The Chevalier De Maison Rouge (44 page)

leuse, instead of to the mistress of Puits-de-Noe I"

" Well, then, it is settled."

" To-morrow, at the cabaret."

" At what hour ? "

" At six in the evening."

" Flee quickly ; there they are. I tell you to be quick, because, I presume, you descend and go through the

archeri."

" To-morrow,'" repeated Theodore, hastening away.

And not before it was time, for the voices and steps

approached, and lights were already visible in the obscurity of the underground passage. Theodore gained the gate

indicated by the owner of the hut, then opened the lock

with his crowbar, reached the window, threw it open,

dropped softly into the street and found himself upon the

'pavement of the Republic once again. Before quitting

the Salle dos Pas-Perdus he heard the Citizen Gracchus

again question Richard, and also his reply.

" The citizen architect was quite right, the passage

passes below the chamber of the Widow Capet, and it was

dangerous."

"I believe it/' said Gracchus ; and in this instance he told the entire truth.

Ilenriot reappeared at the opening of the staircase.

"And the workmen, Citizen Architect?" demanded

he of Giraud.

894 THE CHEVALIER DE MAISON ROUGE.

" Before daybreak they will be here, the supporters

fixed, and the gate hung," replied a voice which seemed to proceed from the bowels of the earth.

" And you will have saved the country," said Henriot, half in jest, half in earnest.

" You little know the truth of what you say, Citizen

General," murmured Gracchus.

CHAPTER XXXVIII.

THE ROYAL CHILD.

IN the meantime, as we have seen in the chapter pre-

ceding, the queen's trial was about to take place. It was

already surmised that by the sacrifice of this illustrious

head, the popular hatred, so long since displayed in mur-

murs, would at length be satisfied. The means were not

wanting for the completion of this tragedy, and in the

meantime, Fouquier Tinville, that fatal accuser, had re-

solved not to neglect the new mode of accusation which

Simon had promised to place in his hands. The day after

he and Simon had met in the Salle des Pas-Perdns, the

noise of arms still continued to startle the prisoners who

remained in the Temple. These prisoners were Mme.

Elizabeth, Mme. Royale, and the child, who, after having

been called " Your majesty " from his cradle, was now styled the "little Capet." General Henriot, with his tricolored plume, his splendid horse, and large sword, fol-

lowed by several of the National Guard, dismounted, and

entered the dungeon where the royal child languished.

By the general's side walked a registrar of a very unpre-

possessing appearance, carrying a writing-desk, a large

roll of paper, and waving in his band a pen of immoderate

length. Behind the scribe walked the public accuser.

We have seen, we know, and shall find that, at a still

later period, this dry, jaundiced, cold man, with bis

bloodshot eyes, made tremble before him the ferocious

ITenriot, even when cased in his armor. Several Xational

Guards and a lieutenant followed them. Simon, smiling

THE CHEVALIER DE MAISON ROUGE. 295

hypocritically, and holding his bonnet in one hand, and

his shoemaker's stirrup in the other, walked before to

show them the way. They arrived at a very dirty cham-

ber, spacious and cold, at the end of which, seated upon

his bed, was the young Louis, in a state of immobility.

When we have seen the poor child fleeing from the brutal

anger of Simon, he still retained a species of vitality, resenting the unworthy treatment of the shoemaker of the

Temple ; he fled, he wept, he prayed ; then he feared and

suffered, but still he hoped. But now both fear and hope

had vanished ; without doubt the suffering still existed,

but if it still remained, the infant martyr, whom they had

made pay after so cruel a fashion for his parents' faults,

buried it in the depths of his heart, and veiled it under

an appearance of total insensibility, and did not even raise bis head when the commissioners walked up to him.

Without further ceremony they instantly installed them-

selves. The public accuser seated himself at the head of

the bed, Simon at the foot, the registrar near the window,

the National Guard and their lieutenant on the side, and

rather in the shade. Those among them who regarded

the little prisoner with the slightest interest, or even

curiosity, remarked the child's pallor, his extraordinary

embonpoint, resulting from his bloated appearance and

the curvature of his legs, of which the joints began

already to swell.

" The child is very ill," said the lieutenant, with an assurance that caused Fouquier to turn round, though

already seated, and prepared to question his victim.

The little Capet raised his eyes to discover who had

uttered these words, and recognized the same young man

who had already once before saved him from Simon's

cruelty in the court of the temple. A sweet and intel-

ligent glance shot from his deep blue eye, and that was

all

"Ah, ah! is that you, Citizen Louis?" said Simon, thus calling the attention of Fouquier Tinville to the friend of Maurice.

" Myself, Citizen Simon," said Louis, with his usual 296 THE CHEVALIER DE MAISON ROUGE.

nonchalance. And as Louis, though always ready to face

danger, was not a man uselessly to seek it, he availed

himself of this circumstance to bow to Fouquier Tinville,

which salutation was politely returned.

" You observed, I think, citizen," said the public accuser, " that the child was ill ; are you a doctor ? "

" I have studied medicine, at least, if I am not a medical man."

" Well, and what do you discover in him ?"

" What symptoms do you mean ? " said Louis.

"Yes."

" I find the cheeks and eyes puffed up, the hands thin and white, the knees swollen ; and were I to feel his pulse, I should certainly count eighty or ninety pulsations in a

minute."

The child appeared insensible to the enumeration of his

sufferings.

" And to what does science attribute the condition of

the prisoner ? "

Louis rubbed the tip of his nose, murmuring :

" Phyllis wants to make me speak,

I am not the least inclined.

Ma fon citizen," replied he, "lam not sufficiently acquainted with the little Capet's constitution to reply.

However "

Simon lent an attentive ear, and laughed in his sleeve

to find his enemy so near committing himself.

" However," said Louis, " I think he does not have sufficient exercise."

" I believe the little scoundrel," said Simon, " does not choose to walk."

The child remained quite unmoved by this apostrophe

of the shoemaker. Fouquier Tinville arose, advanced to

Louis, and addressed some words to him in alow tone.

No one heard the 'words, but it was evident they assumed

the form of interrogatories.

" Oh, oh ! do you believe that, citizen ? It is a serious charge for a mother "

THE CHEVALIER DE MAISON ROUGE, 297

" Under any circumstances, we shall find out. Simon

pretends he has heard him say so, and has engaged to

make him acknowledge it.

" This would be frightful," said Louis ; " but indeed it is possible ; the Austrian is not exempt from sin, and,

right or wrong, does not concern me ; they have made

her out a Messalina, but, not content with that, they wish

to make her an Agrippina. I must acknowledge it

appears to me rather hard."

"That is what has been reported by Simon," said the impassible Fouquier.

"I do not doubt that Simon has said all this. There

are some men who stick at nothing, even the most impos-

sible accusations. But do you not find," said Louis, fixing his eyes steadily on Fouquier, "do you not find you, an intelligent and upright man, possessed with a strong mind

that to inquire of a child concerning such circumstances

as these which all the most natural and most sacred laws

of nature command us to respect, is to insult the whole

human nature in the person of a child ? "

The accuser did not frown, but took a note from his

pocket and showed it to Louis.

" The Convention enjoins me to inform," said he ; " the rest does not concern me. I inform."

" It is just," said Louis ; " and I declare that if this child acknowledges "

And the young man shook his head, expressive of dis-

gust,

" Besides," continued Fouquier, " it is not only upon the denunciation of Simon that we proceed ; the accusation is public."

And Fouquier drew a second paper from his pocket.

This was a number of a work entitled, " Le Pore

Duchesne," which, as it is well known, was written by

Hebert. The accusation indeed appeared there in

full.

" It is written and even printed," said Louis, " but till I hear a similar declaration proved from the lips of the

child mind, I mean voluntarily, freely, and without

298 THE CHEVALIER DE MAISON ROUGE.

menaces, notwithstanding Simon and Hebert, I shall dis-

believe it, much as you in reality do yourself."

Simon impatiently awaited the issue of this conversa-

tion.

The miserable creature was not aware of the power ex-

ercised upon an intelligent man, the looks which he re-

ceives from the crowd, expressive either of sympathy or

subtle hatred. But Fouquier Tinville had felt the keen

observance of Louis, and was anxious to be fully under-

stood by him.

" The examination is now about to commence/' said

the public accuser. " Eegistrar, resume your pen."

This individual, who came to draw out the proces-verbal,

was waiting, like Henriot, Simon, and all the rest, till the colloquy between Fouquier and Louis had ceased. The

child alone appeared perfectly a stranger to the scene in

which he was soon to become the principal actor, and had

withdrawn the look which for an instant had gleamed

with such bright intelligence.

" Silence," said Henriot, " the Citizen Fouquier is going to interrogate the child."

" Capet," said the public accuser, " do yon know what has become of your mother ? "

The little Louis turned from an ashy paleness to a

brilliant red, but made no reply.

" Did you hear me, Capet ? "

He still remained silent.

" Oh 1 he hears well enough," said Simon, " only he is like the ape, he will not reply for fear he should be taken for a man, and so made to work."

" Really, Capet," said Henriot, " it is the commission from the Convention that interrogates you. You must

show obedience to its laws."

The child turned pale, but did not reply. Simon made

a frantic gesture of rage. With natures so stupid and

brutal as his, anger becomes madness, more especially

when accompanied by symptoms of drunkenness.

"Will you reply, you wolf's cub ?" showing him the strap.

THE CHEVALIER DE MAISON ROUGE. 299

" Be quiet, Simon, "said Fouquier Tinville ; " you have not the parole."

This word, which had taken its rise from the Revolu-

tionary Tribunal, had escaped him.

"Do you hear, Simon ?" said Louis. "This is the second time you have been told this in my presence ; the

first was when you accused Tison's daughter, whom you

had the pleasure of bringing to the scaffold."

Simon was silent.

"Does your mother love you, Capet?" asked Fou-

quier.

Still the same silence.

" They say not," continued the accuser.

Something like a ghastly smile passed over the child's

pale lips.

" But then, I say," roared Simon, " he has told me she loves him too much."

" Look here, Simon," said Louis, " you are angry that the little Capet chatters so much when you are together,

and remains silent before company to-day."

" Oh ! if we were together/' said Simon.

"Yes, if you were alone; but, unfortunately, you are

not alone. Oh ! if you were, brave Simon, excellent

patriot, how you would belabor the poor child, hey ? But

you are not alone, and dare not show your rage before

honest men like us, who know that the ancients, whom

we endeavor to take for our models, respected all who were

weak. You dare not, for you are not valiant, my worthy

man, when you have children of five feet six inches to

combat with."

" Oh ! " muttered Simon, grinding his teeth.

" Capet," said Fouquier, "have you confided any secrets to Simon ? "

The child never turned round, but his face assumed an

expression of irony impossible to describe.

" About your mother ? " continued Fouquier.

A look of supreme contempt passed over his counte-

nance.

" Keply, yes or no," cried Heuriot.

300 r HE CHEVALIER DE MAISON ROUGE.

" Say yes/' roared Simon, holding his leather stirrnp

over the child's head.

The child shuddered, but made no movement to avoid

the blow. Those present uttered a cry expressive of their

disgust. Louis did more. Before the wretch could lower

his arm he darted forward and seized him by the wrist.

"Will you let me go?" roared Simon, purple with

rage.

" There is no harm," said Fouquier, " in a mother loving her child. Tell us in what way your mother loved