you
+wrapping yourself up for?"
+
+Frank was taken by surprise. He looked up with a very confused air.
+His mother misinterpreted his look. "Don't be silly, child," she
+said, "have you carried that letter to Mr. Gavet."
+
+"Yes, mamma," mumbled the little fellow, "but----" and he unbuttoned
+his coat and exhibited his dilapidated state before the eyes of his
+astonished mother. "What _have_ you been doing?" she questioned
+anxiously. "My clothes were caught by the sea," he sobbed, and
+genuine tears flowed down his cheeks.
+
+Then he confessed everything to his mother; how he had been tempted
+to enjoy himself despite her orders; how he had watched a man who
+was catching sand-eels; and, finally, how his clothes had been
+washed away by the rising tide.
+
+When he had finished speaking, he raised his eyes to see what kind
+of look his mother wore. Perceiving a cloud of sadness hanging over
+her brow, he jumped up and exclaimed: "Oh, mamma, do not look at me
+so; I will never disobey you any more."
+
+The mother took the now repentant son upon her knees, and, after
+having shown him the consequences of disobedience; after having
+spoken to him of the pain which he caused her through showing a
+disposition to do wrong and of the sin which he committed, she
+instructed him tenderly, and made an impression on his soft heart,
+such as a mother alone knows how to make. Then she kissed her son.
+"You forgive me, then?" said the boy. "Yes, my dear, I forgive you."
+
+Frank Mathers was so impressed with his mother's love that he
+silently determined never again to grieve her. "Now let me change
+your clothes. You might catch a severe cold and perhaps be ill for
+weeks after this. Do you feel ill?"
+
+"No, mamma, I am cold, that is all."
+
+When Frank was eating his supper that evening, his heart was full of
+thankfulness. "What a good mother I have," he thought, "I will never
+do anything contrary to her orders any more." He suddenly stopped
+eating. The thought of the porker struck him and he called out
+gently: "Mamma."
+
+"What is it my dear?"
+
+"A dead pig came running after me."
+
+Mrs. Mathers looked somewhat anxiously at her son. Was his mind
+going out?
+
+"They had killed a pig at a farm, and when they were gone to fetch
+some water, the porker jumped down and came running after me," said
+the little boy.
+
+The slight shock which the mother had received, had sufficed to
+flush her cheek.
+
+There was something strange in that bright tint on her face, it
+glowed with a strange light. Her eye had a kind, but far away
+glance; an almost divine expression. It was full of tenderness and
+melancholy. She seemed to belong to some other world then; her whole
+soul seemed to shine in that sweet face. This was how she looked as
+she gazed upon her son that evening, while he was finishing his
+supper, seemingly not at all astonished at his mother's silence. He
+had grown accustomed to these moments of pensiveness on his mother's
+part. Of late, she often fell into a strange reverie, and little
+Frank was yet too young to understand these symptoms always followed
+by a short, hollow cough. His mother was attacked with phthisis.
+
+When he had finished his supper, Frank again turned towards his
+mother.
+
+"How can a dead pig run?" he asked.
+
+"The pig was not dead," said his mother; "now make haste and go to
+bed. I don't want to have to nurse you to-morrow."
+
+The little boy obeyed, muttering to himself: "The pig _was_ dead. I
+believe what I have seen. Mamma must have misunderstood me."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II.
+
+A LITTLE GIRL'S CHANGE OF LIFE.
+
+
+Miss Rader was a tall, stiff, sour-faced lady of four-and-fifty. She
+kept a school for young country ladies at a place called "Fardot,"
+in one of the parishes adjoining the Forest.
+
+Among the pupils who were unfortunate enough to fall under her harsh
+rule was a certain little girl whose name was Adele Rougeant. She
+was the daughter of an avaricious farmer who lived at "Les Marches,"
+in the parish of the Forest.
+
+This little girl's mother had now been dead three years. Adele was
+then only four years of age.
+
+"You will place our daughter at Miss Rader's school till she is
+seven years of age," were the instructions of Mrs. Rougeant to her
+husband on her death-bed.
+
+This was not all; Mr. Rougeant was solicited by his wife to place
+Adele for ten years at a boarding-school in "the town," where she
+would receive an education such as pertained to her rank and
+fortune.
+
+Mr. Rougeant would gladly have sent his daughter to the parish
+school, till the age of fourteen. Afterwards, he would have had her
+taught to work. He would have had to pay only one penny a week at
+the parish school, whereas he now paid five pence. Soon, he would
+have to disburse from fifty to sixty pounds a year for Adele's
+sake. "What extravagance," he muttered between his teeth. But he
+dared not go against his promises to his dying wife. Mr. Rougeant
+was superstitious. "If I fail to fulfil my promises to my dying
+wife, I shall most certainly see her ghost;" he said to himself. So
+he preferred to part with a portion of his income in exchange for a
+life unmolested by apparitions.
+
+It was the month of August of the same year in which the events
+narrated in the preceding chapter occurred. The pupils of Miss Rader
+were all assembled to receive the prizes which they were supposed to
+have won.
+
+The reward-books were handed to the pupils by an elderly lady--Mrs.
+Lebours. She was standing in front of the row of young girls,
+surrounded by half-a-dozen satellites of her own sex. Miss Rader was
+sitting near the group of "young ladies."
+
+Mrs. Lebours began: "First prize for French has been won by Adele
+Rougeant, but the committee of ladies have decided that as she is
+about to pursue her studies elsewhere, she will not receive the
+prize. It will be given to the one next to her, who is going to
+remain under Miss Rader's excellent tuition."
+
+This little speech having been delivered by Mrs. Lebours, who
+meanwhile flourished the reward-book; Miss Rader approached Adele,
+and tapping her unkindly on the shoulder, she whispered to her in a
+whistling tone, her snaky eyes expressing the kindliness of a tiger:
+"You see what you gain through wanting to leave my school; you lose
+a beautiful book."
+
+Adele was not unhappy. On the contrary; she experienced an
+elevating, martyr-like sensation. She turned towards Miss Rader.
+
+"I have earned it?" she questioned.
+
+"Yes, but----."
+
+"I am satisfied," she said; then, quoting as near as she could a
+phrase which had attracted her attention in one of the rare books
+which she had cast her childish eyes upon, she added, "We do not go
+to school to obtain prizes, but to acquire knowledge."
+
+Miss Rader was seated in her former place when Adele finished. Her
+upper lip was slightly curled up, she was gazing upon Adele with a
+look of supreme contempt.
+
+The distribution of prizes was soon finished. The children were
+dismissed for the holidays and sent home. Adele bore her little head
+up proudly. She had been wronged. She felt a thrill of pleasure as
+she entered her home at "Les Marches."
+
+In acting as they had done, the committee of ladies had placed
+themselves lower than her. She felt it, and prided herself upon
+being ever so much better than they were. When her father came in
+she called out to him: "I earned a prize, but they would not give it
+me as I was going to leave school."
+
+"Humph!" he said moodily, "I am afraid you over-estimate your
+intellectual capacities. Carry this letter to your uncle Tom at the
+'Prenoms.'"
+
+And he handed his daughter a scrap of paper.
+
+Adele did immediately as she was bid, not daring to speak when she
+heard her father's gruff tone.
+
+The farm of the "Prenoms" was only half a mile distant from "Les
+Marches," and Adele did the distance in ten minutes.
+
+She gave the letter to her uncle. "You will have to wait for a
+reply," he said.
+
+Her uncle was a man who never said more than was absolutely
+necessary.
+
+"Seat yourself; here is a chair for you," said her aunt.
+
+Adele took the preferred chair, and her aunt began to question her.
+
+"So you are going to a boarding school," she said; and Adele felt
+that there was something sarcastic in her tone.
+
+"Papa wants me to," she mumbled timidly.
+
+"Oh, it is not so much Alfred's wish," significantly said Mrs. Soher
+(Adele's aunt), as she turned towards her step-mother who was seated
+on a "_jonquiere_," engaged in mending a pair of stockings.
+
+Near her sat a young boy who looked a little older than Adele. He
+was mischievously occupied in knotting the skein of thread which his
+grandmother was using.
+
+Adele resented what she knew to be a slight cast upon her dead
+mother's memory, but she did not speak. Her aunt had always been
+hostile to her, she knew not why.
+
+Old Mrs. Soher raised her hoary head and remarked: "In my time,
+young girls like Adele used to learn to read and write,--and work."
+
+Adele felt very uncomfortable. She wished her uncle would make haste
+and write his reply; but he sat at his desk, passing his fingers
+through his hair; a method with which he was familiar when puzzled.
+Then he rose and cast a significant glance at his wife who followed
+him out of the room.
+
+The old woman espied her prankish grandson. She immediately broke
+out into a violent fit of scolding: too animated to be serious. "Ah!
+but what next, you wicked little rascal. Knotting my thread; but I'm
+sure. I have a mind to slap your face. Just look at what you have
+done. Why did you do it?"
+
+Tommy--the little boy--giggled. "I was tired of sitting here doing
+nothing," he answered impudently; "why don't you tell me a story."
+
+"Well, now, be a good boy; do you know where the bad boys will go?"
+
+"With the devil."
+
+"Quite right; now, you will be good."
+
+"Tell me a tale; you know, something about the old witches," said
+Tommy. "How do they make people ill?" he questioned pulling
+impatiently at his grandmother's shawl.
+
+"They give themselves to Satan," answered the grandmother.
+
+"How?"
+
+"They sign their name, writing it backwards with their own blood."
+
+Adele shuddered; although she was a country girl, she had never
+heard anything of the sort before. She listened attentively.
+
+"You told me they were given books; did you not?" questioned the
+lad.
+
+"Yes they receive one or two infamous books, which they cannot
+destroy after they have taken them, neither can anyone else do away
+with these bad books. Yet, I remember quite well when there was one
+completely annihilated.
+
+"It was when one of my aunt's died. She was a terrible witch; alas,
+the chairs; and all the cups and saucers, bowls and plates on the
+dresser danced when they carried her body out of the house."
+
+Adele laughed.
+
+Tommy looked at her. "Oh, it's true," he said, "you can laugh if you
+like--ain't it grand'ma?"
+
+Mrs. Soher went on: "When we cleaned out the house, we found one of
+those awful books. No one dared to open it, yet everyone knew by its
+funny covers, its queer print and its yellow paper, that it was one
+of the 'devil's own.' My sister, who, by the way, was not very
+superstitious took----"
+
+"Superlicious! what's that?" questioned the boy.
+
+"People who don't believe in all sorts," immediately explained
+grandmamma.
+
+"Now where was I? ah, my sister took the book and threw it into the
+fire but it did not burn!"
+
+"Oo-oo," ejaculated Tommy.
+
+Adele began to be credulous. It must be borne in mind that she was
+only seven years old.
+
+Grand'ma proceeded: "She snatched it again from the fire and put it
+on the table. Now it happened that on that very day, my brother was
+going to seek for shell-fish at a place called _La Banque au
+Mouton_. He said that he would take the book and place it under a
+big stone; then, when the tide rose, it would be covered over, and,
+we all hoped, altogether destroyed.
+
+"He took it as he had promised to do (we were gone home to dinner
+then, for we did not care to eat in the house of a witch), and
+placed it, so he told us, under a big stone which he could hardly
+lift."
+
+"Ah, the Evil One was caught," remarked Tommy.
+
+"He is not caught so easily as all that," said his grandmother.
+"When we returned to our work, do you know what we saw?"
+
+"No!"
+
+"We beheld the book laid upon the table."
+
+Tommy opened his mouth wide enough as to be in danger of
+dislocation, then he closed it with an exclamation: "Ah-a!"
+
+Adele dared scarcely breathe.
+
+"That's not all," continued Mrs. Soher, "we were determined to get
+rid of the book. This is what we did.
+
+"My brother spoke to the minister about it. The clergyman declared
+that the book could only be stamped out of existence by a special
+process. He went to what had been my aunt's house, and summoned my
+brother and those who were there into the kitchen. Then one man
+thrust a bundle of furze into the oven and set it alight. Another
+one threw the book amongst the flames and firmly secured the door.
+
+"'Down on your knees,' commanded the minister. Everyone obeyed. The
+clergyman prayed aloud, when in a few moments, piercing shrieks were
+heard issuing from the oven. The whole company were in a state of
+horripilation. The clergyman ceased praying. He simply said with
+quivering and pale lips: 'The book is burning.'
+
+"The cries ceased. The door of the oven was opened. The book was
+reduced to ashes."
+
+The two children were awe-stricken.
+
+They sat as still as two mice, breathing only as much as was
+absolutely necessary. It was Tommy who first broke the silence.
+
+He was more accustomed to hear these strange tales than his cousin,
+and, consequently, got over his fright sooner.
+
+"How did the book shriek," questioned the boy.
+
+The entrance of Mr. Soher and his spouse disturbed the proceedings.
+Adele was very glad of it, for she was anxious to be back home
+before dusk.
+
+Handing her a piece of paper, Adele's uncle bade her be sure to give
+it to her father. He enjoined her not to lose it, but to hold it
+tightly all the way home. "Don't put it in your pocket," he added as
+the little girl was preparing to leave.
+
+Adele did as she was bid; she could not put the missive in her
+pocket, because--there was no pocket to the dress which she wore.
+
+She hastened home. The story which Mrs. Soher had recited had shaken
+her nerves.
+
+As she neared her father's house, she was tempted to look at the
+writing on the paper. There was a brief struggle within her. At last
+her conscience prevailed over her curiosity.
+
+She met her father who was waiting for her on the threshold and
+handed him the paper. He ran his eyes over it and muttered audibly:
+"Let him go to the dogs, then, if he wishes to do so."
+
+As soon as Adele was out of the "Prenoms" the two garrulous women
+began to talk about their little visitor. As was their wont, they
+(especially the younger Mrs. Soher) cast upon Adele all the slander
+and scandal which they were capable of. Their epigrams were as
+devoid of wit as they were coarse.
+
+Mr. Soher, who sat near, did not join in the conversation. He
+professed to be a very religious man, but he rarely occupied himself
+about his household duties. His wife was just saying: "When one
+thinks that if that little brat of a girl had not been born, we
+should inherit all my brother's property," when the man rose from
+his chair. "I am going to the prayer-meeting," he said abruptly,
+and his puritanical form as suddenly left the room.
+
+"Now, it is time for you to go to bed," said Mrs. Soher to her son,
+when her husband was gone.
+
+"I don't want to go yet," replied Tommy.
+
+"But you must go, and you will go now; I'll not listen to your
+nonsense; come, do your hear."
+
+"Ah! let me stay a little longer, ma."
+
+"No, not one moment; come along."
+
+"Only one minute," pleaded the spoilt child.
+
+"Bah! what do you want to stay for?" said his mother, re-seating
+herself.
+
+The minute passed away, so did many other minutes, but Tom did not
+stir.
+
+After again trying in vain the power of her pleadings and commands,
+the weak-minded mother took her son by the sleeve of his coat.
+"Come," she said, "to bed with you."
+
+Tommy began to cry.
+
+She dragged him out of the room and up the stairs. He screamed and
+kicked, but was finally placed in his cot. Mrs. Soher had hardly
+stepped into the kitchen, when her son was heard crying.
+
+"I am frightened," he bawled; "the fire--the witches--the book."
+
+"Bah!" said his mother, "he'll go to sleep soon." And so he did.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III.
+
+THE BOARDING-SCHOOL.
+
+
+Mr. Rougeant had returned early from "the town" on that Saturday
+afternoon. He was now perusing the _Gazette Officielle_, the only
+newspaper which he ever cast his eyes upon. The servant--a good old
+Guernsey soul, who had been in the service of the family for ten
+years--was busily engaged in preparing the dinner. Contrary to the
+farmer's orders, Adele had been sent by Lizette (the servant) to
+fetch the cider.
+
+Unluckily for the little girl, Mr. Rougeant did not care to go to
+the expense of buying a tap. In its stead he had a number of small
+holes bored in one end of the cask. In these holes, which were
+placed vertically, one above the other, tight fitting wooden pegs
+had been driven. One of these pegs he drew out when he required some
+cider.
+
+When Adele entered the cellar, mug in hand, she examined the cask.
+She did not know which peg to take out, neither did she care to
+return into the kitchen with an empty vessel. She ventured
+cautiously to pull out one of the pins. It fitted tightly. She
+jerked on it. The peg came out; so did the cider. She hastily
+replaced the peg in its place, but the cider spurted all over her
+clean white pinafore. Timidly, she went back to the kitchen.
+
+"I did not know how to----"
+
+She did not finish. The servant perceived her plight, and, with a
+gesture, silenced her. She bustled her out into the vestibule, threw
+her a clean apron, bade her put it on, and proceeded to the cellar.
+She speedily caused--or thought she caused--all traces of the little
+girl's blunder to disappear.
+
+When she returned, Mr. Rougeant was talking to his daughter. He was
+saying: "Listen, Adele. Miss Euston's collegiate school for ladies
+will re-open on Tuesday next, September the 13th, at half-past two
+o'clock. A few boarders received."
+
+"How would you like to go there?" he asked of his daughter; merely
+for form's sake, however, for he had already resolved that this
+would be, if possible, Adele's future home, for some ten years at
+least.
+
+"I don't know," said the little girl, placing her thumb in her
+mouth;--a sure sign of mingled deep-thought and puzzlement--a mode
+of expression which, by the bye, she was not to enjoy much longer.
+These gesticulations are not in harmony with boarding-school
+etiquette.
+
+Her father did not make any other remark. He placed the newspaper on
+one side, and fell to work with his dinner.
+
+This important piece of business having been accomplished, he
+started to go to town on foot.
+
+His interview with Miss Euston resulted in Adele being accepted as a
+boarder. She was to be entirely entrusted to the care of Miss
+Euston, and, lastly, Mr. Rougeant was to pay an annual stipend of
+fifty guineas.
+
+When he came back home, Adele's father sank in a chair. He was
+tired. Moreover, he was annoyed. The fifty guineas which he had
+promised to pay each year vexed him.
+
+He said to himself: "This daughter of mine will run away with all
+the profit which I am making out of my newly-opened quarry. But,
+since it must be, I cannot allow myself to violate the promises made
+to the dying. I must try and see if I cannot save a little more than
+I have done lately. This servant costs me too much. I must get rid
+of her somehow. Another one, a French one for example, would work
+for four or five pounds less a year."
+
+In this puzzled state he descended to the cellar. He had an implicit
+belief in cider as a general restorative. His scrutinizing glance
+soon detected the ravages caused by Adele's blunder. "What a fine
+excuse," he mumbled--and he grinned.
+
+He entered the parlour where Lizette was setting things to rights
+and demanded in an imperative and angry tone: "Who has done that
+mess in the cellar?"
+
+"I did," quietly answered the servant, anxious to shield Adele.
+
+That fib she soon repented to have uttered.
+
+"I give you a month's notice," said Mr. Rougeant, and he was about
+to disappear when Lizette, feeling that she was not required any
+more, and moved to the quick, turned towards her master.
+
+"I can go now," she said.
+
+"Well, go; so much the better."
+
+That same evening, Mait. Jacques (Mr. Rougeant's workman) drove
+Lizette in the "spring cart" to her mother's cottage.
+
+Adele wept. Her father silenced her with a frown. "You will commence
+school on Tuesday next," he said.
+
+The little girl looked at her father in surprise, and, an inward
+emotion completely mastering her, she recommenced crying.
+
+"How shall I be able to speak to those English people?" she sobbed.
+
+"You can talk English, can't you?" was her father's not
+over-consoling remark.
+
+"Only--a--little."
+
+"The person to whom I spoke is a nice lady; now, don't be silly,
+child."
+
+"The little girls will laugh at me," she said, drying her tears with
+her pinafore.
+
+Her father did not answer her, but sat meditatively pulling on his
+enormous nose.
+
+It was nearly midnight when Adele managed to drop to sleep.
+
+Tuesday came. Her father drove her to town in his old phaeton. Then,
+taking her by the hand, he led her at No. ----, Grange. The two were
+ushered into a small, but prettily furnished drawing-room.
+
+After a few moments, Mdlle. Parmier entered the room, and after
+having conversed in French for a few minutes with Mr. Rougeant, the
+latter withdrew, bidding good-bye to his daughter who watched him
+disappear with a dazed and stupefied air. "Is this a dream?" she
+thought. "Ah! would that it were." Never before had she spoken to a
+lady from town. She listened to hear Mdlle. Parmier's harsh voice
+bid her follow her, but, instead of doing so, the little French lady
+advanced towards her and in a gentle tone of voice (so soft, that
+Adele stared at her in astonishment) said: "_Miss Euston va bientot
+venir. Croyez-vous, ma chere, que cette nouvelle demeure vous
+conviendra?_"
+
+"_Oui_," answered Adele, greatly relieved that there was at least
+one person here who could talk in French.
+
+Then, while the lady occupied herself with a book, Adele was busy
+picturing to herself the dreadful Miss Euston. Her father had said
+that she was a nice lady; but, alas, how could she? Did she not
+speak in English? How was she going to answer her? "She will
+certainly laugh at my bad English," Adele thought; and her lips
+moved about uneasily, and her eyes were moist.
+
+She looked towards Mdlle. Parmier. She saw four or five ladies in a
+confused group; she wiped away the tears that obscured her vision.
+
+"Ah! if this lady were head mistress?" she went on thinking. "Oh! my
+clothes, they are not so pretty as those which the little girls who
+were in the playground wore." She listened tremblingly for the
+sounds of approaching footsteps. How she wished that the ordeal of
+the first interview would be passed. She grew so excited that she
+would have given anything to be out of that room. Any sudden
+catastrophe which would have averted the terrible ordeal of
+confronting Miss Euston would have been welcomed by her. Had she
+been alone, she would have tried her voice to see how it sounded in
+English, but Mdlle. Parmier was there; so she only coughed a little
+to clear her throat. She tried to cough softly, as she had heard
+Mdlle. Parmier do; but she fancied her voice sounded hoarse and
+vulgar. She cast a gaze towards a mirror placed at one end of the
+room. What a plebeian figure!
+
+Hark! what was that? a soft tread was heard approaching. The French
+lady looked up from her book, and fixing her eyes encouragingly on
+the little girl, she said: "_Miss Euston sera bien aise de vous
+voir; parlez-vous l'anglais?_"
+
+"_Un peu, mademoiselle_," said Adele, and the door opened.
+
+The dreaded form of Miss Euston entered the room.
+
+"Dis is de yong Ma'm'sel Rougeant," said the French lady,
+introducing Adele to the newly-arrived lady.
+
+The latter, a tall, refined and amiable lady, advanced towards Adele
+with a pleasant air, and such a kind smile lighting up her
+intelligent features that the little girl felt immediately drawn
+towards her.
+
+Miss Euston at once saw that Adele was timid and feeling very
+uncomfortable.
+
+She took the child's hand in her own and said kindly: "I am very
+glad you have come, Adele; but, your hands are quite cold; come
+nearer to the fire."
+
+Adele stood up. Miss Euston put the chair nearer to the fire, placed
+the child upon it, and began to chat in quite a friendly way.
+
+Mdlle. Parmier retired. Adele's fears had vanished like a cloud of
+smoke. She felt more than simple admiration for Miss Euston; she
+experienced a kind of veneration for her.
+
+Had an angel from heaven entered the room instead of this lady,
+Adele would not have been much more dazzled than she now was.
+
+"Do you understand English?" inquired Miss Euston while helping her
+pupil to warm her hands.
+
+"Not much, ma'am."
+
+"Then you shall soon learn, for I can see a pair of intelligent eyes
+beaming under those chestnut curls."
+
+Adele smiled. She felt a kind of bitter and sweet happiness. The
+dreaded introduction was over, but now there were the little girls
+to encounter. What kind of reception would _they_ give her?
+
+"I am going to have two new dresses for you to try on presently,"
+said Miss Euston; "now, come, let me show you your bed chamber."
+
+Adele was delighted with her bedroom. How neat the little crib
+looked. Miss Rader had told her that the people from town never had
+white linen; they knew not how to wash, and, besides, the smoke
+caused their once white linen to look grimy.
+
+After having asked Adele if she was pleased with her room, and the
+little child having answered: "Yes, ma'am, very much," Miss Euston
+led her into the schoolroom where about twenty young girls were
+assembled. They were being directed to their respective places by
+Mdlle. Parmier.
+
+Miss Euston told Adele that she would not do anything that day but
+familiarize herself with her new surroundings.
+
+She gave her a nice book full of beautiful pictures to look at. Then
+she began to attend to a class of the bigger girls.
+
+Adele felt her heart sink a little when Miss Euston left her, but
+she managed to pluck up courage and was soon absorbed looking at the
+beautiful pictures in her book. She timidly raised her eyes from
+time to time and gazed upon the young group of girls who were near
+her. Two of them she perceived were looking at her, and exchanging
+glances, after which they tittered.
+
+This made Adele's blood rush to her face. She knew they were
+laughing at her and she felt uneasy. "I am as good as they are.
+Just let them wait till I have my new dresses," she thought.
+
+She made up her mind not to look at them and kept steadily looking
+at her book. But the pictures had lost their charm. Her little soul
+revolted against the treatment to which she was being subjected by
+these two little girls.
+
+When the time for recreation arrived, Miss Euston took Adele by the
+hand and led her up to two other girls; one about Adele's age, the
+other two years older. She told them to take care of their new and
+future companion. She was sure, she added, that they would make
+things pleasant for her. "Yes, ma'am,--come," they said to their new
+acquaintance. They led her out of the schoolroom and amused her
+during the whole time that was set apart for recreation purposes. By
+the time the bell rang for the pupils to form classes, the three
+little girls were as friendly as could be. Adele forgot all about
+the little girls that had laughed at her.
+
+Later on in the evening, she discovered that her two little
+companions were the only boarders beside herself.
+
+The day after her entrance, an event occurred which deserves perhaps
+to be narrated.
+
+Adele walked alone down the Grange, turned to the right, and not
+knowing where she was going, found herself in a lane called George
+Street.
+
+She was busily engaged contemplating a poor little crippled girl,
+when the latter's crutch slipped and she fell prone on the road.
+
+She got up quickly, however, seized her crutch and looked anxiously
+round to see if someone had perceived her.
+
+Adele stood near, smiling.
+
+The girl in rags went up to her. "What'r'yer laughin' at, yer
+dressed up doll?" she said. (Adele had one of her new dresses on.)
+"If you don't stop it," she continued threateningly, "I'll give yer
+such a bloomin' smack as 'l' make you think you're in the beginnin'
+o' next week."
+
+Adele did "stop it," and hastily walked away.
+
+"What!" she said to herself, "can these little girls from town beat
+you soundly enough to make you think you are in the beginning of the
+week to come? They _must_ be clever. I will ask Miss Euston about
+it."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+
+THE INFLUENCES OF A GOOD HOME.
+
+
+Ten years have elapsed. On a stormy September afternoon, in a room
+of a two-storeyed cottage, situate at the bottom of the Rohais, a
+woman lay dying. Her husband knelt beside her bed, holding his
+wife's hand.
+
+The stillness that prevailed was only disturbed by an occasional sob
+from the husband, and the short irregular breathing of the dying
+woman.
+
+The breathing suddenly became more regular. The husband looked at
+his wife. He saw that she wanted to speak to him, and immediately
+approached his head nearer to her.
+
+"I am going, John," said the woman in a faint tone; "I feel that I
+am rapidly drawing nearer the end. I know you will take care of our
+son, and--if ever you marry----"
+
+Here she paused as if unable to go on.
+
+"Oh! don't mention that, I will never marry again, dearest. I will
+look forward with eagerness to our second meeting. I shall meet you
+there, Annie," he said, and, pressing her hand between both his own,
+he gazed earnestly into his wife's half-closed eyes.
+
+Mrs. Mathers sank back on her pillow, exhausted with the effort
+which she had made to speak those few words. Presently a change came
+over her face. Her husband beckoned to Marie, the servant, who
+hardly dared to approach, awed as she was at having to witness a
+person in the grip of death.
+
+The end came, swift and pangless. The soul passed from the body to
+its eternal resting place.
+
+Marie stood beside the bed, her big eyes fixed on the corpse, hardly
+able to believe her senses.
+
+"But, I thought Madame was better, much better," she said, half
+aloud, half to herself.
+
+"Ah! unfortunately," said the widower, "'twas only the lull before
+the storm--a state which is common to people dying from consumption.
+Make haste," he continued to the bewildered Abigail, "put the blinds
+down."
+
+Marie did as she was told and the man proceeded downstairs.
+
+In the kitchen, seated on a chair, a boy was sobbing. His father had
+just told him that death had visited them. And the boy felt
+completely weighed down with grief. His mother had been so good to
+him. "Such an excellent mother," he said to himself; "ah, how I
+shall miss her."
+
+He sobbed silently; the hot tears were few and far between. His
+grief was too intense to be demonstrative.
+
+He stayed there for fully an hour, in the same attitude, bowed down
+as it were by this heavy load which had fallen upon him.
+
+Let us go back into Frank Mathers' history--for Frank Mathers it was
+who mourned his mother's loss--for a few years.
+
+Mr. Mathers, his wife and only son were seated round the fire one
+evening.
+
+"You will be fourteen years of age to-morrow," said Frank's father,
+"it is time for me to think of finding you a situation."
+
+Frank did not answer, the idea of leaving school did not please him;
+he looked up from his book for an instant, then pretended to resume
+his reading.
+
+"I shall talk to Mr. Baker, the grain merchant; as you have a liking
+for books, I think you would do well in his office. Would you like
+to go?" said his father.
+
+"If you think I am old enough to leave school," mumbled Frank.
+
+"Certainly you are old enough," said his father, "we can't afford to
+keep you at school all your life."
+
+Mrs. Mathers looked at her son sympathetically, she knew he loved
+his school immensely.
+
+"You will only have to be at the office from nine till five, and, if
+you are diligent, you shall be able to study a few hours every day,"
+she said.
+
+"Yes," said the boy reluctantly.
+
+In less than a week after this, Frank had left school and was
+settled in Mr. Baker's employment.
+
+The winter was beginning to make itself felt, and the days were
+growing shorter and shorter. Ah! how Frank liked these winter
+evenings. He took his books, and, drawing his chair near a small
+table close to the fire, he kept plodding on, evening after evening,
+educating himself constantly.
+
+At the age of nineteen, he obtained a situation as clerk in a bank.
+He possessed a good knowledge of English and French. He was also
+acquainted with German, Latin and Mathematics.
+
+He had learnt unaided two systems of shorthand: one English and one
+French.
+
+Neither was he ignorant of other useful sciences, of which he had
+striven to acquire at least a few elements.
+
+Thus armed for the world's battle, he thought himself almost
+invulnerable. "I am bound to succeed," he sometimes said to himself.
+"I have done all that I possibly could do towards that end. I don't
+believe in chance. 'What a man soweth, that shall he also reap.'"
+
+If ever a youth deserved to succeed, it certainly was Frank Mathers.
+He had sacrificed many pleasures for the sake of better fitting
+himself for life's struggle. Often, when his companions invited him
+to spend an evening in questionable pleasures; "No, he would answer,
+I have no time for that." At last, they ceased to torment him.
+
+He liked these evenings spent at home, quietly, near the fire, alone
+with his mother, who sometimes lifted her eyes from her knitting or
+sewing, and affectionately gazed for a few moments upon her son.
+
+They were nearly always alone, mother and son; for the father, who
+was a carpenter, spent his evenings in the workshop.
+
+As her son neared his twentieth birthday, Mrs. Mathers felt that she
+would never live to see it. She was very anxious for her son's
+future. After all, would he always keep in the path in which he was
+now walking?
+
+One evening when she felt worse than usual, her anxiousness for her
+son's welfare rose to such a pitch that she ventured to speak a few
+words to him.
+
+"Frank," she began, "you know that I am not in very good health."
+
+"Yes, mother."
+
+"I don't think I shall live long," continued she, "and, I should so
+much like to know if you have formed a decision to be a noble,
+good, and upright man."
+
+"You are not going to die," said the youth in a half-frightened
+tone, "you will be better soon, I hope."
+
+"No," she said, "I am slowly but steadily declining;" then she added
+in a very affectionate tone: "Will you promise me, Frank, that you
+will always strive to do what is right?"
+
+"Mother," replied the son, his voice quivering with emotion: "I will
+be good."
+
+Neither of them said another word for a few minutes. Their hearts
+were too full. Affectionate love, grief and resignation were filling
+their souls.
+
+Soon, the father entered and the family retired.
+
+Next day Mrs. Mather's prophecies were fulfilled. She felt much
+worse and stayed in bed. In less than a week, she was dead and
+buried.
+
+Thus deprived of his mother, Frank Mathers felt intensely lonely. He
+suppressed his grief as much as possible, but it could be seen that
+he suffered.
+
+He had his father, 'tis true, but Mr. Mathers was a man of a gloomy
+temperament. But a young man of nineteen ought not to be attached to
+his mother's pinafore! The house seemed so empty, it seemed quite
+large now, a roomy house with no furniture. The air he breathed was
+not perfumed with the sweet breath of love as it was wont to be.
+
+He grew melancholy. He had never been of a very bright temperament,
+and the life of self-sacrifice which he had hitherto led, had not
+helped him towards being cheerful.
+
+Besides, there was no one to cheer him now, no kind word to spur him
+on. "Ah! life without love," he sighed, "life without love is
+hardly worth living."
+
+From bad he went to worse. He almost ceased to eat. He lost a great
+deal of his former activity and was often absent-minded. His
+employers noticed this, for he often made false entries in the
+books.
+
+One morning, the manager of the bank thought fit to speak to him. "I
+cannot make out what ails you," he said, "but you will have to be
+more careful in the future."
+
+"Pull yourself up, Mr. Mathers, try and take more interest in your
+work, or I shall feel obliged to dispense with your services
+altogether."
+
+"I must try," answered Frank. "I _will_ try, Sir."
+
+And try he did, but all to no purpose.
+
+A cloud seemed to hang over him; he was in a state of lethargy. "Am
+I going mad?" he said to himself more than once. No! he was not
+insane, not yet at any rate; he simply took no interest in life.
+Nothing seemed to distract him; he cared for nothing, spoke to no
+one except when questioned.
+
+His father and Marie often tried to coax him into conversation.
+
+In answer he sometimes said "Bah! life is but an empty bubble,"
+oftener, he said nothing at all, but gazed fixedly at the floor all
+the time.
+
+A few days after the manager had spoken to him, he ceased to go to
+work altogether. He did not send a letter to his employers, telling
+them of his intention to leave; of what use was it? everything was
+nothing to him.
+
+It was not for his departed mother that he grieved. He grieved not.
+He hardly gave her a thought now, and, when he did, his eyes seemed
+to brighten up and his lips muttered: "Thou art happy."
+
+The doctor who examined him shrugged his shoulders. "Hypochondria,"
+he said as he met the enquiring glance of Mr. Mathers; then he
+added: "He will probably be better in a few weeks."
+
+The neighbours, without being consulted, said: "He is mad."
+
+The days came and went, and after a few months of melancholiness he
+grew a little bit better. His father noticed that he began to take
+an interest in the culture of the garden.
+
+"I shall have to find work for him," thought Mr. Mathers, and, one
+day, when his son seemed in a more joyous mood than usual, he spoke
+to him.
+
+"Do you think that if I built a greenhouse you could take care of
+it?" he questioned.
+
+"I think so," said his son.
+
+"Work is slack just now," went on Mr. Mathers, "I might as well put
+up one in the garden as do nothing."
+
+"I think I should very much like to grow tomatoes and grapes," Frank
+remarked.
+
+"You feel better now, then," said the father. These were the first
+words which he ventured to speak to his son about his health, now
+that the latter's senses seemed to have returned to him.
+
+"Have I been ill?" said Frank; and then after a pause----"Of course,
+I have not been very well lately,--yes, I am better, I think I am
+myself again."
+
+"Well;" said his father, "it is agreed, we shall have a greenhouse.
+I think you had better go in the garden and see if you can find
+something to do there."
+
+Frank did as he was requested. The garden at the back of the house
+was a small one, covering some twenty-five perches; of these eight
+were to be blessed, or cursed, with a glass covering.
+
+While Frank was engaged in tying up some Chrysanthemums, he was
+joined by Marie, the servant.
+
+"Doin' a bit o' work, Master Frank," she said.
+
+"Yes, a little," he replied.
+
+"Well, that's better than mopin' about doing nothing," was the not
+over-particular rejoinder.
+
+Frank smiled. "Well," he said, "a fellow must do something when he
+can, but there are times when he cannot."
+
+"Perhaps," said Marie, rather absent-mindedly, as if she had not
+understood the meaning of his words.
+
+She glanced around her, to make sure that there was no one about;
+then she came quite close to Frank. "Have you heard the news?" she
+said.
+
+"What news?" questioned Frank.
+
+"Why, they say your father is goin' to marry; didn't you know?"
+
+Frank's face became livid, his lips tightened, his pruning knife
+dropped from his hand.
+
+"What?" he exclaimed, as if he had not fully understood.
+
+"Your father's going to marry again," said the servant in an
+undertone, "and I'll tell you who told me so, it was Jim Tozer, her
+brother; he ought to know."
+
+"The brother of whom?" questioned Frank mechanically.
+
+"The brother of Miss Tozer," informed Marie.
+
+"I should have thought that your father would have stuck a little
+more to his word, for when your poor, dear mother was dying, she
+mentioned something to your father about marrying. He pretended to
+cry, and bawled out: 'Don't mention it, I'll never marry again; I'll
+never marry again.'"
+
+"And mother been dead only five months," said Frank, more to himself
+than otherwise.
+
+"But it won't be yet, you know," said Marie. "Jim Tozer told me they
+would probably wait till next year."
+
+Then seeing Mr. Mathers coming towards them, she pretended to gather
+some parsley close by, and quickly re-entered the house.
+
+Frank's father did not talk to his son then, but began taking
+measures for the greenhouse.
+
+As for Frank, he was extremely angry with his father. He thought
+that his mother's memory was being slighted; but he resolved not to
+say a word about it to his father, and to let matters stand as they
+were.
+
+Time passed on. The winter was over. It was the month of April. The
+birds sang in the trees, the grass was springing up, the fields were
+being clothed in verdure. Nature, which had lain so long dormant,
+was awakening. From the trees which looked dead a few weeks ago
+little buds were peeping forth, taking their first view of the
+world.
+
+Frank Mathers was filled with delight as he watched this development
+of nature.
+
+One evening when he had just finished planting some tomatoes, he was
+surprised to see his father enter the greenhouse.
+
+Mr. Mathers' face was rather pale. He looked agitated.
+
+"They look well," said the father, meaning the tomato plants.
+
+"Yes, they _do_ look well," answered his son; "I was just thinking
+as much before you came in."
+
+There was a long silence here. Frank knew that his father had
+something to communicate to him, and he guessed what it was.
+However, he did not help him out of his embarrassment.
+
+Finally, after several preliminary hems to clear his throat, Mr.
+Mathers began: "It is a good thing that the tomatoes are planted;
+to-morrow you will not work, I suppose."
+
+"I hope I shall, I have all these boxes to clear away."
+
+"Yes, yes, but to-morrow I am going to be married."
+
+Frank did not answer. He raised his eyes and looked straight at his
+father. His lips quivered and refused to utter a sound.
+
+The son's gaze was more than a match for the father's. Mr. Mathers
+was not yet so hardened as to laugh and look back defiantly at his
+son. He, however, recovered his self-composure, tried to make
+himself believe that he was in his perfect right, and in a
+well-feigned voice--"Well?" he said interrogatively.
+
+Not a word came from the son's lips; a deep sigh escaped him. He
+stepped forward and walked out of the greenhouse, leaving his father
+there--alone.
+
+The couple were quietly married at the Greffe the next day.
+
+Frank went about his work as usual, and when he came in to dine, his
+step-mother was awaiting him, her face beaming with smiles.
+
+When Frank found himself thus confronted by Mrs. Mathers No. 2, he
+did not feel nearly so hostile to her as he had felt towards his
+father.
+
+He could not however welcome her warmly when his heart clamoured
+otherwise. He was not a hypocrite.
+
+When the husband advanced with his wife, the youth took the
+outstretched hand and in a cold tone, his lips still uttering what
+his heart did not inspire, he said, as if welcoming a stranger: "I
+am happy to make your acquaintance, madam."
+
+He soon perceived that he had gone rather too far. He had acted on
+the impulse of the moment. In fact, he had dug the abyss that was
+ever to lie between his step-mother and himself.
+
+"After all," he said to himself, "it is better to obey one's heart."
+He did not even stop to think that there were two powers at work.
+
+He was more to be pitied than blamed. He had loved his mother
+dearly, and now that she was dead, he revered her memory.
+
+He now perceived the influence of a good home. It had rescued him
+from a life of idleness and perhaps of vice. The genial atmosphere
+of their little parlour had kept him at home even more than his
+books, which he, however, cared a good deal for.
+
+But now, it was all finished. This place would no more be home. It
+was a house, a comfortable dwelling place; that was all. He would
+now have to live amongst unattractive and semi-hostile surroundings.
+
+Through his own fault, he would suffer. One thought however
+strengthened him. Thousands of others had suffered for conscience's
+sake. He remembered how his blood rushed to his face, when he read
+about the tortures of the martyrs of religion; or the driving into
+exile of the patriots of Poland.
+
+Strengthened with these thoughts, he rose, more determined than ever
+to do right; to champion the good; to work; to study; to strive to
+acquire wisdom.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V.
+
+THE REWARD OF INORDINATE AMBITION.
+
+
+Frank Mathers had hours of dejection. Like every other person, he
+had his faults. In one of these fits of depression he grew
+impatient. Then, his ambition turned in the wrong direction. He was
+seized with a mania for getting rich quickly.
+
+How to proceed, he did not know.
+
+At last he thought that if he could invent something useful, and
+patent it, he would soon acquire what he so much desired to possess.
+Now, there are thousands who are constantly trying to do as much,
+but they are as likely to succeed as they were when they first
+began.
+
+Frank was one day walking along a country lane when he perceived a
+cow which had broken loose.
+
+She galloped about, her tail erect, her head lowered.
+
+He pursued the animal, and after a prolonged chase and much dodging
+and capering on the part of both, he managed to grasp the rope which
+was tied round the brute's horns. He held it tightly and proceeded
+to tether his captive. But when he had driven the peg in the ground,
+he noticed that it was very easily pulled up.
+
+He pondered over this as he proceeded towards his home. Suddenly, he
+slapped his forehead. "I have it," he said to himself. "I will have
+a peg, which, when being driven, will go all right, but when pulled
+about, will release two small prongs at the sides. This will make it
+impossible for anyone to pull it up; a small knob will be affixed
+which, when turned, will replace the prongs, and the peg will come
+out in a jiffy."
+
+"Ah!" he went on thinking, "this would be a useful thing, an article
+which would command a ready sale. Besides, it would be used wherever
+a good gripping peg would be necessary."
+
+He was enthusiastic. His mind was already full of different schemes
+which he would start when he had acquired fame and riches.
+
+When he came home, he was so sure of success that he imparted his
+idea to his step-mother, with whom he was not generally very
+confidant.
+
+Poor Frank! the volley of mockery which he received quite baffled
+him.
+
+"So you think to make your fortune in that way," she said. "No, no,
+my boy, you never will."
+
+"But don't you see that it's a most useful thing, that----"
+
+"Stop, stop," she interrupted, "don't make me laugh. Do you think
+that people are going to listen to your nonsense? Why! your peg
+would get clogged with earth and would not act."
+
+"Wouldn't it though, at any rate, it's worth thinking over, so I'll
+do that."
+
+"If you choose to spend your money in that fashion, you can do so,"
+retorted the lady, smiling contemptuously.
+
+"You won't laugh at me this day month," thought Frank as he made his
+exit.
+
+Once alone again, he grew more determined than ever. His mind was
+completely dazzled with the bright future before him.
+
+Next morning, he posted a letter to an inventor's agency in London.
+He stated that he had invented something he knew would be useful,
+and very much in demand if manufactured. The letter went on to
+detail in full length the "safety peg." Then he went on to say that
+he would very much like to have it patented and if they would kindly
+send terms and advice in the course of a mail or two, he would be
+thankful.
+
+Two days afterwards, he hoped to receive the joyful news. "They will
+certainly write soon,--such a valuable article--besides, they have
+an interest in its being patented," he said to himself.
+
+He accordingly watched for the postman, and as soon as he saw him,
+his heart beat wildly. To think that he had the precious missive. He
+approaches, and now he is going to open the gate,--no, he passes
+without even looking in the direction of the house.
+
+"Surely he must be forgetting," thought Frank, and he shouted: "Mr.
+Pedvin, have you any letter for me?"
+
+"No; not to day," said the postman--and he went on his way.
+
+"What are they up to now?" thought the youth, "they ought to make
+haste. I'll wait till to-morrow, and if I don't receive any news,
+I'll send them a note, and a pretty sharp one too."
+
+Next day he again watched for the postman's arrival. He felt
+miserable; the state of uncertainty in which he was, caused him to
+be depressed. Still he could not imagine that the letter would
+contain anything contrary to his hopes.
+
+The idea was so far from his wishes that he shook it away at once;
+he could not even bear to think of it.
+
+But the postman came not, and it was now ten o'clock. He remembered
+with pain that the day before he had passed by at half-past nine.
+
+"I must attend to my work," he thought, "he will come presently." He
+went about the greenhouse, watering his plants, but every other
+minute he opened the door and anxiously watched for the bringer of
+good news to put in an appearance.
+
+He came at last. He handed a letter to Frank who ran towards him to
+receive it.
+
+"You seem very much in earnest," remarked the postman, "maybe it's a
+love-letter. And from London too," he added noticing the post mark.
+
+"I'm not so foolish as that," said Frank; as if such letters were
+below his dignity; "this is about an invention which I am going to
+have patented."
+
+The postman showed the whites of his eyes, then turned on his heels
+and continued his journey.
+
+Frank tore open the envelope, unfolded the letter and read:--
+
+     "London.
+
+     "We are in receipt of your letter of the 3rd instant, and have
+     much pleasure in informing you that your invention has not, to
+     our best knowledge, been patented or manufactured.
+
+     "We think it would prove very well in rural districts.
+
+     "The best way for you, would be to secure it by provisional
+     protection for nine months.
+
+     "Please forward us L2 10s., and we will send you, at our
+     earliest possible convenience, the necessary documents."
+
+"Hurrah!" shouted Frank joyfully. "I'll send them the money as soon
+as I can."
+
+He read the letter a second time to make sure that his eyes had not
+deceived him. Suddenly he stopped reading. No, it was not in the
+letter. A thought had struck him. "I will have to mention the money
+matter to my step-mother, for she keeps the keys of my drawer," he
+said in a soliloquy.
+
+He went into the kitchen. Mr. and Mrs. Mathers were there. Frank
+flourished the letter in his hand and exclaimed: "My invention is
+likely to be a success." And, holding the letter in both his hands,
+he read it to his parents.
+
+He emphasized the points that were in his favour, with all the force
+which he was capable of displaying.
+
+Mrs. Mathers looked satisfied enough till her step-son came to the
+money matter. Here her face lengthened and as soon as he had
+finished reading she said: "Clever people; they think they are going
+to pocket all this money with a few words of flattering."
+
+"Someone must pay for the one pound stamp and other expenses,"
+answered Frank.
+
+"After all this spending of money, perhaps it would not prove,"
+rejoined Mrs. Mathers.
+
+"We won't know if we don't try," retorted Frank; "people don't make
+fortunes staring about them with their hands in their pockets."
+
+"But you don't mean to say," almost angrily said Mrs. Mathers, "that
+you would send them your money in that fashion?"
+
+"I do," answered the young man in a decided tone. He was growing
+impatient at what he thought to be a wanton check of progress on his
+step-mother's part.
+
+Here, Mr. Mathers left the room without having said a word.
+
+Frank watched him disappear and then remarked: "Do you think these
+people are going to work for nothing? They would be fools."
+
+"Oh! 'tis not _they_ who are fools," sarcastically remarked his
+step-mother.
+
+The young man waxed hot. His whole being was rising in wrath within
+him. He, however, mastered his passions. It was his duty to bend,
+and he did so. "If I could convince her, if I could make her feel as
+I myself feel," he thought.
+
+For one minute he was silent, not knowing how to begin the speech
+that was to bring conviction into her soul.
+
+"Ah!" he thought as he looked at his step-mother who had resumed her
+work as if the debate was settled, "she checks me when I try to push
+myself; she tries to nip my plans in the bud. When, with a few words
+of encouragement, I might soon be a rising man. But I must convince
+her--I must. If I don't succeed in doing it, I will act alone. The
+money is mine, why should I not be able to do what I like with it.
+If, however, I could bring her to think as I do."
+
+"I have always tried to push myself," he began in a somewhat tender
+and pleading tone, "and you never give me one word of encouragement
+or praise."
+
+Mrs. Mathers looked up: "You try in the wrong direction," she said,
+"earn money by all means, but don't throw it away like a simpleton."
+
+Unheeding this, Frank resumed: "If I do not try and make life a
+success I don't know anyone who will do it for me. I have studied.
+Many an evening have I sat up with my books thinking of the use my
+knowledge would be to me in future life; many an outing have I
+denied myself for the sake of studying; many a pleasure have I
+sacrificed for the sake of acquiring knowledge. I did not care, work
+did not seem heavy, because it carried with it a hope of future
+happiness. I worked on till late in the evening. I rose early in the
+morning to resume my studies. And, if sometimes I felt discouraged,
+worn out by the ceaseless toil, I said to myself: 'Take
+courage--science is bitter but its fruit is sweet.' I have tried to
+cultivate myself as much as possible, to fill my mind with all that
+is noble, pure, and elevating--to acquire good habits by shunning
+bad society and by reading good books--in short, I have sacrificed
+my past self for the sake of my future self.
+
+"And now (his tone grew inexpressibly sad), when I try to gather a
+few of the fruits which I have grown, you throw yourself between
+fortune and me.
+
+"It is exactly as I was reading in a book the other day, in which
+the writer said: 'The cause of many failures is that men wait for
+something to turn up instead of turning up something for
+themselves'----"
+
+"You and your books," ejaculated Mrs. Mathers,--"but I'll have no
+more of this begging and grumbling; do as you like, throw your money
+to the dogs, give it to whomsoever you choose. Perhaps, when you
+know the value of money, you will learn to appreciate it more. For
+my part, I will have nothing more to do about this tomfoolery."
+
+Frank left the room with a light heart. He was free, at liberty to
+do whatever he chose. He chuckled to himself: "Liberty _is_ sweet. I
+will now show them what I can do when I have no one to hinder me.
+However, I will wait a day or two before sending the money. I must
+not act too quickly,--I will think it over."
+
+He went about his work. He felt that manual labour was almost below
+his dignity now. What! he, an inventor--a benefactor of mankind--the
+probable millionaire of years to come--he, who would soon be looked
+upon as the foremost man of the island, pointed at and envied by
+everyone--watering tomatoes. Oh! it certainly was below his rank.
+However, he would work yet for a few days and then, well then he
+would appear in his proper sphere.
+
+Poor fellow, he had yet another of life's lessons to learn. He
+little imagined the crushing blow that was to fall on him and
+scatter all his hopes.
+
+That evening he went to bed with his head brim full of ideas and
+plans for the future. His heart overflowed with delight. He dreamt
+of nothing but inventions, huge fortunes and fame.
+
+Next morning, when he awoke, his head had cleared, but his ideas
+were the same. He never doubted for a moment the certainty of his
+success.
+
+During the course of the morning there were instants in which he
+felt less confident. What if he did not succeed--what would his
+step-mother say--what would he himself do, he who had made this
+scheme part of his being. But he would prosper, why, here (looking
+at the letter) was the opinion of people who had been amongst
+inventions for years.
+
+A shadow seemed to cross the path of the greenhouse. "I think
+someone has passed by," he thought, "I will go and see." Suiting the
+action to the thought, he sprang at the door and opened it. What
+was his astonishment to see the postman. Two days following! it was
+an event, for they seldom received letters.
+
+On hearing the noise which Frank made on opening the door, the
+postman turned round and handed him a letter. He was agreeably
+surprised to see that it was from the inventors' agency, but his
+delight was soon changed into bitter anger and bitterest
+disappointment when he had read its contents. It was worded thus:
+
+     "London.
+
+     "DEAR SIR,--We are sorry to inform you that the invention we
+     were about to patent for you, had, we have just found out, been
+     patented before.
+
+     "The inventor, we have learned, ruined himself in trying to
+     push it."
+
+He read it twice over. Alas! it was too true. Sadly and mournfully
+he went into the house, there to think of his misfortune.
+
+He entered the little parlour, threw himself on a chair, took the
+letter from his pocket and re-read it.
+
+He crumpled the letter in his hand and exclaimed: "'Tis too true,
+there is not the slightest hope; ah! this is indeed a cloud with no
+silver lining."
+
+He rose, paced the room in an agitated state and muttered: "But
+yesterday, I thought myself a rising man, now, I have utterly
+failed; that upon which I had set my heart, upon which my thoughts
+had dwelt and upon which my hopes had been built, has fallen to the
+ground."
+
+"Such joy ambition finds," something seemed to echo within him.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+
+NEW ACQUAINTANCES.
+
+
+For a week or so Frank Mathers grieved about his misfortune. At the
+end of that time, an event occurred which completely distracted him.
+
+He was taking a walk a few miles from his home, not far from the
+Forest Church. When he came near the farm of "Les Marches," he
+perceived a man, who, seated on a branch, was sawing it. This branch
+projected over a quarry which was filled with water.
+
+Suddenly, the branch gave way, and Mr. Rougeant (such was this man's
+name), fell into the water.
+
+Frank at once ran towards the spot, taking off his coat as he
+hastened along. He was a good and plucky swimmer. When he came near
+the quarry, the drowning man was struggling for dear life. Frank
+seized the position in a moment. He saw that it would be useless to
+jump into the water, because, when once in, he would not be able to
+reach the edge of the quarry, for the water's surface was quite four
+feet below that of the ground. There was not a moment to lose. The
+man had already gone down twice; he was coming up for the second
+time. Frank took his coat in one hand, and, leaning over the edge of
+the quarry at the risk of falling in himself, he caught hold of a
+tuft of grass with the other hand, and awaited the drowning man's
+appearance.
+
+The farmer rose to the surface, struggling. His eyes were dilated,
+his whole countenance presented a frightened and imploring
+appearance.
+
+He uttered a cry, 'twas a cry in which he poured forth all his soul;
+his last and supreme appeal to heaven and earth; but one word, but
+ah! what a deep prayer to one, what an earnest appeal to the other,
+were centred in that word: "Help."
+
+"Seize this, seize this," cried Frank.
+
+The drowning man saw the dangling sleeve, his last chance of
+salvation. Frantically he clutched at it. Ah! he has missed it. No,
+as he was going down for the third time he threw out his arm once
+more. It was a forlorn hope, but it was successful. He caught hold
+of the coat with both his hands and raised himself. He found a creek
+in which he placed his foot, and with Frank's manly help, was soon
+extricated from his perilous position.
+
+Mr. Rougeant was panting for breath, and exhausted, but saved from a
+watery grave.
+
+Frank bent over the man he had rescued, dried his face and took off
+his boots, examining him meanwhile. Mr. Rougeant, whom we did not
+describe when we first met him, was a man of medium height. He had
+broad shoulders, a powerful chest, an almost square head and a
+formidable nose. Under his nasal organ, there bristled a short
+moustache.
+
+When he had partly recovered his senses, he looked around him.
+"Where is my saw?" he questioned, then he added: "My hat, where is
+it?"
+
+The hat, probably a leaky one, had gone to the bottom.
+
+Frank was as much amused as he was astonished to hear him. He
+replied: "I suppose they must both be given up as lost."
+
+"It is a pity," said the prostrate man, "it was a good saw, and a
+brand new one too."
+
+The man spoke in the patois of the island, a kind of old Norman
+French which the young man understood very well. He, therefore,
+answered in the same language.
+
+"Shall I go and call your people?" Frank said after a while.
+
+"No, thank you, I think I can walk home."
+
+He stood up and they both proceeded towards the farm-house.
+
+"Not a word of thanks," soliloquized Frank, as he surveyed the
+strong frame and the powerful limbs of his companion.
+
+Just then the farmer turned abruptly to him: "A good thing you were
+passing near at the time of the accident. I might have been
+drowned," he said.
+
+"I am very glad of having been of service to you," answered Frank.
+
+"You're a good fellow," resumed the farmer looking at him and
+nodding. "It's not everybody," he continued, "who would have had the
+sense to do as you have done."
+
+They arrived at the farm-house, a two-storeyed house, without any
+pretence at architecture, and with a slate covering: the house was
+surrounded by stables, pig-sties, a small garden and a conservatory.
+In front of the house was a parterre, most tastefully arranged with
+flowers which surrounded an immense fuschia, five feet in height and
+covering an area of about fifty square feet.
+
+The two men entered by the front door. Mr. Rougeant led his rescuer
+into the kitchen. Here was Jeanne, a French servant, occupied in
+poking the fire.
+
+"Ah, but dear me," she exclaimed as she caught sight of the pair,
+"what has Mr. Rougeant been doing now?"
+
+"I fell in the quarry," said the farmer gruffly, "go and prepare
+some dry clothing, be quick, make haste."
+
+Jeanne immediately did as she was bid. She did not leave the room,
+however, without casting an inquisitive glance at Frank.
+
+"Adele," shouted Mr. Rougeant in a voice of thunder, "where are
+you?"
+
+"Miss Rougeant is gone, she told me she would not be long," answered
+the servant from upstairs.
+
+"Oh, yes, always gone," said the father of Adele, in none too
+pleasant a tone; "those young girls are always out when most
+wanted."
+
+Then he began to talk about his quarry. "Only a year ago that quarry
+was being worked. There were twenty men employed in it. It paid well
+then. But it's all over now. The man who worked it found a little
+bit of rubbish in his way, and, like a fool, he got frightened and
+left working it, and now you see it's full of water. Are the clothes
+ready?" This was said, or rather shouted to the servant.
+
+"Yes, Sir, they're ready; I'm coming," said Jeanne.
+
+"It's time," said Mr. Rougeant rising, "I am trembling all over
+now." He had been shivering for the last quarter of an hour.
+
+When he was half way up the stairs he called out: "Of course you
+will wait till I come down again, I shall not be long Mr. ----."
+
+"All right, Sir, don't hurry," answered Frank.
+
+Left alone in the kitchen, the young man had time to examine the
+room. He had never been in a farm-house before.
+
+On one side, ranged along the wall, was an oblong table which was
+bare. Above it, against the wall, was a shelf on which Frank could
+discern three or four big home-made loaves of bread.
+
+On the opposite side, was a deal dresser on which were ranged
+saucers and plates, while cups and mugs were hung upon nails driven
+into the edge of the shelves; He was in the midst of his examination
+when someone entered the house by a back door. "Is it the girl of
+whom Mr. Rougeant spoke?" he wondered. Then he pictured her to
+himself: a tall overgrown country-lass, with hands like a working
+man's, and feet! well, one might just as well not think about them,
+they were repulsively large; it was a blessing that they were hidden
+from view.
+
+He was in the midst of his imaginations when Adele Rougeant stepped
+into the kitchen. On perceiving Frank she was a little astonished,
+but soon recovered her self-control and assumed a well-bred smile.
+
+The young man immediately hastened to explain the cause of his
+presence. He was greatly astonished. Here, then, was the corpulent
+country-girl his imagination had fancied! Before him stood a young
+lady altogether different to anything he had pictured her to be. "A
+girl of about seventeen," he tells himself, but later on he
+discovered that she was one year older than that; plainly, but well
+dressed. Her gown fitted her slender form to perfection. Every
+detail in her dress was arranged with such taste, her small shoes,
+the exquisite lace round her throat and such a charming face peeping
+out of it all. She was not beautiful, but she was pretty and
+attractive, she opened her mouth when she smiled as well as when she
+spoke.
+
+"Pray be seated," said the young lady to Frank who had risen on her
+approach.
+
+Frank sat down, quite confused and ready to run out of the room. He
+felt very timid, so far, as to be uncivil; in the presence of Adele.
+A young man who has spent most of his time alone, studying, will be
+timid when he meets a representative of the softer sex.
+
+He scarcely lifted his eyes from the floor. He knew she would think
+him ill-bred, he was ashamed of himself, but he could not help it.
+He was full of bashfulness. Now, bashfulness is almost always a sure
+sign of _amour-propre_.
+
+He scolded himself, but his red face grew redder. It was soon of a
+colour resembling peacock-blue.
+
+Noticing his discomposure, Miss Rougeant could not help sharing some
+of it, and, doubtless, things would soon have come to an awkward
+point for both, if Mr. Rougeant had not put in an appearance.
+
+"So this is the gentleman who saved your life?" said his daughter,
+speaking in English.
+
+In the same language Mr. Rougeant replied: "Yes, this is he."
+
+She had now regained all her former ease, and knowing her father's
+manners, thanked Frank most cordially.
+
+He stammered out a few words of acknowledgement.
+
+Seeing that her visitor cast glances at the quaint furniture, and
+anxious to break the confusing silence, Adele went on: "Doubtless
+you had not seen a kitchen like this before Mr. ----."
+
+"My name is Frank Mathers," interposed the young man.
+
+"And mine is Adele Rougeant," said she.
+
+"Fancy, putting you in such a kitchen. We must go into the parlour
+directly."
+
+"This is indeed very quaint and certainly primitive furniture. I
+must explain the use of----, that is if----."
+
+"I should be greatly obliged," said Frank, "but it really is giving
+yourself too much trouble."
+
+"On the contrary, it gives me pleasure. This"--pointing to a low
+kind of bedstead--"was the sofa of our forefathers. We call it a
+_jonquiere_. It was formerly stuffed with a weed which still grows
+near the coast; called jonquier--hence its name. These rods were
+used to hang the _craseaux_ on them. A _crase_, the singular of
+_craseaux_, is a lamp of the most primitive type."
+
+"A vessel with a beak in which some oil is poured, and in the beak
+is placed a wick, while underneath the vessel another one is
+suspended as a receptacle for the oil which falls from the upper
+one. Only ten years ago we still used them. I remember it quite
+well."
+
+"And these are what we call '_lattes_,'" she said, pointing to a
+wooden rack which hung suspended from the ceiling and parallel to
+it. "As you see, the bacon is kept there."
+
+She stopped here, and looked anxiously at her father. He was pale
+and trembling. "Are you ill, father?" questioned his daughter.
+
+"No, I'm not ill, although I do not feel quite well. Make me a
+_totaie_," he said, "then I'll go to bed and try to sleep off my
+indisposition."
+
+His daughter did as her father requested.
+
+When she was out of the room, Frank asked Mr. Rougeant what he meant
+by a _totaie_.
+
+"Oh, it's a capital thing," responded the latter, "toasted bread
+soaked in warm cider. You swallow cider and all; if that does not
+drive a cold away, nothing will."
+
+While the young lady was busily engaged in toasting the bread, Frank
+thought it best to take his leave.
+
+Mr. Rougeant asked him to pay them a visit on the morrow. The young
+man promised to call. He managed to overcome his timidity
+sufficiently to raise his eyes as he took leave of Adele. Her eyes
+met his, she blushed and immediately dropped her eyelids.
+
+Through the eyes the souls had spoken.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+
+AN ABRUPT DISMISSAL.
+
+
+Next day Frank Mathers prepared to pay his promised visit.
+
+He fancied that he felt very much like William the Conqueror when he
+set out from Normandy to fight against the English. And probably he
+did.
+
+While he was dressing with more than ordinary care, his thoughts
+were all about Adele.
+
+"'Tis strange," he soliloquized, "such a well-bred, educated and
+refined young lady in this strange place. She is a rose among
+thistles,"--he had already formed his opinion of the master of "Les
+Marches."
+
+"How lonely she must feel living with these two people, one a
+big-headed, and in proportion bigger-nosed man, the other, an
+old ignorant hag, her face of a dirty yellow, and her jaw! it
+reminds me of a species of fish which have a mouth that opens
+vertically--'Melanocetus Johnstoni'--I think the name is."
+
+Here he finished soliloquizing and dressing.
+
+He cast a glance over his clothes. "They don't appear to fit very
+well," he thought. "How strange that I had not noticed this before.
+I feel disposed to put on my best coat instead of this one."
+
+Then he tried to scoff these thoughts away and when they would not
+leave him, he called himself a simpleton, scolded himself for his
+fastidious taste, and resolved to start as he was.
+
+It was two o'clock when he called out to his step-mother: "Mother!"
+(this was a delicate piece of flattery); "I am going to see how the
+man I saved from drowning yesterday is getting on."
+
+"Oh, all right, Frank," answered Mrs. Mathers, pleased to hear him
+calling her "mother."
+
+The young man stepped out into the open air with a decided gait.
+After an hour's walk he arrived at the farm-house, heated by his
+rapid journey.
+
+He was courteously received by Adele at the door. On her devolved
+the duties of hostess, which she endeavoured to discharge
+conscientiously.
+
+She led her guest into the parlour where Mr. Rougeant was seated
+before a fire in an easy-chair. Frank shook hands with him and
+inquired how he felt.
+
+"Not too bad, thank you," he replied, and beckoning Frank to a chair
+close to him, he began to converse about his farm.
+
+Frank listened and answered as well as he could, making a remark now
+and then about agriculture which astonished the farmer considerably.
+He had the tact to respect Mr. Rougeant's feelings, and the latter
+was not slow in showing his appreciation of it.
+
+"You seem to know more about farming than I do," remarked Mr.
+Rougeant.
+
+Frank felt flattered. He began to talk about agricultural chemistry,
+but he was soon stopped by his host.
+
+"I don't believe in theory," interrupted Mr. Rougeant, "give me
+facts, show me results. A great many people write about farming who
+can hardly distinguish a parsnip from a carrot."
+
+The young man dared not go against the farmer. He saw, by his
+manner, that he was not a man to be contradicted. He looked at
+Adele. She was smiling, but directly her father looked round towards
+her, her face became as grave as a nun's.
+
+Mr. Rougeant continued triumphantly to talk about his farm. It was
+all the world to him, and almost the only thing about which he could
+converse.
+
+He never read a book.
+
+During the conversation Frank learnt that he had about one hundred
+vergees of land, one fifth of which he kept, the remainder was let
+to other farmers. He had but one workman, a man about sixty years
+old, who had worked for the Rougeants for more than forty years. His
+name was Jacques Dorant. Then, there was his horse; it was old now,
+but still good. Ah! when he was younger, he was a splendid horse,
+such strength, such form, such a fast trotter, frisky, but as gentle
+as a lamb.
+
+Thought Frank: "If he is to be credited, there has never been such a
+horse since the days of Bucephalus, the famous horse of Alexander."
+
+During the whole time that they had been in the parlour, the young
+man had not found courage to address a word to Adele. He was very
+careful about his tenure. He spoke in a voice which he endeavoured
+to soften; he uttered the best English which he could frame,--for
+Mr. Rougeant spoke in English this time--and when there was an
+opportunity of displaying his talents, he availed himself of it with
+eagerness.
+
+Once, he made a serious blunder. He talked about turnips which he
+had seen growing in a field close by. At which the farmer laughed:
+"Well, I never, turnips, ha-ha...."
+
+Frank felt stung. His face coloured deeply, his head was on fire.
+What did _she_ think of him? Through the mist that seemed to gather
+before his eyes, he managed to glance rapidly in the direction of
+Adele. A thrill of delight shot through his veins. She was looking
+at her father with an offended air, her lustrous eyes seemed to
+issue forth a censuring light.
+
+"Of course, you will stay in to tea, Mr. Mathers," said the farmer
+after a few minutes of silence.
+
+Frank accepted the invitation thankfully.
+
+Adele left the room to help to prepare the tea things.
+
+Left alone with the farmer, the young man looked about him more
+freely. He noticed that the room was very plainly furnished. His
+eyes alighted on a painting which represented a cow standing near a
+cattle-shed. "What a shocking display of art," he said to himself.
+"Infringement of the rules of perspective, shocking chiaroscuro, bad
+composition...."
+
+Mr. Rougeant casually noticed him. "So you are having a look at my
+cow," he said, "a friend of mine painted that picture; he was a real
+artist." Then he paused, examined it like one who understands his
+business, and continued: "Yes, yes, exactly like her, the little
+white patches and that little bump on her back. I gave my friend ten
+shillings for that painting; just think, ten shillings, seven pounds
+of butter. But," he added by way of consoling himself,--for his
+avaricious heart was already revolting against this useless
+expenditure of money; "it's well worth that, it's the very likeness
+of my 'Daisy.' My daughter had the impudence to tell me once that I
+ought to put it in the wash-house. Alas! young people will always
+be young people."
+
+Struggle as he would, Frank could not refrain from smiling. His host
+took it for a genuine smile of admiration and looked at him
+approvingly.
+
+At this stage, Adele announced that the tea was served.
+
+Whilst they were at the meal, Frank was in great perplexity as to
+how he should avoid breaking any of the rules of etiquette in
+Adele's presence.
+
+He was so much in earnest about doing things properly that he
+committed several blunders. Once he almost overturned his cup, then
+he blushed till his face was all discoloured, and bit his under lip
+savagely. A minute after that, while gallantly passing a plate
+containing _gache a corinthe_ to Adele, he knocked it against the
+sugar basin, overset the latter, and sent the pieces of sugar and
+cake flying in all directions. He grew angry with himself, and
+completely lost his head. Mr. Rougeant complained of not being
+hungry. Frank, who misunderstood him, answered: "Ah! I see." Another
+blunder.
+
+At last the meal was over. The two men rose and returned to the
+parlour. The first remark of the farmer was: "In my time, servants
+used to eat at the same table as their masters, but our Miss says
+that she will not have it. I let her have her own way sometimes; it
+does not cost me more, so I do not care."
+
+He called out to his daughter: "Adele, make haste, so that the
+gentleman may hear your playing."
+
+"I am coming soon," was the reply.
+
+The farmer went on to Frank: "The instrument which she plays is a
+violin. For my part, I do not care for it. It does not make enough
+noise. Give me a harmonium or a cornet. But my daughter persists in
+saying that she will not learn anything but the violin. Perhaps it's
+better after all," he added, suddenly thinking of the outlay
+required for a new instrument.
+
+Adele came in with her violin, which she at once carefully tuned.
+She appeared confident of success. She placed herself opposite her
+father and nearly alongside the young man.
+
+"Fire away!" said the father, "what are you doing now?"
+
+"I was just seeing if the strings were well tuned," she said. "It is
+of no use trying to play if the instrument is out of tune." These
+last words were spoken to Frank.
+
+"I cannot play on the violin," said he.
+
+"Ah! then you won't criticize me," said she.
+
+She bent her head over her instrument, and began playing. She forgot
+the outward world, her whole attention was concentrated on her
+violin as her slender and nervous fingers guided the bow or pressed
+the strings.
+
+It was a sweet soft tune--like her voice--her face wore a tender
+expression. Then the music swelled, became louder and louder till it
+reached its climax; the bow bounded over the strings, the fingers of
+the left hand rose and fell in quick succession, her expression was
+now animated, her face aglow.
+
+Frank was sitting with his eyes fixed upon the fair musician. He had
+never imagined that an instrument could be made to express such
+feelings.
+
+He noticed that Adele would have to turn a leaf. He could read
+music, so he rose, scanned the music, was soon on the track, and
+turned the leaf in due time.
+
+Adele finished playing soon after.
+
+Her face was slightly flushed and triumphant.
+
+Frank congratulated her warmly in a select speech which he finished
+thus: "In short, your playing seems to have as much power over my
+feelings as Timotheus' had over Alexander's."
+
+The farmer's face was ominous. He had begun to entertain suspicions
+when Adele had looked at him reproachfully before tea-time. Now his
+imagination had ripened into certainty--so he thought. The young
+people must be for ever separated. He said roughly: "There are other
+things which are more important than fiddling, one of them is to
+know how to live."
+
+Frank looked at Adele, she looked back at him. Their astonishment
+was diverting to witness.
+
+Quoth the farmer gruffly to Frank, "I am going to retire, I think
+you had better do the same."
+
+"Is the man going mad?" thought Frank. He looked at Adele, then
+suddenly took his hat and his departure.
+
+The young lady followed him to the door. She was extremely vexed at
+her father's demeanour. She spoke a few words to Frank as he stepped
+outside.
+
+"I hope you will not take my father's words too seriously," she
+said, "I am very sorry--it's shocking--I am exceedingly angry with
+him--a fine way of thanking you--you to whom he owes so much."
+
+As he pressed the delicate hand which she tended in farewell, Frank
+said: "I quite forgive Mr. Rougeant, there are strange natures," and
+he walked away.
+
+He had gone by the back door, why, he did not know. As he passed the
+stable, he saw a man engaged in cleaning, a horse. "Come what may,"
+he said to himself, "I must have a chat with this fellow."
+
+"Good evening," he said, speaking in French, "cleaning up a bit?"
+
+"Good evening, sir," replied Jacques, speaking in broken English.
+"You needn't talk in French, I know English; I learnt it when Jim
+Tozer worked here."
+
+Said Frank inly: "Jim Tozer, the name seems familiar to me. Of
+course, my step-mother's brother." Aloud: "You are the only workman
+here now!"
+
+"Yes, you've been payin' a visit to Mr. Rougeant, you're the
+gentleman as rescued him from drowning. Lucky for him, old chap,
+that you were round about there, for it's dead certain he'd ha' gone
+to bottom."
+
+"You take care of this horse?"
+
+"I take care of pretty nearly everything round about here, for the
+bos doesn't do much now, but he gives a reg'lar 'go at it' now and
+then though."
+
+"I suppose you like this job," remarked Frank, meanwhile scanning
+the horse and forming his opinion of this member of the equine
+genus. Here is his judgment: "A famous trotter! a spirited
+steed!--indeed!--an old nag not worth half-a-guinea."
+
+"What job?" said Jacques.
+
+"Working about here, I mean, working for Mr. Rougeant."
+
+"Well, ye-yes, but you've got to know how to tackle the guv'nor;
+he's a quair sort. I've worked for the Rougeants for forty-two
+years, and the old fellow's never given me more than my day's
+wage." Then he added in an undertone, "He's a reg'lar miser, he's
+got some tin! They say he's worth four hundred quarters."
+
+Four hundred pounds income, was to old Jacques a large fortune.
+
+"Ah," he went on, "if only I had four hundred pounds capital, with
+the little that I have scraped together, I would not trouble to work
+any more, I would have enough for the rest of my days. We live on
+thirty pounds a year, me and my old missus.
+
+"We're not allu's feastin', you see; besides, the house we live in
+is ours. Built with my savin's when I married, it was----"
+
+"Mrs. Rougeant is dead, is she not?" questioned Frank, anxious to
+learn more about the family.
+
+"Dead! o' course she's dead," said Jacques, "she's been dead now
+for--let me see--twelve--thirteen--fourteen years!--her daughter was
+about four years old then."
+
+"So Miss Rougeant is now eighteen."
+
+"Yes, Sir, an' a fine girl she is,"--this was said with a wink and a
+nod.
+
+"She seems to have been very well educated," said Frank.
+
+"I should think so," said the labourer, opening his eyes wide. "Why,
+bless you, Sir, she's been at a boarding-school all her life; she
+only came to live here last year, after having been absent for
+nearly ten years. I bet she don't get on too well with the guv'nor,
+he's such an old feller for brass. She's a good 'un, too; now and
+then she goes to see my old missus, and she isn't partic'lar about
+givin' my daughter's mites a tanner, although I'll lay ten to one
+she's not allowed too much. And her flowers; have you seen 'em? Why
+there's not many a gardener as 'u'd arrange 'em in sich a bloomin'
+style."
+
+"Has Mr. Rougeant always been the sort of man that he is now?"
+inquired Frank.
+
+"No, not when the lady was alive; I s'pose it was her as made him
+spend some money on improvements. The year before she died, he took
+off the thatched roofs and put slate instead, then he built that
+there little conservatory, but as soon as she was gone, he began to
+pinch and screw; why, fancy, he used to shave himself, but now his
+razor's broke, he says he doesn't care to buy one, the bloke."
+Jacques heard a clock strike. "I must make haste to finish this," he
+said, "then I'll put on my togs and go home; my missus'l jaw if I'm
+not in time for the grub."
+
+"Good-night, then," said Frank.
+
+"Good-night, Sir," shouted Jacques.--"Whog back old mare--steady!"
+Frank heard him say as he walked away.
+
+Going home, he wrapped himself up in deep thought. The way which
+seemed clear yesterday, was now full of obstacles. Mr. Rougeant was
+rich; judging from his demeanour he had probably already chosen his
+daughter a husband--would that she were poor.
+
+He looked to see what redeeming feature he could find on his side.
+None. He had never felt so little as he now did.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+
+AN UNPLEASANT VISIT.
+
+
+When Adele came back from shutting the door after Frank, her father
+looked at her with a hard, scrutinizing gaze, but did not say a
+word.
+
+It was just like him. He very rarely spoke when he was angry; he
+would mope about for whole days, his face covered with innumerable
+wrinkles.
+
+This anger on her father's part did not pain Adele so much as it had
+formerly done. Her heart revolted at the thought of being always
+made to bend under her father's stern will.
+
+Like the terror-stricken few who would do battle for their rights,
+but are awed by countless numbers, Adele had up to this time quietly
+submitted to her father's iron rule; but now she felt inclined to
+rebel.
+
+Accordingly, instead of trying to coax her father into wearing his
+ordinary face, which was none too pleasant, she pouted.
+
+The old man noticed this and chuckled to himself: "Ah, ah, you think
+a great deal of this young fellow. I'll teach you to keep up the
+honour of the family."
+
+He was so delighted at the prospect of an easy victory that he did
+not sulk nearly as long as usual, but, to the young girl's
+astonishment, was quite talkative the next day.
+
+"Your aunt asked me if you would go and take tea with her
+to-morrow," he said when they were at dinner.
+
+Adele did not answer.
+
+Heedless of her silence, her father went on: "You must go, because
+you do not go often."
+
+The daughter answered: "No, I do not go often." She thought: "Often
+enough," for she did not at all relish the idea of a visit to her
+aunt.
+
+The inmates of the "Prenoms" did not please her. There was her
+uncle, Mr. Soher, morose and stern. He was one of this class of
+people who seem to be continually looking upwards, their mind so
+much occupied in contemplating the upper regions that they
+continually stumble against the blocks which lie in life's path. He
+lived, partly on his income, partly on the commission which he
+secured as agent to a firm of agricultural implement manufacturers,
+and partly on the money which he made by selling his property bit by
+bit. He had also advertised himself as auctioneer, house and estate
+agent, etcetera, but no one seemed to require his services in this
+line. Averse to manual labour, he could not properly cultivate such
+a small farm without submitting himself to this "slavish work," as
+he called it. Accordingly, he was, if slowly, surely drifting
+towards bankruptcy. He saw this, so did his wife, but neither seemed
+to care much; they were buoyed up by a false hope, always waiting
+for something unexpected to turn up, which would rescue them from
+this abyss.
+
+Mrs. Soher was Mr. Rougeant's sister.
+
+They were the only children of the late Charles Rougeant, of "Les
+Marches."
+
+She was short of stature, rather stout, her round little face
+always assuming a certain air of dignity, her light blue eyes
+wearing a fixed gaze and her tongue always ready to slander. She
+pretended to be religious, because her husband was so; had he been
+otherwise, she would certainly have been otherwise too.
+
+Then came her twenty-four year old daughter Amelia, the only member
+of the family with which the reader is not acquainted; and Tom,
+grown into a lazy, bad-tempered and slouching young man. Old Mrs.
+Soher was dead.
+
+The home at the "Prenoms" was not a bright one. Mr. Soher did not
+believe in education. He and his wife were often absent from home in
+the evening. They went to some meeting, and their two children were
+left alone. When the parents were gone, Tom left the house, leaving
+his sister alone and returning about half an hour before his parents
+came in. His sister said she would tell her father, but, upon Tom
+threatening her, she kept silent, for she feared her brother who was
+of a very violent temper.
+
+One day, Tom came in later than usual. When he entered the house, he
+was astonished to see his father sitting near the fire.
+
+"Well," said Mr. Soher, "what does this mean?"
+
+"I've just been out a little," said Tom.
+
+"I hope you will not repeat this, my son," said the father. Then he
+showed him how wicked it was to associate with bad companions, the
+probable results of it; how, when he had once acquired bad habits,
+he would find it nearly impossible to break with them; how he would
+be enticed into disreputable places, and a host of other
+admonishments.
+
+Tom did not answer; he felt culpable, but not repentant. He did not
+tell his father that this same evening he had entered a public-house
+for the first time.
+
+The days went by. Mr. Soher and his spouse continued to attend to
+their meetings and their son continued to go out, returning boldly
+after his parents had come in.
+
+One evening, he came in drunk. Then his father became really
+alarmed. He felt that he had not done towards his son all that he
+might have done.
+
+This did not, however, make him remain at home.
+
+"I must attend to my Master's work," he would say. Once, he took his
+son in the parlour, and after having exhorted him to turn a new leaf
+he lifted up his voice in prayer. But the son continued to drink and
+the father to pray, while the mother did as much as she could to
+shield her dear boy.
+
+Tom had neither the force of will, nor the desire to amend. His home
+was so dull; there was nothing about it which attracted him; he did
+not care at all for the mother who tried to screen his faults. She
+was so narrow minded; always speaking ill of everyone. She knew they
+were slowly sinking towards bankruptcy, and it was a consolation to
+her to imagine others in the same position. She saw other people's
+defects as if through a microscope.
+
+Foolish woman. Even as thou art scandalizing others, thine own
+nature is being abased, whilst those whom thou dost backbite remain
+the same.
+
+One glance at the daughter. She was taller and fairer than her
+mother. Her character was the same as her mother's. Alas! under
+such tutorship, how could she be expected to be otherwise.
+
+When the time came for Adele to set out to pay her visit to the
+"Prenoms," she did so reluctantly. It was not a pleasure to her, it
+was a duty. If she did not go, she thought they would think her too
+proud. So she made the sacrifice, and went. She determined to show a
+bright face and to be as pleasant as she possibly could. She arrived
+at the house of her hosts rather late.
+
+Mrs. Soher welcomed her in a piping voice. She wore her everyday
+apparel, and that was not of the brightest.
+
+"Come in, my dear; you see, my dear, I have not had time yet to
+change clothes, but I'll be ready in a few minutes.
+
+"Sit down, my dear; why are you so late? I thought you would come
+sooner."
+
+Adele thought: "What a state the house would have been in, if I had
+arrived an hour earlier."
+
+Mrs. Soher began to dust a secretaire, talking all the while to her
+niece. "Amelia will soon be down; she ran upstairs when she heard
+you knock at the door; she does not like for anyone to see her when
+she is not properly dressed, but _I_ don't care, not when it is you,
+at any rate."
+
+"A pretty compliment," thought the visitor.
+
+When they were all assembled round the table partaking of their tea,
+Adele tried over and over again to lead the conversation into a
+pleasant channel, but all to no purpose. The inmates of the
+"Prenoms" had to be taught to converse properly before they could do
+so. Mrs. Soher began to babble in her ordinary way. Her daughter
+supported her foolish statements. Adele made no remark. Her aunt
+noticed this, and after a most scornful remark about Mrs. B.'s
+character, she said to her niece: "Don't you think so?"
+
+Although considerably annoyed, Adele had not so far made any remark,
+but she was now directly appealed to. She spoke: "I do not know,"
+she said. She noticed the two women smiling and exchanging glances.
+
+Said Mrs. Soher sarcastically: "I thought you knew Mrs. B."
+
+"Yes," answered her niece, "I know her, but I am continually
+detecting faults in my temper which have to be overcome; and I find
+that I have quite enough to do to look after myself without
+bothering about others."
+
+If ever you saw two people looking six ways for Sunday, it was Mrs.
+Soher and her daughter.
+
+After a few moments of embarrassing silence, Mr. Soher, who had not
+yet spoken a word, said something about young people being
+respectful to their superiors; while Tom laughed at the two women
+and smiled approvingly at his cousin.
+
+Adele took her departure early and was not asked to remain longer.
+When she was once more in the open, she felt a great weight lifted
+from her breast. She was now free, free to entertain herself with
+nature, away from the stagnant atmosphere of the "Prenoms." She
+walked along, her whole being revolting against the useless, ay,
+more than useless talk she had heard. But when she looked at the
+flowers that grew on the hedges which bordered the lane in which she
+was walking, her soul was filled with a sweet balm. Here was the ivy
+climbing upwards taking its support and some of its nourishment from
+the hedge which it was scaling, always gaining fresh ground. Such is
+the man who has risen in the world; he avails himself of his
+success for a nobler, higher, and mightier effort. There some meek
+ferns were hiding in a shady nook, away from the sun's piercing
+rays.
+
+The young girl felt a twofold joy: that of being alone with nature,
+and that of being away from her aunt's house.
+
+At last, she reached "Les Marches." How happy she felt. Not the sort
+of home she hoped to have some day; but still, it was home. Her
+father was there, as dumb and as severe as usual, but, to her, he
+looked quite a nice old man now.
+
+While she was thus engaged in rapturous joy, Mrs. Soher and her
+daughter were having a fine time of it. "Ah! she _is_ a well-bred
+girl; to interrupt me like that, to answer and lecture me in that
+way," said Adele's aunt, then she added: "Fancy that little brat, to
+try and give me a lesson about my duty towards my neighbour. If she
+has enough to do to look after herself, let her do it; for my part
+I'll do as I like. It won't be a young girl who is not yet out of
+her teens who is going to teach me how to live."
+
+The daughter scornfully remarked: "She has been to a
+boarding-school, you know."
+
+At which the two women laughed and Mr. Soher smiled, while Tom,
+profiting by the general interest displayed in the conversation,
+slipped out of the room and slouched to the nearest public-house.
+
+After having most unduly run down their departed guest, the two
+women resolved never again to invite her.
+
+And they never did.
+
+Had Adele heard their decision, she would have felt even more
+cheerful than she now did.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+
+DECEPTIONS.
+
+
+On the anniversary of his mother's death, Frank Mathers resolved to
+visit her tomb. He had not been before; why, he could not explain.
+However, he determined to make up for past deficiencies.
+Accordingly, he went with a small bunch of flowers which he placed
+upon his mother's tomb. He felt a deep veneration for her. He now
+knew more than ever what she had done for him, and, in his heart, he
+thanked heaven that had given him such a mother. He could not help
+wishing that she were still alive, but he felt happy for all that,
+his soul was full of thankfulness.
+
+This visit did him so much good that he thought he would like to go
+oftener.
+
+When he came home he was astonished to see his step-mother. She was
+in a dreadful fit of jealousy. "The booby," she said to her husband,
+so that Frank could hear; "he was not a little attached to his
+mother's apron-strings."
+
+Frank did not say a single word and the storm soon abated.
+
+A few days afterwards found him walking near "Les Marches," hoping
+to meet Adele Rougeant. He was not successful. Still, he continued
+his visits, hoping to meet her some day.
+
+He was at last rewarded for his pains. On turning a sharp corner he
+suddenly met her. The meeting was so unexpected that Frank's
+nervous system was quite upset. He had come hoping to talk to her.
+He was to enquire about Mr. Rougeant's health.
+
+But now, his courage failed him. He raised his hat, his lips
+muttered a faint: "How d'ye do?" he smiled in a ludicrous manner and
+passed on. The young girl who thought he was about his business
+bowed and went on her way. "He might have said a few words," she
+thought.
+
+Frank was vexed with himself.
+
+He thought of retracing his steps, but after a moment's reflection
+he decided not to do so.
+
+The weather began to look threatening. The sun was setting. Huge
+black clouds were rising from the horizon while an occasional flash
+of lightning announced the approach of the coming storm.
+
+Frank hastened as fast as he could toward the Rohais. But, he had
+not gone very far before a heavy shower overtook him.
+
+After all his pains, the only thing which he at last secured was a
+thorough drenching.
+
+When he came back home, he was down-hearted. Next morning he,
+however, determined to make one more attempt.
+
+A few days afterwards saw him leisurely promenading round the farm
+of "Les Marches." It was in the evening and the moon was rising.
+
+He went round by the back of the house through the fields. As he
+approached, he saw, on the opposite side to the stables, a small
+garden enclosed with high walls. One entrance, on the side of which
+he now stood, was by a door. He went towards it. The door was ajar.
+He entered the garden. Then, and only then, did he begin to reason.
+What if someone found him there? They would take him for a thief.
+"I must go," he said to himself; "if Mr. Rougeant found me here,
+there would be a fine row." But his lips uttered what his heart had
+not dictated, and he remained in the garden. It was sweet to be near
+her, it was refreshing to his weary brain to behold the paths which
+she paraded every day. He was plunged into a deep reverie, when he
+saw a light at one of the windows. It was she. Immediately after,
+there appeared another light at the other window. It was he. Frank
+only cast a glance at the man. He looked at the slender form that
+approached the window. Adele looked at the stars for a few moments,
+then lowered the blind. He saw her shadow for a time, then _it_ also
+disappeared. His heart was beating at a very fast rate. He felt
+intoxicated. He had seen her; she had appeared to him as an angel.
+How she had gazed towards heaven! What grace; what bearing!
+
+Happening to turn his eyes towards the other window, he saw that
+there was no light.
+
+"The old fellow wants to spare his candle," he said to himself; "he
+is trying to save a farthing."
+
+This was not the case however. The farmer had suddenly thought of
+the garden door which he had forgotten to bolt as usual. He took his
+candlestick and went down stairs. Then he put on his boots, and
+leaving the candlestick on the table he went through the back door
+and stepped into the garden.
+
+Frank was gazing with fixed eyes at the stars, drinking in the balmy
+air, when he heard footsteps. Hastily looking in the direction from
+whence the sound came, he was horrified to see a man coming towards
+him. There was not time to flee, so he quickly crouched away from
+the path. Luckily, he was in that part of the garden which was in
+the shade.
+
+He trembled as the farmer approached. Would he see him? He was
+breathing through his nose; then he fancied he made too much noise.
+He opened his mouth wide, then he found that his breathing was not
+even audible to himself. He squeezed his body into the least
+possible space, and watched the farmer with anxious eyes.
+
+Mr. Rougeant passed by without noticing him. Frank heard him shut
+the door, bolt it, and--oh, misery--turn a key in a latch. Mr.
+Rougeant again directed his steps towards him. When he came near to
+him, Frank was dreadfully alarmed to see the farmer looking straight
+in his direction. The young man was in the shade, while the moon
+shone fully on Mr. Rougeant's face. The latter looked straight at
+the crouching figure, then, suddenly quickening his pace, he went
+towards the house.
+
+This man was a coward. He had seen the contracted silhouette, but
+had not had the courage to go up to it; he went hurriedly towards
+his house, seized an old gun which hung on two rusty nails and
+walked back into the garden. The gun was loaded for shooting
+rabbits.
+
+As soon as Frank saw that the man was out of his way, he proceeded
+to try and find out some means of escape. "He will be back soon," he
+said to himself, "I must be out of his way when he returns." He went
+to the door. Impossible to open it. He scrutinized the walls.
+Impossible to scale them. Time was passing. What was to be done? He
+heard the door of the house close. The master of the garden was
+advancing. He saw a pear-tree nailed against the wall. There was
+not a moment to lose. He climbed the pear-tree. He broke a few
+branches in doing so, and knocked down a dozen pears. He regretted
+doing any damage, but he knew it would be better for him, and indeed
+for both of them, if he got out of the way in time.
+
+Just as he let himself drop to the ground on the other side of the
+wall, the farmer entered the garden. While Mr. Rougeant was engaged
+in searching for the supposed thief with cocked gun, Frank was
+walking quickly towards his home.
+
+Of course, the farmer did not find the intruder, but he found the
+broken Chaumontel pear-tree, and he saw the pears scattered on the
+ground.
+
+"The unmitigated scoundrel," he muttered, "if I saw him now--looking
+at his gun--I'd make him decamp. I'd send a few shots into his dirty
+hide."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X.
+
+'TWIXT LOVE AND DUTY.
+
+
+One evening--it was the first week in June, about nine months after
+Frank's adventure in the garden--Adele Rougeant was tending her
+flowers.
+
+She had been sewing for a time, and now, feeling a want of
+relaxation, she went to her parterre. Her violin and her flowers
+were her only companions. No wonder she fled to them when inclined
+to be sorrowful.
+
+How beautiful the flower-bed looked in the twilight! The weather had
+been very warm, the earth which had been previously battered down by
+heavy rains was now covered with small cracks, little mouths as it
+were, begging for water.
+
+Adele supplied them plentifully with the precious liquid.
+
+Then she armed herself with a pair of gardening gloves, and an old
+mason's trowel (any instrument is good to a woman), and began to
+plant a row of lobelias all around her pelargoniums.
+
+This done, she looked at her work. There is a pleasure in gazing
+upon well-trimmed borders, but this pleasure is increased tenfold
+when one thinks that the plants have been arranged by one's own
+hands.
+
+The young lady felt this delight: she felt more, she experienced the
+soothing influence of nature's sweet converse. She looked at the
+primroses, whose slender stalks were bent and which touched each
+other as if engaged in silent intercourse. And thus they would die,
+she thought, locked in each others fond embrace, their task
+accomplished, their life but one stretch of mutual love.
+
+"Ah love! What is love?" she said to herself. But immediately a
+score of answers came; a dozen vague definitions presented
+themselves. "Certainly," she mused, "the parents who toil for their
+children without thinking of reward; love." Then another self within
+her answered: "It is their duty." "Their duty, yes, but they are not
+often actuated by a sense of duty; I think it is love."
+
+Then she thought about another kind of love--the love she felt for
+Frank Mathers. She asked herself why she loved him. He was not bold,
+and she admired boldness. That she loved him, however, she was
+certain. Did he love her? "Yes," she thought he did. Then what kept
+them apart? Who was the cause of it? Her father. "What a pity I have
+such a father," she sighed; "not content with making himself
+miserable, he makes me pass a life of anxiety."
+
+At this stage of her soliloquy, she perceived a young man, whom she
+quickly recognized as Tom, her cousin from the "Prenoms." He came
+walking towards the house.
+
+As he opened the little gate he smiled broadly. His smile was not a
+pleasant one, because it was undefined. "Good-evening, Adele," he
+said when he came near to her. "How are you?"
+
+"Quite well thank you," she said, "and how are you?"
+
+"Well enough, thanks," he returned, a little cooled down, for she
+did not take the preferred hand which he was tending towards her.
+
+"Are you afraid to shake hands with me?" he asked, half smiling,
+half vexed.
+
+"My gloves are soiled," replied she, taking off her right hand
+glove; afterwards shaking hands with him.
+
+"Oh, I see," he said, quite satisfied with the excuse.
+
+In reality, Adele had not seen the preferred hand; she was busy with
+her thoughts just then. His manner seemed repulsive to her; she knew
+not why. She opened the front door and showed him into the parlour.
+Her father was there, evidently expecting Tom, for he received him
+with a warmth which he had not shown for a long time. She left them
+to themselves and was proceeding towards her parterre when her
+father called out to her.
+
+"What! are you going, Adele, when Mr. Soher is here; come and keep
+us company."
+
+The girl retraced her steps. What could her father mean? He had not
+told her a word about her cousin's visit, and yet, it was evident he
+was expecting him.
+
+"Where's your violin?" questioned her father.
+
+Adele fetched the desired instrument. She felt very much like an
+instrument herself. "Father takes me for a toy," she thought, and
+then as she looked at the two men engaged in close conversation, a
+sudden light beamed upon her--he was going to force her into a
+_marriage de raison_, as the French call it. Everything had been
+arranged beforehand.
+
+It was all conjecture on her part, but she felt it to be the truth.
+The more she thought over it, the more she felt convinced of the
+fact.
+
+"Oh, it's disgusting," she thought; and a sickening sensation crept
+over her.
+
+"Will you give us a tune?" said Mr. Rougeant.
+
+"Do;" entreated Tom.
+
+Adele took the violin from the table upon which she had placed it,
+passed the bow over the strings to ascertain if it was properly
+tuned, then slowly began playing.
+
+It was a simple piece, which did not demand exertion. She did not
+care what to play. "They cannot distinguish 'Home, Sweet Home' from
+'Auld Lang Syne,'" she thought. Besides, they were not half
+listening; why should she give them good music.
+
+She felt like the painter, who, having completed a real work of art,
+refuses to exhibit it to the public, on the ground that it is a
+profane thing to exhibit it to the gaze of unartistic eyes.
+
+When she had finished playing, Tom looked at her. "That's capital
+music," he said, assuming the air of a connoisseur, then he added:
+"I s'pose you practice a good bit."
+
+"The grin," thought Adele, "it's awful; and his eyes resemble those
+of a wild cat. I wonder if he has a soul; if it shines through those
+eyes, it cannot be spotless;" then, recollecting herself, she said:
+"I have been practising now for ten years."
+
+"No wonder you can rattle it," was the rejoinder.
+
+Now Tom was not half so ugly as Adele imagined him to be. Indeed, he
+looked well enough this evening, for he had come on purpose to
+exhibit himself, and was as a matter of fact as well dressed up as
+he could. His manners were not refined, but they were not absolutely
+rude.
+
+But the girl, whose whole being revolted against this scheme of her
+father's fabrication, felt naturally indignant and could not help
+exaggerating his faults.
+
+She felt greatly relieved when her father told her to prepare the
+supper.
+
+It may here be noted that Mr. Rougeant had now altogether dispensed
+with his Breton servant. Now that Adele was growing up, a servant
+was altogether superfluous, he said. The truth was that this enabled
+him to save a few pounds every year.
+
+When the table was laid, the three sat down to supper. It being
+over, the two men returned to the parlour. Adele was a long, very
+long time in putting away the supper things.
+
+Her father noticed this, and when she entered the parlour, he
+remarked: "You've been long enough."
+
+"Provided she has not been too long," put in his nephew, trying to
+win his cousin's good will.
+
+After one of the most miserable evenings that Adele had ever spent,
+Tom took leave of the family.
+
+When he was fairly out of the way, Adele ventured to ask her father
+what he had come for.
+
+"He came to see us," he replied, then, after a pause, he added
+abruptly: "Have you ever thought of marrying?"
+
+"I, marry! you forget that I am but a child."
+
+"A child! why, you will soon be of age."
+
+There was a deep silence for a time, then the father spoke: "Mr.
+Soher (emphasizing the Mr.) is a nice young man. He means to ask
+your hand when he is better acquainted with you."
+
+"He drinks."
+
+"Not now, I know he used to do so, but he is quite steady now--I
+knew you would object, I saw it in your manner, the way in which you
+answered him; somehow or other, you don't seem to take to
+respectable people. But mind you; if ever you marry anyone else, not
+a penny of mine shall you have; not one double."
+
+"He is my _cousin-germain_."
+
+"Well, what does it matter? the law does not prevent you from
+marrying your _cousin-germain_." His tone became bitter. He went on:
+"I made a great mistake when I promised your mother on her death-bed
+that I would send you to a boarding-school. What other objection
+have you to state?"
+
+His daughter looked down, coloured and replied almost inaudibly: "I
+do not love him."
+
+"Bah! if it's only that, you will get to love him soon enough; I
+know you will."
+
+Then thinking by her demeanour that he had nearly won her over, he
+asked: "Shall I ask him to dinner next Sunday?"
+
+"You would only increase the contempt that I feel for him."
+
+Mr. Rougeant was not prepared for this. "I knew it," he said in a
+vexed tone of voice; "this is the satisfaction you give me for
+having brought you up like a lady, spending a great part of my
+income towards your education. I tell you, you are a foolish girl, a
+simpleton; I won't have any of your nonsense. I will see to this
+later on."
+
+They retired for the night; Mr. Rougeant enraged at his daughter's
+abhorrence of Tom, and Adele deeply grieved at the condition of
+affairs.
+
+Alas! she knew her father well.
+
+She felt that a terrible battle would have to be fought some day; a
+conflict for love and liberty.
+
+And, raising her eyes to heaven, she prayed that she might have
+strength to support the fight.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+
+BUSINESS.
+
+
+While these things were going on at "Les Marches," a great change
+had come over Frank's life.
+
+His father was one day descending a ladder, when one of the rounds
+of the latter broke and his body received a nasty jerk. He placed
+his hand on his heart and muttered. "I have felt something, I have
+felt something here." Two days afterwards he died from internal
+hemorrhage.
+
+So Frank was left to live with his step-mother.
+
+He had now a little money and was considering how he should lay it
+out. Finally, he decided to build one or two greenhouses. But he
+wanted some land upon which to build them, and this he did not
+possess.
+
+There was a field situated behind his garden which belonged to a Mr.
+Fallon. "This field would exactly suit me," he said to himself, "I
+must try to buy it."
+
+Accordingly, he set out towards "La Chaumiere"--this was the name of
+Mr. Fallon's residence. When he arrived there, he saw the farmer
+coming out of his stable and at once asked him if his field was for
+sale. Now, Mr. Fallon thought himself too much of a business man to
+answer either "Yes" or "No." "I do not think," he said, "but I can't
+tell. I must mention it to my wife and think over it, for it's a
+serious thing to sell one's property."
+
+Frank nodded.
+
+Would he call the next evening? the man asked.
+
+Frank promised to call.
+
+The farmer immediately told his wife about the young man's proposal.
+The worthy couple decided to sell the piece of land, "but," said the
+cautious husband, "we must sell it at a high price, if we can. I
+wish it were sold though," he continued, "it's such an out of the
+way place, and so far from here."
+
+The next evening saw Frank sitting near the hearth of the kitchen of
+"La Chaumiere." The following conversation took place.
+
+"Well, Mr. Fallon," said Frank, "I have come to see if the field is
+really for sale."
+
+"I hardly know, one doesn't like to do away with one's property."
+
+"You told me you would tell me this evening."
+
+"Yes, I know, but, it's a good field."
+
+"It may be."
+
+"There's a stream running through it."
+
+"I know."
+
+"You would not have to dig a well, and a well costs a great deal of
+money."
+
+"Sometimes."
+
+"I have a mind to keep it."
+
+"Indeed!"
+
+"Ah! but such good land, it's a pity to give it away."
+
+"I don't want to have it for nothing."
+
+"Perhaps not, but I don't think you would give me my price."
+
+"What is it?"
+
+"Much too cheap. Land is very dear just now, and the prices will
+always go up."
+
+"I don't know about that."
+
+"No, but I do, people are very eager to purchase such fine little
+plots. This one has all the advantages that it can have,
+situation----"
+
+"What do you mean?"
+
+"It's situated just behind your garden; where can you have anything
+better."
+
+"The field is well situated for me, but it's not worth anything as
+building land to others, it does not border the road," Frank
+ventured to remark.
+
+"It's a splendid piece of land," continued the farmer, "light, open
+and yet damp soil, just the sort of thing for tomatoes, I fancy I
+can see them, as big as my fist----"
+
+"We have not done much business yet."
+
+"I don't know if I shall sell it."
+
+"If that's the case, when will you make up your mind; shall I call
+again to-morrow?"
+
+"I hardly know"--scratching his head--"such a fine plot, let me see;
+aloud: It's worth a lot of money."
+
+"How much would you require?"
+
+"Oh! I don't know."
+
+"Well, I'll call again this day week," said Frank, tiring of this
+useless talk and guessing what the farmer's intentions were. He rose
+and added: "I hope you will have made up your mind by then."
+
+Quoth the farmer: "I should be very sorry for you to have had to
+come here for nothing, perhaps we may yet come to terms."
+
+"Will you sell it? 'Yes' or 'No,'" said the young man re-seating
+himself.
+
+"If you don't mind giving me my price."
+
+"What _is_ your price?"
+
+"Land is very dear. This piece is situated quite close to town, it
+ought to fetch top price. There's two and a half vergees to that
+field. I have heard that some land has been sold for eight quarters
+a vergee."
+
+"I won't give as much for this one; it's twice too much."
+
+"I should require some money."
+
+"How much?"
+
+"At least one hundred pounds."
+
+"Perhaps I might give you as much, but do state the price of the
+whole."
+
+"Six quarters a vergee."
+
+"No."
+
+"It would be worth that to you."
+
+"I will give you five quarters."
+
+"It's too low, the field would only amount to two hundred and fifty
+pounds."
+
+"Two hundred and fifty pounds for two and a half vergees, that is
+about an acre, is, I should think, a very good price."
+
+"That would only make, besides the one hundred pounds cash, seven
+and a half pounds per annum. Such a fertile soil. Such a splendid
+stream. No well to dig. Hundreds of tomatoes weighing half-a-pound
+each. It's ridiculously low."
+
+"It's time for me to part. Will you accept my price, Mr. Fallon,
+'Yes' or 'No?'"
+
+After much grumbling and protestations on the part of the farmer,
+with assertions that he would be ruined giving away his land like
+that, the transaction was agreed to.
+
+Going home, Frank reviewed in his mind the state of his finance.
+
+He possessed the house, garden, greenhouse and workshop, minus his
+step-mother's dowry, and plus five hundred pounds cash. "I cannot do
+much with that," he thought, "but I have enough to begin with."
+
+And now where were his ambitious castles; where was the successful
+inventor, the possessor of hundreds of thousands--contemplating to
+build two span-roofed greenhouses in which he would have to work and
+perspire when the thermometer would often stand at from eighty to
+ninety degrees.
+
+However, he was full of hope, his ambition had received a severe
+blow, but it still clung to him. He feared to aim too high now, and
+failures he dreaded. "I must begin at the bottom of the ladder," he
+said to himself, "and, with God's help, I shall succeed."
+
+He resolved to work with his brains as well as with his hands. "I
+have some education," he thought, "and I will seize the
+opportunities as they present themselves. I do not care for riches
+now. If only I could succeed in securing enough money to put me out
+of the danger of want, I should be satisfied."
+
+Since his adventure in the garden, he had not dared to go again near
+"Les Marches."
+
+He thought that Mr. Rougeant had perhaps recognised him, but,
+fortunately for him, Adele's father had failed to discern his
+crouching figure.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+
+A STRANGE MEETING.
+
+
+Three months afterwards, Frank was planting his tomatoes in his
+greenhouses. He had two span-roofs, each one hundred and forty feet
+long by forty feet wide.
+
+He had sold the workshop which was situated a few yards to the north
+of the house, and had thus been enabled to build larger houses than
+he at first intended.
+
+He heard vague rumours about his step-mother going to marry again.
+If the truth must be said, Frank felt delighted at the prospect of
+getting rid of her. He had never cared for her much, and, recently,
+the gap that had always existed between them had been considerably
+enlarged.
+
+He had been out on business and had arrived rather late in the
+evening, at which Mrs. Mathers was terribly displeased. "I am not
+going to sit up all night waiting for you," she said, and then she
+added in a most sarcastic tone of voice: "Perhaps you have been at
+the cemetery."
+
+Frank was moved to the quick. He was of a rather passionate temper
+and he felt nothing but contempt for the person who had made this
+remark. "I have not been," he said hotly, "I have been about my
+business."
+
+"I thought that perhaps you had been crying there," she continued
+with the same irritating smile on her features.
+
+Frank answered: "I might have done worse."
+
+"Who would think that of a man of twenty-one," she said. "Of course,
+you do not care for your poor father; your mother gets all the
+tears."
+
+Frank quite forgot himself. He looked at her defiantly and said in a
+low tone half fearing and yet wishing to be heard: "You are a
+Jezabel," then turned round and left the room.
+
+When he came to think over the last words which he had used towards
+his step-mother, he felt ashamed of himself. He felt he had not
+behaved as a man, much less as a Christian. He had gone much too
+far; he owed her respect.
+
+He thought of going straight to her, and of asking her pardon, but
+his pride prevented him from taking this wise step. Only for a
+minute, however; he soon overcame it and resolutely re-entered the
+room where Mrs. Mathers was.
+
+"I was very rude to you," he began, "I was rather excited, and----"
+
+Without saying a word Mrs. Mathers left the room and, slamming the
+door after her, proceeded upstairs.
+
+Frank felt relieved. He had attempted a reconciliation. She had
+refused. He felt a sense of duty done.
+
+We may add that Mrs. Mathers pouted for more than a week.
+
+The second anniversary of his father's death having arrived, Frank,
+profiting by his step-mother's absence, took a small bunch of sweet
+scented flowers and proceeded towards the Foulon Cemetery, where his
+parents were buried.
+
+As he was about to open the gate, he thought he saw the form of a
+lady which he knew, coming down the road after him. He arrested his
+steps. The young lady stopped likewise, as if to examine the
+cottage situated on her left, and, in doing so, she turned her back
+towards Frank.
+
+He did not stay there long, but proceeded up the gravel walk towards
+the grave, but as he advanced, he thought no more of his mission.
+"Where have I seen that face?" he thought, "it seems familiar to
+me."
+
+He was now beside the grave, he placed the flowers near the
+tombstone, but his thoughts were not with the dead, they were with
+the living.
+
+All at once, it flashed upon him, he remembered that person. That
+form, that face, belonged to Adele Rougeant.
+
+He hastily left the graveyard and almost ran down the walk.
+
+One of the two persons who were standing near the gate said: "That
+man has seen a ghost."
+
+Frank smiled as he overheard the remark, and, thinking that the
+young lady had proceeded past the gate, he went in that direction.
+
+He walked for a quarter of an hour, but neither saw her nor anyone
+resembling her. At last, he gave up the chase in despair. "I must
+have construed wrongly," he said to himself, "perhaps the person who
+was standing near the entrance to the cemetery was right, it was her
+ghost." He mournfully retraced his steps.
+
+It was really Adele Rougeant that he had seen. She was returning
+from town, when, instead of going straight home by St. Martin's
+mill, she went up the Grange, took a peep at her former home, then
+proceeded by the Rocquettes down the Rohais. Why; the lady readers
+will easily guess.
+
+She espied Frank, just as he was turning down Foulon Vale.
+
+He was so intent on his mission that he did not notice her.
+
+As soon as she saw his eager look and the bunch of flowers which he
+carried in his hands, a feeling of exasperating jealousy seized her.
+Where was he going with those flowers? "Alas!" she thought bitterly,
+"he has a rendezvous with some pretty lass. I will follow him and
+ascertain, if possible, the truth."
+
+She walked after him, and when he turned round to look at her, she
+hastily looked the other way. Fearing lest he might recognise her,
+she retraced her steps and continued her journey homewards down the
+Rohais, muttering: "A fine place for a rendezvous."
+
+Something within her tried to reason: "He is nothing to you, you
+have no claims upon him." But what of her future, what of her
+projected plans, her ideas, her sweet dreams; they were mown down in
+this huge and single sweep. Life seemed very dark. Up to this, hope
+had kept her radiant and cheerful, and now, hope was gone, and in
+its stead, there was a blank.
+
+Arrived home, she fetched her violin and poured forth all her
+feelings.
+
+She commenced in a plaintive tone, then this changed to reproach,
+and the conclusion was a wail of despair.
+
+Again she tried to rouse herself; again she tried to reason. "Why am
+I so concerned about him?" she asked herself. "I must put these
+foolish thoughts aside."
+
+But love denied what reason would dictate, and she found herself
+continually sighing.
+
+Meanwhile, Tom continued his visits from time to time, and she
+received him with as much coldness as she dared.
+
+But when she came to think that Frank was an acquaintance to be
+forgotten, she slightly changed her manner towards her cousin.
+
+Her father was not slow to notice the change. He laughed inly and
+chuckled: "I knew she would come to love him; but I must not hurry
+her, she is by nature a slow coach; everything will yet come all
+right in the end."
+
+The days were lengthening and Tom continued to come as early as he
+used to do in the depth of winter.
+
+It was now quite daylight when he put in an appearance. One evening
+he took Adele for a walk round the garden. Poor girl; she did not
+love him, but she did not like to speak roughly to him. She felt
+that she was wronging him. She knew that at each meeting his hope
+increased. Still, what was she to do? She began to persuade herself
+that he was not so bad as she had imagined. He was now a reformed
+man; her father had told her so, and she could see it. If the
+passion for drink which was still probably strong within him should
+return! She paused, mused and said with a sigh: "Alas! I do not feel
+that I love him."
+
+Still; she hardly knew if in the end she would accept him. He would
+be so deeply grieved if she refused, and then, if she accepted him,
+her father would perhaps become once more what he was when she was
+quite a child. She remembered how he used to take her on his knee,
+and call her his dear little girl.
+
+She went on thinking: "How many people marry without what is
+generally called love? Certainly, the greater portion. The French
+have what they call _marriages de raison_, and they seem to agree
+as well as others."
+
+Poor Adele. How many have reasoned thus, how many are daily giving
+themselves away in marriage to men for whom they feel nought but
+friendship; how many give their hand to one, while their heart
+yearns for another.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+
+SUPERSTITION.
+
+
+While Adele was thus pondering over her natural shocks, Frank was
+working, full of hope for the future.
+
+His step-mother married, and he was left in possession of the house.
+He let it to an old couple, Pierre Merlin and his wife. Mait Pierre,
+as Frank called him, was a man of about sixty years of age. He
+worked for Frank who found that it was impossible for him to keep
+things ship-shape without re-enforcement.
+
+This old man gloried in being a true Guernseyman, one of the old
+stock, of direct descent from those who fought for their country
+against the band of adventurers who invaded the island under Ivan of
+Wales. He did not say that the islanders had the worst of the fight.
+He only spoke in the patois, which Frank understood very well.
+
+This species of the genus "homo" hailed from the parish of Torteval,
+and, being an old peasant and very illiterate, there is no cause for
+being astonished that he was superstitious.
+
+Frank perceived this only a few days after he had engaged him. It
+was a Friday, and the old man who was told to go and gather a few
+tomatoes--the first of the season--exclaimed: "What! begin on a
+Friday, but you forget yourself, Mr. Mathers."
+
+Frank laughed at him and told him to go all the same, adding that
+he was surprised people believed in such nonsense. Old Pierre obeyed
+muttering: "He is a young man, and he will lose a nice lot of money
+on his crops, defying fate in that way. But it's as the proverb
+says: 'Experience is a thing which is bought.'"
+
+Although Frank did not believe in any of the old man's notions, the
+continual remarks which he heard made him eager to know more. When
+they had dined, the two men proceeded to a garden seat and while the
+elder smoked his pipe, the younger questioned him.
+
+Pierre was very reticent in his information. What was the use of
+telling this young man anything; he would not believe him.
+
+As time passed on, he began to have more confidence in his employer,
+and seeing that he never laughed at what he said, he gradually
+became more talkative.
+
+One day, when Frank was questioning him, the old man asked: "Have
+you ever seen the _feu bellanger_?"
+
+"I don't think so," responded Frank, "at any rate, I had never heard
+that name mentioned before."
+
+"Well," said Mait Pierre, "if you care to listen, I shall tell you
+all about it; you appear eager to know everything."
+
+He took his pipe from between his teeth; well emptied the bowl, and
+put the blackened clay pipe in his pocket with studied carefulness.
+Then he began: "The _feu bellanger_ is one of the devil's angels
+which takes the shape of fire, and goes about at night, generally
+when it is very dark, and tries to pounce upon some victim."
+
+Here, he stopped and looked inquiringly at Frank, who, in his
+desire to hear what old Pierre had to say, kept a very grave face.
+
+Apparently satisfied at the young man's appearance, the narrator
+continued: "I have often seen it myself, and once, very clearly. I
+will never forget it to my dying day. It was pitch-dark and a
+drizzling rain was falling. I was walking hastily towards my home,
+when, on my right, I beheld a light. It danced up and down, now it
+came towards me, then it receded. I confess that I was nailed to the
+spot. I already seemed to feel its deathly grip. I was powerless to
+move. I could not scream. It was the old fellow who was already
+fascinating me. Fortunately, I remembered the words which my father
+had once told me: 'If ever you meet the _feu bellanger_, my boy,
+take off your coat, turn the sleeves inside out, and put it on so;
+it means that you will have nothing to do with it, and that you will
+resist its efforts to seize you.' I found strength enough to follow
+my father's advice. Hope must have sustained me. The bluish light
+remained about there for a few minutes more, then disappeared
+entirely."
+
+"How thankful did I feel. With all speed, I hastened home to tell my
+parents of my narrow escape. They congratulated me; my father even
+took my hand and welcomed me as one risen from the dead."
+
+"How does it kill the people it attacks?" Frank inquired.
+
+"It flies with them to the seaside, or to the nearest pool and
+drowns them there."
+
+"I once knew a man who was a downright ne'er do well. He was very
+much addicted to drink. One morning, he was found drowned in a
+stream."
+
+"But," interposed Frank, "he might have stumbled in the stream
+whilst in a state of intoxication."
+
+"No--no--no," said Pierre, "it was not that; the _feu bellanger_ was
+seen that very night near this spot where the corpse was afterwards
+found. Some people said that they had heard a scream. I quite
+believe it. It was the horrible monster's triumphal shout. He was
+celebrating his victory."
+
+"You don't think it was the poor inebriate's cry for help," said
+Frank, forcing back a smile.
+
+"I told you it was a shout of triumph," said old Pierre, losing
+patience and already angry at Frank's demeanour. "Moreover," he
+added, "I'll tell you something else, I have not finished yet.
+
+"It's a well-known fact that the _feu bellanger_ dislikes sharpened
+tools, and fights with them if he happens to meet them. Being aware
+of this, my brother and I went to a place where we had seen the
+monster on the previous night. We had a sharp knife. We placed it
+with the handle in the ground and the keen blade sticking out."
+
+"We watched from a distance to see if the _feu bellanger_ would pass
+that way, and seeing that it did not appear; when midnight came, we
+went home. But a neighbour told us on the morrow that he had seen it
+in the early hours of the morning, fighting against the knife.
+
+"We straightway proceeded to the place where the knife was. Imagine
+our horror on finding that the blade was covered with blood."
+
+"Some poor stray animal _did_ suffer," Frank could not help
+remarking. Old Pierre was terribly displeased. He rose to go about
+his work, muttering: "Wait till he sees it, when he gets caught, I
+bet he'll turn blue."
+
+Frank thought about his labourer's story during the whole of the
+afternoon. "These superstitions do a great deal of harm to these
+poor people," he said in a soliloquy.
+
+He therefore resolved to try and root out all these strange notions
+from Pierre's head. He soon felt a kind of ecstacy. It was a
+glorious thing to help bring about the time when science would sweep
+away all traces of ignorance.
+
+If the theory of evolution was true, those times would come, so he
+decided to set to work at once upon this man.
+
+It was a beginning, small perhaps, but he now believed in small
+beginnings.
+
+He had not yet experienced what it is to try and convert a
+superstitious man.
+
+It is very difficult to convince an ignorant person.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+
+FAILURE.
+
+
+Having made up his mind to rescue Mait Pierre from his
+superstitions, Frank at once set to work.
+
+So, the day following his decision, he advanced to the attack.
+
+When they were both seated as usual having their after-dinner
+conversation, Frank began: "Do you really believe all you told me
+about the _feu bellanger_, Mait Pierre?"
+
+"If I believe it? why, certainly I do."
+
+Frank knew he did believe it, but he wanted to fix the conversation
+at once. "I'll tell you what this fire is," continued the young man;
+"it is a light which comes out of the soil, more especially in the
+marshy places. It is called 'Will-o'-the-Wisp' by some of the
+country folk in England, 'Jack-o'-Lantern' by others. The true name
+of this ignited gas is _ignis fatuus_."
+
+The old man smiled. His look at Frank was one of pity. "What a poor
+young simple-minded, inexperienced person," he thought, and in the
+voice of a man quoting a passage from Horace he said aloud: "I have
+seen it on the top of a hill."
+
+"It may be," answered Frank, and, seeing old Pierre's triumphant
+attitude, he added: "Do you not think that there is a Maker who
+watches over us? how foolish to think that he would let the evil
+one go about like that and drown people at his will----"
+
+Pierre suddenly interrupted him: "And Job," he said.
+
+"Oh! that was in the olden times," said Frank; "besides, it's poetic
+language, you must not take it so literally as you seem to do. Do
+you know what lies at the bottom of all these superstitions?
+Ignorance; nothing but the lack of education. Among men of
+knowledge, nothing of this sort is ever heard of. They do not
+believe in witches riding on broomsticks. Ah!" he added, seeing
+Pierre was getting excited; "you believe in witches too?"
+
+"Mr. Mathers," said the old man looking steadily at Frank, "you're a
+young man, you should not try so to rail at people who have
+experience; you should not try to make me disbelieve things which I
+have seen with both my eyes; when you are older, when you have
+passed through all that I have passed; ah, when you have, as we say
+proverbially 'dragged the harrow where I have dragged the plough';
+then, and only then, will you attempt to remonstrate with elderly
+people. I think the proper thing for you to do now is to wait till
+you have gained some experience and not to try and speak about
+things which you know nothing of."
+
+Frank was astonished at the serious tone in which this little speech
+was delivered. He began to see how deep-rooted were Pierre's
+beliefs, but if the difficulties multiplied in his path, his fervour
+rose also. He had decided to show this man the fallacy of his
+arguments, and he must accomplish his self-imposed task. He was now
+very determined; the more so, as he noticed the air of superiority
+old Pierre assumed.
+
+"You have no proofs whatever in support of what you advance," he
+said, "while I can prove to you that this light seen over or near
+bogs and sometimes over cemeteries, is nothing but '_ignis fatuus_.'
+This man found drowned, and all that nonsense, is nothing but what
+would happen under ordinary circumstances. In a state of
+intoxication, he walked in the pool and was drowned. Is not that
+plain enough?
+
+"The knife covered with blood was the result of some beast cutting
+its leg with the sharpened edge, every sensible man will acknowledge
+that; prove to me the contrary, and I will believe you; until then,
+never.
+
+"And these witches, by the by, you have not told me if you believed
+in them."
+
+The old man met his gaze defiantly as he answered: "Yes, I do. I do
+not know if, as you say, they ride on broomsticks; but I'll tell you
+this: My father was no fibber. He told me one day that a certain
+woman went at their house from time to time. They never saw her come
+in at the door like one might see another person do, but she simply
+fell plump in the middle of the kitchen. She found herself there,
+none knew how; I do not know whether it was through the ceiling or
+otherwise, but my father assured me he had seen her come in this
+fashion more than once."
+
+"Stop," cried Frank, "I never thought it would come to this. It
+beats all that I have yet heard. And you believe that, Mait Pierre,
+you who think yourself----"
+
+"My father always spoke the truth," interrupted Pierre, "if a man
+is not to believe what he has seen, what must he confide in, then?"
+
+"You ought to use your reasoning faculties; but, tell me, have you
+ever been an eye-witness to any of these things?"
+
+"If I've seen any? why, certainly, by the dozen almost. I'll tell
+you one. I was working some few years ago for a Mr. Fouret. One of
+his cows having died from milk fever, it was found necessary to
+replace it. Now old Mrs. X. had two for sale at that time, and
+knowing that my master wanted to buy one, she offered him hers.
+
+"I must tell you that this woman had the reputation of having the
+evil eye. Mr. Fouret did not care to refuse her, so he said he would
+go and see them. He went. When he came back, he told us he would not
+take them even if Mrs. X. gave them to him for nothing; they were
+very lean and deformed. So he resolved to risk being bewitched and
+bought one from Mr. Paslet.
+
+"When he came back to the farm he said to me: 'Pierre, go and fetch
+the cow which I have bought at Mr. Paslet's farm.'
+
+"'All right sir,' answered I, and I started.
+
+"As I was coming back quietly with the beast, whom should I meet but
+Mrs. X.
+
+"'Oh, it's you, Pierre,' she said grinning; 'where have you had that
+cow from?'
+
+"I explained: 'Master had bought the animal in the morning from Mr.
+Paslet and had sent me to fetch it.'
+
+"'Ah, indeed,' she said, patting the animal; 'she's a fine beast.'
+
+"When I saw her laying her hand on the poor creature, I said to
+myself, 'she's giving it her.' But what could I do? I said nothing,
+and the old woman went away.
+
+"I had not proceeded more than one hundred yards when the animal
+began to show signs of illness. However, I managed to lead her to
+the farm which was not very far. But the beast got worse and worse.
+Mr. Fouret came to examine her. 'What's the matter with the brute?'
+he said, 'you've made her walk too fast I'm afraid; she seems to be
+tired and exhausted.'
+
+"'Mr. Fouret,' I responded, 'I came along very slowly, but on the
+road I met Mrs. X.'
+
+"'Did she touch the cow?' he inquired.
+
+"'Yes,' I answered.
+
+"'What a nuisance,' he exclaimed, and turning to the servant-boy who
+was there he said: 'take a horse and fetch the vet. as quickly as
+you possibly can.'
+
+"The veterinary surgeon came. Of course, he was not going to say he
+did not know what was the matter with the beast, so he said it
+was----I forget the name now, it was a queer word he said, I know, a
+name which he was sure we should not remember anyone of us,--and
+told us to fetch some medicine.
+
+"We gave her the drug. She seemed a little bit better and we left
+her for the night. In going to have a look at her on the following
+morning, I found the poor animal dead."
+
+"Well," said Frank, "what proofs have you that it was really this
+woman who caused your cow to give up the ghost?"
+
+"What proofs?" ejaculated the old man; "well, I think there were
+proofs enough; but, to be quite sure, Mr. Fouret consulted a white
+witch. She told him it was an old woman who was jealous of him, and
+gave my employer a powder to burn. 'You may be certain that the
+culpable person will come to you, when you have burnt that powder,'
+she said to him.
+
+"Mr. Fouret did as he had been told to do, and Mrs. X. came on the
+following morning. She said: 'I thought I would call so as to have a
+look at your new acquisition.'"
+
+"I do not care to hear any more," interrupted Frank; "science and
+reasoning will in time do away with all this."
+
+It was now time for them to attend to their work. They went. Not one
+word did they exchange. There seemed to be a gap between them. Old
+Pierre was vexed at being rebuked by a young man. Frank was in
+despair.
+
+The next day when they were seated as usual having a chat after
+dinner, Pierre quietly produced from his pocket the _Gazette de
+Guernesey_. He had not said a word about superstition during the
+morning, but silently handed the paper to Frank, pointing with his
+finger at a paragraph.
+
+Not a word was exchanged. The young man took the paper and read
+aloud: "Spiritualism. Another convert to spiritualism is reported,
+the learned ----. He is well known as the able and energetic editor
+of the ----."
+
+The old man looked at Frank and in a deep voice said: "Is it
+ignorance?"
+
+"This is a different thing altogether," he responded; "it is not
+that base superstition about which we were speaking yesterday.
+Besides, learned people are not always the first to discover
+trickery."
+
+Then he thought of the superstitious, albeit educated people who
+frequent the gambling hell at Monte Carlo; and stopped short.
+
+Pierre looked at him; "Is it only ignorance?" he again asked.
+
+"Bah," said Frank as he waved his hand with a gesture of supreme
+contempt; "I don't care what it is, it's very ridiculous and
+unreasonable."
+
+The old man shook his head. "I believe what I've seen," he said.
+
+Frank waxed hot. "You are then determined to remain in that state of
+narrow-mindedness, believing in all this nonsense. But, my man, you
+_must_ be miserable."
+
+Again the stolid answer came: "I believe what I've seen."
+
+"Listen," said Frank: "One day, when I was about nine years of age,
+I was looking at a pig which had been, to all appearances, killed.
+As I was about to go nearer, the brute jumped down and came running
+after me. I, in my ignorance, thought it was a dead pig pursuing me,
+and when my mother told me the contrary, I said as you do: 'I
+believe what I have seen.'"
+
+Quoth old Pierre: "As you say, it's a different thing altogether."
+
+"Let us go about our work," said Frank; "we are losing our time I
+fear."
+
+His hope of converting this man was almost extinguished.
+
+"What are my decisions coming to?" he said to himself. "I had once
+determined to be an inventor, etcetera, and here I am with a face
+like the tan and tomato-stained hands. When I try to change Mait
+Pierre's notions, I fail. Notwithstanding, I will not be
+disheartened. Knowledge is power; if I fail here, I shall not fail
+everywhere."
+
+Frank Mathers felt himself strong, rather too much so perhaps.
+
+It is one of the defects of the self-educated, that they generally
+imagine themselves much more learned than they really are. Not
+having anyone to compete with, or a master to show them their
+imperfections, they rather over-estimate their capacities.
+
+There is also another disadvantage in self-culture. The
+self-educated man is often only acquainted with the elements of a
+great many different sciences, but it is seldom that he is
+thoroughly versed in any single one. There are exceptions to this
+rule. One is when the student has a decided talent for something,
+and energy to pursue his studies.
+
+Frank had studied something of almost everything and imagined
+himself a savant.
+
+From this it must not be inferred that he was uneducated.
+
+But, he lacked that knowledge of the world which is only acquired by
+mixing with the world.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+
+DARK DAYS.
+
+
+It was winter, dull winter, when nature rests and green fields are
+no more.
+
+There was not much work to do now in the greenhouses at "the
+Rohais."
+
+Frank was one evening taking a walk towards the Catel Church.
+
+He had some business to settle with his carpenter, who lived near
+"Woodlands."
+
+Presently, a man who had dogged his steps for some time, exclaimed:
+"It's you, Mr. Mathers, I thought it was."
+
+Turning round, Frank recognised Jacques, Mr. Rougeant's workman. He
+thought his heart had stopped beating, so sudden was the thrill of
+satisfaction that shook its tendrils.
+
+"Yes, it is I," he at last answered; and he shook hands with Jacques
+as if he had been his most intimate friend.
+
+"He was so glad to see him," he said. "And how are they all at 'Les
+Marches,'" he inquired.
+
+"Oh, jolly-like," said the man who had boasted that he could speak
+English; "the squire's in a reg'lar good mood this week."
+
+"Indeed!" said Frank.
+
+"Well, you see, it's no wonder after all; the young Miss's engaged
+to a young fellow; Tom Soher, I think his name is. I don't like the
+look o' the chap. He used to drink and there's no sayin'----."
+
+He stopped short on perceiving Frank who was leaning against the
+wall for support; his face of an ashen hue.
+
+Jacques eyed him anxiously. "One'd say you'd be ill," he remarked.
+
+"I don't feel exactly well," said Frank.
+
+"Shall I see you home?"
+
+"No, thank you, I can easily walk there."
+
+"I think I'd better come with you; I know my missus'l be waitin' for
+me, but I'll come if you think I must."
+
+"No, thank you," again responded Frank; "there are a great many
+people about----. There! I feel slightly better."
+
+"As you like," said Jacques, who by-the-by was not in the least
+inclined to accompany the young man.
+
+"I'll go alone," said Frank; "Good-night."
+
+"Good-night, Sir, I hope you'll be better soon," said Jacques, as
+each one betook himself towards his home.
+
+Frank was completely weighed down with this piece of unexpected and
+unwelcome news. He did not go to the carpenter's residence; he
+forgot all about it. He went straight home. How he arrived there,
+which road he took, which door he entered by, he did not know; but
+he found himself in his bedroom, seated on a chair and gazing into
+space in blank despair.
+
+This was the end of everything.
+
+He pictured to himself her lover. He did not know him, but he
+succeeded in forming in his mind one of the biggest monsters that
+ever inhabited the globe in the shape of man.
+
+And Adele; he knew she must have been forced into it by her father.
+"How she must groan under this yoke. To have to listen to that
+vicious being with the prospect of one day being his wife." Why had
+it come to this, why was the world so formed. Ah! the wicked world
+we live in, the abominable, corrupted world. When would the
+millennium come. When would all this unhappiness be swept away from
+the earth's surface.
+
+Alas! he would die before that time; so would thousands and millions
+of others.
+
+What had the world done that it must thus be continually sacrificed.
+What had he done. Others were happy; surely no one had ever met such
+a deception before. People had to suffer sometimes, but not such
+intense, heart-rending suffering as he now endured.
+
+He was full of despair. Before him, there was nothing but darkness.
+The more he thought over his misfortunes, the more hopeless life
+seemed to be.
+
+The candle was now nearly burnt out, but he heeded it not. He waved
+his hand near his face as if to scatter his thoughts. "Why did I
+rescue him when he was drowning. (He was thinking of Mr. Rougeant.)
+I risked being pulled into the water, I might have been drowned; and
+this is the reward." Ah! how humanity must suffer. If there was no
+joy, no real happiness on this earth, why live, why continue to
+endure all this. Schopenhauer was quite right when he said life was
+not worth living. Henceforth, he would be a pessimist. Three cheers
+for pessimism!
+
+Ah! the wicked world we live in.
+
+The candle had now burnt itself out but the young man remained
+seated, his hands thrust in his pockets, his eyes gazing at the
+floor, and his heart in "kingdom come."
+
+When the clock struck twelve, he awoke. He had fallen asleep and was
+a little more composed than before. He undressed and went to bed.
+
+He awoke early in the morning. He was crying. What was the matter
+with him. It dawned upon him: he was going to have a fit of
+melancholy.
+
+He felt it, but he was powerless to prevent its intrusion. He was
+like the man who stands between the rails, and suddenly sees a train
+advancing at full speed towards him and remains with his eyes
+riveted on the instrument of his destruction, seemingly powerless to
+move, till the engine crushes him in its onward course.
+
+When Frank descended to breakfast, old Pierre and his spouse noticed
+his wan look. "I think master's going mad," said the man to his
+wife, when Frank was out of the room. "I don't know what ails him,
+but he seems very pale and strange."
+
+The young man wandered aimlessly. Nothing interested him, not even
+his books, these companions which he had cherished so much. He tried
+to find pleasure in them. "If I had something to do, something to
+occupy my thoughts," he said to himself, "I would be much better.
+Work is the balm which heals my wounds, it sets me on my feet again.
+I will work, I will study."
+
+He soon found out that work in itself could not heal his wounds.
+Then he grew still more despondent. What was the use of working if
+work did not bring a reward. It was all very well to toil, but to
+work like a slave, without the prospect of utilizing one's power
+after having continually striven to acquire it, was discouraging.
+
+He therefore put his books aside and his melancholy grew deeper and
+deeper.
+
+One day he was seized with anxiousness for his soul's future. He had
+not done what he ought to have done. He greatly frightened Mrs.
+Merlin, when he entered the house and exclaimed: "I'm lost; I'm
+lost."
+
+"Don't say that, Mr. Mathers," she said. "You have always been a
+good man."
+
+"Good!" he exclaimed, his eyes dilated, the muscles of his face
+working convulsively; "good, yes, for my sake, because I hoped in my
+selfishness to reap ten times the outlay. Don't you see," he
+continued, "that I have only worked for my own selfish interest. I
+have made sacrifices, because I hoped to reap a rich reward. And
+now, I am well punished; I deserve all this, I certainly do. I have
+done nothing for others. I have not been altruistic."
+
+The woman stared at him. She knew almost as much about altruism as a
+dog does about the celestial sciences. After a few moments of
+silence she spoke: "You have been very good to us, you rescued a man
+from drowning once at great risk, you----"
+
+"Ha, ha!" he laughed, "fine talk, to come and speak like that to me.
+I am going to die, and do you hear;" he added in an undertone,
+catching hold of Mrs. Merlin's arm and terrifying her; "I am afraid,
+oh, so afraid."
+
+The old woman began to cry. "You must not talk like that," she said,
+"you really must not. Why don't you pray?"
+
+"Pray! what is the use; no, not now. I am being punished for my
+sins. I must atone, I must atone."
+
+He continued in this sad state for a few days, weighed down with
+this strange malady, which, alas, often preys upon our finest
+intellects.
+
+Then, a reaction set in, and he began to improve gradually.
+
+He felt quite well at times, then re-assumed his moody ways; rays of
+sunshine sometimes darted from behind the clouds. "I wish the sun
+would disperse the clouds," he sighed.
+
+One evening, when his head was tolerably clear, he was seized with a
+desire to visit his parents' grave.
+
+Without consulting anyone, he immediately proceeded towards the
+Foulon. When he came to the iron gate, it was closed. He was
+bitterly disappointed. By climbing over it, he would risk being
+empaled on the iron spikes, or otherwise injured.
+
+Presently he thought of the wooden wicket situated a little lower
+down. He proceeded thither and climbed over it without difficulty. A
+stream confronted him. He crossed it on a plank thrown across the
+rill. It was very dark, but he did not think of it. He was alone in
+this graveyard, but he experienced no fear. He felt happier than he
+had done for a long time. "Had he not adopted the pessimistic view
+of life."
+
+He walked straight to the grave where his father and mother lay
+buried and seated himself near it. Just then, a gentle breeze caused
+the stately trees surrounding the graveyard to waft their leafy tops
+to and fro. Nature was rocking itself to sleep.
+
+Even as it slumbered, it now and then heaved a sigh, sympathizing
+with the lonely man who pondered near his parents' grave.
+
+He soliloquized: "Around me, the dead; beneath that turf, the dead;
+above me, beyond those glimmering stars, somewhere in that infinity
+of space, in which man with his very limited understanding loses
+himself, the departed souls...."
+
+Suddenly, he perceived a white form advancing towards him. If hair
+stands on end, Frank's did. His heart beat at a fearful rate. What
+could this be? It certainly must be a ghost. "I have laughed at
+apparitions, but I am now going to be punished for my incredulity,"
+he said to himself.
+
+The ghost moved and came nearer. Frank trembled from head to foot.
+When he had recovered sufficient courage to scrutinize this form, it
+suddenly disappeared.
+
+The young man fixed his eyes on the place where the ghost had
+vanished, for ten minutes; then turned his gaze in another
+direction. He soon recovered his senses, and fell into a reverie.
+
+Again he soliloquized: "We all travel towards the grave. We all
+shall one day be like these around me. Why work, why trouble
+oneself. Why have I taken so much pains about my education? I have
+been ambitious, I have worried myself, I have been anxious to
+acquire wealth and fame. Here, the rich and the poor, the famous,
+the unfamous, and the infamous, the ignorant and the educated, are
+resting in the same ground, surrounded by the same scenery. I have
+been foolish to worry myself thus.
+
+"Do I not daily meet ignorant and uncivilised people who live a life
+of contentment and happiness? Not caring for the future, not
+aspiring after getting on in life, living from hand to mouth, they
+manage to show a radiant countenance.
+
+"Is ignorance bliss? Perhaps, in one sense; still I would not be
+without education.
+
+"What must I do to be happy? I will shut mine eyes to all ambition,
+I will live a quiet life. Alas! even as I pronounce these words, my
+heart belies them. I cannot annihilate the acute brain which
+tortures me. Since all my hopes of happiness seem to shun me, I will
+continue in my new religion--pessimism; and when the hour of death
+comes, I will smile."
+
+He thought of the hopeful days he had once known. He rose from his
+seat, cast a farewell glance on his parents' grave and proceeded
+down the gravel walk. He then thought of the ghost which he had
+seen, and felt a vague sense of fear. "I am no coward," he muttered
+as he straightened himself and tried to assume an air of
+indifference. But he felt nervous. He glanced anxiously behind him
+every other moment, and increased his pace.
+
+He perceived, among the trees, near the gate over which he had to
+pass--a light.
+
+It was as if a thunderbolt had passed through his body.
+
+He looked more attentively. Yes, there was a light, a strange,
+fantastic light, dancing amongst the trees. His feverish brain
+caused him to lose all power of reasoning.
+
+"What is this?" he said to himself. He felt his heart beating
+heavily against the walls of its prison as if trying to escape. His
+legs seemed to give way under him. A big lump stuck in his throat.
+
+"It is only an _ignis fatuus_," he said to himself. "No, it cannot
+be, it does not burn with a bluish light. Why this terror, why this
+fear; it must be the _feu bellanger_."
+
+The light changed. It was approaching.
+
+A sense of horripilation stole over him. A cold perspiration bathed
+him.
+
+The light changed again. It really receded this time, but to Frank's
+agitated mind, it was simply one of its tactics to induce him to
+come nearer.
+
+He suddenly bethought himself of the stream. His terror reached its
+climax. "Ah! there it was, waiting for him to pass that way, and
+then with a shout of triumph, it would plunge him in."
+
+He remembered old Pierre's words: "Wait till he gets caught." How he
+wished he had not mocked him so. Perhaps this _feu bellanger_ was
+preparing to revenge itself.
+
+Again, the light approached. It came nearer to him than it had yet
+come. The supreme moment had arrived. He already felt himself being
+dipped in the stream, with no one to rescue him. Ah! the horror of
+being killed by one of the devil's angels.
+
+Here he remembered Pierre Merlin's advice: "Turn your coat sleeves
+inside out and put on your garment so." Without a moment's
+hesitation he divested himself of his coat. As he was turning the
+sleeves, the object of his dread disappeared. A sigh of relief
+escaped him.
+
+In a minute, he had bounded over the stream and gate into the road.
+He put on his coat, and was proceeding towards his home, when he
+perceived the cause of his fears. It was simply a ray of light
+coming through the windows of the guardian's house. He could see it
+now. A woman was standing on a chair with a small lamp in her hand
+seeking for something on a shelf. As she moved the lamp, the
+reflection on the trees moved also.
+
+He began to laugh. "The _feu bellanger_, forsooth. How old Pierre
+would have smiled if he had beheld him taking off his coat. But the
+ghost, _that_ was what puzzled him."
+
+The ghost came bounding over the wicket and passed by him.
+
+It was a white dog.
+
+This adventure had taught him a great lesson. What could he say now,
+he, the educated and civilized young man? No wonder if the people
+who had been accustomed to hear strange tales from their earliest
+infancy, believed in them.
+
+He went home, determined to deal leniently with Pierre in the
+future.
+
+"I must have been in a dreadful state of mind to have acted thus,"
+he thought. "I have done more than I ever meant to do."
+
+When he came home, he was quite cheerful. He did not say that he had
+seen a ghost, neither did he tell the spouses Merlin that he had
+nearly been attacked by the _feu bellanger_.
+
+Pierre noticed his joyous look. He gave a wink to his wife as if to
+say: "He's taken a glass or two."
+
+It was not so; the shock which he had received had completely
+dislodged the last trace of melancholy.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI.
+
+SHADOW AND SUNSHINE.
+
+
+What was Adele doing? She was not engaged. It was one of Jacques'
+inventions, or rather deductions, from what he saw.
+
+She was being gradually drawn towards the abyss, where her soul
+would lose all that it possessed that was divine, and into which, to
+all appearances, she was finally to plunge, pushed by an unseen
+hand, drawn thither by a magic power.
+
+She shuddered. After all her dreams of happiness, Fate had condemned
+her to this. How often had she pictured herself, the possessor of
+true love, streams of happiness flowing into her heart. She had
+formed a high ideal of life; the present did not satisfy her. Hope
+had sustained her, and that hope, that idea of a pure, refined,
+elevated and noble life, chastened by love, was now dwindling away
+and she seemed destined to join the great multitude of ordinary
+beings.
+
+Still, she hesitated. She dared not trust her future happiness to a
+man for whom she barely felt friendship.
+
+One day, her father, being in a better mood than was his wont, told
+her that she ought to make up her mind about whom she wanted to
+marry.
+
+"It is not my intention to marry young," she said; "I want you to
+leave me quiet for a whole year."
+
+"Nonsense;" replied her father, "but if you promise me that in a
+year you will be Tom Soher's betrothed, I shall be satisfied."
+
+"I cannot promise you that," she replied; "but I shall tell you what
+I intend to do; perhaps I shall never marry."
+
+"Tom Soher is a sensible man," said her father, satisfying himself
+with her answer. "When he was younger, he did drink a little too
+much perhaps, but he is altogether reformed now. We must not blame
+people who try to lead a new life. I know he can still drink a few
+glasses of cider, but what do you want? Was not cider made to be
+drunk? For my part, I prefer a man like him to half-a-dozen of those
+white-faced teetotalers. They look as if they had just been dug
+up--like a fresh parsnip."
+
+"I think Tom Soher would do much better to abstain from alcohol
+altogether, especially as he has been one of its slaves," remarked
+Adele.
+
+Pretending not to hear her, or thinking this remark unworthy of
+notice, the farmer went on with unusual fervour: "Marry him, Adele;
+save our family and his from ruin and disgrace, and make your old
+dad happy. I will teach him to work and to be thrifty; we shall get
+along splendidly."
+
+There was some more talk, and the father went about his work.
+
+Adele had now a year's liberty before her. She determined to make
+use of it. Recently, upon reflection, she had begun to entertain
+doubts as to her suspicions about Frank. "He might have been
+visiting some dear relative's grave;" she said to herself. She again
+began to hope, and her spirits rose.
+
+Three months of the year's truce had elapsed; as yet, she had learnt
+nothing. She looked with terror at the abyss opened before her. She
+shuddered at the thought that there were only nine months left. How
+rapidly time seemed to be gliding.
+
+About this time, Frank Mathers began to experience a dull sensation
+in the region of the heart. He did not attach any importance to it
+at first, but as time wore on, the fluttering increased. He grew
+anxious. For about a week, his health remained the same, when one
+day, after dinner, he was quite alarmed to feel his heart thumping
+vigorously against his chest. "What is this coming to?" he said to
+himself.
+
+The heart resumed its normal state. Frank tried to satisfy himself
+that it was only a partial indisposition. A week passed. The disease
+had increased rapidly. He was very anxious now. Sometimes, he would
+stop his work and listen. He felt his heart distinctly beating
+against the walls of his chest. He placed his hand over the region
+of the heart. How this organ thumped and heaved. His nervousness was
+intense. He quickly unbuttoned his garments and looked at his chest.
+His heart seemed to be trying to burst through its prison walls.
+
+He gazed on it for a time, then buttoned his clothes and walked to
+and fro trying to pacify the agitated organ. In the midst of his
+walk, he stopped; mechanically, his hand was placed over his heart,
+and he listened, anxious, agitated, and holding his breath.
+
+That same evening, when he was falling asleep, he suddenly jumped up
+in bed. His heart had given a heavy abnormal beat, and was now
+quietly working, as if ignorant and innocent of everything.
+
+After a while, he fell asleep. Next day, he was worse than ever.
+
+"Am I going to die?" he said to himself. "Life is sweet, it is hard
+to die so young, when before me lies the future which I would fain
+penetrate. I should like to accomplish some task before I depart
+from this world."
+
+Frank! where art thou come to? Didst not thou say, only a few weeks
+back: "I will smile when the hour of death comes," and now thou art
+craving for life, and thou art shrinking from death.
+
+Frank Mathers thought that his complaint was _Angina Pectoris_. He
+consulted a book on Pathology. He learnt that even with this
+terrible disease a person might, by careful living, attain a certain
+age.
+
+This did not satisfy him. He consulted a doctor. When he was seated
+in the medical man's waiting-room, it seemed to him that the doctor
+was going to pronounce his doom. He fancied he could already hear
+him: "You may, by taking care of yourself, live another year or
+two."
+
+The door of the room in which he was, opened. His heart gave a great
+leap. "I wish you to auscultate me," he said, addressing the doctor
+who entered the room.
+
+Dr. Buisson looked at him with a scrutinizing glance as he replied:
+"Very well, sir; step in the next room."
+
+Frank followed the doctor into the room adjoining.
+
+The medical man proceeded to auscultate his patient. After he had
+completed his examination, Frank looked at him inquiringly. "_Angina
+Pectoris_?" he questioned anxiously.
+
+"No."
+
+A sigh of relief escaped him.
+
+Quoth Dr. Buisson: "You have already sighed a great deal too much.
+You have overtaxed your strength. You must not live on passion, but
+you ought to take life more easily, young man. Rest and
+cheerfulness, with a few bottles of physic, will put you on your
+legs again. Stimulants would benefit you."
+
+"I do not wish to drink any alcohol," interrupted Frank.
+
+"Who talks about alcohol? Do without stimulants. You do not need
+them."
+
+"I thought----" began Frank.
+
+The grave voice of the doctor interrupted him. "Young man, you must
+be careful about your diet; eat slowly--masticate well. Pass into
+the dispensing room."
+
+"What an odd man," thought Frank, as he wended towards his home.
+
+He passed the next few weeks resting nearly all the time, taking
+very little exercise and a great deal of physic. He gradually grew
+better, his nervousness ceased, his heart resumed its normal
+condition, it palpitated no more.
+
+He tried to be cheerful, but he still had great faith in pessimism.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII.
+
+THE EFFECTS OF A SERMON.
+
+
+One Sunday, contrary to his habit, Frank betook himself to one of
+the country churches. He had several reasons for doing so. He wanted
+to hear a French sermon; he wanted to be quiet, away from the world,
+etcetera.
+
+As he went on his way, he dropped into a none too pleasant reverie.
+
+"What a queer animal man is," he thought; "what a study. It is true
+that 'the proper study of mankind is man.'
+
+"But, the more one meditates on humanity, the more one becomes
+disgusted with its artificialness and bad taste. People flock after
+trifles, they are devoid of refinement, a conjuror will have an
+immense number of admirers, a third-rate music-hall will fill, even
+to suffocation, while the man of genius, unless he be rich, often
+remains unnoticed. He who produces most exquisite poetry, soaring
+high above his fellow countrymen, carrying them out of life's dusty
+ways into a pure atmosphere, dies of starvation in a garret."
+
+He arrived at the church of St. ----. He entered the sanctuary and
+seated himself in a place from which he would be able to see the
+minister.
+
+"This is a very comfortable position," he said to himself.
+
+He began to examine the people as they took their seats. Very
+different from one another were those who entered. The men took
+their seats with a deal of looking round and lifting of coat-tails.
+They finally settled down, drawing a deep breath as they did so, as
+if the act of sitting was a prodigious effort.
+
+Frank was, with his accustomed curiosity, examining an old woman who
+trudged in, wrapped up in an enormous shawl, when a lady touched him
+lightly on the shoulder. He turned round.
+
+"Sir, this is my pew," she said, "you may go in any of those,"
+pointing to the left.
+
+"I beg your pardon," said Frank, and he hastily left his seat and
+went in one of the pews which the lady had pointed out to him. Then
+he remembered that in his haste, he had forgotten to take his hat
+with him. He proceeded to fetch it. The lady who was occupying the
+pew with her husband and daughter handed him his hat, smiling as she
+did so.
+
+"She might have allowed me to remain where I was," thought the young
+man. He went on thinking: "Perhaps, they have some superstition
+about worshipping in their own pew."
+
+He fancied everyone of the countryfolks was superstitious. He
+wondered if Adele believed in these things. A sudden pang passed
+through him, as he thought of her. His brow clouded as he
+recollected Jacques' words: "The young Miss's engaged to a young
+fellow."
+
+The minister entered the church. No one rose. No formalities of any
+kind. He took his place quietly. The service began.
+
+When the sermon came, instead of the old minister who had read the
+prayers, Frank was astonished to see a young man, who, directly he
+stepped into the pulpit, impressed him most favourably. He had a
+very intelligent face and a cheerful countenance.
+
+He took for his text the words of St. Paul: "Rejoice evermore."
+
+He began: "There is a class of people, the followers of
+Schopenhauer, who declare that life is not worth living.
+
+"They say this world is almost the worst possible place we could
+live in, and that, if it were a shade worse, it would be impossible
+to live in it, and people would willingly end their existence. This
+doctrine is called 'pessimism.'"
+
+Frank felt very interested. Every word which the preacher said,
+seemed directly addressed to him.
+
+The young minister continued: "There is another class of pessimists
+who have never thought of following this Schopenhauer, but who,
+nevertheless, find life a burden and this world almost an inferno."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"This class of people (the pessimists) pull long faces and go about
+their work sighing. They see everything turned upside down but it is
+they who are cross. 'Life is not worth living,' they say, 'this
+world is a miserable dwelling place;' but it is they who cause their
+lives to be not worth living, who make themselves miserable."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"Some of them who profess to be good, do a great deal of harm to
+Christianity; more than is perhaps generally imagined. People
+examine them and nod their heads. 'Christianity is a failure,' they
+say."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"Help to put down Schopenhauer's wretched doctrines. Look at the
+bright side of life."
+
+"You will meet with difficulties, but do not despond; to every
+cloud, there is a silver lining."
+
+He declared he was an optimist. He invited his hearers, one and all
+to adopt the optimistic view of life, and help to bring the kingdom
+of God upon earth. He pointed out the causes which should help to
+make us cheerful, beautiful nature, healthy mental and physical
+occupations and distractions....
+
+He told them to remember that time would be followed by eternity; to
+hopefully prepare for the life to come, and to help others to do the
+same.
+
+Once out of the church, Frank felt very much puzzled. Both the
+discourse and the manner in which it had been delivered, had
+impressed him. What would he do? It certainly was a matter for
+consideration. Was there a silver lining to the cloud that was
+floating around him? Would he hope? Would he, in spite of
+everything, try and be cheerful?
+
+When he came home, he had formed a decision. He would try. He would
+answer the invitation of this young clergyman, who seemed so full of
+hope and joy.
+
+The preacher had said: If you feel--as you will feel--that you are
+unable to fight unaided; pray. Frank prayed. It was not a request in
+which the lips took a very active part, but he poured forth his
+whole soul through his heart, to Him who could and would help those
+who were unable to help themselves.
+
+When he had finished, he felt quite equipped for the fight. For he
+would have to battle.
+
+"I must try to be cheerful, I must set aside all my gloomy
+thoughts," he said to himself. "I must endeavour to change my whole
+former view of the world. I feel strong. Welcome optimism. Three
+cheers for optimism."
+
+Young man, thou art a new convert, and, like every new convert, thou
+art enthusiastic.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII.
+
+SUCCESS AFTER SUCCESS.
+
+
+Having adopted the optimistic view of life, Frank found that it was
+not easy to eradicate his dismal turn of mind.
+
+He fought bravely. It was not his first fight. He had been, when
+younger, passionate and a trifle ill-tempered, but he had, while
+still in his teens, successfully overcome these defects.
+
+He often thought of Adele. He dared not go near "Les Marches." He
+knew full well that the sight of the house in which he had first
+known love, would arouse in him sentiments of jealousy and grief; so
+he satisfied himself with continuing to work at the reformation of
+his character. Each victory which he achieved made him feel stronger
+and wiser, and every day added to his success.
+
+Let us return to Adele Rougeant. Six out of the twelve months' truce
+had now elapsed.
+
+Tom's visits at Les Marches were few and far between.
+
+Adele had chanced to overhear a part of the conversation which took
+place between her father and cousin, after she had asked the former
+for a year's peaceful solitude.
+
+Quoth Mr. Rougeant: "You will have to wait another year."
+
+"Indeed!" said his nephew.
+
+"Adele says she wishes to think the matter over."
+
+"Oh!" said Tom, biting his nails; with which operation he was very
+familiar--"a year will soon pass away."
+
+"Yes," answered the uncle.
+
+Adele's business took her to another room, and she had too much
+good-breeding to stay and listen. Eavesdropping was not in her line.
+She laughed all to herself. Liberty was so sweet.
+
+When she went out, she could listen with more than ordinary delight
+to the songs of the birds. Some were singing with everchanging
+variety, others were somewhat more laboriously endeavouring to
+imitate the whistle of the farmer-boys.
+
+Adele Rougeant sympathized with birds; she felt attracted towards
+them, for she too was a bird. She had been, for a time, caged; but
+now she was perfectly free, for six more months at least. She
+trusted to be out of the difficulty by then. Why; she did not know;
+something within her seemed to assure her that it would be so.
+
+When, a week afterwards, Tom Soher was taken ill, she thought of
+that strange certainty which she had had. Was he going to die?
+Something within her said: "If he could, I then should be saved."
+Adele grew angry with herself for wishing such an abominable thing.
+She dispersed the wicked thought which had formed into a wish, with
+all the energy which she was capable of displaying.
+
+To think that she had had such a desire. She was ashamed of herself.
+
+Next day, when she heard that Tom's condition was worse than ever,
+involuntarily her heart leapt with joy. How sinful is the heart of
+man!
+
+Adele's better nature rose against these feelings. Finally she
+overcame them. She tried to pity her cousin and partly succeeded in
+doing so. When she fancied herself freed from him, she felt
+relieved; when she pictured herself dying in his place, she
+immediately pitied him. And she put this question to herself: "Is
+sympathy a virtue?" No. Most often, when people sympathize with
+others they say: "Just imagine if we were in their place; they
+really think for themselves."
+
+This was now her view of the matter. Perhaps it was not quite
+correct, but there was a great deal of truth in it.
+
+Tom Soher was not to die this time. The crisis passed. He rallied
+almost as rapidly as he had lost strength.
+
+Mr. Rougeant visited him daily. His daughter listened to the news of
+Tom's recovery, with attention. The farmer was pleased. "She takes
+more interest in him than she cares to show;" he said to himself.
+
+One fine afternoon, in summer, Adele, whose spirits were as bright
+as the weather, was sitting in a chair--thinking. Her thoughts flew
+hither and thither. They were full of bright hope. She sat where she
+was for nearly one hour, her head full of vague thoughts,
+aspirations after perfect womanhood.
+
+As her thoughts rambled, she recalled to mind a flower and fruit
+show that was to take place that afternoon in the Vegetable Markets.
+
+"I think I shall go," she said to herself.
+
+She spoke to her father about it. He answered her not unkindly: "I
+believe you would travel twenty miles to see a flower; if you wish
+to go, you may."
+
+She dressed herself in a dainty costume, set out, and arrived in St.
+Peter-Port just as the clock of the Town Church struck five. Going
+to the market, she paid the entrance fee, and proceeded leisurely to
+examine the flowers.
+
+While she was doing so, Frank Mathers entered the exhibition,
+utterly unconscious of her being there. He was walking about in the
+crowd, which, as evening approached, was getting thicker and
+thicker, when he perceived Adele intently bent upon examining the
+cut flowers.
+
+He was quite upset. When he had recovered sufficiently to think;
+"She is alone, why is not her lover with her," he mused. He could
+not unravel this mystery.
+
+Hope sprang within him; he shook it off. "He will be back
+presently," he said to himself; "she is waiting for him while
+pretending to examine the flowers."
+
+He gazed upon her with admiration, unheeding the throng that
+continually jostled him.
+
+Suddenly, he was startled by a burst of laughter behind him. He
+turned round to ascertain its cause.
+
+Two burly fellows who were watching him, were having a merry time of
+it at his expense.
+
+He moved from his place and walked away, passing quite close to
+Adele, who did not notice him. He stopped a few paces from her,
+watching her narrowly all the time.
+
+She looked up, saw him, recognised him, and nodded. He raised his
+hat; then, a strange delicacy of feeling overcoming him, he walked
+away.
+
+Adele saw him go and felt stung. Why had he not spoken to her? he
+might have done so. She had been on the point of advancing towards
+him, and he seemed to have deliberately avoided her.
+
+"I was not mistaken when I fancied he loved another one," she said
+to herself. In spite of that, she walked in a contrary direction to
+him, hoping to meet him, a thing which she could not fail to do if
+they both kept advancing in contrary directions. She did not stop to
+think that he would perhaps pass haughtily by her. Love is blind.
+
+Like the two gentlemen who circumnavigated the globe, the two young
+people met. Frank inquired after Mr. Rougeant's health, and made a
+few remarks about the exhibition. He always expected to see her
+intended appear on the scene. Finally, he ventured to ask: "Are you
+quite alone?" "Yes, quite," she answered.
+
+They walked together for fully one hour, examining the flowers and
+fruit. "Is not this a beautiful specimen of the Dahlia?" Adele
+asked, pointing to a flower of that name.
+
+"I am afraid I do not possess the necessary qualifications to form
+an opinion," he said; "I have not studied botany."
+
+"I think you would find the study very captivating," she said; "our
+little island contains quite a number of beautiful specimens. There
+are a great many hard names to learn, but I feel certain that you
+would soon overcome that difficulty."
+
+"You have a rather high opinion of my intellectual powers," he said;
+"I feel quite flattered. For the present, I will abide by your
+decisions. The flowers that you will praise, I shall call beautiful;
+those that you will condemn, I shall call ugly."
+
+"I shall not condemn any," said she, "all flowers are beautiful to
+my eyes, only some are more perfect than others."
+
+"You love flowers?" he questioned.
+
+"Immensely, they are almost my constant companions; I should like
+to possess the whole of this collection," said Adele.
+
+"All to yourself. Is it not a trifle selfish?" he said, looking at
+her with a pair of laughing blue eyes.
+
+"Perhaps it is. Look at this beautiful collection of ferns." She
+began to name them. "This one on the left is _Adiantum Capillus
+Veneris_, or _Maiden Hair_, a rare European species; this one is
+_Adiantum Pedantum_, of American origin, and that one behind there,
+which is partly hidden, is _Adiantum Cuneatum_."
+
+"I will not learn botany," he said; "you have quite frightened me
+with all those Latin names; when I wish to know the name of some
+plant, I shall come and ask you."
+
+"I shall be delighted if I can be of any service to you," she said
+ingenuously. Frank thought these words were significant, but they
+were not.
+
+Adele was anxious to get home early. Frank saw "Les Marches" that
+evening with hopeful eyes.
+
+Afterwards, they often met. One day, Tom Soher, who was now
+completely cured, came face to face with his cousin Adele, who was
+accompanied by Frank. He stopped short, looked hard at his cousin,
+then resumed his walk.
+
+When Tom was a little way off, Frank said to Adele: "What a queer
+fellow, one would think he was insane." "He is a cousin of mine,"
+she said.
+
+"Ah! doubtless he was surprised at seeing you in such company."
+
+"Why?" she questioned.
+
+"Perhaps he is afraid of losing caste," said Frank, anxious to know
+the cause of Tom's sullen countenance.
+
+Adele laughed; "Losing caste!" she said, "the idea is preposterous."
+
+"Miss Rougeant," said Frank, suddenly becoming grave, "do you want
+to oblige me?"
+
+She looked up. "Of course I do," she replied.
+
+"And will you answer my question?" he continued.
+
+She looked down. "What can he mean?" she said inly. The twilight
+partly hid the deep blush that suffused her cheek.
+
+He noticed her embarrassment and hastily spoke: "I was going to say
+this. Some time ago, I heard that you were engaged to a young man
+named Tom Soher. Would you be kind enough to explain me the riddle.
+But, you need not do so, if you do not feel inclined to."
+
+Her manner suddenly changed. She had imagined that he had something
+of far greater importance to ask her. She replied: "I have never
+been engaged to him; you must have heard false news."
+
+"Probably," he said, "it was Old Jacques who told me so."
+
+"Ah, I see," said she, "he saw my cousin coming home to visit us
+rather often, and he invented that little piece of news. It was
+he--Tom Soher--whom we met just now, and who scrutinized us so."
+Then Adele told him all about her father's intentions. She tried to
+look bright, but Frank saw what she endeavoured to conceal: a
+painful contraction of the forehead at times. When she had finished,
+she asked smilingly: "What do you think of my father's mode of
+procedure?"
+
+Frank looked at her anxiously. "I hope it will never be," he said.
+
+"Indeed!"
+
+"Because," he continued, "I should be extremely grieved to see you
+forced into an union without love."
+
+"How do you know that it would be such an one?" she asked.
+
+"Because," responded he, "when you told me about your father's
+plans, I saw your face. If there is any truth in physiognomy, you
+recoil with horror at the prospect of one day marrying Tom Soher."
+
+She changed the subject of the conversation and nothing more was
+said about it that evening.
+
+Going home; Frank thought of the difficulties that were rising
+before him. He soliloquized: "It is always the same old story; a
+greedy, avaricious, grasping father, sacrificing his daughter's
+happiness for the sake of his pride. But it must not be. I can and
+will save her from such a terrible fate."
+
+He was full of indignant wrath against her father. "To think that
+she shudders at the thought of it," he muttered.
+
+Meanwhile, Tom Soher was pondering heavily. He was in a terrible
+passion. When he entered his father's house, he wore an angry look.
+He walked straight upstairs without even partaking of supper. His
+mother and sister who were downstairs laughed. The young man was not
+much of a favourite at home.
+
+Tom sat for a long time on his bed, his face covered with
+perspiration, his limbs agitated. He was not yet very strong after
+his illness, and the shock which he had received had completely
+upset him.
+
+He meditated a plan of revenge. A dozen ideas struck him, but none
+seemed good enough. Finally, he thought of one, which, if carried
+out, would completely crush his detestable rival.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX.
+
+TOM'S INTERVIEW WITH MRS. VIDOUX.
+
+
+Five minutes' walk from the "Prenoms," there might once be seen a
+small, badly built, one-storeyed cottage, the walls of which were
+built of stone, with clay serving instead of mortar. In the walls,
+were three small windows, opening like French windows. They were of
+different sizes, contained numerous small rectangular panes of
+glass, and were situated irregularly; two in front of, and one
+behind the house.
+
+Inside, the walls were white-washed, the floor was of clay, the
+ceiling was black with smoke. One of the two rooms served as a
+bedroom, while the other one was badly fitted up to resemble a
+kitchen.
+
+A wretchedly thatched roof, surmounted by a single stone chimney,
+covered the whole.
+
+Situated behind this hovel, was a small piece of land called a
+garden. In it grew cabbages, potatoes, fruits and weeds; the latter
+predominating.
+
+In this cottage, there lived an old woman, whose age none seemed to
+know. The fact that she never attended divine service, coupled with
+the tales of her being in the habit of attending the witches'
+sabbath, was enough to make her pass amongst her superstitious
+neighbours as a being possessed of supernatural powers.
+
+She was aware of this, and consequently avoided, as far as it was
+practicable, having anything to do with her species.
+
+At first she had felt very angry at her countrymen's insinuations,
+and almost wished she did possess supernatural powers; but gradually
+she had cooled down, and now she was indifferent.
+
+Mrs. Vidoux--such was the appellation of this woman--was not
+attractive. Her face was of a colour much resembling Vandyke Brown.
+It was a woman's face, yet it resembled a man's, not excepting the
+whiskers, which seemed to grow vigourously, as it fertilized by the
+dirt which her uncleanly habits allowed to accumulate on her face.
+
+She had but two companions; they were cats. She very often ate
+limpets (_Patella Vulgata_). When she descended to the beach to
+collect the shell fish she took exactly one hundred.
+
+A proof that she could reckon up to one hundred.
+
+Arrived home, she cooked her limpets, gave twenty to each of her
+cats, and reserved sixty for herself.
+
+A proof that she had gastronomic tendencies.
+
+There was but one young man to whom she spoke freely.
+
+One evening, this man tumbled near her doorstep. He was intoxicated.
+She took him inside, laid him on her own bed, and when he had slept
+and sobered, she gave him a cup of tea and escorted him to his home.
+Ever since, they had been friends.
+
+This man's name was Tom Soher.
+
+We have seen that an idea had struck him which he intended to carry
+out. He, too, believed in Mrs. Vidoux's power of bewitching.
+
+So the day following his unpleasant discovery, Tom Soher directed
+his steps towards the old woman's cottage.
+
+He knocked at the door. No one answered. "She must be in the
+garden," he said to himself. He accordingly went round the back of
+the house and espied her, laboriously occupied in trying to dig a
+few parsnips.
+
+"Good morning, Mrs. Vidoux," he said; then perceiving her useless
+efforts, he took the spade from her bony hands, and dug up a few of
+the esculent roots.
+
+"Thank you very much," said the old woman, leaning heavily on her
+walking-stick.
+
+"I wonder, why she, who possesses such magic powers, does not make
+those parsnips fly out of the ground without even touching them,"
+thought Tom.
+
+Then a conversation followed between them.
+
+"It's fine weather," said Tom, feeling embarrassed about the
+introduction of his subject.
+
+"Beautiful."
+
+"You have a great deal of trouble to work as you do, cultivating
+your own vegetables?"
+
+"Yes, but I cannot afford to buy some."
+
+"Don't you feel lonely at times?"
+
+"No, I am accustomed to solitude."
+
+"You did me a good turn once."
+
+"I am glad of it."
+
+"Yes, I shall always remember it."
+
+"I am happy to see that you don't forget, you are the only sensible
+man in this parish."
+
+"That's praising me rather too much, I'm sure I don't deserve it,
+but what I think I deserve less is the nasty fix in which I now am."
+
+"You are in a fix?"
+
+"You know my cousin, Adele Rougeant?"
+
+"Miss Rougeant, let me see--oh--yes, I knew her once, but I am
+afraid I should not recognise her now, she must be a fine lady by
+this time."
+
+"Fine; she's simply charming."
+
+"I should think so; I don't doubt you at all, Mr. Soher."
+
+"There is a young man who is paying his attentions to her."
+
+"He is very fortunate."
+
+"That does not suit me. I intended to marry her."
+
+"You! her cousin."
+
+"Why not?"
+
+"I don't know, only it seemed improbable."
+
+"This fellow stands in my way."
+
+"Of course, you shall have to try and supplant him."
+
+"That's impossible, she's too fond of him."
+
+"Well, I suppose you must give her up then."
+
+"I don't mean to."
+
+"What do you intend doing?"
+
+"Can't you guess? Thrust him out of my way forcibly. Either he or I
+must sink."
+
+"You look strong enough to fight a giant."
+
+"I do not mean to fight him."
+
+"Are you afraid of him? Is he stronger than you?"
+
+"He looks rather too much of an athlete for me; I thought that
+perhaps you would help me."
+
+"I! help you."
+
+"Yes."
+
+"How?"
+
+Tom looked anxiously round, then said in a low tone: "I must get rid
+of him, I must."
+
+"Yes."
+
+"And you can help me a great deal."
+
+"I will do anything for you."
+
+"Well, will you settle him?"
+
+"What do you mean?"
+
+"Make him jump, of course."
+
+"Make him jump!"
+
+"Yes; you know, bewitch him."
+
+Mrs. Vidoux suddenly became erect, her eyes were fixed on Tom with
+an expression that made him recoil, but before he had time to get
+out of her way, she had raised her walking-stick high above her head
+with both her hands and brought it to bear with all her strength on
+Tom's head.
+
+The blow was by no means a slight one. Tom staggered and fell.
+Without even pretending to notice him the old woman walked towards
+her dwelling. He soon rallied, and in less time than it had probably
+ever been done before, he cleared the fence and vaulted in the road.
+He went home, swearing that he would avenge himself, not of Mrs.
+Vidoux, but of his cousin.
+
+Next morning, he decided to tell his uncle all that he knew. He had
+not dared to do it before for fear of offending his cousin; but now,
+he acted in a blind fury.
+
+He had a great deal of confidence in his uncle. He knew the enormous
+influence which he exercised over his daughter. Mr. Rougeant had
+once told him that with a single look he could make her tremble, and
+that she would as soon think of refusing him as of refusing to grow
+older.
+
+Tom Soher smiled when he thought of his uncle's demeanour upon
+hearing the news which he had to impart.
+
+How he was to incite him. He must make his wrath rise to the highest
+pitch. If he could go at "Les Marches" when his cousin was gone and
+set his uncle to watch for their return, what a scene, what a
+spectacle to laugh at; even as he thought of it now he could not
+help laughing.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX.
+
+TOM'S VISIT TO HIS UNCLE.
+
+
+Tom Soher was now constantly on the watch to see if he might catch
+his uncle alone. He was soon satisfied on that account.
+
+One evening, he saw Adele come out of the farm-house. He hid himself
+and let her go by, then he went towards "Les Marches."
+
+He walked straight in, and was not surprised to see his uncle busily
+engaged cleaning carrot seed.
+
+Tom was in such a state of excitement and rage, that he hardly knew
+what he was saying.
+
+"Good evening, uncle," he said, "busy?"
+
+"Good evening, Tom," was the reply, with the addition: "Yes, you
+know the French proverb: 'Do not lose a single hour, since you are
+not certain of a minute.'"
+
+"Quite right uncle; shall I help you?"
+
+"No, thank you, now that you are here, we shall talk, and I'll do
+that job to-morrow."
+
+The farmer fetched a mug of cider and placed it on the table between
+them. Tom was delighted.
+
+"I am glad that you are here," quoth Mr. Rougeant. "It is not that I
+generally care for visitors, but you are always welcome. Besides,
+Adele is gone and we shall pass the evening agreeably."
+
+"That's what I thought, uncle."
+
+Mr. Rougeant looked, at his nephew and wondered what ailed him.
+
+"Did you know she was gone?" he asked, and added: "Perhaps you met
+her down the road."
+
+"No; is she gone?" asked Tom.
+
+Said the farmer inly: "Is the fellow mad?" aloud; "Yes; she is gone
+to a concert."
+
+"Where?" questioned the nephew.
+
+"I don't know, I did not ask her."
+
+"You let her go all alone when it is dark!"
+
+"Yes; she's not particularly timid. She is so fond of music, poor
+girl, I did not care to refuse her, and, as she has fallen in with
+my views, or very nearly so, I must allow her a little freedom."
+
+"Perhaps she has a companion," said Tom.
+
+"No; she says she prefers going alone; it will not be for long,
+however; in another month she will, I hope, be your betrothed."
+
+Tom felt a pang of vexation run through him. He was ready to
+explode, but succeeded in showing a good exterior and said jokingly:
+"Suppose she came accompanied by some young fellow."
+
+"She never would dare to do so."
+
+"I would not say so if I were you, uncle; it's not a good sign when
+a young girl is always out like that. Haven't you noticed that she
+very often goes out in the evening lately?"
+
+The old man's suspicions were beginning to be aroused. "I had not
+even thought of it," he said "but, indeed, it's as you say; she has
+been going out often lately."
+
+"I hope there is no one supplanting me," said his nephew.
+
+"You need not fear, Tom--pass me the mug."
+
+They both drank out of the same coarse vessel, and Tom, who was
+warming up, continued: "I have strange presentiments, uncle; when I
+went to school, I remember having read in an English book about,
+'Coming events casting their shadows before.' Now, just as I met
+Miss Rougeant this evening, I saw a cat cross the road. Now, you
+know as well as I do, that it means discord betwixt her and me."
+
+"This sounds very strange," said the farmer, "but I thought you told
+me you had not seen her."
+
+"Did I? really, I hardly knew what I was doing." And, desirous of
+finding an excuse for his singular behaviour, he added in the most
+dejected tone imaginable: "I have a rival."
+
+"What do you mean?" fairly howled the farmer.
+
+"I mean," replied Tom, in the most wretched tone he could assume; "I
+mean that my cousin loves another fellow, an Englishman, who has not
+a single penny which he can call his own, a wretched cur, a beggarly
+fortune-hunter. I fancy I can see him. He is one of those fellows
+who walk bearing all their fortunes on their backs. He was dressed
+in faultless evening dress; light kid gloves, patent leather boots,
+and a tall silk hat." (This was all false.) "If I am not mistaken,
+this fellow has not a particularly bright character."
+
+The farmer was looking at Tom. His lips were apart, his teeth
+closed, his eyes shone with an ominous light. He did not say a word.
+Tom continued: "Ah! your fortune will soon be gone to the dogs, all
+the money that you have honestly earned, that you have had so much
+trouble to scrape together, will disappear in the twinkling of an
+eye, and your ruined daughter will have to end her days in the
+hospital at the Castel."
+
+"Never, never;" shouted the farmer.
+
+"And I, who meant to attend to your business," said Tom; "I, who was
+going to work your farm; I, who meant to save our family from ruin
+and you from the shame that will necessarily fall partly on you as a
+member of that family; I, who am her cousin and who would have done
+anything and everything for her, I am put aside as worthless stuff."
+
+"Oh!" groaned the farmer; "Do you know him?" he asked.
+
+"I have seen him but once, I do not know where he lives."
+
+"Do you think he will accompany her this evening?"
+
+"Certainly, that's why she has gone out."
+
+"Oh! the dog--pass me the mug."
+
+Tom gave him the mug. The farmer took a long pull and handed it to
+his nephew who drank so well that he completely emptied it, and
+afterwards said: "We ought to lie in wait for their arrival and
+attack the ninny."
+
+"That's what I'll do, and--" clenching his fists--"he'll be lucky if
+he escapes."
+
+"You ought to give him a lesson which he won't forget soon."
+
+"I ought to, still, when one comes to think of it, he might have me
+flung in prison for assault."
+
+"You wait till he is alone, then you can settle him."
+
+"If I were sentenced to a term of imprisonment, my reputation would
+be ruined. However, I'm master of my daughter, I will give this
+young fellow a good shaking, and, as for her; I shall see."
+
+"I shall be hiding behind the hedge; if you require any help, I will
+give it you."
+
+"I think I can frighten him alone--my daughter marry one of those
+white-faced spendthrifts, why my throat dries up at the thought of
+it;--pass me the mug."
+
+Tom did as he was requested, feeling very uneasy. The farmer was
+about to drink, but he exclaimed: "Why, its empty."
+
+"Indeed," said Tom, "let me see; so it is, I was in such a state of
+mind that I did not know I had drunk all."
+
+"Never mind," said his uncle, "I will fetch some more." And he
+proceeded towards the cellar.
+
+Tom chuckled all to himself, "What a splendid piece of fun; I knew
+him, he's the man to act."
+
+Mr. Rougeant came back with the mug brimming. The conversation
+continued to flow, so did the cider. The men were getting excited.
+
+"It's time for us to go out and choose a hiding-place," said Tom.
+
+"Yes, let us go," said his uncle.
+
+They went out. The farmer hid himself behind a hedge, Tom went
+opposite him on the other side of the road also taking advantage of
+the cover which a hedge afforded him. They waited. Not a breath of
+wind disturbed the grass or brambles, not a word was exchanged
+between the men on the watch. The air was stiff, but they felt it
+not. The cider which they had drunk kept them warm.
+
+Not one of them knew exactly how they were to operate. Tom counted
+on his uncle and Mr. Rougeant thought he would act according to
+circumstances.
+
+"They will never come," said Tom to himself. He stretched himself at
+full length on the grass. In less than five minutes he was sleeping
+soundly.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI.
+
+THE ENCOUNTER.
+
+
+The two young people were returning from the concert that had been
+given in St. Julian's Hall. They were walking. It was a beautiful
+evening. Not a breath of wind, not a cloud in the sky. Both nature
+and humanity slumbered. A deep silence prevailed along the lane in
+which the young couple were walking.
+
+'Twas a charming spot, these lanes, bordered on either side by high
+hedges of stone and earth, on which grew furze and grass, while here
+and there, a solitary primrose--it was the month of March,--was
+bending its slender stalk, loaded as it was with dew.
+
+Conversation is an art. So is silence. The latter is even less known
+than the former.
+
+Both the young people were now silent as they proceeded towards "Les
+Marches," but it was a silence which spoke. They knew each other's
+thoughts, one heart spoke to the other; they were both impressed
+with the supreme beauty of nature and filled with love, for that
+same evening they had plighted their troth.
+
+It was Frank who first broke the silence: "How beautifully serene
+the sky is, Adele; almost as clear as your forehead."
+
+"What an immense number of stars," she said, "astronomy must be a
+beautiful pursuit."
+
+"It must be," he replied. "To soar far above this earth, to
+contemplate those worlds, to feel oneself lifted into space, to
+visit the moon with its mountains and rivers, plateaux and lakes; to
+accompany Venus and Mars and all the other planets in their course;
+to float, as it were, amongst these gigantic masterpieces of the
+Creator, to calculate their dimensions, to measure their course, to
+weigh those monsters; to bring to light the treasures of metal which
+they contain, by the aid of Spectrum. Analysis, all this and a great
+deal more which is associated with the science must be indeed full
+of wonderful exhiliration."
+
+"To hear you talk, one would imagine that you yearn to be amongst
+all those stars and planets," said Adele.
+
+"It is not the case," he answered, "because--I'll tell you why--I am
+content to have Venus so near to me."
+
+"I am afraid you will have to be Mars," she said somewhat anxiously.
+
+"Not a bit of it," he replied cheerfully, "Mars is generally
+represented with a long beard, and look, I have but a slight
+moustache; have you ever noticed," he continued, "that all these
+planets move in circles. I think the circle is the ideal figure of
+the Creator. Man cannot measure a circle or sphere."
+
+"I thought the heavenly bodies moved in ellipses," she interrupted.
+
+"Yes, but ellipses are but a form of circles."
+
+"Of course, I had never thought about it before, one has so much to
+learn in life. Nature's wonders are numerous and full of instruction
+for the thoughtful student. It seems to me sometimes that my soul
+converses with nature. A cloud obscures the sky, and I feel that
+cloud passing over my heart; a ray of sunshine illumines the earth,
+and causes my flowers to open their petals and the dew-drops on the
+grass to shine like millions of diamonds, and I smile."
+
+"You have the soul of a poetess," he said.
+
+She laughed a rippling laugh. "I do not know, but I think the study
+of nature, the proper study of man."
+
+"Others,--with a less poetic soul, doubtless--seem to differ from
+you. I think Pope did. But you love nature, and do not care for
+man."
+
+Her pearly teeth saw the light.
+
+When Adele bade good-night to Frank that evening, a strange
+presentiment of coming evil overcame her.
+
+She walked inside her father's house. When she entered the kitchen
+she was surprised at finding it empty. The lamp was on the table. It
+was lighted. Beside it was an empty mug. She lighted a candle, went
+into the parlour, and divested herself of her hat and jacket,
+thinking her father would soon return.
+
+She did not feel at ease, however. Every other minute she turned
+round nervously, half afraid of finding someone in the room. Where
+could her father be? She grew anxious. Going at the foot of the
+stairs, she called out: "Father, father."
+
+Not a sound, save that of her voice which sounded funereally.
+
+She went to the door, opened it, and looked outside. Everything was
+still. All at once she heard something. It was not a shout, it was a
+scream, a shriek, an entreaty; it came again, much louder this time,
+she could distinctly hear the word: "Help."
+
+She distinguished that voice; there was no mistaking it, she would
+have discerned its sound amongst ten thousand. This voice was
+Frank's. He had cried, he had implored, there was but one thing for
+her to do--to run to his aid.
+
+Without even taking the trouble to fetch her hat, she hastily ran in
+the direction from whence the sound came.
+
+Breathless, she arrived upon the scene. There, on the ground, lay
+the prostrate figure of a man, his head supported on the knee of
+another one.
+
+The prostrate figure was her father's, the other man was Frank.
+
+When he saw her with her hair dishevelled and her frantic look,
+Frank looked astonished. He then beckoned to her and said: "It is
+only a faint, and I hope only a slight bleeding of the nose. I think
+he will soon regain consciousness. Is there any water about here?"
+
+"Not that I know of," she said, "but I will hasten home and bring
+some."
+
+While she was gone, Mr. Rougeant opened his eyes. "Where am I?" he
+said, after in vain trying to recollect his thoughts.
+
+"With a friend," answered Frank, bending over him.
+
+The farmer closed his eyes, then opened them again and fixed them on
+Frank. He quickly shut them again, however. He had recognized the
+young man and a pang of remorse shot through his hard heart.
+
+Adele soon came with a small can full of water; and a basin. Her
+father kept his eyes closed. He had not the courage to open them.
+She poured the water in a basin and began to wash his face.
+
+When she had finished, he opened his eyes resolutely and said: "Now
+that I am washed and the bleeding has ceased, I had better go home."
+Without having the courage to look at Frank he said: "I think I can
+do with my daughter."
+
+He tried to rise, but uttered a cry of pain. "My foot hurts me
+fearfully," he said, "I cannot move without your aid."
+
+Thereupon they both helped him to his feet, while he kept a frowning
+look and a silent tongue.
+
+"Do you think you can walk leaning on my shoulder?" said Frank.
+
+"Perhaps," he replied, and, placing his hand on the preferred
+shoulder, he began to hobble along; stopping often and speaking
+seldom.
+
+When the farmer was comfortably installed near the fire, his leg
+carefully placed on a footstool, Frank, knowing he was not wanted,
+took his leave, expressing a hope that the injured limb would soon
+be all right again.
+
+The farmer shook his head sadly, and gave a look at Frank that was
+very significant.
+
+Then he shrank for some time into a state of complete silence, but
+his face was clouded and his bushy eyebrows were more prominently
+drawn over his eyes than they had been for a long time.
+
+He hardly spoke a word to Adele that evening, barely answering her
+questions.
+
+How had the tables thus been turned? When Mr. Rougeant heard Frank
+pass by alone, he hastily vaulted over the hedge, intending to
+attack him, if not with his fists, at least with his tongue. But
+Providence directed otherwise. He miscalculated the height of the
+hedge on the side of the road,--for the field was higher than the
+road--and fell flat on his nose and face, one of his feet twisting
+under him and getting sprained.
+
+The blow which he sustained in falling and the pain caused by his
+sprained ankle caused him to faint. Frank ran to his aid, lifted him
+carefully, and placed his head on his own knee.
+
+It was in this position, as we have already seen, that Adele
+discovered them.
+
+When Frank saw the farmer's nose bleeding so profusely, and the
+deathly paleness on his face, he cried for help. It was this cry
+which the young lady heard. The same cry aroused Tom, who was
+sleeping soundly, doubtless dreaming of his fair cousin. He looked
+carefully over the hedge, and when he saw how matters stood and how
+his uncle lay, he took to his heels and fled. Cowardice lent him
+wings.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII.
+
+FATHER AND DAUGHTER.
+
+
+The morning after the accident, Mr. Rougeant, whose wrath was
+terrible, began to abuse his daughter.
+
+"You are the cause of all this," he said, as he surveyed the injured
+limb.
+
+"Very indirectly, I should think," she replied.
+
+"What do you mean? How dare you disobey me as you have done lately;
+you have made me suffer; you have, under my very eyes, been making a
+fool of me--your father." He paused, as if unable to frame his next
+sentence.
+
+"I beg your pardon, father," said the young lady respectfully; "but
+I have not been trying to 'make a fool' of you, as you say. I
+conscientiously think that I am right in encouraging the attentions
+of such an upright----"
+
+"Stop your nonsense," he cried imperatively, his face assuming a
+terrible aspect, "you are an idiotic girl, you are trying to ruin me
+by listening to this pasteboard fellow, this scoundrel, this
+flippant rascal."
+
+Adele was stung with her father's bitter sarcasm against one whom
+she loved. She looked straight at her father; she knew he was unable
+to move from his place, and this made her bolder than she would
+otherwise have been. She answered with a firm and steady voice: "He
+saved your life once."
+
+"Saved my life, how? Only for his presence yesterday, I should not
+now be lying idle."
+
+"I am not talking about yesterday," she replied; "I mean, when he
+saved you from drowning in the quarry at the risk of being himself
+dragged in."
+
+"What has that to do with it?"
+
+"It means that he is not a 'pasteboard fellow,' as you say; it means
+that you ought to acknowledge his kindness; it means that you should
+be thankful for the great service which he rendered you."
+
+"If I owe him anything, let him say so and I will pay him," he
+replied. He had not the slightest intention of doing so.
+
+"You owe him a debt of gratitude, and you should bless him; instead
+of that you curse him," she said, her lips quivering and the tears
+rushing to her eyes. The idea of her beloved being cursed.
+
+"Yes, I hate him," said the farmer, "I cordially distaste that dirty
+rat; he is the worm that eats my bones; but, you never shall marry
+him; do you hear? never."
+
+"I will never marry anyone else," she said, her face assuming a
+desperate calmness.
+
+"Yes you will."
+
+"Father," she said, her face almost as white as the cloth which she
+was spreading on the table, "it is useless to speak any more about
+it, it pains me to have to speak thus to you, but I will never marry
+Tom Soher."
+
+She heard the grinding of her father's teeth.
+
+"If I did so," she continued; "I feel that I should commit a great
+sin; I never could love him, therefore his life with me would be
+miserable; he would feel lonely, and, I am afraid, would soon
+return to his former habits of intemperance. Then I should be
+breaking my word, for I have promised----"
+
+"You have!" howled the father.
+
+She did not go on; her father's eyes were riveted on her with a
+terrible look. She feared he was going mad. She could not proceed,
+mesmerized as she seemed to be under that awful gaze.
+
+At last she turned her attention to her work.
+
+Not another word was spoken on the subject that day.
+
+Neither of them ate much that evening. It was almost impossible for
+Adele to swallow anything. What she attempted to eat, stuck in her
+throat. Her father, who was seated near the fire in his accustomed
+place, seemed also to have lost his appetite.
+
+At last, he thrust his food away from him with a gesture of
+impatience, and began moodily to contemplate the embers that were
+glowing in the grate. When nine o'clock--his usual hour for
+retiring--struck, Adele helped him into the parlour.
+
+It was there on a sofa that he insisted on sleeping while his foot
+hurt him as it now did.
+
+While the conversation was going on between father and daughter,
+Frank was crossing the fields near "Les Marches," and soon found
+himself beneath Adele's window. It was open. He took out his pocket
+book, and hastily writing a few lines on a leaf, tore off the piece
+of paper, rolled it into a ball, and threw it straight through the
+window.
+
+Then he cautiously glided away.
+
+When Adele retired for the night, she did not perceive the ball of
+paper that lay on the floor of her room. Her brain was so occupied
+with her thoughts that it failed to fulfil its functions towards
+the eyes.
+
+She fixed her optics for a moment on the crumpled piece of paper,
+but she saw it not. She was undressing, but she knew it not; she did
+it mechanically, as if by instinct. Her thoughts were with her
+father and the unhappy home she was condemned to share with him.
+Home! alas! it was more like a hell. She shuddered at the thought.
+She was of a naturally quiet temperament, and she abhorred these
+awful scenes.
+
+She earnestly hoped that the time would soon come when she would
+once more sail in smooth waters.
+
+As she was moving about, her foot trod upon some object. "What is
+this?" she said to herself, as she stooped to pick it up. By whom
+that piece of paper had been placed there, she could not imagine.
+
+By the light of the candle, she managed to read the missive. How her
+heart gladdened. She read it over and over again. It contained a
+message from Frank telling her that he hoped to hear from her at her
+earliest convenience. "So you will," she said half aloud as she
+carefully folded the small piece of paper.
+
+She slept peacefully that night.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII.
+
+A SECRET CORRESPONDENCE.
+
+
+On the following day she wrote to Frank and gave the letter to
+Jacques, asking him to carry it in the evening at the Rohais. The
+old man smiled at her, and carefully pocketing the piece of silver
+which she thrust into his hand, he remarked: "I s'pose you don't
+care for the guv'nor to know anything about this 'ere business."
+
+"How dare you call my father so?" she said, pretending to be
+offended; "no; don't let him have any knowledge of this or any other
+message I may entrust you with in the future."
+
+"He won't; look 'ere Miss, I'll do anything for you, you're a good
+'un; and as for your father gettin' anything out of me; I'd as well
+have the last bone in my body pulled out afore I'd say anything
+against you or your young man. You're the very picture of your
+mother, that you are, she was a good woman----."
+
+"Jacques, if you cannot express yourself in English, talk in
+Guernsey French, as you used to do," she said, for Jacques was
+showing forth his knowledge.
+
+"What have I said?" he questioned in his native tongue, then he
+added: "I thought I was speaking well, I beg your pardon if I have
+offended you, Miss."
+
+"You have not displeased me," she said. "I must go now, or my
+father will be fretting about my absence. I can trust you?"
+
+"Yes, I will do anything for you. Good-night, Miss."
+
+"Good-night, Mait Jacques."
+
+And, with a light step and a cheerful countenance, she entered the
+room in which her father was. He was seated in an armchair before
+the fire-place, his attention centred on a halter which he was
+endeavouring to manufacture. He did not fail to notice the laughing
+eyes and the radiant expression of his daughter.
+
+"What has she been about?" he mused, "has she been speaking to that
+smooth-tongued, stuck-up son of a ragamuffin."
+
+His face assumed a sour expression as the suspicion crossed his
+mind. After a few moments of silence, he raised his small and
+constantly flickering eyes, and asked in a sour tone: "Where have
+you been all this time?"
+
+"I have been speaking to Mait Jacques," she replied.
+
+"The whole time."
+
+"Yes, all the time."
+
+"Only to him?"
+
+"Yes, to him alone."
+
+Mr. Rougeant was satisfied. The idea of disbelieving his daughter
+never entered his head. He knew she would never debase herself by
+uttering a falsehood, and he quietly resumed his work. Then, after a
+few minutes of silence, he turned again to her: "Is Jacques gone?"
+he enquired.
+
+"I do not know," she replied.
+
+"Well run and see, and, if he is not, tell him to come and speak to
+me."
+
+An anxious look passed over Adele's face. Fortunately, she was able
+to slip out of the room before her father noticed it.
+
+"He wants to question him," she said to herself; "I shall have to
+warn him. My father is almost sure to find him out. Oh! I do hope
+that he is gone." She approached the stable, where Jacques usually
+spent his last half-hour. She went towards the door, opened it and
+called out: "Jacques."
+
+No answer.
+
+She joyously tripped towards the house. After a few steps she
+stopped. "I have not called out very loudly," she thought, "if
+Jacques were still here and my father were to see him, his
+suspicions would be aroused."
+
+She retraced her steps, and in a half-frightened tone, wishing with
+all her heart that her cry might not be answered, she called out
+again in a louder voice: "Mait Jacques; are you about there?"
+
+She listened eagerly. Her summons were not answered. She went
+towards the house and entered it, saying: "He's gone, I have not
+seen him."
+
+"It does not matter much," said her father, "I will tell him what I
+have to say to-morrow."
+
+Her anxiety recommenced. She looked at her father and tried to read
+his thoughts. In this she failed. He had one of those hard set faces
+the owners of which seem devoid of soul or sentiment.
+
+When she awoke the following morning, Adele's first thoughts were
+about her father and his workman. What was he going to question him
+about? Ah! he had perhaps seen her through the window, giving a
+letter to the old man and cautioning him.
+
+When they had finished breakfasting, Adele, who began to hope her
+father had completely forgotten all about his workman, was very
+much annoyed when Mr. Rougeant told her to tell Jacques to come and
+speak to him.
+
+She searched out the old man, and, having found him, she said to
+him: "Did you see Mr. Mathers yesterday evening?"
+
+"Yes, Miss," he answered, taking care to speak in his native tongue
+this time; "I saw him. He thanked me and asked a few questions about
+your health and Mr. Rougeant's foot."
+
+"I am very much obliged to you," said Adele, "and now, you must come
+and talk to my father. I think he means to question you, but you
+will be on your guard; will you not?"
+
+"Oh, he is not the man to take me in. If he asks me if you gave me a
+letter yesterday, or anything else concerning you, I know what to
+answer him."
+
+"You will speak the truth?"
+
+"Speak the truth and be taken in, not I; there's no harm in fibbing
+when it's for doing good, Miss."
+
+"If you are prepared to utter falsehoods, Jacques, for the sake of
+shielding me, you will lose my approbation. I shall be very angry
+with you if you do so. You understand; you must not swerve from the
+path of truth."
+
+"Well, I never," said Jacques, "and it was all for your sake. We
+shall see. I'm not going to let your father learn anything from me.
+Jerusalem, I would rather pull the hair off my head."
+
+"The plain truth," said Adele, shaking her forefinger at him and
+looking very severe.
+
+"I know my work, Miss," he replied as he followed her into the
+house.
+
+The farmer was seated near the fire. He did not even turn round when
+Jacques entered. The latter went straight up to his employer and
+said: "You wanted me to come and speak to you."
+
+Adele tried to look composed, but her nerves were unsteady. She
+could not bear to leave the room, while the men were talking about
+her. No, she must hear her doom; at any rate, she must be there to
+try and defend herself.
+
+"Yes," said the farmer after a while, "what was it about now? oh!
+this evening----."
+
+"Yesterday evening;" thought Adele, "he is making a mistake."
+
+"This evening," the farmer went on, "you will carry my boots to the
+shoemaker's."
+
+"All right, Sir," answered Jacques.
+
+The young lady could not restrain a sigh of relief.
+
+Jacques looked at her and winked--a most rude thing to do--but then
+Jacques did not know better.
+
+Quoth Mr. Rougeant, his eyes fixed on the grate: "You will tell him
+to be as quick as he can about mending them; I mean to walk in a few
+days."
+
+"All right, Sir."
+
+"I don't want anything expensive; in fact, I want him to mend them
+as cheaply as he possibly can. But, you understand, I want him to
+repair them well."
+
+"A good job costs money," Jacques ventured to interpose.
+
+"I told you I don't want anything expensive," retorted the farmer
+angrily.
+
+"Oh, that's all right, Sir; I'll tell him so, Sir," said the
+workman, frightened at Mr. Rougeant's sour tone.
+
+"Well, you will fetch them this evening and be careful to tell him
+what I require; a good and inexpensive job, or I won't pay him."
+
+"All right, Sir," said Jacques, and he left the room muttering:
+"He's growing from bad to worse; he is a stingy old niggard."
+
+What was Tom Soher doing all this time? He was drinking.
+
+He had never loved Adele Rougeant, and when he saw that there was
+not much chance of winning her, he took to drink. In reality, he
+preferred his bottle to his cousin. Of course, he put all the blame
+on the misfortunes which he had encountered.
+
+Once, and only once, his father tried timidly to rebuke him. "No,"
+he said, "there is nothing for me to do but to drown my sorrow.
+Welcome ruin."
+
+"Why not turn a new leaf?" pleaded Mr. Soher.
+
+"Bah!" he replied as he walked away, "what's the use!--no; good-bye
+to everything."
+
+Spoilt child; he little knew the terrible death that awaited him.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV.
+
+MR. ROUGEANT GOES TO CHURCH.
+
+
+The first Sunday after Mr. Rougeant's recovery, Adele said she
+intended to go to church. The farmer's eyes flickered more than
+usual. "I think I shall accompany you," he said.
+
+His daughter started. What could he mean? He had not been to church
+these last three years or more; besides, he had not a decent suit of
+clothes to put on. Oh! it was disgusting.
+
+"He is afraid of my meeting Frank on the road," she said to herself;
+"he need not fear, I am green, but not quite so much as he seems to
+think." "You have not even a suit of clothes that is fit to wear,"
+she said aloud.
+
+"They will do well enough."
+
+"Your coat is as green as grass, and your trousers quite yellow. If
+it was in the evening, I should perhaps go with you, but in the
+morning--no."
+
+"If you don't come with me, I suppose I shall have to come with
+you."
+
+"You shall not come with me this morning, Sir."
+
+"How dare you----"
+
+"I will not go."
+
+"Do as you like."
+
+"I shall go this evening," she said, "the lamps will be lighted. I
+hope that stock of bad oil which they have is not used up, because I
+do not want the church to be well-lighted."
+
+"How is that?"
+
+"How is that?" she said in a grieved tone. "People might take you
+for a rag picker."
+
+Her father was not a bit angry at her for saying this. She knew it,
+hence her boldness.
+
+He almost smiled, a very--very rare thing for him to do; he was
+proud to think that people would say to each other: "Look, there is
+Mr. Rougeant, he is not a proud man."
+
+On the evening in question, the clergyman almost lost his speech and
+his senses when he saw Mr. Rougeant sitting beside his daughter.
+
+The worshippers thought not of the prayers as they were being read,
+or the audience of the sermon, as it was being delivered; they
+thought of Mr. Rougeant.
+
+And, when the people came out of the church, instead of the usual
+remarks about the weather, folks said to one another: "Have you seen
+Mr. Rougeant." "Yes," answered the more composed, "it is not often
+one sees him about here."
+
+"Oh!" answered the others, "how shocking."
+
+A party of elderly ladies were assembling just outside the
+churchyard gates.
+
+"Have you seen Mr. Rougeant?" they asked unanimously, as they
+approached one another.
+
+"Oh, yes," replied Mrs. Martin, "I was quite astounded when I saw
+him enter."
+
+"Yes, but you see," remarked another, "he has been ill, and maybe he
+has felt the need of worshipping in the house of God."
+
+"What a shabby coat," said a third. "His trousers were worn out and
+threadbare," put in Miss Le Grove, who was not able to approach very
+near the group on account of her immense corpulence.
+
+"His daughter seemed rather ill at ease," said No. Three.
+
+"I think there is some of her fault," said Mrs. Martin, "she
+encourages a young man of bad reputation."
+
+The whole group held up their hands and assumed an horror-stricken
+attitude.
+
+"Impossible!", exclaimed No. Two.
+
+"Shocking!" declared Miss Le Grove.
+
+"We must be very careful about what we advance'" remarked No. Two,
+who generally passed for being a very Christian lady; then she added
+after a pause: "Miss Rougeant is, as everyone of us knows, good,
+well-bred and of refined taste."
+
+"I only recited what I had heard, of course I don't believe it,"
+said Mrs. Martin, a little disconcerted.
+
+"If she marries and goes away from home, there will only be one
+thing for her father to do, and that will be to marry again,"
+remarked Miss Le Grove, who found the state of forced celibacy
+unendurable.
+
+The others looked at each other. Some could not force back the smile
+that rushed to their lips. Miss Le Grove noticed the suppressed
+mirth and blushed. Then losing her presence of mind, and wishing to
+explain the why and wherefore of her face being so red, she said,
+slightly retiring: "Isn't the weather warm."
+
+There was a hoar-frost.
+
+Fortunately, or unfortunately, an accident occurred, while Miss Le
+Grove was backing her voluminous self, which sufficed to disperse
+the assemblage.
+
+A little boy was standing with his back to the obese woman. He was
+busily engaged, endeavouring to count the stars, when that most
+worthy spinster backed against him and sent him sprawling. She did
+not even feel the rencontre; it was like an iron-clad coming in
+collision with a fishing-smack.
+
+The little parish school-boy was none the less irritated. He planted
+himself before Miss Le Grove, to make sure she would see him, made a
+frightful grimace and shouted: "You're an old half-a-ton." Then he
+decamped.
+
+The other ladies giggled.
+
+The company dispersed.
+
+A group of youths who were standing near shouted "Well said,
+_gamin_."
+
+Going home, the topic of the conversation was Miss Le Grove,
+garnished with a sprinkling of Mr. Rougeant.
+
+As for the lady whom the little rogue had styled "half-a-ton" she
+walked alone muttering execrations against this "little wretch," and
+telling herself that there were no Christians, that these women
+laughed at her, because she chose to remain what Providence had
+directed she should be, and that Mr. Rougeant was perfectly right in
+keeping away from people, who had nothing to do when they came out
+of church but to backbite their neighbours.
+
+In future, she too would shun these sophisticated people.
+
+And--puffing and blowing; gesticulating and perspiring;
+soliloquizing and threatening, she retook possession of her home,
+sweet home.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV.
+
+LOVE TRIUMPHS.
+
+
+"Good-morning, Mr. Rougeant," said Jacques on the Monday morning, as
+he perceived his employer walking about the farmyard.
+
+"Good-morning, Jacques," responded the farmer.
+
+"Your foot is better then?" said the workman, eager to commence the
+conversation, for Mr. Rougeant was already moving in a contrary
+direction.
+
+"Yes, it's quite better now," replied the farmer, arresting his
+steps.
+
+"Where's Miss Rougeant?" questioned Jacques.
+
+"Rummaging the house; do you want to speak to her?"
+
+"My wife told me that there was a long time she had not seen her.
+She says she is lonely and would very much like to see Miss
+Rougeant. She says your daughter is so kind and so much like her
+mother, that she would be very thankful if Miss Rougeant would
+condescend to visit her once or twice while she is laid up."
+
+At the mention of his wife, Mr. Rougeant felt sorrow in his heart.
+He had loved once, but now, his nature was changed; he used to be
+happy and full of contentment then, although a struggling young
+farmer, for he had a bright, lovable and loving wife to cheer him
+up.
+
+Now he was worth ten thousand pounds, and he felt the most miserable
+of men.
+
+He stood still, the very picture of abject misery, not uttering a
+single word.
+
+"Perhaps you will not mind telling her," said Jacques, breaking the
+silence.
+
+The farmer looked up; "I shall tell her," he said, and walked away.
+
+"Our little affair is coming off splendidly," said Adele as she
+tripped into the garden to speak to Jacques. "Yes, Miss, you are so
+clever, you deserve to succeed."
+
+"We must not rejoice too soon; did you see Frank last night?"
+
+"Yes, Miss."
+
+"And he told you that he would come?"
+
+"Yes, Miss; he gave me a letter for you but I must not give it to
+you now, I fancy Mr. Rougeant is watching us."
+
+"You are quite right, leave it in the stable when you go there and I
+will fetch it. Has my father asked any questions?"
+
+"Not one; he looks very sad."
+
+"He is. It surprises me that he never questions you; he has such
+confidence in you; he would never think of suspecting you."
+
+"If he asks me any questions, I'll know how to answer them. But,"
+added the workman, laughing, "I must go and see how the horse is
+getting on. You will find the letter under the old saddle."
+
+"Thank you very much for all your trouble," said Adele as she
+disappeared through the doorway.
+
+After having read the letter which she had fetched from the stable,
+Adele smiled. "He will meet me near Jacques' cottage at six o'clock
+this evening," she said to herself. "I must try and hide my joy as
+much as I can, for my father will grow suspicious if he reads my
+happiness."
+
+She had to keep a continual vigilance to prevent herself from
+smiling during the day. When evening approached, she dressed
+herself and proceeded towards the cottage.
+
+The sun was setting beautifully in the west. When she reached the
+top of the hill, she could see him, gently sinking, as it were, into
+the sea, illuminating the horizon and the ocean in a flood of
+splendour. As it disappeared, the Hanois Lighthouse displayed its
+beacon light.
+
+The visit to Mrs. Dorant was of short duration.
+
+At half-past six, a young couple might be seen wending their way
+slowly through the beautiful country lanes. They talked in soft
+accents. Now and then Adele's low, silvery laugh sounded on the
+tranquil evening air.
+
+They wandered thus for two hours. "I thought we had been out only
+about one hour," said Adele as Frank returned his watch to his fob.
+
+"Love takes no account of time," he said. "Now, let us talk
+business. I profess to be a business man you know."
+
+They talked about the obstacles to be vanquished, of Mr. Rougeant's
+wrath, of Tom Soher's jealousy.
+
+"Be of good cheer. _Amor vincit omnia_," were Frank's last words to
+her that evening.
+
+When she opened the wicket gate, Adele gave a horror-stricken start.
+She perceived the form of a man, stretched at full length before the
+front door. She could not restrain a cry of alarm. Frank, who had
+followed her, hastily advanced to see what was the matter. He had
+not gone far, before he saw the front-door open, and Mr. Rougeant
+come out, holding a lighted candle in his hand.
+
+He hastily retreated farther away and watched the trio. He could
+easily see them without being seen. The light that came from inside
+the house, and that from the candle, shone full on the group.
+
+He saw Mr. Rougeant pick up the prostrate figure, set the man on his
+feet, and, after having shut the gate after him, return inside.
+
+This man, who walked with such an unsteady gait, was Tom Soher.
+Frank took the trouble to follow him home. He feared for his safety,
+accidents are so common with people in his state. He set his
+conscience at ease by seeing the tottering figure enter the house of
+the "Prenoms."
+
+He pitied this slave to intemperance. He shuddered at the immense
+per cent. of his countrymen who were like this man.
+
+How had Tom Soher happened to be lying before the threshold of "Les
+Marches?" We shall see.
+
+That same evening, he was with a few of his sort, drinking at the
+"Forest Arms." He was more than half-intoxicated, when, without a
+word, he left the bar-room.
+
+"Where are you going?" shouted his comrades.
+
+"Bring him back," said some.
+
+"Let him go," said the others.
+
+Tom did not heed their talk, but directed his steps towards uncle
+Rougeant's farm-house.
+
+He opened the door, walked straight in, and seated himself in a
+chair near the long bare table, without saying a word to his uncle.
+
+The latter was in a dreadful state of mental excitement. He was
+walking up and down the room with his hands thrust deeply into his
+trousers' pockets, uttering execrations, blaming everyone and
+everything. He was so occupied with his ravings that he only cast a
+glance at his nephew, who stood, or rather sat, wondering what the
+dickens his uncle was about.
+
+"Ah, this generation," said the farmer, "this generation is a mass of
+spoilt and pampered dolls"--he was thinking of his daughter--"they
+only think about running here and there; paying visits to friends,
+taking tea with cousins, or walks with dressed-up mashers.
+
+"They do not care if they leave a poor old devil"--the appellation
+was appropriate enough--"all alone, with not even a dog to keep him
+company or a cat which he could kick; off they go, dressed in the
+garments for which you have paid out of your own pockets; ay, and
+for which you have toiled and perspired----"
+
+"You're quite right, uncle," came from Tom.
+
+The farmer gave a sudden start. He had altogether forgotten his
+nephew's presence. He went on:--"People are as proud as if they were
+all of blood royal. Even the poorest women, one sees pass in the
+afternoon with perambulators in which sleeps some little urchin who,
+mayhap, is brought up nearly all on the charity of saving people
+like me.
+
+"It's a curse to have to pay taxes for this vermin. I say it's a
+downright injustice to make us, who attach ten times more value to a
+penny than they do, pay for the education of their brats.
+
+"Ah! in my time, in the good old time, which is alas, gone for ever,
+we, the respectable people, were rolled about in clumsy little
+wooden carts, and the children of the labourers were carried in
+their mother's arms and placed between two bundles of ferns, while
+their mother went about her work. For, poor women went to work in
+those days. Ay! they had to do it or starve. But now, what do we
+see? These labourers' wives with servants."
+
+He stamped, his foot impatiently. "And when they are destitute and
+homeless from sheer want of foresight, they are kept and fed out of
+the taxes which come out of our pockets. So-called civilisation and
+education are ruining the present generation."
+
+"That's where you're right, uncle," interposed his nephew.
+
+Mr. Rougeant went on: "Farmers' sons do not want to work now. Every
+one rails at manual labour. If this state of things goes on, the
+island will soon be a mass of ruined and dissipated human beings.
+The honourable people who have a pedigree they can boast of, are
+mixing with foreigners, whom no one knows whence they have sprung
+from. If you drink a glass of cider now a days, you are termed a
+drunkard by a lot of tea-drinkers, teetotalers and----."
+
+"A glass of cider would do good, one is thirsty this weather,"
+interrupted Tom, who, although half asleep, had caught the word
+cider.
+
+Without even casting a glance at his nephew, so absorbed was he, the
+farmer continued: "One hears nothing but bicycle-bells. These
+bicycles are the greatest nuisance yet invented. I am surprised that
+people rack their brains in order to invent such worthless rubbish.
+Every one must have a bicycle. There may not be any bread in the
+house, the children may not be able to go to school or the wife to
+church for want of a decent pair of boots, but, 'I will have a
+bicycle.' And then, it is so very easy to have one, there's the hire
+system. Another curse of civilisation that is ruining the poor man.
+If our peasantry knew how to put by for a rainy day, like the French
+country-folk do, we should not have so many applications for relief,
+our hospitals would well nigh be empty."
+
+"_Vere dia_, uncle."
+
+"Poor people now are not half so polite as they used to be when I
+was young. They call each other Mess. instead of Mait., and they
+style their superiors Mait. when they ought to say Mess.
+
+"The insolent rogues, they only have a smooth tongue when they come
+to beg. People may say what they like, foolish men may talk about
+the State establishing scholarships, for the talented poor; let them
+work. I have worked all my life, and hard too, and here I am, better
+than any of them."
+
+"Educate them with the States' revenue. Indeed! Bring them up like
+gentlemen, for them to laugh at you later on, to look down upon you
+as if you were so much stubble."
+
+"That's what they like. Give young people a few pence to rattle in
+their trousers' pockets, a collar, cuffs, a sixpenny signet ring on
+the little finger, a nickel-silver mounted cane and a pair of
+gloves, and there they go, not caring a fillip whether their parents
+have toiled and struggled to rise to their present position,
+ignoring the necessity of thrift, a happy-go-lucky generation. And
+then, at the end of it all, a deep chasm, into which they will all
+fall headlong; an immense pyre that will consume all their vanities
+and profligacies."
+
+"They deserve to be burnt, indeed they do, uncle."
+
+"Someone was even talking of establishing a public library here.
+Well let them complete the ruin. It is as well. I hope to be dead by
+that time though. Life, then, will be intolerable. I hope to sleep
+with those worthy champions of labour--my ancestors--in the
+churchyard yonder.
+
+"Books!--what do they want books for? I never yet knew a man who
+read books that was worth a farthing.
+
+"I knew one once who was versed in book-lore, but, worse luck to
+him, he could not bind a wheat-sheaf or weed a perch of parsnips,
+and the result--bankruptcy; failure. That's what it comes to.
+
+"Books!--do they want to make schoolmasters of us all, or do they
+wish us to be always reading our eyes out instead of attending to
+our business?
+
+"Books!--they are only good for idle loafers; they offer an excuse
+for shunning one's duty. 'I want to read a bit,' they say when told
+to do something. 'Oh, let me just finish this page, it is so
+interesting,' they plead, when asked to quickly fetch some article.
+This is what Adele used to do, but I nipped this slothful tendency
+in the bud. I would have none of it."
+
+He stopped his discourse and his walk, gazed at his nephew who had
+fallen across the table and was now sleeping soundly; then
+recommenced his peregrinations.
+
+"I am disgusted with the world; I don't know what it will all come
+to. Some of these modern farmers are even discarding the _grande
+charrue_. Oh! shades of our ancestors. The great plough--the only
+feast of the year that is worth anything, mutton and roast beef, ham
+and veal, cider by the gallon and a jovial company of good old sons
+of the soil.
+
+"It is horrible thus to see our old routine trampled underfoot, our
+ancestors' customs sneered at."
+
+Mr. Rougeant was extremely animated. Like nearly every other country
+Guernseyman, he was opposed to change.
+
+He walked about with distorted features, his eyes shining with a
+strange light.
+
+He thought of his family dwindling away; of his daughter
+disregarding his commands and disobeying him. In his innermost soul
+he felt convinced that she would never marry his nephew. He cast his
+eyes in the direction of the latter. What! he was sleeping while
+_he_ was enduring all the agony of a king who is being dethroned; of
+a general, whose army is in open mutiny against him; of a
+millionaire who sees his whole fortune disappear through some awful
+catastrophe! It was unendurable.
+
+He again began to pace the room. Having finally arrived at a
+decision as to his future conduct, and thinking just then of his
+daughter's disregard for his tastes, he shouted in a voice of
+thunder, bringing down his fist upon the table with an awful crash.
+
+"_Palfrancordi!_ let her act according to her own stubborn will, but
+she'll not inherit a penny of mine, not one double."
+
+He was now quite close to his nephew and the latter, aroused by the
+noise which his uncle had made, raised his head and yawningly
+drawled out: "You're quite right, uncle."
+
+The farmer stood straight in front of Tom Soher, his arms folded,
+his penetrating eye fixed scrutinizingly on his nephew. He perceived
+the latter's state; his wrath increased. "What!" he ejaculated; "you
+are drunk!"
+
+Tom was in such a plight that he understood not his uncle, neither
+did he perceive his anger. He muttered: "You're quite right, uncle."
+
+"Then begone, you wretched inebriate. I'll not have intoxicated
+brutes about my house."
+
+So saying, he seized bewildered Tom, dragged him through the
+vestibule and hurled him outside, slamming the door after his nephew
+without even waiting to see what became of him.
+
+Then, wearied and tired out by his exertions, he sank into a chair
+and began to ponder about this new discovery. He mentally resolved
+that he would never have a drunkard for his son-in-law.
+
+Then he gradually grew calmer. The reaction was setting in.
+
+He was still engaged in his reflections when he heard a cry. 'Twas
+his daughter's. He lightened a candle and hastened to open the door,
+wondering what could have happened. The sight of his nephew lying
+there, chilled him with terror. Was he dead? Had he killed him? If
+so, it was the crowning point of all his woes.
+
+How he raised him and sent him home we have already seen.
+
+When Mr. Rougeant was again with his daughter, he kept a dogged
+silence. She gathered from his demeanour that he had had a frightful
+shock, but took great care not to question him. Hardly a word was
+exchanged between them that evening.
+
+Adele was glad of it, for she had her thoughts occupied with her
+wedding which was to come off in three weeks.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVI.
+
+WEDDED.
+
+
+After all the commotion, the wedding was a very quiet one.
+
+Adele left the house early one bright summer morning.
+
+The sun was rising, illuminating the sky with all its various
+colours; the lark was soaring towards heaven's gates; the mowers
+could already be heard sharpening their scythes in the hay fields,
+and Mary and Louisa, the tenant's daughters, were busily engaged
+milking their father's cows.
+
+A carriage, drawn by two grey horses, carried the heiress of "Les
+Marches" to be married to Frank Mathers.
+
+The beautifying properties of love shone on the bride's and
+bridegroom's countenances as they stepped out of the church of St.
+----.
+
+In both their souls was a paradise.
+
+From time to time, Mrs. Mathers assumed a thoughtful expression.
+
+"I cannot help thinking of my father," she said, as the
+carriage-wheels rattled over the road near "Les Gravees."
+
+"Let not this mar your happiness," he answered joyfully, "perhaps he
+will relent when he sees that it is of no use grumbling."
+
+Adele smiled, for, in spite of everything, she would be happy. "I
+_am_ joyful," she said, "but as for his pardoning me, well--you do
+not know him as well as I do."
+
+The next day while Mr. and Mrs. Mathers were enjoying a snug little
+_tete-a-tete_, the postman brought them a letter. It was from Mr.
+Rougeant.
+
+"I told you he would be glad to renew his acquaintance," said Frank,
+as soon as he saw the signature.
+
+"What's this?" he said. "A cheque, Adele; a cheque for one hundred
+pounds! It's our wedding present, I suppose; let me read the
+letter:"
+
+     "To my Daughter,--I have heard that you have been married. You
+     think that I will bend. You are mistaken. Moreover, as I warned
+     you before you took that rash step that I would take care you
+     would not inherit a single penny of mine; I send you this
+     cheque. It is the last money which you will ever receive from
+     me.
+
+     "ALFRED ROUGEANT."
+
+Frank's face was a blank. "Fancy to come and tell you that you took
+a rash step," he said.
+
+"Did not I tell you that he was stubborn?" said his wife.
+
+"He says that he will not bend," continued Frank, perusing the
+letter for a second time. "My father-in-law, you will probably
+break, then. Those one hundred pounds are welcome all the same."
+
+"I was thinking of sending them back," said Mrs. Mathers, "but,
+perhaps, we had better keep them; father would only be too glad to
+have them back. I cannot conceive how he mustered sufficient
+resolution to part with his god. He must have made a supreme
+effort."
+
+Said Frank: "To pocket both our pride and the cheque, is, I think,
+the best course which we can pursue. We must, however, acknowledge
+his kind remittance and thank him for it. What do you think of
+inviting him to tea some afternoon?"
+
+"You are joking."
+
+"As far as regards the invitation, yes; but as for acknowledging
+receipt of the cheque, no. I leave you to decide whether you shall
+do so. Of course, I am not supposed to have anything to do in the
+matter."
+
+"Since you leave it to me, go and open the lights of your
+greenhouses, the sun is getting warm. While you are absent, I shall
+write an answer. I cannot do it while you are here; I want to be
+very serious."
+
+Frank went out of the room. He came back after a few minutes'
+absence.
+
+"Sit you down and listen," said his wife. The letter which she had
+written ran thus;--
+
+     "My Dear Father,--I have received the cheque which you were
+     kind enough to send me. I thank you for it."
+
+     "Your letter, however, pained me. You seem to think that I have
+     wantonly disobeyed you. I have not; I have only acted
+     honourably and conscientiously."
+
+     "I cannot but feel sorry for you when I think of the useless
+     and self-inflicted sufferings which you endure."
+
+     "As for your property, I am happy to state that we have enough,
+     and to spare.
+
+     "Father; if ever you require our aid; if ever you feel that you
+     would like to speak to us or to see us, do not hesitate; a
+     daughter's and a son-in-law's love will you always find in us."
+
+  "Your affectionate daughter,
+
+  "ADELE."
+
+
+Frank was smiling. "I think that will do very nicely," he said.
+
+When Mr. Rougeant read his daughter's missive, he uttered a cry of
+contempt. "Require your aid,--well, I shall have to sink low. You
+love me."--He banished the thought from him, for his heart was
+already softening under the influence of those words.
+
+Although he and his daughter had lived a life of mutual
+misunderstanding during the last years of her stay at "Les Marches,"
+he felt her absence much more keenly than he had anticipated.
+
+The days that followed were for him days of inexpressible ennui. He
+would saunter up and down the kitchen for half-an-hour at a time. He
+conversed with Jacques; he tried to take interest in something; he
+counted his money, his gold, his god.
+
+Formerly, he found great pleasure in doing so; but now, the sound of
+the precious metal awoke no feeling of satisfaction within his heart
+as it used to do, but rung in his ears with a funereal sound. He
+thought it foretold his doom.
+
+He continued thus for weeks, a miserable, ill-humoured, irritated
+and troubled man.
+
+The month of August came, warm almost to suffocation. Mr. Rougeant
+often felt cold. He would sit for hours before the fire, his feet
+stretched at full length, his hands buried in his pockets, and his
+drooping chin resting on his bosom. His eyes were closed.
+
+As he sat thus one afternoon, a flood of anger roused him up; he
+rose, waxed warm, his tottering steps feverishly paced the room for
+a time, then sunk back into his chair, a passion-beaten, exhausted
+and perspiring man.
+
+He had strange thoughts sometimes. Willingly would he "have shuffled
+off his mortal coil; but that the dread of something after death,
+that undiscovered country, from whose bourne no traveller returns,
+puzzled his will, and made him rather bear the ills he had, than fly
+to others that he knew not of."
+
+One day, Mrs. Dorant, whom he had engaged to look after the house,
+found him meditatively examining a piece of rope, which he held in
+his hand. She was alarmed and beckoned to her husband, who was near.
+
+He went up to his employer, who, directly he saw that he was being
+observed, threw the rope away from him excitedly.
+
+"You look ill, Mr. Rougeant," said Jacques, as he scrutinized the
+pale face and haggard look of the farmer.
+
+"So I am," was the answer.
+
+"Shall I fetch a doctor, or----."
+
+"Go about your work," angrily commanded Mr. Rougeant.
+
+Jacques did as he was bid. He, however, watched the farmer. Every
+morning, he expected to find him hanging from a beam. But as time
+passed on, Mr. Rougeant seemed to improve.
+
+He had, in fact, abandoned the horrible thought of putting an end to
+his existence.
+
+He continued thus to live for more than four years; when his health
+once more gave way.
+
+At the thought of death, he shuddered. To die alone, with no friend
+to close his eyelids, to die like a dog, ay worse, to leave behind
+him the reward of his labours and thrift to persons who had defied
+him, was intolerable.
+
+For they had had the impudence to tell him at the solicitor's
+office that he could not make a will giving his property to others;
+he could not disinherit his daughter.
+
+All this vexed him. He sank on the _jonquiere_ exclaiming "Alas!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVII.
+
+RECONCILIATION.
+
+
+Mr. Rougeant's condition continued to aggravate. The thought of
+death struck his heart with terror. Behind him, he left a life of
+selfishness and bigotry. No good deed, no act of self-denial to
+soften the pangs of a stricken conscience.
+
+Before him, everything seemed dark, mysterious, awe-inspiring,
+despairing; for aught he knew, a just chastisement awaited him.
+
+He had toiled for gold; he had obtained it. What a man soweth that
+shall he also reap.
+
+In spite of his avarice and the knowledge that a consultation to the
+doctor would cost him something, Mr. Rougeant's terror overcoming
+all these; he resolved to see a physician.
+
+He did not send Jacques to fetch one, the visit of the medical man
+would have cost him too much; he drove thither in his phaeton.
+
+The doctor who was consulted said the disease was of long standing.
+
+He gave Mr. Rougeant a bottle of medicine for which the latter
+grudgingly paid three francs, and told the farmer to come and see
+him again in a few days.
+
+As Mr. Rougeant was descending the Rohais, his old horse trotting
+slowly and joggedly, an unwelcome thought flashed across his mind.
+"I must be in the vicinity of their house," he said to himself,
+then he made a gesture with his right hand. "Bah! what have I to do
+with them."
+
+He felt very lonely, his spirits were depressed, the doctor's
+remarks did not tend to enliven him.
+
+He heard a cry. He thought he recognized the voice of his little
+Adele.
+
+Was he dreaming? He roused himself. His horse had stopped short. He
+looked to see what was the matter. In front of his horse, a child
+lay crying. What a flood of memories that childish wail had the
+effect of forcing upon him.
+
+He jumped off his vehicle, picked up the child and asked: "Are you
+hurt?" He intended to have spoken softly, but his voice seemed to
+have completely lost that power or any approach to it. The child
+looked up half afraid, and did not answer. "Are you hurt, my little
+man?" he again asked, endeavouring to soften his voice. Vain
+attempt; he only succeeded in speaking low.
+
+The "little man" who, by the by, was a girl, ceased crying, looked
+at his interlocutor and answered: "No."
+
+The child had only been knocked down by the horse's knee whilst
+crossing the road; and thanks to the sagacity of the old mare, had
+escaped unhurt.
+
+Mr. Rougeant again bent towards the child: "Where do you live?" he
+questioned.
+
+"Vere," said the child with such a vague wave of the hand that any
+of the three corners of the island might have been implicated in her
+childish, "There."
+
+"But where is it. Down that way"--pointing with his finger,--"or up
+that way."
+
+The child made a little gesture with her mouth, "a _moue_" as the
+French call it, and pointed with her lips towards the bottom of the
+hill. The farmer mounted his carriage, holding the child in his
+arms, and drove away. Meanwhile, the child felt quite at home; she
+was examining this rough man attentively.
+
+An indescribable something was passing within the farmer's soul.
+
+That little child clinging confidently to him, her large blue eyes
+expressing thankfulness and contentment filled him with a queer, but
+by no means unpleasant sensation. He was catching a glimpse of the
+joy that is reaped through performing a good action.
+
+There was something more than this, some power at work which he
+could not analyze. There was something in that childish voice and
+mien; that penetrated his soul and reminded him of former days.
+
+He felt a tender sensation gradually overwhelming him. His heart of
+stone melted, a tear rolled down that hard featured and deep
+wrinkled visage.
+
+"You cry," said the child, "are you hurt?"
+
+He roused himself, brushed away the tell-tale tear with a quick
+movement of his right arm and whipped up his horse.
+
+"Are you hurt?" repeated the little girl who was not to be put off
+so easily.
+
+"No;" he answered, almost softly.
+
+"Trot; I like to see a horse trot," said the child.
+
+But Mr. Rougeant was looking round to see if he could discern
+someone searching for the child.
+
+"What is your father's name?" asked the farmer.
+
+"Papa."
+
+"Humph! and your mother's?"
+
+"Mamma."
+
+He tried another expedient. "What do people say to your papa, Mr.
+What."
+
+"Yes; I fink it's Mr. What."
+
+The farmer looked puzzled. He saw a man approaching. "I will ask him
+if he knows where the child lives," he was saying to himself, when
+the little girl exclaimed: "Ah! there's 'ma; look, she's looking
+frough the window."
+
+"'Ma;" she cried, "I've had a ride."
+
+Mr. Rougeant looked round. So this was where the child lived. He
+descended from the phaeton holding the little girl in his arms and
+stood confronting----his daughter.
+
+They recognized each other. There was a moment of embarrassment.
+
+Then the farmer, without a word, not a muscle of his face betraying
+his emotion, handed over the parcel, turned on his heels and
+mounting the conveyance was soon out of view.
+
+He did not even cast a glance behind him. His daughter watched him
+disappear, then re-entered the house.
+
+"Poor father," she sighed, "what a great change, what an emaciated
+figure; he has already the appearance of a ghost."
+
+Then, seating herself upon a sofa, she meditated a long time.
+Finally, her face assumed a determined expression; "Come what may,"
+she said to herself; "I will not leave him descend thus into the
+grave. I will make at least one real effort at reconciliation. If I
+do not succeed, I shall be free from remorse."
+
+She talked the matter over with her husband when he came home.
+
+"You look terribly in earnest," said he. "If only your father
+possessed a heart, I should hope. I think that with the zeal which
+you now show you would melt a heart of stone. However, the task is a
+noble one, and if you succeed, I shall only be too glad to welcome
+my father-in-law."
+
+Next morning, Mrs. Mathers directed her steps towards "Les Marches."
+She had undertaken what seemed to be a stupendous task, and she
+resolved to pursue it energetically.
+
+This was why she went to her father's house in person.
+
+While she was nearing her birth-place her father was lying in his
+bed, ill. Mrs. Dorant watched near him as he tossed about his couch.
+
+At times he was calmer than at others; one could discern the traces
+upon his face softening. For he was thinking of the time when a
+little girl used to nestle upon his knee, a little child exactly
+resembling the one with which he had talked on the previous day.
+
+He could not help thinking: "I was happier then than I now am. I had
+a loving wife, a child whose innocence softened my heart; but now, I
+am abandoned by everyone."
+
+He set his teeth, he again tossed about his couch and muttered: "It
+is all through my daughter's fault; she might be respectably
+married. Still, she looked happy and contented. I know these
+fellows, they eat and drink everything which is not spent in
+superfluities."
+
+As Mrs. Mathers approached the front door of "Les Marches," she felt
+a tremor pass through her whole frame. The once familiar
+surroundings and the ennobling object of her visit inspired her with
+strangely tender feelings.
+
+Her soul was deeply moved as she entered the house. There was the
+kitchen with its primitive and quaint furniture. It was deserted.
+She seated herself on a chair and began to ponder.
+
+Soft was to be her voice, tender were to be her appeals to his
+conscience, earnest her entreaties, she was to plead with patience,
+and appeal to his most heart-melting sentiments.
+
+She heard someone coming downstairs. "It is he," she said to
+herself, and she braced herself for the encounter.
+
+"How you frighten me Miss--I beg your pardon--Madam."
+
+It was Mrs. Dorant who uttered these words as she stood in the
+doorway seemingly afraid to enter, fearing the visitor might turn
+out to be a ghost.
+
+"It is you, Mrs. Dorant," said Mrs. Mathers; "is my father
+upstairs?"
+
+"Yes, ma'am."
+
+"Is he ill?"
+
+"Yes, ma'am."
+
+"Dangerously?"
+
+"Not very; he does not want us to fetch the doctor. But what have
+you come here for? If Mr. Rougeant saw you--oh--;" here she threw up
+both her hands and opened her mouth and eyes wide--"oh--" she
+continued, "master would swallow you."
+
+"Do you think so; but I mean to go upstairs and to talk to him."
+
+"Oh, don't go," she entreated, fixing her supplicating eyes upon
+Adele, "he might kill you."
+
+Mrs. Mathers laughed. "No," she said, "he is my father; he is ill
+and needs me. I am going to discharge my duty towards him." And so
+saying she ascended the creaky staircase.
+
+To this day, she cannot explain the sensation which she felt as she
+entered the room where her father lay.
+
+She went straight up to her father's bedside, sank on her knees,
+took the hand that was lying on the bedclothes between both hers and
+began to weep.
+
+Mr. Rougeant quickly withdrew his hand, he contracted his brow, his
+lips slightly curved, he looked on her with contempt.
+
+"What do you want?" he said roughly. "You come to beg, you pauper,
+your angry creditors are clamouring for their money, you are on the
+verge of bankruptcy. I knew it;" he added triumphantly.
+
+"Father, it is true, I come to beg, but not for money. I am not
+poor."
+
+He looked at her suspiciously.
+
+She turned upon him her tearful eyes and softly said: "Father, you
+are miserable, I want to render you happy once more."
+
+To her great surprise, he did not answer, but his countenance fell.
+"Who has told her that I am miserable and that I wish to be happy
+once more?" he mused.
+
+His daughter seized this opportunity. She took the tide at the
+flood. She pleaded earnestly and tenderly.
+
+Then, as he balanced between pride and prejudice on one side, and a
+life of peace and contentment on the other, her persuasive voice
+made the tendrils of his heart move uneasily.
+
+This stone-hearted man wept.
+
+So did his daughter. And amidst this flood of tears, father and
+daughter were reconciled once more.
+
+Mr. Rougeant grew rapidly better. He had something to live for now.
+He, however, would not quit his farm.
+
+"Why don't you come and live here?" he said to Frank one evening as
+they sat near a blazing fire in the parlour of "Les Marches."
+
+The idea struck Frank as being quite practicable. He was already
+prevented, from want of room, to extend his business at the Rohais.
+
+"You would not like to see greenhouses in your fields yonder;" he
+said.
+
+"Yes, I would; besides, I have a lot of capital which might be
+profitably used up. We might form a partnership."
+
+"I must think it over," said Frank. He cast a look towards Adele,
+and as he met her beseeching eyes, he added smilingly: "I think we
+may as well consider the matter as settled."
+
+Frank's property at the Rohais was let. The farm at "Les Marches"
+underwent a complete transformation.
+
+For fully three months, there was such a rubbing and scrubbing,
+painting and papering, that everything was turned completely
+topsy-turvy.
+
+Order was at last evoked, the furniture from the Rohais was brought
+in and the farm-house was made a model of snugness and comfort
+within.
+
+Without, during those three months, nothing was heard but the noise
+of the carpenter's hammers and the click of the glazier's tools.
+
+Mr. Rougeant was as completely transformed as his farm. He looked
+upon the whole with such an air of complacency that the neighbours
+remarked: "He is in his second infancy."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVIII.
+
+A SAD END OF A MISPENT LIFE.
+
+
+In one of the numerous public-houses in the town of St. Peter-Port,
+surrounded by a gang of "roughs," a man, still young, sat on a
+stool.
+
+His face was terribly emaciated, and on it, one could discern all
+the traces of that demon, _alcohol_.
+
+In one of his agitated hands, he held a half-filled glass, in the
+other, a short, blackened clay-pipe.
+
+His glassy eyes had a strange look.
+
+He made an effort to carry the tumbler which he was holding to his
+lips, but his nerves and muscles refused to act.
+
+Here, we may as well say that this man's name was Tom Soher.
+
+"What's the matter, Tom?" said one of the men.
+
+"Nothing," responded he, making use of a very old form of lie.
+
+At this reassuring statement, the company resumed their
+conversation, and their drink.
+
+But Tom, after placing his glass on the counter, retired to one
+corner of the room, sat himself on an empty barrel and was soon fast
+asleep.
+
+It was a profound sleep, and, from time to time, the young man
+trembled convulsively. He opened a gaping mouth, he muttered some
+unintelligible words, but his "pals" noticed it not.
+
+They were accustomed to such scenes,--the sight of man, who is no
+more man; an animal, lower in many respects than the brute.
+
+The sleeper was dreaming. He dreamt that he saw the same
+public-house in which he now was. But, instead of being built of
+granite,--as it really was,--its walls were one mass of human
+beings, piled one on top of the other.
+
+He could recognize some former companions who now were deceased.
+
+Their bodies served instead of stones, and their souls he discerned,
+placed in lieu of windows.
+
+Amidst the horrible mass of human flesh, he saw his father's body,
+crushed and terribly mangled; his face wore an expression of
+suffering, his whole body seemed borne down by a heavy and
+oppressive weight.
+
+Tom Soher looked at his father. The latter cast a sad and troubled
+look at his son.
+
+All at once, the drunken man saw himself seated upon his father's
+back. So this was the load that crushed him. He gazed upon his
+resemblance; a mere shadow of his former self.
+
+As he contemplated this sad picture, he saw, issuing out of his
+mouth--his soul.
+
+An inexpressible fear and a sense of suffocation seized him.
+
+He tried to explain to himself this curious vision. "Bah! 'tis but a
+dream," he muttered; "ah! someone is grasping my throat. I am
+dying." He lifted his eyes towards heaven. They encountered the
+ceiling.
+
+As he sought in vain to rouse himself from that awful state of
+lethargy, something within him whispered: "This house is built with
+the price of bodies and of souls."
+
+He listened eagerly. The voice was silent.
+
+Then the awful interpretation of this strange vision dawned upon his
+troubled mind. "Is it possible that I have given both my body and my
+soul in exchange for drink. My soul! Alas!"
+
+He struggled to shake himself free. Another fit of suffocation
+seized him in its deathly embrace. He tried to shout or to entreat
+mercy, but his tongue refused to utter a sound and his heart was as
+hard and as cold as the stones over which the vehicle in which he
+was lying rolled.
+
+For Tom Soher was in a closed carriage. When closing time came, the
+owner of the public-house had him placed in a conveyance and sent
+home.
+
+He realised this, as a dull, but deep-seated pain, caused him to
+open his eyes. He looked wildly round.
+
+The carriage rattled over the newly macadamized road, and he was
+dying, unable to cry for help, incapable of articulating a single
+sound.
+
+He struck his fist frantically out, intending to smash the window,
+but his blow fell an inch short of its intended mark.
+
+Then all his past life seemed to roll before his eyes, a mispent,
+futile, licentious life, in which the bad passions had predominated,
+and finally hustled him to his doom. A dreadful sense of fear seized
+him. He raised himself upon one of his elbows, his eyes were wide
+open, and in them, there was not the expression that is seen in
+those of a dying beast, which seems to say "It is finished;" his
+eyes expressed a conviction of something yonder, coupled with a look
+of blank despair.
+
+The elbow upon which he was supporting himself gave way, and he fell
+back--dead.
+
+As the driver approached the "Prenoms," he whistled gaily. He little
+dreamt of the surprise which awaited him. He drove straight through
+the open gate into the farmyard.
+
+When Mrs. Soher heard the sound of the carriage wheels, she went to
+the door of the house, opened it and said: "Here he comes again, the
+poor inebriate."
+
+"Now, ma'am, here's your son; he's had a glass too much, but he'll
+be right enough after a bit o' sleep;" and so saying, the driver
+opened the carriage door while Mrs. Soher approached, lantern in
+hand. Her daughter followed her.
+
+They came close to the driver, who stood stock-still, his mouth half
+open, his whole body trembling like an aspen leaf. At last, he
+recovered himself sufficiently to speak. "Jerusalem--he's dead," he
+muttered in a hoarse and frightened tone.
+
+The dead man's mother let fall the lantern which she was holding,
+her legs gave way under her, and she fell down and fainted.
+
+Her daughter was also greatly moved. She began to sob.
+
+"What must we do?" questioned the man.
+
+"Oh, I don't know," she answered, crying; then, after a few moments'
+pause, she said: "Call the neighbours."
+
+The man gave a shout. Two men from the house on the other side of
+the road appeared at the door.
+
+"This way, please, be quick;" shouted the driver.
+
+The men precipitated themselves towards the spot. Mrs. Soher was
+carried to her room upstairs and left to the care of her daughter
+who applied restoratives.
+
+The corpse was carried into another room and laid upon a bed. The
+eyes remained wide open.
+
+The neighbours sent away the carriage and its owner; one of them
+remained in the house while the other went for a doctor.
+
+Mrs. Soher regained consciousness, and as her senses returned to
+her, she cried bitterly: "My poor son, my dear son."
+
+At this stage, Mr. Soher came home. He was surprised to find his
+neighbour seated near the fire in the kitchen. His surprise was
+changed into anguish, when the neighbour, in a few words, informed
+him of Tom's sad fate.
+
+Mr. Soher was horrified. With a blanched face and tottering steps he
+ascended the stairs and entered the room in which lay his wife. Upon
+seeing him, his wife uttered heart-rending cries: "Oh, Thomas, what
+are we going to do; our only son." Her sobs choked her.
+
+Her husband did not say a word. He turned on his heels, closed the
+door after him, and entered the room in which lay his son's corpse.
+
+As he glanced at those dilated eyes, a chill ran through his frame.
+"Great God; is it possible?" he exclaimed, raising his eyes to
+heaven; "my son, my son."
+
+He paced up and down the room with feverish steps, a prey to the
+most poignant grief. His conscience upbraided him loudly. It said:
+
+"Behold your son whose education you have overlooked; behold him
+whom you have left to grow in vice, without an effort worth the name
+to save him from the ruinous bent of his bad passions."
+
+"I know it; 'tis all my fault," exclaimed the grief and
+conscience-stricken man. "I have not done half of what I might have
+done for him.
+
+"Animated by a false pride, I desired to shine among my
+fellow-worshippers, and have been continually away from home,
+neglecting my duty there, to satisfy my ambition. Miserable man that
+I am."
+
+He cast his eyes towards the lifeless body of which the eyes met his
+and seemed to reproach him for having shirked his duty.
+
+"Oh, God! wilt thou ever forgive me?" he cried in wild despair;
+"what can I do to atone? If one half, if a tenth part of the energy
+which I have displayed elsewhere had been employed in bringing up my
+son as I ought to have done, this would not be."
+
+He continued thus to soliloquize, now and then stopping abruptly in
+his nervous walk to gaze upon those reproachful eyes, then resuming
+his wanderings, blaming himself continually.
+
+He was in the midst of his peregrinations when his daughter entered
+the room.
+
+"Father," she said, "a woman who is downstairs wishes to speak with
+you."
+
+The troubled man did not answer. What was this to him; what was all
+the world to him compared with his grief?
+
+"She says her daughter, who is dying, wishes to see you," continued
+the young woman.
+
+"Tell her I am coming," said Mr. Soher.
+
+A dying woman wishing to see him. How could he refuse that? Perhaps
+he would be the means of doing some good to this person. If he could
+thus begin to atone for his want of dutifulness towards his son.
+
+He went downstairs.
+
+"My daughter wishes to see you now," said his visitor. "You will
+come, Sir; you will not refuse a dying woman's request?"
+
+"Refuse; certainly not," he said, and he immediately accompanied his
+visitor.
+
+They walked the whole distance which separated the two houses
+without a word being exchanged between them.
+
+Mr. Soher's thoughts were with the dead; his companion was already
+grieving for the daughter which she felt sure she was about to lose.
+
+Mr. Soher was ushered near the dying woman's bed. The latter was
+raving, but directly she perceived him she fixed her gaze upon him,
+her wild, rambling talk ceased, her mind seemed to regain its
+lucidity. She exclaimed: "I have not found it, therefore I am lost
+for ever."
+
+"What have you not found?" he said kindly.
+
+"Listen," said she. "Some time ago, I entered a small place of
+worship in which a man was delivering an address, or, as he called
+it, a testimonial.
+
+"He said that when he had been converted, he had felt a heavenly ray
+of light flooding his very soul. He said he felt as if an electric
+battery had come in contact with his entrails. At the same time, he
+heard a voice clearly saying: 'My son, thy sins are forgiven thee.'
+
+"This man, who was no other than you, Sir, said that if his hearers
+had not clearly heard this divine voice and experienced this shock,
+they were doomed. He exhorted the congregation to seek for these
+blessings.
+
+"I went home impressed. I decided to seek for these things of which
+you spoke. I prayed, I hoped, I waited, but I have never felt half
+of what you promised your audience they would find.
+
+"Now, I am then to understand that I am rejected.
+
+"Rejected! oh Heaven."
+
+The poor woman burst into tears and uttered a wail of despair.
+
+Mr. Soher tried to soothe her.
+
+"No," she said, "you are trying to deceive me, you are not speaking
+the truth."
+
+He protested. "It was then, that I did not speak the truth," he
+said. "I was exalted, I went too far."
+
+"Is it true?" said the dying woman.
+
+"Oh yes, do believe me."
+
+"I believe you," she said sneeringly.
+
+The fever was again coming upon her. She began to wander in her
+speech.
+
+Mr. Soher, at a sign from the mother, who had followed him into the
+room, withdrew.
+
+His brain was on fire. His heart was full of the deepest and keenest
+anguish.
+
+"What have I done?" he muttered. "I wanted to be thought a saint.
+Not being one, I acted the hypocrite. Now, here I am, maimed,
+afflicted, weighed down with grief."
+
+He reached his home--a wreck.
+
+A few days afterwards, poor Tom's body was buried in the churchyard.
+
+From that day, life at the "Prenoms" was completely changed.
+
+Mr. Soher examined himself and his surroundings.
+
+He saw that he was drifting towards bankruptcy. He resolved--he did
+more--he went to work, to try and avert the catastrophe. He
+succeeded in all that he undertook, for he worked with a will.
+
+His lost son was not brought back to life, neither was the land
+which he had sold redeemed, but he managed to supply his wants and
+those of his family, besides putting something by for a rainy day.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIX.
+
+DOMESTIC HAPPINESS.
+
+
+They had had a hard day's work at "Les Marches," packing tomatoes
+for the English markets.
+
+It was the month of September. The days were growing short and the
+nights long.
+
+After the day's occupations were over, the family assembled in the
+neatly furnished parlour. Frank wrote his letters of advice to his
+fruit merchants. Then he took a German book, "Hauff's stories," and
+proceeded to read the diverting history of "Little Mudj," making
+frequent use of the vocabulary.
+
+Afterwards, to relax his mind, he took a French book. It was one of
+the works of Blaise Pascal, his "Lettres Provinciales." He admired
+their originality, the trenchant satire, and the galling blows of
+this man whom Chateaubriand called a "frightful genius."
+
+As he read the beautiful passages which had issued from this great
+man's mind, he became imbued with some of the flame that had
+inspired the author of the book.
+
+He placed the volume on the table, rested his head upon his hand and
+began to think of his past life.
+
+He thought of his ambition to acquire riches, and of how he had been
+deceived. Providence had ordered otherwise and baffled him.
+
+He was very well off now, but how differently from what he had
+anticipated, he had acquired his present position.
+
+He thought of his mental sufferings, the acute brain, the
+deep-seated ambition torturing him.
+
+He no longer asked himself why he had endured pain. Had he never
+suffered, he would never have attained the moral position in which
+he now was. It was when he was disgusted with the world, when he
+experienced an aversion for earthly things, that his firmest
+resolves had been formed and his determination to do good
+solidified. It was then that he attempted to rise above the dusty,
+monotonous and weary walks of ordinary life; it was then that his
+virtuous sensibility had been awakened, and that his lofty
+conceptions had been framed. And now, having aimed at something
+noble, he was leading a useful, happy, and dignified life.
+
+He was cheerful, and possessed of some of that supreme happiness
+which brightens the soul, and accompanies it through immortality.
+
+He had said: "Why endure pain?" But it was with the same senses that
+he now enjoyed pleasure.
+
+He had said: "Why suffer physically?" "Why," he thought, "if that
+little child did not feel, and had not experienced the pangs of
+hunger, it would now be dead; so would I, if, when I was wrapped in
+thick smoke, the foul gases had not irritated my bronchial tubes and
+my eyes.
+
+"As for the remainder, I am satisfied to leave it to Him who has
+cared for and protected me so far through life. Perhaps the day will
+come when I shall also know the why and wherefore of things which I
+almost dared to accuse an all-wise Providence of having sent into
+the world."
+
+While her husband was soliloquizing thus, Mrs. Mathers was busily
+engaged in stitching a smart little pinafore of diaper.
+
+Grandpapa was resting upon the sofa with little Adele seated on his
+knee.
+
+He held both the child's hands in his, the left one he held in his
+left hand, and the right one he held in his right hand. Taking
+Adele's right-hand forefinger and placing it in her left hand, he
+began to tell her a little story about a lark, which he remembered
+his mother used to recite to him when he was a little boy.
+
+"A little lark built its nest there," he began.
+
+"Here, in my hand?" said the child.
+
+"We shall suppose the little bird did so," answered Mr. Rougeant.
+"It passed this way, and the thumb caught it."
+
+"Ah-ha," laughed little Adele.
+
+"This finger plucked its feathers, this one cooked it, and--this one
+ate it."
+
+Frank made some remark.
+
+Mr. Rougeant looked up.
+
+"And the little one," said Adele, pulling impatiently on her
+grandfather's sleeve, "you have not told me what the little one
+did."
+
+"Indeed! well, the little one was left without a single crumb."
+
+"Poor little one," said the child.
+
+END.
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Silver Lining, by John Roussel
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SILVER LINING ***
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