The first that came up to him was l'Empereur du Houlx, who, under the mask of friendship, took him firmly under the arm; telling him not to be afraid of the others, for they would do him no mischief. As he said this, Regnault Goris approached, and hit Petit John on the head with a stone, that made him stagger. His pretended friend then let go his hold,--and John du Foing thrust a javelin through his body, so that he fell dead on the spot. When he was dead, Oudin du Bust came and cut off his legs, and then they all four separated and took sanctuary within the church of the Celestines; whence, on the following night, they were taken, by orders from sir Robert d'Estouteville, provost of Paris, and the members of the council, in consequence of the informations that had been laid before them, clearly proving the murder to have been committed by a preconcerted plan. The Celestins appealed against this, as a breach of their privileges, but the court of parliament dismissed their appeal, and declared the murderers incapable of being received in sanctuary. The bishop afterward claimed them as his clerks; but the parliament published an edict, to declare that they should not enjoy the privilege of clerks, and returned the matter to the provost, who sentenced them all to be hanged. They appealed against this sentence to the court of parliament, who confirmed it,--and they were all four executed on the gibbet of Paris by the hands of Henry Cousin, father to the late Petit John, who was thus avenged on them for the murder of his son, the 28th day of August. They were hanged in a row: first, l'Empereur du Houlx, then John du Foing, Regnault Goris, and, last of all, Oudin du Bust. The three first were handsome youths; and for this business a young son of a shoemaker was publicly flogged and banished the realm, for having conspired the death of Petit John, although he was not actually present when he was killed. FOOTNOTES: [Footnote 76: Lord de Craon. George de la Trimouille lord of Jonvelle, baron of Craon, first chamberlain to the king, with whom he was a great favourite, and held the governments of Champagne, Brie, Burgundy and Touraine. He obtained the county of Ligny from the confiscations of the constable of St Pol and had the governments of other towns in the kingdom. The barony of Craon in Anjou fell to his lot.] [Footnote 77: Prince of Orange,--John de Châlon, second of the name.] [Footnote 78: Guy. Q. if not Gray? on the Soane, ten leagues from Besançon.] [Footnote 79: De Château Guyon,--Louis or Hugh de Châlons half brothers to the prince of Orange.] [Footnote 80: Blanfossé,--a village in Picardy, near Breteuil.] CHAP. XXIV.