n myself, I
rushed to the horses' heads, calling on my comrades to help me. But the
postilion knocked me down and stunned me with a blow from his whip. When
I recovered my senses, the carriage was already far away."

"You were not hurt?" cried Dagobert, anxiously, as he examined his son
from top to toe.

"No, father; a mere scratch."

"What did you next, my boy?"

"I hastened to our good angel, Mdlle. de Cardoville, and told her all.
'You must follow M. Hardy on the instant,' said she to me. 'Take my
carriage and post-horses. Dupont will accompany you; follow M. Hardy from
stage to stage; should you succeed in overtaking him your presence and
your prayers may perhaps conquer the fatal influence that these priests
have acquired over him.'"

"It was the best advice she could give you. That excellent young lady is
always right."

"An hour after, we were upon our way, for we learned by the returned
postilions, that M. Hardy had taken the Orleans road. We followed him as
far as Etampes. There we heard that he had taken a cross-road, to reach a
solitary house in a valley about four leagues from the highway. They told
us that this house called the Val-de-St. Herem, belonged to certain
priests, and that, as the night was so dark, and the road so bad, we had
better sleep at the inn, and start early in the morning. We followed this
advice, and set out at dawn. In a quarter of an hour, we quitted the
high-road for a mountainous and desert track. We saw nothing but brown
rocks, and a few birch trees. As we advanced, the scene became wilder and
wilder. We might have fancied ourselves a hundred leagues from Paris. At
last we stopped in front of a large, old, black-looking house with only a
few small windows in it, and built at the foot of a high, rocky mountain.
In my whole life I have never seen anything so deserted and sad. We got
out of the carriage, and I rang the bell. A man opened the door. 'Did not
the Abbe d'Aigrigny arrive here last night with a gentleman?' said I to
this man, with a confidential air. 'Inform the gentleman directly, that I
come on business of importance, and that I must see him forthwith.'--The
man, believing me an accomplice, showed us in immediately; a moment
after, the Abbe d'Aigrigny opened the door, saw me, and drew back; yet,
in five minutes more, I was in presence of M. Hardy."

"Well!" said Dagobert, with interest.

Agricola shook his head sorrowfully, and replied: "I knew by the very
count