dent love she still cherished for her
lost country, we gazed upon her in silence, and understood now why it
was that she always wept when she spoke of Acadia. Having mastered her
emotions, she brushed away her tears and resumed her narrative as
follows.

"Petiots," she said in a sweet sad tone, "your grandmother always
weeps when the remembrance of her sufferings and of her wrongs comes
back to her heart. She is an old woman and her tears soothe her grief.
Scars of a wounded heart never heal entirely, joy and happiness alone
leave no trace of their passage, as you shall learn hereafter. But why
should I speak thus to you? Soon enough you shall learn more from the
teachings of grim experience, than from all the sayings and maxims,
how wise and judicious soever they may be.

"It was bruited at St. Gabriel that the English were landing troops
in Acadia, whence came the rumor, no one could tell, and it would
have been impossible to trace it to its source, and yet, uncertain
as it was, it created considerable uneasiness in the community. Bad
news travels fast, petiots, and it looks as if some evil genius took
delight to despatch winged messengers to scatter the tidings broadcast
over the land. The rumor was confirmed in a manner as tragical as it
was unexpected.

"One morning, at dawn of day, a young man was lying unconscious on
the green near the church. His arm was shattered, and he had bled
profusely; it was with the greatest difficulty that we restored him to
life. When he opened his eyes his looks were wild and terrified, and,
despite his weakness, he made a desperate effort to rise and flee.

"We quieted him with friendly words, and he heaved a deep sigh of
satisfaction. He had a burning fever, and his parched lips quivered as
he muttered incoherent words. We removed him to the priest's house,
where his wounds were dressed, and when he had recovered from the
exhaustion occasioned by the loss of blood, he related to us what had
happened to him, and we listened to his words with breathless suspense
and anxiety.

"'The English', said he, 'have landed troops on the eastern coast
of Acadia, and are committing the most atrocious cruelties. Their
inhumanity surpasses belief. They pillage and burn our villages, and
even lay sacrilegious hands on the sacred vessels in our churches.
They tear the wives from their husbands, the children from their
parents, and they drive their ill-fated victims to the seashore, and
stow th