‘What do you want, M. Urmand?’

’I want—­I want—­Never mind what I want.  It is from your father that I shall demand it, not from you.  I shall take care to see myself righted.  I know the French law as well as the Swiss.’

’If you’re talking of law, you had better go back to Basle and get a lawyer,’ said George.

There had been no word spoken of George returning to Colmar on that morning.  He had told his father that he had brought nothing with him but what he had on; and in truth when he left Colmar he had not looked forward to any welcome which would induce him to remain at Granpere.  But the course of things had been different from that which he had expected.  He was much too good a general to think of returning now, and he had friends in the house who knew how to supply him with what was most necessary to him.  Nobody had asked him to stay.  His father had not uttered a word of welcome.  But he did stay, and Michel would have been very much surprised indeed if he had heard that he had gone.  The man in the stable had ventured to suggest that the old mare would not be wanted to go over the mountain that day.  To this George assented, and made special request that the old mare might receive gentle treatment.

And so the day passed away.  Marie, who had recovered her health, was busy as usual about the house.  George and Urmand, though they did not associate, were rarely long out of each other’s sight; and neither the one nor the other found much opportunity for pressing his suit.  George probably felt that there was not much need to do so, and Urmand must have known that any pressing of his suit in the ordinary way would be of no avail.  The innkeeper tried to make work for himself about the place, had the carriages out and washed, inspected the horses, and gave orders as to the future slaughter of certain pigs.  Everybody about the house, nevertheless, down to the smallest boy attached to the inn, knew that the landlord’s mind was pre-occupied with the love affairs of those two men.  There was hardly an inhabitant of Granpere who did not understand what was going on; and, had it been the custom of the place to make bets on such matters, very long odds would have been wanted before any one would have backed Adrian Urmand.  And yet two days ago he was considered to be sure of the prize.  M. le Cure Gondin was a good deal at the hotel during the day, and perhaps he was the stanchest supporter of the Swiss aspirant.  He endeavoured to support Madame Voss, having that strong dislike to yield an inch in practice or in doctrine, which is indicative of his order.  He strove hard to make Madame Voss understand that if only she would be firm and cause her husband to be firm also, Marie would, of course, yield at last.  ’I have ever so many young women just in the same way,’ said the Cure, ’and you would have thought they were going to break their hearts; but as soon as ever they have been married, they have forgotten all that.’