ance diminished. The desired fruit must soon fall into his hands
almost of itself.

Soon, under cover of the playful teasing which went on between the
sergeant-major and his sister-in-law, even in the presence of the
invalid wife, he began to indulge in passionate, lustful touches and
covert embraces which brought the blood to the girl's face and made her
shiver.

She resented Julie's reproaches with the hard, insensitive egoism of
one in love. What! Did this wretched moribund creature still think to
claim the man whom she, the fresh, young girl, loved, and who loved her
in return?

Julie laughed bitterly to herself. Would it not be best to resign
herself to it, to close her eyes, and to await the deliverance of
Death?

Oh, no! She could not endure this shameless insult which they both, as
it were, hurled in her face. She racked her brain as to how she could
revenge herself on them; but in vain. Most terrible of all was it to
feel that though still alive she was virtually dead already, as
powerless and helpless as a corpse!

Then the worst happened.

The sergeant-major and his sister-in-law were invited to a _fete_ which
the military society, "The Fellow-Soldiers of 1870-1," were arranging
in memory of the battle of St. Privat.

The programme included music, theatricals, and dancing. Towards
evening a fanfare of trumpets summoned the guests to the festival-play.
Even in the garden under the lime-trees the heat of the summer sun had
been great, and in the confined space of the overcrowded hall it became
unbearably intense. The rows of chairs were placed much too close
together, in order to accommodate the large audience. Once seated,
it was impossible to move; one remained wedged in between one's
neighbours.

Shortly before the curtain was raised, Heppner and Ida discovered two
empty chairs. The sergeant-major sat down first. The narrow space
then left on the neighbouring chair was far too small for the girl's
fully-developed hips.

Consequently his sister-in-law was almost sitting on his knee. He felt
the warmth of her blood and her firm limbs through her thin cotton
skirt. They were pressed close to one another in the darkened room.
Drops of sweat gathered on their brows, and their breath came gaspingly
and with difficulty. But, as if by mutual consent, they did not move a
limb. They were hearing nothing but the voice of their blood, and in
the close contact they could distinctly feel the pulse-beats.

N