My name
is among the names on the list of the denounced. If the soldiers
of the Republic find me here--but we will say nothing more of
this; it is of Perrine and of you that I must now speak. On this
very evening your marriage may be solemnized with all the wonted
rites of our holy religion, and the blessing may be pronounced
over you by the lips of a priest. This evening, therefore,
Gabriel, you must become the husband and the protector of
Perrine. Listen to me attentively, and I will tell you how."
This was the substance of what Gabriel now heard from Pere Bonan:
Not very long before the persecutions broke out in Brittany, a
priest, known generally by the name of Father Paul, was appointed
to a curacy in one of the northern districts of the province. He
fulfilled all the duties of his station in such a manner as to
win the confidence and affection of every member of his
congregation, and was often spoken of with respect, even in parts
of the country distant from the scene of his labors. It was not,
however, until the troubles broke out, and the destruction and
bloodshed began, that he became renowned far and wide, from one
end of Brittany to another. From the date of the very first
persecutions the name of Father Paul was a rallying-cry of the
hunted peasantry; he was their great encouragement under
oppression, their example in danger, their last and only consoler
in the hour of death.
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