one donkey. But the piggies
rebelled lustily in the bags, the ducks remonstrated against their
unquiet neighbours, and the donkey indignantly refused to stir a step
till the unseemly uproar was calmed. But the Bretonne was equal to the
occasion; for, after a pause of meditation, she solved the problem by
tying the bags round the necks of the pigs, so that they could enjoy the
prospect. This appeased them at once, and produced a general lull; for
when the pigs stopped squealing, the ducks stopped quacking, the donkey
ceased his bray, and the party moved on in dignified silence, with the
youthful pigs, one black, one white, serenely regarding life from their
bags.

Another time, a woman leading a newly-bought cow came through the
square, where the noise alarmed the beast so much that she became
unruly, and pranced in a most dangerous manner. Miss Livy hung out of
the window, breathless with interest, and ready to fly with brandy and
bandages at a minute's notice, for it seemed inevitable that the woman
would be tossed up among the lindens before the cow was conquered. The
few men who were lounging about stood with their hands in their pockets,
watching the struggle without offering to help, till the cow scooped the
lady up on her horns, ready for a toss. Livy shrieked, but Madame just
held on, kicking so vigorously that the cow was glad to set her down,
when, instead of fainting, she coolly informed the men, who, seeing her
danger, had approached, that she 'could arrange her cow for herself, and
did not want any help,' which she proved by tying a big blue
handkerchief over the animal's eyes, producing instant docility, and
then she was led away by her flushed but triumphant mistress, who calmly
settled her cap, and took a pinch of snuff to refresh herself, after a
scuffle which would have annihilated most women.

When Madame C.'s wood was put in, the new-comers were interested in
watching the job, for it was done in a truly Bretonesque manner. It
arrived in several odd carts, each drawn by four great horses, with two
men to each team; and as the carts were clumsy, the horses wild, and the
men stupid, the square presented a lively spectacle. At one time there
were three carts, twelve horses, and six men, all in a snarl, while a
dozen women stood at their doors and gave advice. One was washing a
lettuce, another dressing her baby, a third twirling her distaff, and a
fourth with her little bowl of soup, which she ate in pu