Belle Rose: A Romance of the Cloak and Sword — page 276: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

260 THE GARDENER’S NEPHEW. the hands of the gardeners, and, on the day fixed for the escape, we are ready.’”’ ‘“‘Ah! my God!’’ exclaimed Suzanne, all at once, ‘‘Mother Scholastique!’’ ‘‘Save themselves who can!’’ replied Claudine, turning her head in the direction of the nun. One took one direction, and the other the opposite one. While Suzanne and Claudine were conspiring inside the convent, Déroute was not losing any time outside. He . pushed at the same time Grippard’s entrance into the police force and his own into the gardens of the good sisters. The same day as that on which took place Suzanne and Claudine’s conference, the half of his wish was real- ized; Grippard came to surprise him at the hostelry of the Roi David in his uniform as member of the police force. ‘‘Ah!’’ said Déroute, ‘‘you have succeeded, then?’’ **Ié was necessary, as I had sworn it.”’ ‘“You are obstinate, I can see.’’ ‘‘As a Breton, though bornin Picardy. But I have had some trouble about it.”’ ‘*Really !”’ **Since the Villejuif affair, Bouletord has become as sus- picious asa monk. I have had to make four attempts be- fore succeeding.’’ “So much trouble to obtain this ugly uniform as all that!’’ ‘It has cost me thirty bottles of the best Argenteuil, seasoned with lies and hams.”’ **Ah! you lie, also?’’ ‘‘Sometimes,’’ said Grippard, with a modest air. ‘‘It is a pretty defect which occasionally serves better than the most virtuous qualities. ”’ ‘‘That is true,’’ replied Déroute, philosophically. ‘*And that is what brought me success.’’ ‘Tell me about it.’ ‘Oh! itis very simple. At our first dinner he has shown some of his hatred against Belle-Rose; this has made me refiect. At the second dinner that if my captain was a captain, it was through a thousand villanies.’’ “The beggar!’’ exclaimed Déroute, applying a furious blow of the fist to the table. ‘*At the third dinner,’’ continued Grippard, ‘‘a magnifi- cent idea suddenly struck me; I confided to him the fact that I hated Belle-Rose with a deathly hatred. Bouletord came near embracing me. I related to him a terrible his- tory from which my captain came out as black as ink. cGomicbooks.com