I scrutinized Armand, for every moment I was afraid lest the
emotions which he was visibly repressing should prove too much
for him; but he still watched, his eyes fixed and wide open, like
the eyes of a madman, and a slight trembling of the cheeks and
lips were the only signs of the violent nervous crisis under
which he was suffering.

As for me, all I can say is that I regretted having come.

When the coffin was uncovered the inspector said to the
grave-digger: "Open it." They obeyed, as if it were the most
natural thing in the world.

The coffin was of oak, and they began to unscrew the lid. The
humidity of the earth had rusted the screws, and it was not
without some difficulty that the coffin was opened. A painful
odour arose in spite of the aromatic plants with which it was
covered.

"O my God, my God!" murmured Armand, and turned paler than
before.

Even the grave-digger drew back.

A great white shroud covered the corpse, closely outlining some
of its contours. This shroud was almost completely eaten away at
one end, and left one of the feet visible.

I was nearly fainting, and at the moment of writing these lines I