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The character of Laurence de Cinq-Cygne, a girl of the Flora MacDonald type, and the characters also of the two cousins de Simeuse, who both loved her and conspired with her, and whose pardon she gained only to lose these faithful knights dying on a field of battle, are drawn with great power and naturalness.
The agents left nothing for Laurence but the chateau, the park and gardens, and one farm called that of Cinq-Cygne. Malin instructed the appraisers that Laurence had no rights beyond her legal share, the nation taking possession of all that belonged to her brother, who had emigrated and, above all, had borne arms against the Republic.
Louis XVIII. did not neglect to repair, as far as possible, the wrongs done by that affair; but he was silent as to the causes of the disaster. From that time forth the Marquise de Cinq-Cygne believed him to have been an accomplice in the catastrophe.
"Of what are they accused?" asked Mademoiselle de Cinq-Cygne, haughtily. "Don't you mean to arrest Mademoiselle?" said Giguet. "I shall leave her at liberty under bail, until I can carefully examine the charges against her," replied the director. The mayor offered bail, asking the countess to merely give her word of honor that she would not escape.
The day after the arrest all the inhabitants of the chateau of Cinq-Cygne, both masters and servants, were summoned to appear before the prosecuting jury. Cinq-Cygne was left in charge of a farmer, under the supervision of the abbe and his sister who moved into it.
He evidently flattered himself that he should find support at Cinq-Cygne for his electioneering intrigue; which is so far from being the case that Duc Georges de Maufrigneuse, to whom, as a Jockey Club comrade, he told all his projects, gave us the information about them which I have now given to you, and which, if you will be so kind, I should like you to make over to Monsieur de l'Estorade.
Violette at once informed Grevin of his meeting with Laurence and the sudden flight of the daring girl, whose strong and decided character was known to all of them. "She was keeping watch," said Violette. "Is it possible that those Cinq-Cygne people have done this thing?" cried Grevin. "Do you mean to say you didn't recognize that stout Michu?" exclaimed Violette.
The old man congratulated himself on the sagacity of his foresight in having put all his savings, amounting to twenty thousand francs, together with those of his ward, in the public Funds before the 18th Brumaire, which, as we all know, sent those stocks up from twelve to eighteen francs. The chateau of Cinq-Cygne had long been empty and denuded of furniture.
Without intelligence, but loyal, miserly as a peasant yet noble in demeanor, bold in his wishes but discreet in word and action, turning all things to profit, willing even to be made mayor of Cinq-Cygne, Monsieur d'Hauteserre was an admirable representative of those honorable gentlemen on whose brow God Himself has written the word mites, Frenchmen who burrowed in their country homes and let the storms of the Revolution pass above their heads; who came once more to the surface under the Restoration, rich with their hidden savings, proud of their discreet attachment to the monarchy, and who, after 1830, recovered their estates.
"Therefore, no quarter, I say; for, on reflection, we shall find that our relative had pondered well what he told us Gondreville to be the title of a Malin!" "And his seat!" said the younger. "Mansart designed it for noble stock, and the populace will get their children in it!" exclaimed the elder. "If that were to come to pass, I'd rather see Gondreville in ashes!" cried Mademoiselle Cinq-Cygne.
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