M

FEW minutes after this hideous affair, our Father and Désiré arrived to the breakfast. I had retired weeping to my room,

and my mother and grand'mère had resolved not to mention what had occurred to our Messieurs, before they should have been fortified by the déjeuné.

'Where are the girls, Aurée and Cerise?' said my father, 'they are not too punctual.'

'Aurée is not very well,' replied mamma; 'and Cerise will come presently.'

'I hope she has not taken the small-pox, Aurée,' said my father.

'Oh no, it is nothing,' replied mamma; 'the weather is excessively warm.'

'It threatens rain,' said my father; 'that fierce

thunder-storm which broke over Rome, to signalize the signing of the decree of Pio Nono's infallibility, has apparently broken the weather everywhere; and now the rain comes to Paris.'

'I am glad of it,' said grand'mère, 'for the dust is intolerable; and Julie is become negligent.'

Julie sang' Mourir pour la patrie,' at this moment, as she swept down the stairs, preparing for the frotteur, who came once in the week to wax and polish them. I felt ready to choke her; singing in our house, and on such a morning!

As soon as my father and Désiré had breakfasted and smoked their cigars, mother told them as gently as possible what had occurred; and I suppose Henri Brunel was also by, for I heard his voice come in through the window of our room, in such tones of fierce anger, and such words of imprecation on the Government of our country, as I had not supposed him capable of: they are truly quite unfit for me to write down; he finished by observing, that—

'This fine empire must indeed be on its last legs, when it is so overpowered by the foolish words of a hot-brained woman, and the harmless chatter of a child. There is not a true man in France who can be expected to endure such slavery any

more.'

'But what is to be done now?' asked my father

quietly, 'for these invectives will not open the doors of the Conciergerie, Henri, my friend.'

'Perhaps they may aid more than you think, Monsieur Castel,' was the reply; 'do you suppose that Belleville will long submit to this? No, sir, I have friends there who can make short work of opening the doors of this vile, this maudit prison-house, whenever they please to do so.'

'Chut! You place your head in great danger by your hasty words,' said my father, pointing to the gate where some one waited for admittance, mamma having locked it on father's entrance.

Two men indeed stood there; but they were persons whom neither Henri nor any of our inmates need fear, although they wore tricoloured cockades pinned on to the sleeves of their blouses, and one carried a rifle over his shoulder. Grand'mère had opened the wicket to admit them; and her cry of surprise and joy drew me from the corner of my room, where I sat weeping; and drying my eyes, I descended to the Cour as quickly as I could. There stood our cousins, Blanchard and Emile. Conceive my joy! the very men who could help us now in our distress.

Good, loyal citizens, who had voted heartily for the empire at the late plebiscite; residents of Fon

tainebleau, who could not but be known to the Em

But how grave they both looked, especially Blanchard! And why did they wear these cockades on their shoulders?

The first few moments of their entrance were devoted to welcomes and rejoicings at their arrival, and congratulations to Blanchard, who scarcely responded with the politeness or alacrity which one might have expected from him.

'How was Marie? and where? Why did she not accompany her husband?'

He turned from us to conceal the tears which, in spite of him, would rush to his eyes. Emile stood gazing at me, in a pained, anxious manner; it was not much to wonder at, for my face was scarlet and my eyes swelled up with weeping.

'And Cerise?' asked he, eagerly, 'I do not see her; she is not ill, I hope, Aurée ?'

'No,' I said, again bursting into tears; 'she isis they have carried her to-to-the Conciergerie !'

'What!' exclaimed Emile, throwing off a knapsack from his shoulders, and seizing my hand, 'what is it that you say, my child-Cerise taken to prison! impossible!'

'How!' exclaimed Blanchard, forgetting his own grief for the moment. Cerise! but how is that?'

I could now only reply by leaning my head on Emile's shoulder, and sobbing as though my heart must break. Ah! what scenes has not our little court witnessed! what sorrow! what-but no matter; revenons à nos moutons. My father, who was more calm than any of us, then related to our cousins the sad events of the morning. They listened, indignation filling their faces.

'And it is for such a Government as this we have voted! and for such an ungrateful dynasty we are now compelled to fight!' said Blanchard, with passion.

'It could not have happened,' interposed Emile, 'if it were not that his Majesty is absent; it is some of his underlings who take upon themselves to act so; they abuse their power. It is this General Trochu.'

'Yes, yes!' I exclaimed, drying my eyes. Emile was a true friend of the empire as I was myself; and I felt obliged to him for this explanation of affairs. 'Yes, that is no doubt it, and as the Empress is still in Paris, I am going to her to implore of her to have my sister released at once. First, I go to the church to make my devotions; and then I shall go to the Tuileries, and you will come with me; is it not so, Emile?—you and mamma and I; we shall throw