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him as Adelaide de Dammartin. The joy of seeing her was soon overcast, and the thoughts of the injury he was doing his friend he felt with such insupportable anguish, that before he could speak, he sunk senseless at the feet of Adelaide, who screamed out, "The Count de Nevers is dying." A piercing cry from an adjoining room answered that of Adelaide; and as the President and Madame de Dammartin were assisting the Count, a young lady entered with a distracted air, and ran up to the insensible young man. After having looked attentively at him, whilst they were placing him on a sofa; "How happy I am," she exclaimed, and instantly left the saloon. When the Count recovered; he heard with astonishment from Madame de Dammartin, that it was not Adelaide the Seur de Joinville loved, but her cousin Adelgonde de Montfort, who much resembled Adelaide; and the President had mentioned his regret, that the two noble friends were both unhappy by loving Adelaide; therefore she thought it her duty to discover the mistake.
While she was speaking, a domestic of the hotel entered, out of breath, to say, that a number of disorderly armed peasants, had burned the Chateau du Vidame de Melun, and killed that nobleman, his wife, children, with all their domestics. This intelligence chilled every heart with horror. The President de Montcal, anxious to make enquiries concerning this awful intelligence, accompanied by the Count, hastily bade the Countess adieu. On his way to the hotel he interrogated every one from whom he thought it possible to gain any information; but all the information he could procure was only a repetition of the horrible cruelties committed by those peasants. He returned with the Count to the hotel De Nevers.
Some days passed in the greatest agitation and
