ing to threaten him exclaimed: "So you won't
tell me what you were talking about as I came in? I could see you
laughing from the street. Oh, you sly fellow! Ah! I sha'n't love you any
longer!"

Then she left the shop and ran across the road.

"It was Mademoiselle Saget who sent her here," remarked handsome Lisa
drily.

Then silence fell again for some moments. Gavard was dismayed at
Florent's reception of his proposal. Lisa was the first to speak. "It
was wrong of you to refuse the post, Florent," she said in the most
friendly tones. "You know how difficult it is to find any employment,
and you are not in a position to be over-exacting."

"I have my reasons," Florent replied.

Lisa shrugged her shoulders. "Come now," said she, "you really can't be
serious, I'm sure. I can understand that you are not in love with the
Government, but it would be too absurd to let your opinions prevent
you from earning your living. And, besides, my dear fellow, the Emperor
isn't at all a bad sort of man. You don't suppose, do you, that he knew
you were eating mouldy bread and tainted meat? He can't be everywhere,
you know, and you can see for yourself that he hasn't prevented us here
from doing pretty well. You are not at all just; indeed you are not."

Gavard, however, was getting very fidgety. He could not bear to hear
people speak well of the Emperor.

"No, no, Madame Quenu," he interrupted; "you are going too far. It is a
scoundrelly system altogether."

"Oh, as for you," exclaimed Lisa vivaciously, "you'll never rest until
you've got yourself plundered and knocked on the head as the result of
all your wild talk. Don't let us discuss politics; you would only make
me angry. The question is Florent, isn't it? Well, for my part, I say
that he ought to accept this inspectorship. Don't you think so too,
Quenu?"

Quenu, who had not yet said a word, was very much put out by his wife's
sudden appeal.

"It's a good berth," he replied, without compromising himself.

Then, amidst another interval of awkward silence, Florent resumed: "I
beg you, let us drop the subject. My mind is quite made up. I shall
wait."

"You will wait!" cried Lisa, losing patience.

Two rosy fires had risen to her cheeks. As she stood there, erect, in
her white apron, with rounded, swelling hips, it was with difficulty
that she restrained herself from breaking out into bitter words.
However, the entrance of another person into the shop arrested her
anger.