experience, every time. One day she began to tell me about a
great lady in whose service her daughter had lived as scullion, or some
such thing. Such a beautiful lady! with such a handsome husband. But
grief comes to the palace as well as to the garret, and why or
wherefore no one knew, but somehow the Baron de Roeder must have
incurred the vengeance of the terrible Chauffeurs; for not many months
ago, as madame was going to see her relations in Alsace, she was
stabbed dead as she lay in bed at some hotel on the road. Had I not
seen it in the _Gazette_? Had I not heard? Why, she had been told that
as far off as Lyons there were placards offering a heavy reward on the
part of the Baron de Roeder for information respecting the murderer of
his wife. But no one could help him, for all who could bear evidence
were in such terror of the Chauffeurs; there were hundreds of them she
had been told, rich and poor, great gentlemen and peasants, all leagued
together by most frightful oaths to hunt to the death any one who bore
witness against them; so that even they who survived the tortures to
which the Chauffeurs subjected many of the people whom they plundered,
dared not to recognise them again, would not dare, even did they see
them at the bar of a court of justice; for, if one were condemned, were
there not hundreds sworn to avenge his death?

I told all this to Amante, and we began to fear that if M. de la
Tourelle, or Lefebvre, or any of the gang at Les Rochers, had seen
these placards, they would know that the poor lady stabbed by the
former was the Baroness de Roeder, and that they would set forth again
in search of me.

This fresh apprehension told on my health and impeded my recovery. We
had so little money we could not call in a physician, at least, not one
in established practice. But Amante found out a young doctor for whom,
indeed, she had sometimes worked; and offering to pay him in kind, she
brought him to see me, her sick wife. He was very gentle and
thoughtful, though, like ourselves, very poor. But he gave much time
and consideration to the case, saying once to Amante that he saw my
constitution had experienced some severe shock from which it was
probable that my nerves would never entirely recover. By-and-by I shall
name this doctor, and then you will know, better than I can describe,
his character.

I grew strong in time--stronger, at least. I was able to work a little
at home, and to sun myself and my baby