ng that you did by marrying an enemy of altar and
throne"--words that made a lively impression on Mme. du Croisier's
timorous mind.

Then Chesnel all at once bethought himself that he must make sure of
the lady's director, the Abbe Couturier. He knew how obstinately devout
souls can work for the triumph of their views when once they come
forward for their side, and wished to secure the concurrence of the
Church as early as possible. So he went to the Hotel d'Esgrignon, roused
up Mlle. Armande, gave her an account of that night's work, and sped her
to fetch the Bishop himself into the forefront of the battle.

"Ah, God in heaven! Thou must save the house of d'Esgrignon!" he
exclaimed, as he went slowly home again. "The affair is developing now
into a fight in a Court of Law. We are face to face with men that have
passions and interests of their own; we can get anything out of them.
This du Croisier has taken advantage of the public prosecutor's absence;
the public prosecutor is devoted to us, but since the opening of the
Chambers he has gone to Paris. Now, what can they have done to get
round his deputy? They have induced him to take up the charge without
consulting his chief. This mystery must be looked into, and the ground
surveyed to-morrow; and then, perhaps, when I have unraveled this web of
theirs, I will go back to Paris to set great powers at work through Mme.
de Maufrigneuse."

So he reasoned, poor, aged, clear-sighted wrestler, before he lay down
half dead with bearing the weight of so much emotion and fatigue. And
yet, before he fell asleep he ran a searching eye over the list of
magistrates, taking all their secret ambitions into account, casting
about for ways of influencing them, calculating his chances in the
coming struggle. Chesnel's prolonged scrutiny of consciences, given in a
condensed form, will perhaps serve as a picture of the judicial world in
a country town.

Magistrates and officials generally are obliged to begin their career in
the provinces; judicial ambition there ferments. At the outset every man
looks towards Paris; they all aspire to shine in the vast theatre where
great political causes come before the courts, and the higher branches
of the legal profession are closely connected with the palpitating
interests of society. But few are called to that paradise of the man
of law, and nine-tenths of the profession are bound sooner or later to
regard themselves as shelved for good in the pr