g and the royal family. Dauphin of France, you have
to-day gained a soldier for your throne who is prepared to shed his
last drop of blood for you and your house, and on whose loyalty you may
always count."

General Lafayette had tears in his eyes, and his noble face glowed with
emotion, while the child before him looked at him with wistful eyes and
a happy smile. Close by stood Marie Antoinette, her air of proud
defiance turned to one of gentle sweetness. She knew what that moment
meant in the history of France, and her heart thrilled with pride in
her little son, the Dauphin. Stooping, she kissed his golden hair, and
then, without an attempt to conceal the emotion, she finished her
conversation with the general and mayor, and then, making her adieus to
them beckoned to the Dauphin to go with her from the pavilion in which
the interview had taken place, and to return to the palace.

Instead of walking beside her, the Dauphin paused and asked:

"Mamma, please let me walk alone. I want the people to see I am not
afraid, as they may think if I let you lead me. I want to be like the
Chevalier Bayard, that the Abbe talked to me about the other day. I
want to be _sans peur et sans reproche_--like Bayard."

The queen smiled through tears.

"Very well, my chevalier," she said. "You shall walk alone."

"And before you, please. The knights always walk in advance of the
ladies, to protect them from danger. I am your knight, mamma, and I
want to be, as long as I live." And he added with a pretty, playful
bow, "Will you allow it, my royal lady?"

"I allow it! So go in front, chevalier, little Louis. We will take the
same way we came."

The Dauphin sprang along the path for quite a distance, when he stopped
suddenly and turned round to the queen, who with her two footmen was
walking quietly behind him.

"Well, Chevalier Bayard, what are you stopping for?" asked the queen
with a smile.

"I am waiting for you," he said gravely, "because this is where my
knightly service commences, for it is here that danger begins."

"It is true," said the Queen, and even as she spoke, there came to her
ears a sound of shouting as loud as the booming of cannon. "Oh, my
child," cried Marie Antoinette, "the sound is like the thundering of a
storm at sea! But such storms lie in God's hand and He protects those
who trust Him. Think of that, little Louis, and do not be afraid!"

"Oh, I am not afraid!" cried Louis, running happily on. And yet,