Hisonevirtueconsistedofhisfondnessforhorses，andinthecarehetookoftheanimalsunderhischarge。Inaword，hewastoogoodagroomtobeeasilyreplaced，orhewouldhavequittedmyservicelongsince。OntheoccasionofwhichIamnowwriting，hewasreportedtomebymystewardasgrowingidleanddisorderlyinhishabits。Theprincipaloffenseallegedagainsthimwas，thathehadbeenseenthatdayinthecityofMetz，inthecompanyofawomansupposedtobeanEnglishwoman，whomhewasentertainingatatavern，whenheoughttohavebeenonhiswaybacktoMaisonRouge。Theman’sdefensewasthat“thelady“ashecalledher
wasanEnglishstranger，unacquaintedwiththewaysoftheplace，andthathehadonlyshownherwhereshecouldobtainsomerefreshmentsatherownrequest。Iadministeredthenecessaryreprimand，withouttroublingmyselftoinquirefurtherintothematter。Infailingtodothis，Itookmythirdstep，blindfold，towardthelastactinthedramaoftheHostler’sDream。
Ontheeveningofthetwenty-eighth，IinformedtheservantsatthestablesthatoneofthemmustwatchthroughthenightbytheEnglishman’sbedside。JosephRigobertimmediatelyvolunteeredfortheduty——asameans，nodoubt，ofwinninghiswaybacktomyfavor。Iacceptedhisproposal。
Thatdaythesurgeondinedwithus。TowardmidnightheandIleftthesmokingroom，andrepairedtoFrancisRaven’sbedside。
Rigobertwasathispost，withnoveryagreeableexpressiononhisface。TheFrenchmanandtheEnglishmanhadevidentlynotgotonwelltogethersofar。FrancisRavenlayhelplessonhisbed，waitingsilentlyfortwointhemorningandtheDreamWoman。
“Ihavecome，Francis，tobidyougoodnight，“Isaid，cheerfully。
“To-morrowmorningIshalllookinatbreakfasttime，beforeI
leavehomeonajourney。“
“Thankyouforallyourkindness，sir。Youwillnotseemealiveto-morrowmorning。Shewillfindmethistime。Markmywords——shewillfindmethistime。“
“Mygoodfellow！shecouldn’tfindyouinEngland。HowintheworldisshetofindyouinFrance？“
“It’sborneinonmymind，sir，thatshewillfindmehere。AttwointhemorningonmybirthdayIshallseeheragain，andseeherforthelasttime。“
“Doyoumeanthatshewillkillyou？“
“Imeanthat，sir，shewillkillme——withtheknife。“
“AndwithRigobertintheroomtoprotectyou？“
“Iamadoomedman。FiftyRigobertscouldn’tprotectme。“
“Andyouwantedsomebodytositupwithyou？“
“Mereweakness，sir。Idon’tliketobeleftaloneonmydeathbed。“
Ilookedatthesurgeon。Ifhehadencouragedme，Ishouldcertainly，outofsheercompassion，haveconfessedtoFrancisRaventhetrickthatwewereplayinghim。Thesurgeonheldtohisexperiment；thesurgeon’sfaceplainlysaid——“No。“
Thenextdaythetwenty-ninthofFebruarywasthedayofthe“SilverWedding。“Thefirstthinginthemorning，IwenttoFrancisRaven’sroom。Rigobertmetmeatthedoor。
“Howhashepassedthenight？“Iasked。
“Sayinghisprayers，andlookingforghosts，“Rigobertanswered。
“Alunaticasylumistheonlyproperplaceforhim。“
Iapproachedthebedside。“Well，Francis，hereyouare，safeandsound，inspiteofwhatyousaidtomelastnight。“
Hiseyesrestedonminewithavacant，wonderinglook。
“Idon’tunderstandit，“hesaid。
“Didyouseeanythingofyourwifewhentheclockstrucktwo？“
“No，sir。“
“Didanythinghappen？“
“Nothinghappened，sir。“
“Doesn’tTHISsatisfyyouthatyouwerewrong？“
Hiseyesstillkepttheirvacant，wonderinglook。Heonlyrepeatedthewordshehadspokenalready:“Idon’tunderstandit。“
Imadealastattempttocheerhim。“Come，come，Francis！keepagoodheart。Youwillbeoutofbedinafortnight。“
Heshookhisheadonthepillow。“There’ssomethingwrong，“hesaid。“Idon’texpectyoutobelieveme，sir。Ionlysaythere’ssomethingwrong——andtimewillshowit。“
Ilefttheroom。HalfanhourlaterIstartedforMr。Beldheimer’shouse；leavingthearrangementsforthemorningofthefirstofMarchinthehandsofthedoctorandmywife。
XVI
TheonethingwhichprincipallystruckmewhenIjoinedtheguestsatthe“SilverWedding“isalsotheonethingwhichitisnecessarytomentionhere。Onthisjoyfuloccasionanoticeableladypresentwasoutofspirits。Thatladywasnootherthantheheroineofthefestival，themistressofthehouse！
InthecourseoftheeveningIspoketoMr。Beldheimer’seldestsononthesubjectofhismother。Asanoldfriendofthefamily，I
hadaclaimonhisconfidencewhichtheyoungmanwillinglyrecognized。
“Wehavehadaverydisagreeablemattertodealwith，“hesaid；
“andmymotherhasnotrecoveredthepainfulimpressionleftonhermind。Manyyearssince，whenmysisterswerechildren，wehadanEnglishgovernessinthehouse。Sheleftus，aswethenunderstood，tobemarried。Weheardnomoreofheruntilaweekortendayssince，whenmymotherreceivedaletter，inwhichourex-
governessdescribedherselfasbeinginaconditionofgreatpovertyanddistress。Aftermuchhesitationshehadventured——atthesuggestionofaladywhohadbeenkindtoher——towritetoherformeremployers，andtoappealtotheirremembranceofoldtimes。
Youknowmymothersheisnotonlythemostkind-headed，butthemostinnocentofwomen——itisimpossibletopersuadeherofthewickednessthatthereisintheworld。Sherepliedbyreturnofpost，invitingthegovernesstocomehereandseeher，andinclosingthemoneyforhertravelingexpenses。Whenmyfathercamehome，andheardwhathadbeendone，hewroteatoncetohisagentinLondontomakeinquiries，inclosingtheaddressonthegoverness’letter。Beforehecouldreceivetheagent’sreplythegovernessarrived。Sheproducedtheworstpossibleimpressiononhismind。Theagent’sletter，arrivingafewdayslater，confirmedhissuspicions。Sincewehadlostsightofher，thewomanhadledamostdisreputablelife。Myfatherspoketoherprivately:heoffered——onconditionofherleavingthehouse——asumofmoneytotakeherbacktoEngland。Ifsherefused，thealternativewouldbeanappealtotheauthoritiesandapublicscandal。Sheacceptedthemoney，andleftthehouse。OnherwaybacktoEnglandsheappearstohavestoppedatMetz。YouwillunderstandwhatsortofwomansheiswhenItellyouthatshewasseentheotherdayinatavernwithyourhandsomegroom，JosephRigobert。“
Whilemyinformantwasrelatingthesecircumstances，mymemorywasatwork。IrecalledwhatFrancisRavenhadvaguelytoldusofhiswife’sexperienceinformerdaysasgovernessinaGermanfamily。
Asuspicionofthetruthsuddenlyflashedacrossmymind。“Whatwasthewoman’sname？“Iasked。
Mr。Beldheimer’ssonanswered:“AliciaWarlock。“
IhadbutoneideawhenIheardthatreply——togetbacktomyhousewithoutamoment’sneedlessdelay。Itwasthenteno’clockatnight——thelasttraintoMetzhadleftlongsince。Iarrangedwithmyyoungfriend——afterdulyinforminghimofthecircumstances——
thatIshouldgobythefirsttraininthemorning，insteadofstayingtobreakfastwiththeotherguestswhosleptinthehouse。
AtintervalsduringthenightIwondereduneasilyhowthingsweregoingonatMaisonRouge。Againandagainthesamequestionoccurredtome，onmyjourneyhomeintheearlymorning——themorningofthefirstofMarch。Astheeventproved，butonepersoninmyhouseknewwhatreallyhappenedatthestablesonFrancisRaven’sbirthday。LetJosephRigoberttakemyplaceasnarrator，andtellthestoryoftheendtoYou——ashetoldit，intimespast，tohislawyerandtoMe。
RESPECTEDSIR，——Onthetwenty-seventhofFebruaryIwassent，onbusinessconnectedwiththestablesatMaisonRouge，tothecityofMetz。OnthepublicpromenadeImetamagnificentwoman。
Complexion，blond。Nationality，English。Wemutuallyadmiredeachother；wefellintoconversation。ShespokeFrenchperfectly——
withtheEnglishaccent。Iofferedrefreshment；myproposalwasaccepted。Wehadalongandinterestinginterview——wediscoveredthatweweremadeforeachother。Sofar，Whoistoblame？
IsitmyfaultthatIamahandsomeman——universallyagreeableassuchtothefairsex？Isitacriminaloffensetobeaccessibletotheamiableweaknessoflove？Iaskagain，Whoistoblame？
Clearly，nature。Notthebeautifullady——notmyhumbleself。
Toresume。Themosthard-heartedpersonlivingwillunderstandthattwobeingsmadeforeachothercouldnotpossiblypartwithoutanappointmenttomeetagain。
ImadearrangementsfortheaccommodationoftheladyinthevillagenearMaisonRouge。Sheconsentedtohonormewithhercompanyatsupper，inmyapartmentatthestables，onthenightofthetwenty-ninth。Thetimefixedonwasthetimewhentheotherservantswereaccustomedtoretire——eleveno’clock。
AmongthegroomsattachedtothestableswasanEnglishman，laidupwithabrokenleg。HisnamewasFrancis。Hismannerswererepulsive；hewasignorantoftheFrenchlanguage。Inthekitchenhewentbythenicknameofthe“EnglishBear。“Strangetosay，hewasagreatfavoritewithmymasterandmymistress。Theyevenhumoredcertainsuperstitiousterrorstowhichthisrepulsivepersonwassubject——terrorsintothenatureofwhichI，asanadvancedfreethinker，neverthoughtitworthmywhiletoinquire。
Ontheeveningofthetwenty-eighththeEnglishman，beingapreytotheterrorswhichIhavementioned，requestedthatoneofhisfellow-servantsmightsitupwithhimforthatnightonly。ThewishthatheexpressedwasbackedbyMr。Fairbank’sauthority。
Havingalreadyincurredmymaster’sdispleasure——inwhatway，apropersenseofmyowndignityforbidsmetorelate——IvolunteeredtowatchbythebedsideoftheEnglishBear。MyobjectwastosatisfyMr。FairbankthatIborenomalice，onmyside，afterwhathadoccurredbetweenus。ThewretchedEnglishmanpassedanightofdelirium。Notunderstandinghisbarbarouslanguage，Icouldonlygatherfromhisgesturethathewasindeadlyfearofsomefanciedapparitionathisbedside。Fromtimetotime，whenthismadmandisturbedmyslumbers，Iquietedhimbyswearingathim。Thisistheshortestandbestwayofdealingwithpersonsinhiscondition。
Onthemorningofthetwenty-ninth，Mr。Fairbankleftusonajourney。Laterintheday，tomyunspeakabledisgust，IfoundthatIhadnotdonewiththeEnglishmanyet。InMr。Fairbank’sabsence，Mrs。Fairbanktookanincomprehensibleinterestinthequestionofmydeliriousfellow-servant’sreposeatnight。Again，oneortheotherofuswastowatchathisbedside，andreportit，ifanythinghappened。Expectingmyfairfriendtosupper，itwasnecessarytomakesurethattheotherservantsatthestableswouldbesafeintheirbedsthatnight。Accordingly，Ivolunteeredoncemoretobethemanwhokeptwatch。Mrs。Fairbankcomplimentedmeonmyhumanity。Ipossessgreatcommandovermyfeelings。Iacceptedthecomplimentwithoutablush。
Twice，afternightfall，mymistressandthedoctorthelaststayinginthehouseinMr。Fairbank’sabsencecametomakeinquiries。OnceBEFOREthearrivalofmyfairfriend——andonceAFTER。OnthesecondoccasionmyapartmentbeingnextdoortotheEnglishman’sIwasobligedtohidemycharmingguestintheharnessroom。Sheconsented，withangelicresignation，toimmolateherdignitytotheservilenecessitiesofmyposition。AmoreamiablewomansofarInevermetwith！
AfterthesecondvisitIwasleftfree。Itwasthencloseonmidnight。UptothattimetherewasnothinginthebehaviorofthemadEnglishmantorewardMrs。Fairbankandthedoctorforpresentingthemselvesathisbedside。Helayhalfawake，halfasleep，withanoddwonderingkindoflookinhisface。Mymistressatpartingwarnedmetobeparticularlywatchfulofhimtowardtwointhemorning。Thedoctorincaseanythinghappened
leftmealargehandbelltoring，whichcouldeasilybeheardatthehouse。
Restoredtothesocietyofmyfairfriend，Ispreadthesuppertable。Apate，asausage，andafewbottlesofgenerousMosellewine，composedoursimplemeal。Whenpersonsadoreeachother，theintoxicatingillusionofLovetransformsthesimplestmealintoabanquet。Withimmeasurablecapacitiesforenjoyment，wesatdowntotable。AttheverymomentwhenIplacedmyfascinatingcompanioninachair，theinfamousEnglishmaninthenextroomtookthatoccasion，ofallothers，tobecomerestlessandnoisyoncemore。Hestruckwithhisstickonthefloor；hecriedout，inadeliriousaccessofterror，“Rigobert！Rigobert！“
Thesoundofthatlamentablevoice，suddenlyassailingourears，terrifiedmyfairfriend。Shelostallhercharmingcolorinaninstant。“Goodheavens！“sheexclaimed。“Whoisthatinthenextroom？“
“AmadEnglishman。“
“AnEnglishman？“
“Composeyourself，myangel。Iwillquiethim。“Thelamentablevoicecalledoutonmeagain，“Rigobert！Rigobert！“
Myfairfriendcaughtmebythearm。“Whoishe？“shecried。
“Whatishisname？“
Somethinginherfacestruckmeassheputthatquestion。Aspasmofjealousyshookmetothesoul。“Youknowhim？“Isaid。
“Hisname！“shevehementlyrepeated；“hisname！“
“Francis，“Ianswered。
“Francis——WHAT？“
Ishruggedmyshoulders。IcouldneitherremembernorpronouncethebarbarousEnglishsurname。Icouldonlytellheritbeganwithan“R。“
Shedroppedbackintothechair。Wasshegoingtofaint？No:sherecovered，andmorethanrecovered，herlostcolor。Hereyesflashedsuperbly。Whatdiditmean？ProfoundlyasIunderstandwomeningeneral，IwaspuzzledbyTHISwoman！
“Youknowhim？“Irepeated。
Shelaughedatme。“Whatnonsense！HowshouldIknowhim？Goandquietthewretch。“