d necessary and just. He thought that he had
serious reasons which the reader has already seen, and others which will
be seen later on, for getting rid of Jean Valjean without harshness, but
without weakness.

Chance having ordained that he should encounter, in a case which he had
argued, a former employee of the Laffitte establishment, he had acquired
mysterious information, without seeking it, which he had not been
able, it is true, to probe, out of respect for the secret which he had
promised to guard, and out of consideration for Jean Valjean's perilous
position. He believed at that moment that he had a grave duty to
perform: the restitution of the six hundred thousand francs to some
one whom he sought with all possible discretion. In the meanwhile, he
abstained from touching that money.

As for Cosette, she had not been initiated into any of these secrets;
but it would be harsh to condemn her also.

There existed between Marius and her an all-powerful magnetism, which
caused her to do, instinctively and almost mechanically, what Marius
wished. She was conscious of Marius' will in the direction of "Monsieur
Jean," she conformed to it. Her husband had not been obliged to say
anything to her; she yielded to the vague but clear pressure of his
tacit intentions, and obeyed blindly. Her obedience in this instance
consisted in not remembering what Marius forgot. She was not obliged to
make any effort to accomplish this. Without her knowing why herself, and
without his having any cause to accuse her of it, her soul had become
so wholly her husband's that that which was shrouded in gloom in Marius'
mind became overcast in hers.

Let us not go too far, however; in what concerns Jean Valjean, this
forgetfulness and obliteration were merely superficial. She was rather
heedless than forgetful. At bottom, she was sincerely attached to the
man whom she had so long called her father; but she loved her husband
still more dearly. This was what had somewhat disturbed the balance of
her heart, which leaned to one side only.

It sometimes happened that Cosette spoke of Jean Valjean and expressed
her surprise. Then Marius calmed her: "He is absent, I think. Did not
he say that he was setting out on a journey?"--"That is true," thought
Cosette. "He had a habit of disappearing in this fashion. But not for so
long." Two or three times she despatched Nicolette to inquire in the
Rue de l'Homme Arme whether M. Jean had returned from his