irly at an end.

"You do not often come here, I think," said Madame d'Espard, after the
usual conventional phrases about the _pleasure_ of their meeting had
passed.

"I never come," replied Madame de l'Estorade.

"And I am most assiduous," said Madame d'Espard.

Then, pretending to a sudden recollection, she added,--

"Ah! I forgot; you have a special interest, I think, on this occasion. A
friend of yours is to be _judged_, is he not?"

"Yes; Monsieur de Sallenauve has been to our house several times."

"How sad it is," said the marquise, "to see a man who, Monsieur de
Ronquerolles tells me, had the making of a hero in many ways, come down
to the level of the correctional police."

"His crime so far," said Madame de l'Estorade, dryly, "consists solely
in his absence."

"At any rate," continued the marquise, "he seems to be a man eaten up
by ambition. Before his parliamentary attempt, he made, as you doubtless
know, a matrimonial attempt upon the Lantys, which ended in the
beautiful heiress of that family, into whose good graces he had
insinuated himself, being sent to a convent."

Madame de l'Estorade was not much surprised at finding that this
history, which Sallenauve had told her as very secret, had reached the
knowledge of Madame d'Espard. The marquise was one of the best
informed women in Paris; her salon, as an old academician had said
mythologically, was the Temple of Fame.

"I think the sitting is about to begin," said Madame de l'Estorade;
fearing some blow from the claws of the marquise, she was eager to put
an end to the conversation.

The president had rung his bell, the deputies were taking their seats,
the curtain was about to rise. As a faithful narrator of the session we
desire our readers to attend, we think it safer and better in every
way to copy _verbatim_ the report of the debate as given in one of the
morning papers of the following day.

Chamber of Deputies.

In the chair, M. Cointet (vice-president).

(Sitting of May 28.)

At two o'clock the president takes his seat.

M. the Keeper of the Seals, M. the minister of the Interior, M.
the minister of Public Works, are on the ministerial bench.

The minutes of the last session are read, approved, and accepted.

The order of the day is the verification of the powers and the
admission of the deputy elected by the arrondissement of
Arcis-sur-Aube.

_The President_.--M. the reporter, from the Committee on the