"I will answer for her, neighbor. Until to-morrow, and have no fear!"
"Would it trouble you to say my friend?" said Antoine, whose tongue was loosened under the influence of internal well-being.
"It would not trouble me at all," replied Julie, laughingly; "I will call you that to-morrow, if you keep your word."
"You will call me that—in public?"
"In public, with all my heart."
The old man took his leave, staggering like a drunken man. In the street he muttered to himself, with gleaming eyes and vehement gestures. The people he met took him for an escaped lunatic.
He followed the wall of the Estrelle garden, instinctively turning to see if Julien was still working and if his lily was uninjured. Suddenly it occurred to him that Madame d'Ancourt might ruin everything if she should revea
