ith very sad reality the trouble that overshadowed
the Maid. She had gone to early mass in the Church of St. Jacques, and
communicated, as was her custom. It must have been near Easter--perhaps
the occasion of the first communion of some of the children who are
so often referred to, among whom she loved to worship. She had retired
behind a pillar on which she leaned as she stood, and a number of
people, among whom were many children, drew near after the service to
gaze at her. Jeanne's heart was full, and she had no one near to whom
she could open it and relieve her soul. As she stood against the pillar
her trouble burst forth. "Dear friends and children," she said, "I have
to tell you that I have been sold and betrayed, and will soon be given
up to death. I beg of you to pray for me; for soon I shall no longer
have any power to serve the King and the kingdom." These words were told
to the writer who records them, in the year 1498, by two very old men
who had heard them, being children at the time. The scene was one to
dwell in a child's recollection, and, if true, it throws a melancholy
light upon the thoughts that filled the mind of Jeanne, though her
actions may have seemed as energetic and her impulses as strong as in
her best days.

At last the news came speeding through the country that Compiegne was
being invested on all sides. It had been the headquarters of Charles
and had received him with acclamations, and therefore the alarm of the
townsfolk for the retribution awaiting them, should they fall into the
hands of the enemy, was great; it was besides a very important position.
Jeanne was at Crespy en Valois when this news reached her. She set out
immediately (May 22, 1430) to carry aid to the garrison: "_F'irai voir
mes bons amis de Compiegne_," she said. The words are on the base of
her statue which now stands in the Place of that town. Something of
her early impetuosity was in this impulse, and no apparent dread of
any fatality. She rode all night at the head of her party, and arrived
before the dawn, a May morning, the 23d, still a month from the fatal
"St. Jean." Though the prophecy was always in her ears, she must have
felt that whole month still before her, with a sensation of almost
greater safety because the dangerous moment was fixed. The town received
her with joy, and no doubt the satisfaction and relief which hailed her
and her reinforcements gave additional fervour to the Maid, and drove
out of her