Carried away by my feelings, I seized her two hands, and said, “Now listen, Marguerite.  I love you, it is true.  Never did man love more devotedly, yes, and more disinterestedly, than I do.  But I swear that if I get out of this place alive I will never marry you until you are as poor as I am, or I as rich as you are.  If you love me, as I think you do, fall on your knees and pray, for unless a miracle happens you will never see me again alive.”

But a miracle did happen.  I threw myself out of the window, and fell upon a branch of an oak-tree.  It bent beneath my weight, and then broke; but it came so near the earth before breaking that if my left arm had not struck against the masonry I should have escaped uninjured.  As it was, my arm was smashed, and I swooned away with the pain.  When I came to, Marguerite was leaning out of the window, calling, “Maxime, speak to me!  For the love of heaven, speak to me, and say you pardon me!”

I arose, saying, “I am not hurt.  If you will only wait another hour, I will go home and get some one to let you out.  Believe me, I will save your honour as I have saved my own.”

Binding up my arm, I got on my horse, and galloped back to Laroque Castle.  On the way I met Bevallan.

“Have you seen Mlle. Marguerite?” he said.  “We are afraid she has got lost.”

“I met her this afternoon,” I replied.  “She told me she was going for a ride to Elven Castle.”

He rode off in the direction from which I had come, and when I returned from the doctor with my broken arm set and bandaged, Marguerite and Bevallan entered.

Hearing that I had had an accident, Madame Laroque came up late to-night to see me.  Old Laroque has had a stroke of paralysis, she tells me, and she wishes to get the marriage contract between her daughter and Bevallan signed to-morrow.  Laubepin is bringing the document.

IV.—–­A Test Case

I don’t know why I take the trouble to go on with this diary, but having begun it I may as well finish it.  Laubepin wanted me to go into the drawing-room to witness the signing of the marriage contract, but happily I was too ill to leave my bed; not only was my arm very painful, but I was suffering from the shock of the fall.  What an hour of misery I passed before Mlle. de Porhoet-Gael appeared with the news of what had happened!  Her sweet, kind old eyes were bright with joy.

“It is all over,” she said.  “Bevallan has gone, and young Helouin has also been turned out of the house.”

I started up with surprise.

“Yes,” she continued, with a smile, “the contract has not been signed.  Our friend Laubepin drew it up in such a way that the husband was not able to touch a penny of the wife’s money.  M. Bevallan objected to this; while he and his lawyer were arguing the matter with Laubepin, Marguerite rose up.

“‘Throw the contract in the fire,’ she said, ’and, mother, give this gentleman back the presents he sent to me.’