"Well, the German general said to him roughly:
"'Is your town quiet? Can we circulate safely?'
"M. Odent said, 'Yes. There is no quieter town in France than Senlis.'
"'Are there still any soldiers here?'
"M. Odent had seen the French troops defiling through the town all the morning. The bombardment had made it impossible to go about the streets. As far as he knew there were none left. He answered, 'No.'
"He was taken off, practically under arrest, to the Hôtel, and told to order a dinner for thirty, with ice and champagne. Then his secretary joined him and proposed that the adjoints, or Mayor's assistants, should be sent for.
"'No,' said M. Odent, 'one victim is enough.' You see he foresaw everything. We all knew what had happened in Belgium and the Ardennes.
"The German officer questioned him again.
"'Why have your people gone?—why are these houses, these shops, shut?
There must be lights everywhere—all through the night!'
"Suddenly—shots!—in the Rue de la République. In a few seconds there was a furious fusillade, accompanied by the rattle of machine guns. The officer sprang up.