IIIFortunately, the roof was vast and sloped gently. We reached it through a lid- like window, above which was a sort of platform. It was there that we took refuge. The women seated themselves. The men went over the tiles to reconnoitre. From my post against the dormer window through which we had climbed, I examined the four points of the horizon.
"Help cannot fail to arrive," I said, bravely. "The people of Saintin have boats; they will come this way. Look over there! Isn't that a lantern on the water?"
But no one answered me. Pierre had lighted his pipe, and he was smoking so furiously that, at each puff, he spit out pieces of the stem. Jacques and Cyprien looked into the distance, with drawn faces; while Gaspard, clenching his fists, continued to walk about, seeking an issue. At our f
