slumber to make up.

The next morning he did not wake, or rather did not come downstairs
until nine o'clock. He asked casually what had become of his noisy
neighbor, and was told that he had started in the Lyons mail at six
in the morning, with his friend the colonel of the Chasseurs; but the
landlord thought they had only engaged places as far as Tonnerre.

If Monsieur de Jayat had interested himself in the young officer,
the latter, in turn, had made inquiries about him, asking who he was,
whether he came habitually to the hotel, and whether he would be willing
to sell his horse. The landlord had replied that he knew Monsieur de
Jayat well, for he was in the habit of coming to the hotel whenever
business brought him to Macon, and that, as for the horse, he did not
believe, considering the affection the young gentleman showed for the
animal, that he would consent to part with him for any price. On which
the traveller had departed without saying any more.

After breakfast M. de Jayat, who seemed to find time hanging heavily on
his hands, ordered his horse, mounted it, and rode out from Macon by the
Lyons road. As long as he was in the town he allowed his horse to take
the pace his fancy dictated, but once beyond it, he gathered up the
reins and pressed the animal with his knees. The hint sufficed, and the
animal broke into a gallop.

Montbar passed through the villages of Varennes, La Creche,
and Chapelle-de-Guinchay, and did not stop until he reached the
Maison-Blanche. The spot was exactly as Valensolle had described it, and
was admirably adapted for an ambuscade.

The Maison-Blanche stood in a tiny valley between a sharp declivity and
a rise in the ground. A little rivulet without a name flowed past the
corner of the garden and made its way to the Saone just above Challe.
Tall bushy trees followed the course of the little stream, and described
a half-circle, inclosing the house on three sides. The house itself was
formerly an inn which proved unproductive to the innkeeper. It had been
closed for seven or eight years, and was beginning to fall into decay.
Before reaching it, the main road coming from Macon made a sharp turn.

Montbar examined the locality with the care of an engineer choosing
his ground for a battlefield. He drew a pencil and a note-book from his
pocket and made an accurate plan of the position. Then he returned to
Macon.

Two hours later his groom departed, carrying the plan to Morgan, having