at overcome, for the first time, Mme. Rosemilly rose, and
throwing her arms round Mme. Roland, kissed her a long time as a child
of her own might have done; and under this new embrace the poor
woman's sick heart swelled with deep emotion. She could not have
expressed the feeling; it was at once sad and sweet. She had lost her
son, her big boy, but in return she had found a daughter, a grown-up
daughter.

When they faced each other again, and were seated, they took hands and
remained so, looking at each other and smiling, while they seemed to
have forgotten Jean.

Then they discussed a number of things which had to be thought of in
view of an early marriage, and when everything was settled and decided
Mme. Rosemilly seemed suddenly to remember a further detail and asked:
"You have consulted M. Roland, I suppose?"

A flush of color mounted at the same instant to the face of both
mother and son. It was the mother who replied:

"Oh, no, it is quite unnecessary!" Then she hesitated, feeling that
some explanation was needed, and added: "We do everything without
saying anything to him. It is enough to tell him what we have decided
on."

Mme. Rosemilly, not in the least surprised, only smiled, taking it as
a matter of course, for the good man counted for so little.

When Mme. Roland was in the street again with her son she said:

"Suppose we go to your rooms for a little while. I should be glad to
rest."

She felt herself homeless, shelterless, her own house being a terror
to her.

They went into Jean's apartments.

As soon as the door was closed upon her she heaved a deep sigh, as if
that bolt had placed her in safety, but then, instead of resting as
she had said, she began to open the cupboards, to count the piles of
linen, the pocket handkerchiefs, and socks. She changed the
arrangement to place them in more harmonious order, more pleasing to
her housekeeper's eye; and when she had put everything to her mind,
laying out the towels, the shirts, and the drawers on their several
shelves and dividing all the linen into three principal classes,
body-linen, household linen, and table-linen, she drew back and
contemplated the results, and called out:

"Come here, Jean, and see how nice it looks."

He went and admired it to please her.

On a sudden, when he had sat down again, she came softly up behind his
armchair, and putting her right arm round his neck she kissed him,
while she laid on the chimney shelf a small