He told M.Moriaz that he was still in the first bewildering surprise of his happiness, that he was not sorry to have time to recover from it; but he secretly promised himself to devise some artifice for abridging delays, for hastening the _denoument_.

He was apprehensive of accidents, unforeseen occurrences, squalls, storms, tornadoes, sudden blights, in short everything that might damage or destroy a harvest; he impatiently longed to gather in his, and to have it carefully stowed away in his granary.

In the interim he wrote to his old friend M.Guldenthal a letter at once majestic and confidential, which produced a most striking effect.

M.Guldenthal concluded that a good marriage was much better security than a poor gun.

Besides, he had had the agreeable surprise of being completely reimbursed for his loan, capital and interest.