sed to get him sent away from the
place; and he was packed off to a station in the mountains at Chateau
Queyras.

Though this banishment from Guillestre was intended as a punishment,
it only served to bring out the sterling qualities of the sergeant,
and to ensure his eventual reward. It so happened that the station at
Chateau Queyras commanded the approaches into an extensive range of
mountain pasturage. Although not required specially to attend to their
safety, our sergeant had nevertheless carefully noted the flocks and
herds as they went up the valleys in the spring. When winter
approached, they were all brought down again from the mountains for
safety.

The winter of that year set in early and severely. The sergeant,
making his observations on the flocks as they passed down the valley,
noted that one large flock of about three thousand sheep had not yet
made its appearance. The mountains were now covered with snow, and he
apprehended that the sheep and their shepherds had been storm-stayed.
Summoning to his assistance a body of men, he set out at their head in
search of the lost flock. After a long, laborious, and dangerous
journey--for the snow by this time lay deep in the hollows of the
hills--he succeeded in discovering the shepherds and the sheep, almost
reduced to their last gasp--the sheep, for want of food, actually
gnawing each other's tails. With great difficulty the whole were
extricated from their perilous position, and brought down the
mountains in safety.

No representation was made to head-quarters by the authorities of
Guillestre of the conduct of the Protestant sergeant in the matter;
but when the shepherds got down to Gap, they were so full of the
sergeant's praises, and of his bravery in rescuing them and their
flock from certain death, that a paragraph descriptive of the affair
was inserted in the local papers, and was eventually copied into the
Parisian journals. Then it was that an inquiry was made into his
conduct, and the result was so satisfactory that the sergeant was at
once decorated not only with the _medaille militaire_, but with the
_medaille de sauvetage_--a still higher honour; and, shortly after, he
was allowed to retire from the service on full pay. He then returned
to his home and family at Guillestre, where he now officiates as
_Regent_ of the Vaudois church, reading the prayers and conducting the
service in the absence of the stated minister.

* * *