resignation. He was young, however, and perhaps he had been brought up in
better society than that of pigs.

I was invited with much kindness and courtesy to stay until after the
eleven o'clock meal; but, grateful as I felt to the Trappists for their
bread and cheese and home-brewed beer, which had enabled me to sustain life
for more than twelve hours, I was quite content with what I had received in
that way. My curiosity being also satisfied, I gladly went forth into the
wicked world again after exchanging a cordial farewell with the genial
porter, who, when he caught sight of me returning to his lodge, looked
sharply to see if the jar of beer was safe, and his mind being made easy on
the point, he begged me to let him pour me out a glass. Then he gazed at me
with round eyes of surprise and reproach when I declined the offer.

It was only a little past eight when I left the monastery. 'Ah,' I thought,
as I felt the gentle glow of the early sunshine and breathed the fresh air
of the wide world, 'there is time enough for me to become a Trappist.'

I continued on the road to Montpont. It was a sad and silent land over
which I passed, with frequent crosses by the wayside, telling of the
influence of the monks. The words, '_O crux, ave!_' met me amidst the
heather and on the margin of lonely pools. I was now in the most forlorn
part of the Double, where all around the eye rested upon forest, swamp, and
moor. Not that I found it dismal: I drew delight from the lonesomeness,
and revelled in the wildness of all things. Sunshine and flowers made the
desert beautiful. The waysides were red with thyme or purple with heather,
and the blooming lysimachia was like a belt of gold around the reedy pools.
After walking some miles over this country, patches of maize, potatoes, and
vines told me I was nearing a village. At length I came to one, and it
was called St. Barthelemy. It was on the top of a bare chalky hill, and