The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1893-11-28
CHAPTER XVIII
RETRIBUTION.


it not for the question of the murder,
which still remained to be cleared up.
Their previous bad character, as Macaire
expected, caused suspicion to turn on
them, and il was decided that they should
be detained at Les Bons Amis till the
following day, in order to allow Of the
matter being further investigated. They
were accordingly placed in small loft
over the stable and guard of armed
men stationed at the door.
Clementine had been with difficulty
| restored to consciousness after the terri
BILE shock she had received q. the sight
| of her fathers body and knew nothing
| as yet of the scene which had taken place
in the sale or the strange discovery of
Charles parentage. He was now sitting
with her, endeavoring to soothe her grief.
while she little suspected that his own
was SO much more bitter. She had lost
father, it is true, and by terrible
death, but he had died respected and be-
| loved by all, while he--he had found a
| mother, il is true, but under what cir
cunstances? He did not for moment
| believe her guilty Of the terrible charge
brought against her. But unless it could
be positively disproved, how could he ask
| Clementineto become his wife while such
| stigma was on his mother'sname? Too
many people had heard what had passed
to allow of its remaining a secret.
The poor young mans thoughts were
very sad indeed as he sat holding his
| fiancee's hand.
Charles had begged so hard of Roger
| not to treat his mother with the same
| rigor as had been shown to Macaire and
| Strop, but to allow her to remain in tho
house; that the brigadier, who under his
| official crust was soft hearted enough,
| had consented to this arrangement,
| though, as he said, he was exceeding his
| duty and might get into trouble by it.
"Do not fear, sirl" said Marie. II
have no wish to go now that ! have
found my son. Besides" she added, II
am innocent of this crime, and God, who
knows it, will prove it."
Her first anxiety when she recovered
consciousness was whether in her sur
| prise she had disclosed the fact that
Macaire was her husband and Charles
| father, and it was great relief to her to
perceive that he had net the ieast sns-
] picion of such thing, nor had NJ. Du-
mont, who had no idea that she had
claim to any other name than that of
| Beaumont. He had heard the missing
woman whom he supposed to be tho
mother of the little waif spoken of by
that name, as among the country folks
| married women were as often called by
their maiden names as by their hus-
bands, and he concluded that tho
worthless fellow" tho "coquin" he lad
heard mentioned, bore the name of Ecar-
mont.
Macaire had had no time to speak, end
no one would have listened to him had no
attempted ito do so. And poor Marie
hoped that,she might be able to spare
her son such terrible blow as this
knowledgei would be. She determined,
however. to tell all to M. Dumont, who
she considered had right to know, and
who she felt sure would help her to keep
this great disgrace from falling on tho
boy he loved and had SO long treated as
his son.
Seated in the room where only few
hours before the joyous party had az
sembled to sign the wedding contract,
she told him all--all that we know al
ready of her early history mp to the time
when he found the child where she he'd
placed it. at the foot of the shrine. She
told him, too. her sad after history, fell
of misery and suffering. l
She had watched him take tho child
and had listened till the last echo Of his
horses hoofs had died away Then shc
had set out again and with much toll
and suffering had dragged herself back
to the house which she had left. Shn
had accomplished her object. The child
was saved from tho stigma of being born
In prison, the offspring of felon, and
her great desire now was that her friend
ly guardian should not suffer on her ac-
count. 1t would be ruin to him il it
were found that his laxness had led to
her escape. SO, at all costs, she must re-
turn. Once there, she cared not how
soon sho died. Death indeed would be
welcome deliverance from her misery.
But death does not always como to those
who long for il.
Her absence had been discovered, and
! mon had been sent in different directions
10 look Ior ner, tnOuSif inueeu INC ser-
gcan. himself was half sorry to see her
return. His wife did all she could for
the poor creature, who was in pitiable
condition, worn out with anguish both
Of soul and body. OF course her hostess
discovered what had happened, but
Mario refused TO give any account of
what had befal1on Ih5 infant To which
sho had given birth czccp. that is was
in place of salty. The worthy couple
decided to keep their own counsel on the
subject. An inquiry into tho matter
would only have brought on her the sus-
picion of having made away with her
infant. and things were bad enough for
her as 1t was--and they were sorry for
] her. pocr souiI - u