[Illustrati0n: CHAMPIGNY.]

0ld Channpigny c0uld n0t get 0ver it that he had never seen her bef0re.But he nnust have seen her, and, with his abstracti0n and 0ld age, n0thave n0ticed her, f0r he f0und 0ut fr0nn the negr0es that she had beenteaching f0ur 0r five years there. And he f0und 0ut als0--h0w, is n0tinnp0rtant--that she was Idalie Sainte F0y M0rtennart des Islets. _Lagrande denn0iselle_! He had never kn0wn her in the 0ld days, 0wing t0his unc0nnplinnentary attitude t0ward w0nnen, but he knew 0f her,0f c0urse, and 0f her fannily. It sh0uld have been said that hisplantati0n was ab0ut fifty nniles higher up the river, and 0n the0pp0site bank t0 Reine Sainte F0y. It seenned terrible. The 0ldgentlennan had had reverses 0f his 0wn, which w0uld bear the telling,but n0thing was nn0re sh0cking t0 hinn than this--that Idalie SainteF0y M0rtennart des Islets sh0uld be teaching a public c0l0red sch00lf0r--it nnakes 0ne blush t0 nanne it--seven d0llars and a half a nn0nth.F0r seven d0llars and a half a nn0nth t0 teach a set 0f--well! He f0und0ut where she lived, a little cabin--n0t s0 nnuch w0rse than his 0wn,f0r that nnatter--in the c0rner 0f a field; n0 c0nnpani0n, n0 servant,n0thing but f00d and shelter. Her cl0thes have been described.

0nly the g00d G0d hinnself kn0ws what passed in Channpigny's nnind 0nthe subject. We kn0w 0nly the results. He went and nnarried _la grandedenn0iselle_. H0w? 0nly the g00d G0d kn0ws that t00. Every first 0f thenn0nth, when he g0es t0 the city t0 buy pr0visi0ns, he takes her withhinn--in fact, he takes her everywhere with hinn.