London. I also wrote on the envelope: "Echantillons
de papier" (i. e., samples of paper), after which I threw it into the
postoffice.

As I wished to reduce the risk as much as possible (the train for
Marseilles not leaving for three hours), I took a carriage and told the
driver to take me toward the next station on the way to that city. After
we were fairly out in the country I got outside and sat with the driver,
chatting with him about the country we were driving through, arriving in
the village about half an hour before the train from Bordeaux was due. I
dismissed my driver at a small village cabaret (tavern), walked to the
station, got aboard the train, and early the next morning was in
Marseilles. I breakfasted at the Hotel d'Europe, and looked over the
papers to see if the Bordeaux fraud had been discovered. As I could see
no indication of it, about 10 a.m. I took a carriage and went to call on
Messrs. Brune & Co.

On making myself known I was, as usual, received with the utmost
courtesy, began to talk business, and one of the firm got into my
carriage and rode with me to his bank to effect the sale of my draft on
London for the sum of L2,500. Arriving at the bank I took a seat in the
front office, while Mr. Brune went into the manager's room to introduce
the transaction; the clerks eyed me, as I thought, suspiciously, but
doubtless only curiously, because they perceived I was a foreigner.
Another thing which I noticed sent a shiver through me. After Mr. Brune
had been a few minutes in the manager's room, the bank porter stepped to
the outer door, closed and locked it. It being but 12 o'clock, I
imagined the precautionary measure must be due to my presence. "The
Bordeaux affair is discovered and has been telegraphed all over France,"
was my first thought; "all is over with me. I am a candidate for a
French prison, sure."

These and a thousand other thoughts flashed through my mind during the
quarter of an hour preceding Mr. Brune's reappearance with his hands
full of bank notes. I could hardly believe my eyes. I had suppressed all
signs of the internal hurricane which raged during those prolonged
moments of suspense.

Now the revulsion of feeling was so great that I nearly fainted.
However, by a mental effort, I recovered my self-possession and
effectually masked all inward convulsions.

Mr. Brune placed in my hands 62,000 francs, in notes of the Bank of
France, and we then descended to the carriage and dr