not Maurice a good-hearted young man and well brought up? Had he not
seen him conduct himself with tact and reserve before Colonel Lantz's
daughters?

Some days later Maurice reminded him of the promised visit to the
Gerards, and Amedee presented him to his old friends.

Louise was not at home; she had been going about teaching for some time
to increase the family's resources, for the engraver was more red-faced
than ever, and obliged to change the number of his spectacles every year,
and could not do as much work as formerly.

But the agreeable young man made a conquest of the rest of the family by
his exquisite good-nature and cordial, easy manner. Respectful and
simple with Madame Gerard, whom he intimidated a little, he paid very
little attention to Maria and did not appear to notice that he was
exciting her curiosity to the highest pitch. He modestly asked Father
Gerard's advice upon his project of painting, amusing himself with the
knickknacks about the apartments, picking out by instinct the best
engravings and canvases of value. The good man was enchanted with
Maurice and hastened to show him his private museum, forgetting all about
his pipe--he was smoking at present a Garibaldi--and presented him his
last engraving, where one saw--it certainly was a fatality that pursued
the old republican!--the Emperor Napoleon III, at Magenta, motionless
upon his horse in the centre of a square of grenadiers, cut down by grape
and canister.

Maurice's visit was short, and as Amedee had thought a great deal about
little Maria for several days, he asked his friend, as he conducted him a
part of the way: