“Coucou Peter is right,” he said; “the hour is near, the destinies are about to be accomplished! Then those who have trained the vine and sown the good seed will be glorified! Great changes will be wrought in the earth; the words of truth will pass from mouth to mouth, and the name of Coucou Peter will resound like that of the greatest prophets! The tenderness which this dear disciple has exhibited at the sight of infancy, the age of weakness, gentleness, and simple purity, is a proof of his goodness of soul, and I do not hesitate to predict for him the highest destiny!”
Dame Thérèse looked at Coucou Peter, who modestly cast down his eyes, and it was evident that she was happy to hear so much that was good concerning the brave fiddler.
At that moment they passed out of the wood, and the town of Haslach, with its broad-pointed roofs, its winding streets, and its church of the time of Erwin, met their view. A thousand confused voices rose in the air. All the houses were lit up as for a festival.
They descended the mountain in silence.
CHAPTER X.
About nine o’clock in the evening the illustrious philosopher and his new companions made their entry into the ancient town of Haslach.
The streets were so crowded with people, waggons, and cattle, as to be almost impassable.
The tall houses with their jagged gables overhung the tumult, throwing the light of their little windows upon the excited crowd. All these pilgrims from Alsace, from Lorraine, and from the mountains, congregated about the public-houses and inns like ants; others had settled themselves along the walls, others under sheds or in barns.