danger."

"_Grace a Dieu!_" said Jeanne.

She leaned for a while against the cask, her hands behind her, looking
away from the two men. And the two young men stood, somewhat
embarrassed, looking away from her and from each other. At last she
said, with an obvious striving for the even note in her voice:

"I ask your pardon, messieurs, but sometimes sudden happiness is more
overwhelming than misfortune. I am now quite at your service."

"My God! she's a wonder," murmured Willoughby, who was fair,
unmarried, and impressionable. "Go on with your dirty work."

Smithers, conscious of linguistic superiority--in civil life he had
been concerned with the wine trade in Bordeaux--proceeded to carry out
his instructions. He turned over a leaf in his notebook and poised a
ready pencil.

"I must ask you, mademoiselle, some formal questions."

"Perfectly, monsieur," said Jeanne.

"Where was this packet when last you saw it?"

She made her statement, calmly.

"Can you tell me its contents?"

"Not all, monsieur. I, as a young girl, was not in the full confidence
of my parents. But I remember my uncle saying there were about twenty
thousand francs in notes, some gold--I know not how much--some
jewellery of my mother's--oh, a big handful!--rings--one a hoop of
emeralds and diamonds--a brooch with a black pearl belonging to my
great-grandmother----"

"It is enough, mademoiselle," said Smithers, jotting down notes.
"Anything else besides money and jewellery?"

"There were papers of my father, share certificates, bonds--_que
sais-je, moi_?"

Smithers opened the packet, which had already been examined.

"You're a witness, sir, to the identification of the property."

"No," said Willoughby, "I'm just a baby captain of infantry, and
wonder why the brainy Intelligence department doesn't hand the girl
her belongings and decently clear out."

"I've got to make my report, sir," said Smithers stiffly.

So the schedule was produced and the notes were solemnly counted,
twenty-one thousand five hundred francs, and the gold four hundred
francs, and the jewels were identified, and the bonds, of which Jeanne
knew nothing, were checked by a list in her father's handwriting, and
Jeanne signed a paper with Smithers's fountain-pen, and Willoughby
witnessed her signature, and thus she entered into possession of her
heritage.

The officers were about to depart, but Jeanne detained them.

"Messieurs, you must pardon me, but I am quit