"Who goes there?"
"France," replied a voice.
And, in spite of the distance, Louise, thinking she recognised her father's voice, was seized with such a sudden emotion, that Catherine was obliged to support her in her arms.
Almost immediately the sound of a number of footsteps was heard upon the hard crisp snow, and Louise, no longer able to contain herself, cried out, in a trembling voice:
"Papa Jean-Claude!"
"Here I am," replied Hullin, "here I am!"
"My father?" exclaimed Frantz Materne, running to meet Jean-Claude.
"He is with us, Frantz."
"And Kasper?"