f your house; you have
permitted this rabble to eat at your table; you have yourself opposed
violent resistance, when attempts were made to take them prisoners; and
your son's affianced bride has insulted the Marshal in public company."

"My lord!" exclaimed the old man entirely beside himself; however, he
said composedly, "the web of these lies is too gross not to be
immediately recognized as falsehood. She, whom you designate as my
son's bride, will never be such with my consent, I know her not, and
cannot love her; my house was open to some unfortunate travellers, and
one of this party whom I protected, and who announced himself by the
name of the Hermit, had nearly drawn destruction upon myself and
family."

He then related to him the occurrences of that evening, precisely as he
had experienced them and concluded thus: "You now perceive, my Lord
Intendant, how falsely people have judged me in this."

"I believe you," said the grave-looking man, "but you have forgotten the
saying that walls have ears, it is known how you have spoken sometimes
of the Marshal and of his love-intrigues, which he certainly takes too
little trouble to conceal, in which injurious expressions you have gone
so far as to call him hangman. My severity and inflexibility, for
which I am responsible to my God and to my conscience, you call
blood-thirstiness. You cannot deny that you have sheltered suspected
persons with hospitality, that until now you did not live at variance
with your son; that you have refused to allow him to serve his country
although he is of age; if the Lady of Castelnau insults our Marshal in
the presence of your son, while he keeps silence, one must believe that
he has an understanding with her on that subject, and if this should be
the case, suspicion further concludes, that you must be quite
reconciled and of one mind; therefore, say the malicious, that you must
render assistance every way to the rebels privately as well as openly,
and that we shall be more reproached for neglect, if we suffer it, than
praised for our forbearance; and this admits of no doubt."

"I desire examination, the strictest examination," exclaimed the
Counsellor of Parliament. "You know," said the Intendant rising, "that
in this perilous confusion there is no time for it; umbrage and
suspicion serve as proofs, the most trifling circumstances, if they
cannot be refuted, condemn; the martial-law, which the king has caused
to be proclaimed to us,