zing Juliette by the
arm; 'when one digs another's grave he must fill it himself.'

"'That is what is gained by telling falsehoods,' said the other
officer. 'It is true that no thread is so fine that it cannot be seen
in the sunshine.'

"'It was a pretty dress which the young Countess gave to Mary,' said
the cook in her turn, 'that made Juliette angry. In her rage, and not
knowing well what she was about, she began to tell lies, and then it
was impossible to retract without acknowledging her guilt. The proverb
is true which says that, once the devil has us by the hair, he will
hold fast to us afterwards.'

"'It is well, it is well,' said the coachman, who had just finished
cutting the tree, and who still had the axe over his shoulder. 'Let us
hope she will mend her ways, if she does not wish to be worse off in
the next world. The tree that bears not good fruit,' said he, shaking
his axe, 'shall be cut down, and cast into the fire.'

"The news of the finding of the ring spread through Eichbourg in a very
short time, and every one ran to the place, so that in a little while a
great crowd had gathered. The judge who condemned you came also, and
every witness of the discovery was as eager as possible to tell him all
about it.

"You cannot imagine, my dear Mary," the Countess proceeded, "the effect
that the story produced on the good man. Notwithstanding his severity
respecting you, he is a man of great probity, and one who has all his
life tried to administer justice with strict fidelity.

"'I would give half of my goods,' said he, in a tone that went to the
heart of every one who heard him--'yes, I would willingly have given
everything I possess if this misfortune had not happened. To have
condemned innocence is a frightful thought.' Then, looking round him at
the people, he said, in a solemn voice, 'God is the only infallible
judge, the only one that cannot be deceived. He knows everything. He
alone knew the hiding-place in which the ring had remained until now.
The judges of the earth are near-sighted and prone to be deceived. It
is rare here below that innocence suffers and vice triumphs. The
invisible Judge, who will recompense one day all good actions and
punish all bad ones, has decreed that even here innocence shall not
always suffer from suspicion, nor hidden crime remain always
concealed.'"

While Amelia had been relating this interesting narrative, Mary had
been lifting up her heart in silent thanksgivin