hen he came upon the burgomaster, who was in great
tribulation. Only nineteen prisoners were at the fort, and the
governor had sent down a rather imperative message to the mayor,
who, replying that his loyal town could not conceal a fugitive,
met with such an answer as he had never received before in all his
life. It is a deplorable fact that he and the town were recommended
to go to a place, a visit to which the burgomaster at least hoped he
should not be compelled to make.

The burgomaster was in the habit of asking people's opinions and
never listening to their answers, and he now asked Jodoque what he
was to do. Jodoque suggesting that the mayor could not want advice,
the mayor admitted there was something in that,--but still a word
was a word. Things, in fact, were in a pretty state, for the
burgomaster, now he had to do with the escape of a French prisoner.
And this was the case. The French were off the town, and at that
time the French had the luck to be generally sure in the matter of
victory. Now if the French took the town, and learned that the
burgomaster had taken a Frenchman, (for the burgomaster felt sure he
could recover the runaway, if he chose,) the burgomaster would
perform that _pas seul_ upon the ambient air which is far from a
pleasant feat; while if the French did _not_ take the town, and it
was brought home to him that he had neglected the duties of his
office, he would lose the position of burgomaster and be a degraded
man.

Jodoque sadly wanted to reach Madame Kurrig's, but the burgomaster
sadly wanted help,--though he would not confess it openly;--so he
hooked himself on to Jodoque and uttered this sentence,--"And this
detested smuggler, too!"--The effect of which was, that Jodoque
became utterly pale and trembled violently. This behavior the
burgomaster attributed to his own proper presence, and asked himself,
--Could he survive degradation? No, better the tight-rope performance!
So he made up his mind to recapture the missing Frenchman.

He, meantime, being a blithe, courageous young midshipman, was gayly
chattering with his protectress. There he was laughing at her
good-naturedly as she trembled for his sake, and chattering broken
German as best he could. Wealth is a good thing, and health a better;
but surely high spirited hope is worth more than the philosopher's
stone.

"No, Mademoiselle,--I could bear the dark room no longer. Better an
hour in the light of your blue eyes than an ag