science and literature had filled the heart and passed through
the strong head without corrupting either. At sixty years of age the
abbe's hair was white as snow, so keenly did he feel the sorrows of
others, and so heavily had the events of the Revolution weighed upon
him. Twice incarcerated for refusing to take the oath he had twice, as
he used to say, uttered in "In manus." He was of medium height,
neither stout nor thin. His face, much wrinkled and hollowed and quite
colorless, attracted immediate attention by the absolute tranquillity
expressed in its shape, and by the purity of its outline, which seemed
to be edged with light. The face of a chaste man has an unspeakable
radiance. Brown eyes with lively pupils brightened the irregular
features, which were surmounted by a broad forehead. His glance wielded
a power which came of a gentleness that was not devoid of strength. The
arches of his brow formed caverns shaded by huge gray eyebrows which
alarmed no one. As most of his teeth were gone his mouth had lost its
shape and his cheeks had fallen in; but this physical destruction was
not without charm; even the wrinkles, full of pleasantness, seemed to
smile on others. Without being gouty his feet were tender; and he walked
with so much difficulty that he wore shoes made of calf's skin all the
year round. He thought the fashion of trousers unsuitable for priests,
and he always appeared in stockings of coarse black yarn, knit by his
housekeeper, and cloth breeches. He never went out in his cassock, but
wore a brown overcoat, and still retained the three-cornered hat he had
worn so courageously in times of danger. This noble and beautiful old
man, whose face was glorified by the serenity of a soul above reproach,
will be found to have so great an influence upon the men and things of
this history, that it was proper to show the sources of his authority
and power.

Minoret took three newspapers,--one liberal, one ministerial, one
ultra,--a few periodicals, and certain scientific journals,
the accumulation of which swelled his library. The newspapers,
encyclopaedias, and books were an attraction to a retired captain of the
Royal-Swedish regiment, named Monsieur de Jordy, a Voltairean nobleman
and an old bachelor, who lived on sixteen hundred francs of pension and
annuity combined. Having read the gazettes for several days, by favor
of the abbe, Monsieur de Jordy thought it proper to call and thank
the doctor in person. At t