d the desperation which had at last driven them from their home. The
people listened without comment. They had all suffered so much that
there was no room left in their hearts for new grief, but when she told
them of the boat and her lame husband they rejoiced with her that she
had the happiness at least of a united family. There was plenty of room
in their hearts for joy! "Come with us," they said. "We cannot be
poorer. Our cattle are driven away; we have no strong laborers to till
our fields, no seeds to plant in them. We live in one wing and the
outhouses of the Chateau, but hope is not yet dead, and your hands are
strong. Your husband, too, can help, and we shall be at least no worse
off for your being here."

Grand'mere spoke. "We live in the cow-stalls of the stable," said she.
"It is not so bad; there is still hay in the loft, and there are other
stalls not occupied."

Mother Meraut crossed herself. "If the Blessed Mother of Our Lord could
live in a stable," she said, "such shelter is surely good enough for
us."

Father Meraut, sitting patiently in the boat, was surprise, a little
later as he looked anxiously toward the village, to see a crowd of
people coming toward him, waving caps and hands in salutation. Before
the others ran Pierre and Pierrette, and when they reached him they
poured forth a jumble of excited words, from which he was able to
gather that Grandpere and Grand'mere were alive and well, and that
there was a place for them to stay. He got out of the boat to greet the
people, and their willing hands took the bundles and helped hide the
Ark in the bushes, and the whole company then started back to the
Chateau, Grandpere lingering behind the others to keep pace with the
slow progress of Father Meraut.

When Grand'mere, the Twins, and their Mother reached the stable they
took their bundles from the hands of their friends, and went in to
inspect their new home. The stable had been swept and scrubbed until it
was as clean as it could be made. The large box stall served as a
bedroom for Grand'mere and Grandpere. Above their bed of hay, covered
with old blankets and quilts, was hung a wooden crucifix. This, with
two boxes for seats, was all the furniture it contained. A few articles
of clothing hung about on nails, and in the open space before the
stalls a stove was placed, the pipe running through a pane of glass in
a window near by.

When Grandpere and Father Meraut arrived, Mother Meraut met them