efuge for the Protestants, who still form about one-half of
its population. Although, during the long dark period of religious
persecution which followed the Revocation, the Protestants of Mens and
the neighbouring villages did not dare to show themselves, and
worshipped, if at all, only in their dwellings, in secret, or in "the
Desert," no sooner did the Revolution set them at liberty than they
formed themselves again into churches, and appointed pastors; and it
was to serve them temporarily in that capacity that Felix Neff first
went amongst them, and laboured there and at Vizille with such good
effect.

* * * * *

Not far from Mens is a place which has made much more noise in the
world--no other than La Salette, the scene of the latest Roman
"miracle." La Salette is one of the side-valleys of the large valley
of the Drac, which joins the Romanche a few miles above Grenoble.
There is no village of La Salette, but a commune, which is somewhat
appropriately called La Salette-Fallavaux, the latter word being from
_fallax vallis_, or "the lying valley."

About twenty-seven years ago, on the 19th of September, 1846, two
children belonging to the hamlet of Abladens--the one a girl of
fourteen, the other a boy of twelve years old--came down from the
lofty pasturage of Mont Gargas, where they had been herding cattle,
and told the following strange story. They had seen the Virgin Mary
descend from heaven with a crucifix suspended from her neck by a gold
chain, and a hammer and pincers suspended from the chain, but without
any visible support. The figure sat down upon a large stone, and wept
so piteously as shortly to fill a large pool with her tears.

When the story was noised abroad, people came from all quarters, and
went up the mountain to see where the Virgin had sat. The stone was
soon broken off in chips and carried away as relics, but the fountain
filled with the tears is still there, tasting very much, like ordinary
spring water.

Two priests of Grenoble, disgusted at what they believed to be an
imposition, accused a young person of the neighbourhood, one Mdlle. de
Lamerliere, as being the real author of the pretended miracle, on
which she commenced an action against them for defamation of
character. She brought the celebrated advocate Jules Favre from Paris
to plead her cause, but the verdict was given in favour of the two
priests. The "miracle" was an imposture!

Notwithstanding