“Come with me; let’s try to find a house, some place of shelter at least; but let us notice carefully what direction we take. Are you coming?”
“Wait a minute, till I make a cap of my handkerchief, to protect me a little.”
We left the vineyard. I was obliged to take Raymond by the arm to get him to move along; he was trembling so that he was afraid of falling at every step. We walked for some ten minutes, constantly floundering in holes filled with water, which it was too dark for us to see. I swore and Raymond whined, anticipating an attack of pneumonia. At last we discovered a little cottage, and the light that shone through the windows indicated that the occupants were not in bed; for peasants are not in the habit of keeping candles lighted while they are asleep.
“We are saved!” cried Raymond; and he recovered the use of his legs to run toward the house. But I held him back, fearing that he would announce our presence in such a way as to prevent our being admitted. I myself knocked at the door of the cottage.
Peasants are rarely distrustful; the occupants of the cottage, being very poor, had no fear of thieves. They opened the door, and I saw a peasant woman in a large living room, surrounded by half a dozen children. I explained our mishap, while Raymond, who had already entered the room, peered into a great kettle to see what the peasants had for supper, then came back to me and informed me that we shouldn’t find much of anything in that house.
“What can I do for you, messieurs?” said the peasant, as she watched Raymond prying into every corner.
“Are we far from Montmorency?”
“No; a fourth of a league at most.”
“We don’t know the roads about here; be good enough to let us have your biggest boy for a guide; we will pay you.”
As I spoke, I gave the woman three francs, which instantly disposed her to make herself useful to us.