“I assured her that I had never seen the youth before that morning, but that doubtless I could find out all about him.  I told her that I was acquainted with several officers of the law, and that there would be no difficulty in preventing him from giving her any further annoyance.  ’Oh, don’t do that!’ she said quickly.  ’I would not wish to attract attention to myself in that way.  You seem to be a kind and fatherly gentleman.  Can you not speak to the young man himself and tell him who I am, and impress upon his mind how much he is troubling me by his inconsiderate action?’

“As I did not wish to keep her standing in the street, we now walked on together, and she briefly gave me the facts of the case.

“Her name was Mme. de Sade:  she had been happily married for two years, and never before had she been annoyed by impertinent attentions from any one; but in some manner unaccountable to her this young student had been attracted by her, and had made her the object of his attention whenever he had had the opportunity.  Not only had he annoyed her at church, but twice he had followed her when she had left her house on business, thus showing that he had been loitering about in the vicinity.  She had not yet spoken to her husband in the matter, because she was afraid that some quarrel might arise.  But now that the good angels had caused her to meet with such a kind-hearted old gentleman as myself, she hoped that I might be able to rid her of the young man without making any trouble.  Surely this student, who seemed to be a respectable person, would not think of such a thing as fighting me.”

“Thee must have had a very long white beard at that time,” interpolated Mrs. Crowder.

“Yes,” said her husband; “I was in one of my periods of venerable age.

“I left Mme. de Sade, promising to do what I could for her, and as she thanked me I could not help wondering why the handsome young student had made her the object of his attention.  She was a well-shaped, fairly good-looking woman, with fair skin and large eyes; but she was of a grave and sober cast of countenance, and there was nothing about her which indicated the least of that piquancy which would be likely to attract the eyes of a youth.  She seemed to me to be exactly what she said she was—­the quiet and respectable lady of a quiet and respectable household.

“In the course of the afternoon I discovered the name and residence of the young man, with whom I had determined to have an interview.  His name was Francesco Petrarca, an Italian by birth, and now engaged in pursuing his studies in this place.  I called upon him at his lodgings, and, fortunately, found him at home.  As I had expected, he recognized me at once as the elderly person who had interfered with him at the church; but, as I did not expect, he greeted me politely, without the least show of resentment.

“I took the seat he offered me, and proceeded to deliver a lecture.  I laid before him the facts of the case, which I supposed he might not know, and urged him, for his own sake, as well as for that of the lady, to cease his annoying and, I did not hesitate to state, ungentlemanly pursuit of her.