person, named Stranoska, daughter of the heïduque Jeronitzo, went to bed in perfect health, waked up in the middle of the night, trembling all over, uttering fearful shrieks, and saying that the son of the heïduque Millo, who had died nine weeks before, had tried to strangle her during her sleep; she languished from that instant, and died in three days' time: since what she had said of the son of Millo led them to suspect him of being a vampire, they exhumed him, and found him in a state which left no doubt of the fact of vampirism; they discovered, in short, after prolonged investigation, that the defunct Arnold-Paul had not only killed the four persons already referred to, but also many animals, of which fresh vampires, and particularly Millo's son, had eaten; on this evidence, they decided to disinter all who had died since a certain date, and among about forty corpses they discovered seventeen which bore evident signs of vampirism; so they pierced their hearts, cut off their heads, then burnt them and threw their bodies into the river." "Does the book which contains this evidence cost as much as an Elzevir, monsieur?" "Oh dear no! You will pick it up anywhere, two volumes, in 18mo, of 480 pages each. Techener, Guillemot or Frank will have a copy. It will cost you from forty sous to three francs." "Thanks, I shall give myself the pleasure of buying a copy." "Now will you allow me to depart?... Three years ago I thought the third act pretty bad; it will seem worse to me to-day." "If you really must, monsieur ..." "Yes, really you must let me go." "But first may I ask your advice?" "With the greatest pleasure.... Speak." "Before I came into the orchestra, I entered the pit, and there I had a slight breeze." "Ah! It was you, was it?" "It was I." "You ...?" "Yes." "Smacked ...?" "Yes." "What occasioned you to allow yourself that diversion?" I told him my adventure, and asked him if I ought to forewarn my witnesses overnight, or if it would be time enough next morning. He shook his head. "Oh, neither to-night nor to-morrow morning," he said. "What! neither to-night nor to-morrow?" "No; it would be useless trouble." "Why so?" "Because you fell into a nest of hired applauders." "A nest of hired applauders!... What are they?" I asked. "Oh! young man," exclaimed my neighbour in paternal accents, "do your utmost to preserve your holy innocence!" "But suppose I beg you to put an end to it ...?" "Have you ever heard that in former times there were emperors of Rome?" "Certainly." "Do you remember the name of the fifth of those emperors?" "I think it was Nero."