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with his finger. There, among the branches of some junipers, appeared a white body, which passed along on the grass with the utmost tranquillity. John de Ganay loaded a pistol, adjusted it, and fired, but without result; for the animal was seen to bound off at once. The march, interrupted by this incident, was immediately resumed. At noon, the convicts reached a lake, and a halt was ordered. No human trace was remarked; and at the places visited by John de Ganay, the island was not only deserted, but destitute of everything necessary for the subsistence of our race. However, the sight of the lake reanimated his hope; the shores were found green; and their soil seemed suitable for culture. Desirous of pursuing his observations, the equerry lounged on the bank of the lake, while his companions rested themselves, or made war on the inhabitants of the water. He arrived thus at a grove of birch; having passed it, he suddenly found himself before a hut, coarsely constructed of branches. At the noise of his footstep, an individual, covered with skins, who had been squatting on the threshold, uttered a sharp cry, and plunged into the lake. John knew not what fear was; but a wise prudence counseled him not to venture any farther, suspecting that the beech grove might be haunted by a tribe of savages. He even determined not to make his discovery known to the bandits for the present, in order to avoid increasing their discontent. On rejoining them, he partook of a modest repast of fish, which they had prepared, and then brought them back to the camp of the previous evening, but little impressed in favor of what they had seen.

Already the two other troops had returned. Their report was unanimous; the island produced nothing but sand

The roll of the convicts was called; there was but one wanting-number 40. Guyonne!

CHAPTER IV.

BRISE-T OUT.

་་་་

JOHN DE GANAY alone felt some uneasiness for the absence of number 40. The rest of the band were naturally too selfish and too well used to the vicissitudes of fortune to care about her. Besides, the pretended Yvon, far from inspiring the affection of the bandits, had rather excited their jealousy, on account of the interest which the viscount did not cease to take in her welfare. In all places, in all positions, man sees with displeasure one of his equals more favored than himself; but it is epecially in the heart of the unfortunate that envy has established the seat of its empire. As to the equerry, two reasons caused him to regret the disappearance of Guyonne; first, the attachment which he felt towards the pretended young man; then the fear that her disappearance was to be attributed to the personage he had seen at the brink of the lake. However, he concealed his fears, and tried to seem gayer than usual,

in order to reassure the convicts. ed at the encampment had spent as comfortable tents as possible.

Those who had remainthe day in constructing The debris of a wrecked

ship had served them for this purpose; and when the explorers returned, those tents were in a state sufficiently advanced to inspire the hope that they would pass a better night than the first. Each of the departments had procured some edibles during their expedition, some ordinary fish, and others shell fish. The supper was prepared, and it was disposed of merrily; for before commencing his repast, Maleficieux made the remark, that the wind having veered to the southeast, it was to be presumed that the Castor would reappear next morning.

"If your prediction proves true, sailor," said Grosbec, "I swear to make you king—————of libertines."

"And I," said Nabot, "I demand that the very illus. trious Brise-tout be nominated pope of fools."

"Well done!" exclaimed the guests, who suspended their noisy mastication to give a mocking look at the hideous countenance of the colossus.

"Omelette!" said the latter, without losing a mouthful. "He will pay for it to me."

"In monkey coin!" retorted the dwarf, with a look of scorn at Brise-tout.

"Let you take care of yourself," said Grosbec; "when the elephant is tired playing with a cur he crushes him."

"Pshaw!" sneered the little man, "his character of my friend Brise-tout is too delicately conformed to his face.

There is no danger that he will take my sweets for absynth. Not the son of Venus the Ugly!"

"Satane diabolieu !" said Philip Francœur, tapping Nabot on the cheek with the handle of his knife.

"Yes, a devil, whom I'll reduce to the state of an angel," grumbled the colossus.

"Plague! the reduction will not be the more to be disdained. I, who have never been worth a farthing, shall not see myself metamorphosed without pleasure. Oh, what's the matter? A bucket of water! Master Polyhemus finds himself unwell. Quick, quick! Don't you see he puts out his tongue like one balancing on the gallows ?"

Nabot spoke truly. Brise-tout, whose anger could not restrain a frightful voracity, had just swallowed a fish-bone, and was making unheard-of efforts to deliver himself of the bone stuck in his throat. He gesticulated, became enraged, perspired, wept, frothed, but in vain. The bone, far from yielding to his attempts to expectorate, stuck deeper and deeper into the flesh.

I leave the reader to imagine how great was the hilarity of the spectators.

"A pair of pencils to aid our Hercules," said one.

"No, do not deprive him of the merit of accomplishing alone, and without assistance, this third labor," replied the ex-lancer.

"Sacramente!" added the German, "he is just going if you don't unbutton him.”

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