“Seurrot, my friend,” replied the justice, calmly, “you are too experienced not to know that our country folks dread nothing so much as testifying to their last wishes—­to make a will, to them, is to put one foot into the grave.  They will not call in the priest or the notary until the very last moment, and very often they delay until it is too late.  Now, as the deceased was at heart a rustic, I fear greatly that he did not carry his intentions into execution.”

“That would be a pity—­for the chateau, the lands, and the entire fortune would go to an heir of whom Monsieur Odouart never had taken account—­to one of the younger branch of Buxieres, whom he had never seen, having quarrelled with the family.”

“A cousin, I believe,” said the justice.

“Yes, a Monsieur Julien de Buxieres, who is employed by the Government at Nancy.”

“In fact, then, and until we receive more ample information, he is, for us, the sole legitimate heir.  Has he been notified?”

“Yes, Monsieur.  He has even sent his power of attorney to Monsieur Arbillot’s clerk.”

“So much the better,” said M. Destourbet, “in that case, we can proceed regularly without delay.”

While thus conversing, they had traversed the forest, and emerged on the hill overlooking Vivey.  From the border line where they stood, they could discover, between the half-denuded branches of the line of aspens, the sinuous, deepset gorge, in which the Aubette wound its tortuous way, at the extremity of which the village lay embanked against an almost upright wall of thicket and pointed rocks.  On the west this narrow defile was closed by a mill, standing like a sentinel on guard, in its uniform of solid gray; on each side of the river a verdant line of meadow led the eye gradually toward the clump of ancient and lofty ash-trees, behind which rose the.  Buxieres domicile.  This magnificent grove of trees, and a monumental fence of cast-iron, were the only excuse for giving the title of chateau to a very commonplace structure, of which the main body presented bare, whitewashed walls, flanked by two small towers on turrets shaped like extinguishers, and otherwise resembling very ordinary pigeon-houses.

This chateau, or rather country squire’s residence, had belonged to the Odouart de Buxieres for more than two centuries.  Before the Revolution, Christophe de Buxieres, grandfather of the last proprietor, had owned a large portion of Vivey, besides several forges in operation on the Aube and Aubette rivers.  He had had three children:  one daughter, who had embraced religion as a vocation; Claude Antoine, the elder son, to whom he left his entire fortune, and Julien Abdon, the younger, officer in the regiment of Rohan Soubise, with whom he was not on good terms.  After emigrating and serving in Conde’s army, the younger Buxieres had returned to France during the Restoration, had married, and been appointed special receiver in a small town in southern France.  But since his return, he had not resumed relations with his elder brother, whom he accused of having defrauded him of his rights.  The older one had married also, one of the Rochetaillee family; he had had but one son, Claude Odouart de Buxieres, whose recent decease had brought about the visit of the Justice of Auberive and his clerk.