The Golden Lion of Granpere

all its belongings from the Lion d'Or at Granpere. It was very much larger, and had much higher pretensions. It assumed to itself the character of a first-class hotel; and wh

ade, still keeps it up, and bears with as much bravery as she can the buffets of a world which seems to her to be becoming less prosperous and less comfortable and more exacting every day. In her younger years, a posting-house in such a town was a posting-house; and when M. Faragon married her, the heiress of the then owner of the business, he was supposed to have done uncommonly well for himself. Madame Faragon is now a childless widow, and sometimes declares that she will shut the house up and have done with it. Why maintain a business without a profit, simply that there ma

dy, though in most of the affairs of life her temper is gentle and kindly, cannot hear with equanimity an insinuation that any portion of her house is either dirty or unsweet. Complaints have reached her that the beds were-well, inhabited-but no servant now dares to hint at anything wrong in this particular. If this traveller or that says a word to her personally in complaint, she looks as sour as death, and declines to open her mouth in reply; but when that traveller's back is turned, the things that Madame Faragon can say abo

francs in establishing the omnibus, and in that affair the appearance of things had been at one time quite hopeless. And then when George had declared that the altered habits of the people required that the hour of the morning table-d'h?te should be changed from noon to one, she had sworn that she would not give way. She would never lend her assent to such vile idleness. It was already robbing the business portion of the day of an hour. She would wrap her colours round her and die upon the ground soon

the house at once. At these tender moments she used to say that he probably would not begrudge her a room in which to die. But George Voss would always say that he had no money, that he could not ask his father for money, and that he had not made up his mind to settle at Colmar. Madame Faragon, who was naturally much interested in the matter, and was moreover not without curiosity, could never quite learn how matters stood at Granpere. A wor

ss had left Granpere. From time to time George had seen some friend from the village, and had thus heard tidings from home. Once, as has been said, Madame Voss had made a pilgrimage to Madame Faragon's establishment to visit him; but letters between the houses had not been frequent. Though postage in France-or shall we say Germany?-is now almost as low as in England, these

f yours from Granpere i

pere? And

d Madame Voss. He goes back early to-morrow with the roulage and s

s of two doors, all who came in and all who went out by the chief entrance of the hotel. Nor had George usurped the place. It had now happened at Colmar, as it has come to pass at most hotels, that the public table is no longer the table-d'h?te. The end chair was occupied by a stout, dark man, with a bald

e Bromar?' Georg

ut her, of course,'

rd w

oing to b

to be married

is news was regarded as being im

s settled last week

who i

, the linen-bu

married to Ad

d before George Voss had left the place, and th

s very rich,'

obody but himself. And ar

not know who told me. The

ther ever

never

rie he

Girls never tell those sor

e Voss?' a

t's true. I'll tell you who told me first, and he is sure t

d! And who do you t

her that she is the prettiest girl round Granpere. And why shouldn't he marry her? If

d once sworn to him that she loved him, and would be his for ever and ever; and, though he had left her in dudgeon, with black looks, without a kind word of farewell, yet he had believed her. Through all his sojourn at Colmar he had told himself that she would be true to him. He believed it, though he was hardly sure of himself-had hardly resolved that he would ever go

was to be married to another man, he was torn to pieces by anger and regret. He had sworn to love her, and had never even spoken a word of tenderness to another girl. She had given him her plighted troth, and now she was prepared to break it with the first man who asked her! As he thought of this, his brow became black with anger. But his regrets were as violent. What a fool he had been to leave her there, open to persuasion from any man who came in the way, open to persuasion from his father, who would, of course, be his enemy. How,

e before the roulage should start for Münster on its road to Granpere. Early times in that part of the wor

at this hour

have a friend here from Granpere,

s kind

them at the old

urse I

me Voss, and the chi

rig

you have told me

r she'll like to tal

o that I shall be over at Granpere soon to see her and the

ell your f

, and let her t

ome? We shall all be

he kitchen. There's a cup of coffee for you and a slice of ham. We are no

ee francs, this was kind of the young landlord, and while he was eating his bread and ham

ture of Edmond Greisse that George told

n, leaning forward on the table before he

re, Madame

en? and how? O dear! Why did

u as soon

are not g

Mond

ss me! We can't do anything before

ertainty. I shall no

they sen

nt to see them once again. And I must ma

aimed Madame Faragon. 'You shall have the business n

nday named he started for Granpere. He had not been very quick in his action, for a