ourbevoie, they were seized with admiration for the distant
horizon down there; on the right, was the spire of Argenteuil church,
and above it rose the hills of Sannois, and the mill of Orgemont, while
on the left, the aqueduct of Marly stood out against the clear morning
sky, and in the distance they could see the terrace of Saint-Germain;
and opposite to them, at the end of a low chain of hills, the new fort
of Cormeilles. Quite in the distance, a very long way off, beyond the
plains and villages, one could see the somber green of the forests.

The sun was beginning to shine in their faces, the dust got into their
eyes, and on either side of the road there stretched an interminable
tract of bare, ugly country which smelt unpleasantly. One might have
thought that it had been ravaged by the pestilence, which had even
attacked the buildings, for skeletons of dilapidated and deserted
houses, or small cottages, which were left in an unfinished state, as
the contractors had not been paid, reared their four roofless walls on
each side.

Here and there tall factory chimneys rose up from the barren soil; the
only vegetation on that putrid land, where the spring breezes wafted an
odor of petroleum and shist, which was mingled with another smell, that
was even still less agreeable. At last, however, they crossed the Seine
a second time, and it was delightful on the bridge. The river sparkled
in the sun, and they had a feeling of quiet satisfaction and enjoyment,
in drinking in the purer air, that was not impregnated by the black
smoke of factories, nor by the miasma from the deposits of night soil. A
man whom they met, told them that the name of the place was _Bezons_,
and so Monsieur Dufour pulled up, and read the attractive announcement
outside an eating-house: _Restaurant Poulin, stews and fried fish,
private rooms, arbors and swings._

"Well! Madame Dufour, will this suit you? Will you make up your mind at
last?"

She read the announcement in her turn, and then looked at the house for
a time.

It was a white, country inn, built by the road side, and through the
open door she could see the bright zinc of the counter, at which two
workmen, out for the day, were sitting. At last she made up her mind,
and said:

"Yes, this will do; and, besides, there is a view."

So they drove into a large yard with trees in it, behind the inn, which
was only separated from the river by the towing-path, and got out. The
husband sprang