sirous of respecting the feelings of his client; so, between the
hostility of one party and the backwardness of the other, he chose the
wise part of inaction.

"That is sufficient, Monsieur de Buxieres," replied he, "I will not
press the matter."

Thereupon he saluted his client, and went to rejoin the justice and the
clerk, and the three comrades wended their way to Auberive through the
woods, discussing the incidents of the breakfast, and the peculiarities
of the new proprietor.

"This de Buxieres," said M. Destourbet, "does not at all resemble his
deceased cousin Claude!"

"I can quite understand why the two families kept apart from each
other," observed the notary, jocosely.

"Poor 'chasserot'!" whined Seurrot the clerk, whom the wine had rendered
tender-hearted; "he will not have a penny. I pity him with all my
heart!"

As soon as the notary had departed, Julien came to the determination
of transforming into a study the hall where he had been conferring
with Maitre Arbillot, which was dignified with the title of "library,"
although it contained at the most but a few hundred odd volumes. The
hall was spacious, and lighted by two large windows opening on the
garden; the floor was of oak, and there was a great fireplace where the
largest logs used in a country in which the wood costs nothing could
find ample room to blaze and crackle. It took the young man several days
to make the necessary changes, and during that time he enjoyed a respite
from the petty annoyances worked by the steady hostility of Manette
Sejournant and her son. To the great indignation of the inhabitants of
the chateau, he packed off the massive billiard-table, on which Claude
de Buxieres had so often played in company with his chosen friends, to
the garret; after which the village carpenter was instructed to make the
bookshelves ready for the reception of Julien's own books, which were
soon to arrive by express. When he had got through with these labors, he
turned his attention to the documents placed in his hands by the notary,
endeavoring to find out by himself the nature of his revenues. He
thought this would be a very easy matter, but he soon found that it was
encumbered with inextricable difficulties.

A large part of the products of the domain consisted of lumber ready for
sale. Claude de Buxieres had been in the habit of superintending, either
personally or through his intermediate agents, one half of the annual
amount of lumber fe