mperor pardoned those young men," said Pigoult to Grevin. "He
removed their names from the list of _emigres_, though they certainly
took part in that last conspiracy against him."

Lechesneau make no delay in sending his whole force of gendarmerie to
the forest and to the valley of Cinq-Cygne; telling Giguet to take with
him the justice of peace, who, according to the terms of the Code, would
then become an auxiliary police-officer. He ordered them to make
all preliminary inquiries in the township of Cinq-Cygne, and to take
testimony if necessary; and to save time, he dictated and signed a
warrant for the arrest of Michu, against whom the charge was evident on
the positive testimony of Violette. After the departure of the gendarmes
Lechesneau returned to the important question of issuing warrants for
the arrest of the Simeuse and d'Hauteserre brothers. According to
the Code these warrants would have to contain the charges against the
delinquents.

Giguet and the justice of peace rode so rapidly to Cinq-Cygne that
they met Laurence's servants returning from the festivities at Troyes.
Stopped, and taken before the mayor where they were interrogated, they
all stated, being ignorant of the importance of the answer, that their
mistress had given them permission to spend the whole day at Troyes.
To a question put by the justice of the peace, each replied that
Mademoiselle had offered them the amusement which they had not thought
of asking for. This testimony seemed so important to the justice of the
peace that he sent back a messenger to Gondreville to advise Lechesneau
to proceed himself to Cinq-Cygne and arrest the four gentlemen, while
he went to Michu's farm, so that the five arrests might be made
simultaneously.

This new element was so convincing that Lechesneau started at once for
Cinq-Cygne. He knew well what pleasure would be felt in Troyes at such
proceedings against the old nobles, the enemies of the people, now
become the enemies of the Emperor. In such circumstances a magistrate
is very apt to take mere presumptive evidence for actual proof.
Nevertheless, on his way from Gondreville to Cinq-Cygne, in the
senator's own carriage, it did occur to Lechesneau (who would certainly
have made a fine magistrate had it not been for his love-affair, and the
Emperor's sudden morality to which he owed his disgrace) to think the
audacity of the young men and Michu a piece of folly which was not in
keeping with what he knew