"Is that large building we see there in the distance the Château de Pont Brillant?"
"Yes. Its owner, the young marquis, was in the party that passed just now. But why do you ask?"
"Does Madame Bastien's son visit there?"
"Oh, no. The Pont Brillants are a very proud and aristocratic family, and associate only with the nobility."
"So Frederick does not even know the young marquis?"
"If he does, it is only by sight, for I repeat the young marquis is much too proud to have anything to do with a youth of Frederick's humble station."
"Is this family popular?" inquired Henri David, more and more thoughtfully.
"The Pont Brillants are immensely rich, nearly all the land for six or seven leagues around belongs to them. They own, too, most of the houses in this little town. The tradespeople, too, are of course largely dependent upon their patronage, so this powerful family command at least a strong show of respect and attachment. There is also a certain amount of money given to the poor every year by the family. The mayor and the curé distribute it, however. The young marquis has nothing more to do with that than his grandmother, whose skepticism and cynicism make Baron Holbach's atheism seem pale by comparison. But why do you ask all these questions in relation to the château and its occupants?"
"Because just now when I was alone with Frederick I thought I discovered that he hated this young marquis with a deadly hatred."
"Frederick?" exclaimed the doctor, with quite as much surprise as incredulity. "That is impossible. I am sure he never spoke to M. de Pont Brillant in his life. So how could he possibly feel any such animosity against the young marquis?"