wever, one day in the early part of November, De
Roberval was surprised by a request from Claude de Pontbriand--now fully
restored to health--for permission to pay his addresses to Marguerite.
His rejection of the proposal was so prompt, and couched in such
emphatic terms, that Claude was utterly taken aback. He was poor, and
had hesitated long to declare his love, supposing that his poverty would
naturally be an objection to him in Roberval's eyes; but in respect of
birth and position he was fully Marguerite's equal, and now that she was
about to accompany her uncle to Canada, where, in a new sphere of life,
all would be placed upon a more equal footing, he had gained courage to
offer himself as her suitor. But De Roberval not only refused to listen
to him, but dismissed him in such haughty terms that the young man's
pride rebelled, and he demanded an explanation. High words ensued, and a
quarrel was only averted by Claude's diplomacy and presence of mind in
recollecting that in the event of a duel his case would indeed be
hopeless. But he was at a loss for an explanation of the rude reception
with which his proposal had been met.

Marguerite, however, had a key to the enigma. She had heard from her
old nurse how, years before, her uncle had been madly infatuated with
Claude's mother, and how that noble lady had refused his hand, and had
married instead the poor but handsome young Captain Maurice de
Pontbriand. The bitter grudge which Roberval owed the name had seemingly
come to life again at the idea of uniting one of his family with the son
of his successful rival. His temper, too, was irritated by the
protracted delay in getting his expedition under way, and by the many
harassments with which he was forced to contend. The discovery that
Claude had already won his niece's affections added fuel to the fire of
his wrath, and he forbade all further interviews or communications
between the lovers.

Marguerite had so long implicitly yielded to the strong will of her
uncle--whom she revered as a father, having known no other--that she
never thought of attempting disobedience. She wrote to Claude, who would
have persuaded her to meet him by stealth, begging him to wait, even if
she had to go to America without him. For, since this quarrel with De
Roberval, it would be impossible for Claude to take passage in the same
ship, but he could easily follow her. In the New World all the
conditions of life would be changed, and, on