“Is madame visible?” asked a voice smothered against the door.
“Entrez!” she answered gaily; and the priest put his head in.
“Say a little prayer to S. Joseph for F. Chevreuse to-day,” he said; “for he is collecting for the great note.”
“Oh!” She looked anxiously at him, and met a reassuring smile in return.
“Never fear, mother!” he said cheerfully. “Do not all the houses and lands belong to God?”
“Certainly!” she answered, but sighed to herself as he went away: “it is very true they all belong to God, but I’m afraid the devil has some very heavy mortgages on them.”
Later in the day, Miss Ferrier called for Mrs. Chevreuse to go out and visit the sisters at the new convent. “I have taken all I could think of this morning,” she said, and enumerated various useful articles. “I suppose they want nearly everything.”
Mrs. Chevreuse commended her liberality. “But I am glad you did not think of cordage,” she added; “for that is the very thing I did remember.”
She opened a large basket, and laughingly displayed a collection of ropes and cords varying from coils of clothes-line and curtain-cord to balls of fine pink twine. “Jane’s clothes-line gave out yesterday,” she said, “and that made me think of this.”
Miss Ferrier gave a little shiver and shrug. “It is very nice and useful, I know; but ropes always remind me of hanging.”