“If I could only insist on his sitting still and silent to hear me make my formidable speech, your advice might be very good.”

“That, my dear, is your own strong point:  if he attempts to interrupt you, hear what he says, and then begin again.  By the time you have got to your ‘real sentiments,’ I doubt not he will be in his tantrums:  but do you not get into tantrums too, or else you are as good as lost; let nothing tempt you to put in an unpremeditated word; one word might be fatal; but, above all, do not move; nothing but an awful degree of calm on your part will frighten him into quiescence:  if you once but move, you will find M. Denot at your feet, and your hand pressed to his lips.  You might as well have surrendered at once, if anything like that occur.”

“Well, Marie, let what will happen, at any rate I will not surrender, as you call it.  As to sitting like the district judge, and pronouncing sentence on my lover as you advise—­I fear I lack the nerve for it.”

Agatha was quite right in her forebodings.  Adolphe Denot had firmly made up his mind to learn his fate before he started for Saumur, and immediately on rising from breakfast, he whispered to Agatha that he wished to speak to her alone for a moment.  In her despair she proposed that he should wait till after mass, and Adolphe consented; but during the whole morning she felt how weak she had been in postponing the evil hour; she had a thousand last things to do for her brother, a thousand last words to say to him; but she was fit neither to do nor to say anything; even her prayers were disturbed; in spite of herself her thoughts clung to the interview which she had to go through.

Since the constitutional priests had been sent into the country, and the old Cures silenced, a little temporary chapel had been fitted up in the chateau at Durbelliere, and here the former parish priest officiated every Sunday; the peasants of the parish of St. Aubin were allowed to come to this little chapel; at first a few only had attended, but the number had increased by degrees, and at the time when the revolt commenced, the greater portion of the pastor’s old flock crowded into or round the chateau every Sunday; so that the Sabbath morning at Durbelliere was rather a noisy time.  This was especially the case on the 6th of June, as the people had so much to talk about, and most of the men wished to see either the old or the young master, and most of the women wanted to speak to one of the ladies; by degrees, however, the chateau was cleared, and Agatha with a trembling heart retreated to her own little sitting-room upstairs to keep her appointment with Adolphe Denot.

She had not been long there, when Adolphe knocked at the door:  he had been there scores of times before, and had never knocked; but, although he was going to propose to make Agatha his wife, he felt that he could no longer treat her, with his accustomed familiarity.

He entered the room and found Agatha seated; so far she had taken her friend’s advice; she was very pale, but still she looked calm and dignified, and was certainly much less confused than her lover.