His dream was to discover some explosive of great power, which one might attempt to domesticate and reduce to complete obedience.

And with a smile he pointedly concluded: "I don't know where that madman found the formula of his powder.

But if you should ever discover it, remember that the future perhaps lies in the employment of explosives as motive power." Then, all at once, he added: "By the way, that fellow Salvat will be executed on the day after to-morrow.

A friend of mine at the Ministry of Justice has just told me so." Guillaume had hitherto listened to him with an air of mingled distrust and amusement.

But this announcement of Salvat's execution stirred him to anger and revolt, though for some days past he had known it to be inevitable, in spite of the sympathy which the condemned man was now rousing in many quarters.
"It will be a murder!" he cried vehemently.
Bertheroy waved his hand: "What would you have ?" he answered: "there's a social system and it defends itself when it is attacked.