room who might recognize us. Just in the
middle of our meal, the public diligence drove lumbering up under the
_porte-cochere_, and disgorged its passengers. Most of them turned into
the room where we sat, cowering and fearful, for the door was opposite
to the porter's lodge, and both opened on to the wide-covered entrance
from the street. Among the passengers came in a young, fair-haired lady,
attended by an elderly French maid. The poor young creature tossed her
head, and shrank away from the common room, full of evil smells and
promiscuous company, and demanded, in German French, to be taken to
some private apartment. We heard that she and her maid had come in the
coupe, and, probably from pride, poor young lady! she had avoided all
association with her fellow-passengers, thereby exciting their dislike
and ridicule. All these little pieces of hearsay had a significance to
us afterwards, though, at the time, the only remark made that bore upon
the future was Amante's whisper to me that the young lady's hair was
exactly the colour of mine, which she had cut off and burnt in the stove
in the miller's kitchen in one of her descents from our hiding-place in
the loft.

As soon as we could, we struck round in the shadow, leaving the
boisterous and merry fellow-passengers to their supper. We crossed the
court, borrowed a lantern from the ostler, and scrambled up the rude
steps to our chamber above the stable. There was no door into it; the
entrance was the hole into which the ladder fitted. The window looked
into the court. We were tired and soon fell asleep. I was wakened by a
noise in the stable below. One instant of listening, and I wakened
Amante, placing my hand on her mouth, to prevent any exclamation in her
half-roused state. We heard my husband speaking about his horse to the
ostler. It was his voice. I am sure of it. Amante said so too. We durst
not move to rise and satisfy ourselves. For five minutes or so he went
on giving directions. Then he left the stable, and, softly stealing
to our window, we saw him cross the court and re-enter the inn. We
consulted as to what we should do. We feared to excite remark or
suspicion by descending and leaving our chamber, or else immediate
escape was our strongest idea. Then the ostler left the stable, locking
the door on the outside.

"We must try and drop through the window--if, indeed, it is well to go
at all," said Amante.

With reflection came wisdom. We should excite su