THE CONVENTION.

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• Ninety-Three   STILL THE SUN RISES

  It was not long before day began to dawn on the horizon; and together with the day there sprang to light upon the plateau of the Tourgue, above the forest of Fougères, a strange, stationary, and wonderful object, unfamiliar to the birds of heaven.It had been placed there during the night,—set up rather than built. From a distance, against the horizon, it presented a profile composed of straight and rigid lines, resembling a Hebrew letter, or one of those Egyptian hieroglyphics which formed part of the alphabet of the ancient enigma.The first thought that entered the mind at the sight of this object was its uselessness. There it stood, among the blossoming heather. Then came the question, could it be used; and for what purpose? Then came a shudder. It was a sort of trestle-work, supported by four posts. At one end were two long upright beams, united at the top by a cross-beam, from which hung a triangle that looked black against the pale blue of the morning sky. At the other end of

• Ninety-Three   THE DUNGEON.

  Once more the hall of justice was changed into a guard-room; and as on the previous evening, the sentinels were doubled, two of whom guarded the door of the closed dungeon.Toward midnight, a man, bearing a lantern in his hand, crossed the guard-room, where he made himself known, and ordered the dungeon to be opened. It was Cimourdain. He entered, leaving the door half open behind him. The dungeon was dark and silent. Taking one step forward in the gloom, he placed the lantern on the ground and stood still. The even breathing of a sleeping man could be heard through the darkness. Cimourdain stood dreamily listening to this peaceful sound.On the truss of straw at the farther end of the dungeon lay Gauvain sound asleep. It was his breathing that he heard.Cimourdain moved as noiselessly as possible, and when he had drawn near, he fixed his eyes upon Gauvain; no mother gazing upon her sleeping infant could have worn a look more unutterably tender. The expression was probably beyond hi

• Ninety-Three   AFTER CIMOURDAIN THE JUDGE, CIMOURDAIN THE MASTER.

  A camp is a wasps nest, especially in time of revolution. The civic sting which exists in the soldier darts forth at a moments notice, and after driving out the enemy, will often turn without ceremony upon its own chief. The brave army which had taken the Tourgue was alive with conflicting rumors. When first the escape of Lantenac was discovered, it was all against Gauvain; but when the latter was seen coming out of the dungeon where they had supposed Lantenac to be imprisoned, it was like the transmission of an electric spark, and in less than a minute the whole army knew of it. A murmur broke forth from the little band; at first it ran: "They are getting ready to try Gauvain. But it is all a farce. He is a fool who trusts these ci-devants and calotins! We have just seen a Viscount save a Marquis, and presently we shall see a priest acquit a noble!"When the condemnation of Gauvain became known, there was a second murmur: "That is an outrage! Our chief, our brave chief, our young com

• Ninety-Three   THE VOTES.

  Gauvain rose."What is your name?" asked Cimourdain."Gauvain," was the reply.Cimourdain went on with the interrogatory:—"Who are you?""I am commander-in-chief of the expeditionary column of the Côtes-du-Nord.""Are you a kinsman or connection of the man who has escaped?""I am his great-nephew.""Are you acquainted with the decree of the Convention?""I see the placard on your table.""What have you to say in regard to this decree?""That I have countersigned it, and have ordered its execution; that it was I who had that placard written, to which my name is affixed.""Choose your defender.""I will defend myself.""You may speak."Cimourdain had become impassible. Only his impassibility was more like the calmness of a rock than that of a man.For a moment Gauvain remained silent and thoughtful.Cimourdain continued:—"What have you to say in your defence?"Gauvain slowly raised his head, and without looking at any one, replied:—"This: one thing has prevented me

• Ninety-Three   THE COURT-MARTIAL.

  Nearly all the court-martials of this period were arbitrary tribunals. In the Legislative Assembly, Dumas had drawn up a rough plan of military legislation, afterwards improved by Talbot in the Council of the Five Hundred, but the final code of councils of war was not drawn up until the time of the Empire. From that time also, be it mentioned by way of parenthesis, dates the law imposed on military tribunals in regard to the taking of votes, that of beginning with the lower grade. This law was not in existence during the Revolution.In 1793, the president of a military tribunal might almost be said to personify the tribunal itself; he elected the members, arranged the order of the ranks and regulated the method of voting; he was master as well as judge.Cimourdain had selected the identical room on the ground-floor where the retirade had been, and where the guard was now posted, for the judgment-hall of the court-martial. He was anxious to shorten everything,—the road from the prison

• Ninety-Three   THE ANCESTOR.

  A lamp stood on the flags of the dungeon, beside the square air-hole of the oubliette.There was also to be seen a jug of water, a loaf of army bread, and a truss of straw. As the dungeon was cut out of solid rock, any prisoner who conceived the idea of setting the straw on fire would have had his labor for his pains,—no risk of a conflagration for the prison, and certain suffocation for the prisoner.When the door turned on its hinges, the Marquis was walking up and down in his prison, with that mechanical pacing to and fro peculiar to caged wild animals.At the sound of the opening and closing door, he looked up, and the light from the lamp that stood on the floor between Gauvain and himself struck full upon the faces of both men.They looked at each other with such an expression that each stood there as if transfixed.The Marquis burst out laughing and exclaimed:"Good-evening, sir. Many years have passed since I have had the pleasure of meeting you. You honor me by your visit