s secret; but the
latter, who would have been greatly perplexed to tell it, turned off M.
de Champignelles' adroit questioning with a Norman's shrewdness, till
the Marquis, as a gallant Frenchman, complimented his young visitor upon
his discretion.

M. de Champignelles hurried off at once to Courcelles, with that
eagerness to serve a pretty woman which belongs to his time of life.
In the Vicomtesse de Beauseant's position, such a message was likely to
arouse keen curiosity; so, although her memory supplied no reason at all
that could bring M. de Nueil to her house, she saw no objection to his
visit--after some prudent inquiries as to his family and condition. At
the same time, she began by a refusal. Then she discussed the propriety
of the matter with M. de Champignelles, directing her questions so as
to discover, if possible, whether he knew the motives for the visit, and
finally revoked her negative answer. The discussion and the discretion
shown perforce by the Marquis had piqued her curiosity.

M. de Champignelles had no mind to cut a ridiculous figure. He
said, with the air of a man who can keep another's counsel, that the
Vicomtesse must know the purpose of this visit perfectly well; while the
Vicomtesse, in all sincerity, had no notion what it could be. Mme. de
Beauseant, in perplexity, connected Gaston with people whom he had never
met, went astray after various wild conjectures, and asked herself if
she had seen this M. de Nueil before. In truth, no love-letter, however
sincere or skilfully indited, could have produced so much effect as this
riddle. Again and again Mme. de Beauseant puzzled over it.

When Gaston heard that he might call upon the Vicomtesse, his rapture at
so soon obtaining the ardently longed-for good fortune was mingled with
singular embarrassment. How was he to contrive a suitable sequel to this
stratagem?

"Bah! I shall see _her_," he said over and over again to himself as he
dressed. "See her, and that is everything!"

He fell to hoping that once across the threshold of Courcelles he should
find an expedient for unfastening this Gordian knot of his own tying.
There are believers in the omnipotence of necessity who never turn back;
the close presence of danger is an inspiration that calls out all their
powers for victory. Gaston de Nueil was one of these.

He took particular pains with his dress, imagining, as youth is apt to
imagine, that success or failure hangs on the position of a