softening, vibrating, living, and he cried out,--

"Stephanie! Stephanie! thou hearest me, thou seest me!"

But she listened to that cry as to a noise, the soughing of the wind
in the tree-tops, or the lowing of the cow on the back of which she
climbed. Then the colonel would wring his hands in despair,--despair
that was new each day.

One evening, under a calm sky, amid the silence and peace of that rural
haven, the doctor saw, from a distance, that the colonel was loading his
pistols. The old man felt then that the young man had ceased to hope;
he felt the blood rushing to his heart, and if he conquered the vertigo
that threatened him, it was because he would rather see his niece living
and mad than dead. He hastened up.

"What are you doing?" he said.

"That is for me," replied the colonel, pointing to a pistol already
loaded, which was lying on the bench; "and this is for her," he added,
as he forced the wad into the weapon he held.

The countess was lying on the ground beside him, playing with the balls.

"Then you do not know," said the doctor, coldly, concealing his terror,
"that in her sleep last night she called you: Philippe!"

"She called me!" cried the baron, dropping his pistol, which Stephanie
picked up. He took it from her hastily, caught up the one that was on
the bench, and rushed away.

"Poor darling!" said the doctor, happy in the success of his lie. He
pressed the poor creature to his breast, and continued speaking to
himself: "He would have killed thee, selfish man! because he suffers. He
does not love thee for thyself, my child! But we forgive, do we not? He
is mad, out of his senses, but thou art only senseless. No, God alone
should call thee to Him. We think thee unhappy, we pity thee because
thou canst not share our sorrows, fools that we are!--But," he said,
sitting down and taking her on his knee, "nothing troubles thee; thy
life is like that of a bird, of a fawn--"

As he spoke she darted upon a young blackbird which was hopping near
them, caught it with a little note of satisfaction, strangled it, looked
at it, dead in her hand, and flung it down at the foot of a tree without
a thought.

The next day, as soon as it was light, the colonel came down into the
gardens, and looked about for Stephanie,--he believed in the coming
happiness. Not finding her he whistled. When his darling came to him, he
took her on his arm; they walked together thus for the first time, and
he led her wit