KIDDS OWN JOURNAL. 



173 



' Eh le monstre ! et la vilaine femme I Elle 

 devait etre aufond du Inc.") 



Officer. — " Silence la haut!" 



David hung down his head, and gnashed his 

 teeth. 



R to David. — " Nous, nous vengerons." 



Magistrate to R. — " If you speak one word 

 more, I'll give you a week's imprisonment. "^This 

 was a quietus. 



Magistrate to Susanne C — " Did David or 

 Nannette see you after this?" 



Susanne C. — " Oui, monsieur." 



Magistrate.— " What did they say?" 



Susanne C. — " They told me what they were 

 going to do ; and they promised me a new dress 

 if I would come forward and say I was at Cour, 

 or invent anything that would not compromise 

 them being at Lutry. I replied, he might keep 

 his dress ; for if I was called upon, I would tell 

 the plain truth. I would not tell a falsehood for 

 anybody." 



Magistrate.—" Well, what followed ? " 



Susanne C. — " David and Nannette went to my 

 aunt, near Vevay, and coaxed her to get me to 

 spend a fortnight with her, to help her. I went. 

 After that, I had another invitation to the house 

 of a friend near Bulle, — and there I was when 

 the officer came and found me. I have not re- 

 ceived anything for coming here. I have not been 

 promised anything by Bombyx, nor by any one 

 else. Of course I expect my expenses to be paid 

 here and home again." 



Magistrate. — " C" 'est Men juste. Now, Henry, 

 come forward and look at your cousin. How dare 

 you say you went with your mother to the Pinte?" 



Henry. — " Pardonnez moi, monsieur le juge : 

 pardon ! Cest le pere qui m' a forge' de le dire. 11 

 a jur€ qxCil m'enfermerait dans la cave pendant, 

 quinze jours, et ne me donnerait rien que dwpain 

 sec, si je ne disais pas ce qu' il desirait." 



"Elt miserable! que tu es," grumbled David, 

 " de vendre ainsi ton pere et ta mere." 



Magistrate to R. C. — " Come forward, sir, and 

 look at your sister." 



B- C — " Je riaipas besoin de la voir." 



Magistrate. — " Do as I tell you, sir." 



(R. C advances, and casts a savage look 



at his sister, and then turns away.) 



Magistrate. — " Now, sir, how could you declare 

 you were in the Pinte ? What could induce you 

 to act as you have done ? Were you, or were 

 you not in the Pinte V 



R. C. — "Non, monsieur le juge." (Voices in 

 the gallery: " A bas avec le vilain!) Others: 

 "Aliens nous debarrasser d'un pared crapaud!" 



Magistrate. — " Silence ! " 



Officer.—" Silence la kaut ! " 



Magistrate to R. C. — " Vous etiez done a Lutry 

 dans In vigne? " 



R. C. — " Oui, monsieur lejuge." 



Magistrate. — " How could you come forward 

 and utter such wicked falsehoods ? " 



R. C.— "JIon oncle et P., m'ont chacun offert 

 deux pieces et autant de vin que je voulais pour 

 faire marcher cette affaire. 



R- (violently) — "Eh! le Judas, je Vecra- 



serai 7" and, suiting the action to the word, 

 jumped towards him, but was seized by an officer. 



After a brief pause, the magistrate proceeded 

 to pass sentence upon the parties, first addressing 



them, to the following purport : — " Pray, R , 



and you, David, how could you be guilty of such 

 conduct — disgraceful to the name of a 'Vaudois' 

 citizen ? And you, Nannette, how could you act 

 as you have done, actually forcing your own son 



to follow your base example ? And you, R , 



and David, who have just sworn before your God 

 to tell nothing but the truth ! " (Not a word of 

 reply — nay, not even a look, save that of detected 

 villany and shame.) "As for you, witnesses, you 

 have all more or less entered into a plot to injure 

 a foreigner whom you were bound by every tie of 

 hospitality to protect. You have plotted, too, to 

 sully the character of Jean, one of the best of 

 citizens. I can hardly trust myself to express my 

 abhorrence of this shameful, this wicked affair. 

 It is now my duty to visit it as it deserves. You, 



R , are to pay a fine of 300 francs, in addition 



to one month's imprisonment, for your gross and 

 aggravated insult. You, David, the same. You, 



Nannette, R. C , and H , each a week's 



imprisonment ; and each of you others a fine of 

 25 francs. You, policeman, are sentenced to a 

 month's imprisonment, and I have erased your 

 name from the list of public officers. Observe, 

 further, you are all of you separately and collec- 

 tively bound "pour lesfraix." 



However, at the intercession of Bombyx and 

 Jean, who saw nothing but total ruin in this (as 

 the expenses were not far short of 500 francs), 

 the punishment of imprisonment was, all but 

 nominal, foregone, and a very considerable portion 

 of the fines was remitted. 



R being obliged to dispose of his Pinte, it 



was purchased by a rich proprietor, whose property 

 it joined ; and it was converted by him into a home 

 for his gardener. David received notice from his 

 landlord to quit ; and is gone I know not where. 

 The policeman and David's brother wander about, 

 getting work where they can. The remainder, 

 generally speaking, are shunned and disliked by 

 everybody ; seeking occupation in quarters where 

 they are little known. 



Jean, alas ! is no more. Francois is married to 

 Bombyx's former cook, and has " settled " com- 

 fortably : and I think I heard Bombyx say that 

 Susanne C is respectably married at Lutry. 



Thus ends this first adventure with the police- 

 man. I could have made it a great deal longer, 

 and caused you many another roar of laughter, but 

 I have so much more to tell you of other interesting 

 matters noticed in my travels, that I forbear. My 

 memory calls to mind scenes that I never can 

 forget, and which I will bring before you anon, as 

 vividly as the pen can narrate them. Oh, had 

 you but been with us, my dear friend, — what 

 games you would have witnessed ! Well, you shall 

 at all events hear about it. Such fun ! Adieu, 

 au revoir. Thine, most affectionately, 



Tottenham, March 15. Fixo. 



P.S. — How inexpressibly lovely the country has 

 become ! I shall soon now be among the butter- 

 flies and rabbits from morning till night. Do 

 come down and join in the hunt. [We will, Fixo ; 

 and have such a jolly ramble together in those 

 golden fields, and hedgerows skirted with daisies ! 

 At this season, we revive with the flowers, rise 

 with the lark, run with the lambs, gambol with 

 children in the meads and meadows, and sun our- 



