"And which he had stolen?"
"I think so, brother,--out of a barge."
"So then, Francois, you lie?" said Martial.
The boy bent down his head, but made no reply.
"Give me this handkerchief, Amandine; and yours, too, Francois."
The little girl took off her head-dress, gave a last look at the large bow, which was not untied, and gave the handkerchief to Martial, repressing a sigh of regret. Francois drew his slowly out of his pocket, and then gave it to his brother, as his sister had done.
"To-morrow morning," he said, "I will return these handkerchiefs to Nicholas. You ought not to have taken them, children. To profit by a robbery is as if one robbed oneself."
"It is a pity those handkerchiefs were so pretty!" said Francois.
"When you have learned a trade, and earn money by your work, you will buy some as good. Go to bed, my dears,--it is very late."
"You are not angry, brother?" said Amandine, timidly.
"No, no, my love, it is not your fault. You live with ill-disposed persons, and you do as they do unconsciously. When you are with honest persons, you will do as they do; and you"ll soon be with such, or the devil"s in it. So now, good night!"
"Good night, brother!"
Martial kissed the children. They were now alone.
"What"s the matter with you, Francois,--you seem very sorrowful!" said Amandine.
"Why, brother has taken my nice handkerchief; and besides, didn"t you hear what he said?"
"What?"
"He means to take us with him, and put us apprentice."
"And ain"t you glad?"
"_Ma foi_, no!"
"Would you rather stay here and be beaten every day?"
"Why, if I am beaten I am not made to work. I am all day in the boat, fishing, or playing, or waiting on the customers, who sometimes give me something, as the stout lame man did. It is much more amusing than to be from morning till night shut up in a workshop working like a dog."
"But didn"t you understand? Why, brother said that if we remained here longer we should become evil-disposed."
"Ah! bah! That"s all one to me, since the other children call us already little thieves,--little guillotines! And then to work is too tiresome!"
"But here they are always beating us, brother!"
"They beat us because we listen to Martial more than to any one else."
"Oh, he is so kind to us!"
"Yes, he is kind,--very kind,--I don"t say he ain"t; and I am very fond of him. No one dares to be unkind to us when he is by. He takes us out with him,--that"s true; but that"s all; he never gives us anything."
"Why, he has nothing. What he gains he gives our mother to pay for his eating, drinking, and lodging."
"Nicholas has something. You may be sure if we attend to what he and mother say, they would not make our lives so uncomfortable, but give us pretty things, as they did to-day. They would not distrust us, and we should have money like Tortillard."
"But we must steal for that; and how that would grieve dear, good Martial!"
"Well, so much the worse!"
"Oh, Francois! And then we should be taken up and put into prison."
"To be in a prison or shut up in a workshop all day is the same thing.
Besides, the Gros-Boiteux says they amuse themselves very much in prison."
"But how sorry Martial would be; only think of that! And then it is on our account that he returned here, and remains with us! For himself only he would not have any difficulty, but could go again and be a poacher in the woods which he is so very fond of."
"Oh, if he"ll take us with him into the woods," said Francois, "that would be better than anything else. I should be with him I am so fond of, and should not work at any business that would tire me."
The conversation of Francois and Amandine was interrupted. Some one outside double-locked their door.
"They have fastened us in," said Francois.
"Oh, what can it be for, brother? What are they going to do to us?"
"It is Martial, perhaps."
"Listen, listen,--how his dog barks!" said Amandine, listening.
After a few minutes, Francois added:
"It sounds as if some one were knocking at his door with a hammer.
Perhaps they want to force it open!"
"Yes; but how the dog barks still!"
"Listen, Francois! It is as if they were nailing something. Oh, dear, oh, dear, how frightened I am! What are they doing to our brother? And how the dog howls still!"
"Amandine, I hear nothing now," said Francois, going towards the door.
The two children held their breath, and listened anxiously.
"They are coming from my brother"s room," said Francois, in a low voice; "I hear them walking in the pa.s.sage."
"Let us throw ourselves on our beds; mother would kill us if she found us out of bed," said Amandine, terrified.
"No," said Francois, still listening; "they have just pa.s.sed by our door, and are running down the staircase."