Mademoiselle Didier laughed noisily and caught him by the arm.
"There, let him go," she said with impatience. "At the last he bores one, your good cousin. We want more bonbons, and I should like coffee. It is cold enough to freeze one, with so much coming and going."
Again Dangeau turned to his companion.
"An edifying spectacle, is it not?" he asked.
Danton shrugged his great shoulders.
"Mere scum and froth," he said. "Let it pass. I want to speak to you. You are to be sent on mission."
"On mission?"
"Why, yes. You can be useful, or I am much mistaken. It is this way. The South is unsatisfactory. There is a regular campaign of newspaper calumny going on, and something must be done, or we shall have trouble. I thought of sending you and Bonnet. You are to make a tour of the cities, see the principal men, hold public meetings, explain our aims, our motives. It is work which should suit you, and more important than any you could do in Paris at present."
Dangeau's eyes sparkled; a longing for action flared suddenly up in him.
"I will do my best," he said in a new, eager voice.