of Deputies, representing Marseilles, and was wedded to his
first love, Mercedes, who had mysteriously reappeared and nursed him
through a severe illness, which was immediately followed by their
marriage. The revolution of 1848, which had placed M. Lamartine at the
head of the Provisional Government, had put power and office within his
grasp, but he had declined both, preferring to work in the wider field
of universal human freedom. His eminent services during the revolution
had rendered him immensely popular with the masses, and the fame of his
matchless eloquence added to the vast influence he so modestly wielded.
His colossal wealth, which he lavishly used to promote the great cause
he championed, also tended to make him a conspicuous figure in the
political and high social circles of the capital, though he strove to
court retirement.

Zuleika and Esperance fairly adored their mild, kindly stepmother, who,
on her side, was as devotedly attached to them as if they had been her
own children. The Count noted this mutual attachment, which time only
served to strengthen, and it filled his heart with joy and
gratification. The family was, indeed, a happy one, and even the
servants shared the general felicity.

Mlle. d' Armilly's influence over Captain Joliette great as it
undoubtedly was, had been insufficient to induce that gallant and
honorable young soldier to seek a rupture with the wonderful man to whom
he was so vastly indebted and whom he so highly revered. This had at
first caused a coldness between the revengeful prima donna and her
admirer, but a reconciliation had ultimately taken place between them
and they were now man and wife. Prior to their marriage Mlle. d' Armilly
had acknowledged herself to be Eugenie Danglars, and thus the motive of
her bitter hostility to the Count of Monte-Cristo was revealed. She had
retired from the operatic stage, and had received a large sum of money,
stated to be a legacy from her father, but generally believed to be a
gift from the Count, intended by him in some degree to make amends to
her for the sufferings she had endured by reason of his vengeance on the
banker Danglars. The prima donna's brother Leon had turned out to be a
woman masquerading in male attire, no other than Mlle. d' Armilly
herself, Eugenie's former music-teacher, who had loaned her name to her
friend when the latter started on her operatic career. These
transformations had been immediately followed by anoth