it became necessary to send a circular warning our accomplices
of the date decided upon for the uprising, I persuaded Monsieur Martial
to write a model. He suspected nothing. I told him it was for a wedding;
he did what I asked. This letter, which is now in my possession, is
the rough draft of the circular; and it was written by the hand of the
Marquis de Sairmeuse. It is impossible for him to deny it. There is an
erasure on each line. Everyone would regard it as the handiwork of a man
who was seeking to convey his real meaning in ambiguous phrases."

Chanlouineau opened the envelope and showed her the famous letter which
he had dictated, and in which the space for the date of the insurrection
was left blank.

"My dear friend, we are at last agreed, and the marriage is decided,
etc."

The light that had sparkled in Marie-Anne's eye was suddenly
extinguished.

"And you believe that this letter can be of any service?" she inquired,
in evident discouragement.

"I do not believe it!"

"But----"

With a gesture, he interrupted her.

"We must not lose time in discussion--listen to me. Of itself, this
letter might be unimportant, but I have arranged matters in such a way
that it will produce a powerful effect. I declared before the commission
that the Marquis de Sairmeuse was one of the leaders of the movement.
They laughed; and I read incredulity on the faces of the judges. But
calumny is never without its effect. When the Duc de Sairmeuse is about
to receive a reward for his services, there will be enemies in plenty
to remember and to repeat my words. He knew this so well that he was
greatly agitated, even while his colleagues sneered at my accusation."

"To accuse a man falsely is a great crime," murmured the honest
Marie-Anne.

"Yes, but I wish to save my friend, and I cannot choose my means. I
was all the more sure of success as I knew that the marquis had been
wounded. I declared that he was fighting against the troops by my side;
I demanded that he should be summoned before the tribunal; I told them
that I had in my possession unquestionable proofs of his complicity."

"Did you say that the Marquis de Sairmeuse had been wounded?" inquired
Marie-Anne.

Chanlouineau's face betrayed the most intense astonishment.

"What!" he exclaimed, "you do not know----"

Then after an instant's reflection:

"Fool that I am!" he resumed. "Who could have told you what had
happened? You remember that when we were trav