nt him here, M. le Senechal," quavered a woman's voice,
in terror.

"Fools! It's Mr. Gard that is hurt. The devil's down in Coupee Bay, and
we've killed him for you."

"Ah then, Gyu marchi! Here's a blanket--and the lantern--rope's in barn.
You get a bed ready," to the woman, and they went off towards the
Coupee.

And mighty glad the Doctor was to see them coming. He had begun to fear
the Senechal had lost his head and made a bolt for home.

He had been sitting under the bank of the cutting as the surest way of
keeping out of one or other of the black gulfs. But the interval had
given him time to recover himself, and he jumped up at once, all ready
for business, and hailed them.

"Down this side, I think," he said, and they swung the lantern over the
Grande Greve slope below the bit of crumbly pathway.

"Le velas!" said Thomas Carre, and handed the lantern to the Senechal,
and let himself heavily over the side, and groped his way down to the
motionless form among the bramble bushes.

"Pardie, he is dead, I do think!" as he bent over it.

"Let's see!" said the Doctor's quick voice at his elbow. "Hand down the
light;" and the Senechal waited above in grievous anxiety.

"Not dead," said the Doctor at last. "Stunned and badly knocked about.
He'll come round. Now, how are we to get him up?"

"Here's a blanket--and a rope."

"Good! The blanket!... So!... Now--gently, my man!... Got it, Senechal?
Right! Ease him down on to the path. That's right! Give me a hand, will
you? My legs aren't as limber as they used to be. Now we'll get him on
to a bed and see what the damage is;" and they set off slowly for
Plaisance.

"My God, Senechal! That passed belief! To think of our never thinking of
that infernal brute!" said the Doctor, as they stumbled slowly along in
the joggling light.

"He was possessed of the devil, without a doubt. That last scream of his
when he got my two bullets--"

"'T woke us," said Carre. "And we wondered what was up. What was it,
then, monsieur?"

"That devil of a white stallion of Le Pelley's. It was him killed Tom
Hamon and Peter Mauger, and he tried to kill Mr. Gard. We've been on
this job for weeks past, while you were all sleeping in your beds."

"Mon Gyu! and we none of us knew anything about it till we heard yon
scream! And he's dead----"

"He's dead--unless he's the devil," said the Senechal sententiously.

CHAPTER XXXIX

HOW THEY THANKED GOD FOR HIS MERCIES

Vast was