One morning, shortly after her arrival, Elise was resting by the stile which divided the field of Père Louchet from that of his brother-in-law. She had placed on the stile the bucket containing six fresh cheeses wrapped in cool green grape leaves, while she herself sat down upon the bottom step beside it, to remove her wooden sabot and shake out a little pebble that had been irritating her foot. The wooden shoe replaced, she took up her pail and was about to spring blithely over the stile, when she drew back with a little cry of surprise mingled with alarm. Standing on the other side, his arm resting on the top step, leaned a young man who had evidently been watching her closely. Drawing a short pipe from between a row of white teeth, his mouth expanded in a wide grin. "Did I frighten you?" he said, in a slight foreign accent but with an extremely pleasant tone of voice. "Not at all," answered Elise, looking at him frankly. "I'm not easily frightened. If you will move a little to one side, I can cross the stile and go about my affairs." "What have you in the pail?" asked the man, as he complied with her request. "Cheeses," she answered, as he came lightly over the wall. "It's clear you're not of this part of the country or you would never have asked that question." "I am not from this part of the country," said the stranger. "You ought to know that by my accent." "Where is your native place?" asked Elise, her curiosity aroused. "A long distance from here--Prussia. Have you ever heard of that country?" "Yes." "We are most of us against the Republic--there," said he. "I am, for one," and he looked at her out of the corner of his eyes. She made no reply. "Let me carry your cheeses," he said, laying his hand upon the bucket. "They are not heavy," said Elise, "and I must hurry home." "All ways are the same to me and I will go along with you," he said, taking the bucket from her. "It's heavy for you." "It's no burden for me, and as I don't know you I prefer to go home by myself," she said frankly. "Oh, I'm a merry fellow--you need not fear me. I am your friend." "I have no way of being sure of that," was the reply, "though you don't look as if you could be an enemy." "I should be glad for an opportunity to prove myself your friend. And I could prove that I am no stranger by telling you a good deal about yourself and your brother Paul." "Indeed," was all Elise vouchsafed in reply, but she looked a little uncomfortable. "I might tell you of an order of arrest that was not carried out; of a château burned; of the midnight flight of two women and the arrival at La Haye of a woman and her younger brother; all this I might tell you, with the assurance that these secrets are safe in the keeping of a friend." "How will you prove that you are a friend?" Elise said in a low voice with apparent unconcern, although she felt her heart beating with fear.