er was reconducted to the place of confinement.

That night was a sleepless one. Beauvallon's arrest, his speedy trial
and condemnation, the desertion of Eulalie, had followed each other
with such stunning rapidity, that, until now, he had hardly time to
reflect upon the dismal chain of circumstances--now they pressed upon
his attention, and crowded his mind to overflowing. At midnight, as he
lay tossing on his bed, upon which he had thrown himself without
undressing, he thought he heard a confused noise in the apartment of
the next house adjoining his. The noise increased. He placed his hand
upon the wall, and felt it jar under successive shocks. Suddenly a
current of air blew in upon him, and at the same time a faint ray of
light streamed through an opening in the partition.

"Courage!" said a soft voice. "The opening enlarges. Now, Julie!"

Julie! Beauvallon was sure he heard the name, and yet uncertain
whether or not he was dreaming.

"Julie!" he exclaimed, cautiously.

"Yes, monsieur--it is Julie--sure enough," answered a pleasant voice.

"Then you, at least, have not forgotten me."

"No one who has once known you can ever forget you. Courage! you will
soon be free. Aid us if you can."

"Then you are not alone?"

"Have patience, and you will see."

His own exertions, added to those of his friends without, soon enabled
the prisoner to force his way into the next house; but there
disappointment awaited him. Two soldiers in the uniform of the
_gensdarmerie_ stood before him.

"_On ne passe par ici_,--you can't pass here,"--said one.

"What cruel mockery is this?" cried Beauvallon. "Is it not enough that
I am condemned to death, but you must subject me to an atrocious
pleasantry? This is refinement of cruelty."

"It seems that our disguise is perfect, Julie," said the soldier who
had not yet spoken. "Eugene does not know his best friends."

In an instant the speaker was folded in the arms of Beauvallon. It was
Eulalie herself, as bewitchingly beautiful in her uniform as in the
habiliments of her sex. She hurriedly explained that the moment she
heard of Eugene's arrest, she prepared to meet the worst contingency.
She had already converted her money into cash. Learning the place of
his imprisonment, she had hired, through the agency of another person,
the adjoining house, which happened to be unoccupied. The task of
making an aperture in the partition was an easy one--the difficulty of
passing through th