"Nay, it will be easy to inquire whether she is acquainted with a widow still in the prime of life, whose air and manner indicate her being far superior to her present circumstances, and who has a daughter about sixteen years of age named Claire. I am sure it was Claire the woman told me the younger female was called." "How very strange! That is my child's name; and furnishes an additional reason for my interesting myself in their misfortunes." "I forgot to tell you that the brother of this unhappy widow died by his own hands a very few months ago." Madame d'Harville was silent for some minutes, as though reflecting deeply; at length she said: "If Madame de Lucenay be in any way acquainted with this unfortunate family, these particulars will be quite sufficient to identify them; besides which the lamentable end of the brother must have fixed every circumstance connected with them more strongly in her memory. How impatient I feel to question the duchess on the subject! I will write her a note this very evening, begging of her not to go out to-morrow till I have seen her. Who can these interesting people be? From your account, my lord, I should say they certainly belong to the higher class of society, and must, therefore, feel their present distress so much the more keenly. Alas, to such as they the falling into such utter destitution must inflict a deeper, keener sting!" "And all their sufferings have arisen from the knavery of an unprincipled scoundrel,--a notary, named Jacques Ferrand. But I am in possession of other acts of villainy on his part equally black with this." "That is the name of the person acting as the legal adviser both of my husband and mother-in-law," exclaimed Clemence; "and, indeed, my lord, I think you must be mistaken in your opinion of him, for he is universally regarded as a person of the strictest honour and probity." "I assure you I have the most irrefragable proofs of what I assert. Meanwhile let me beg of you to be perfectly silent as to the character I assign this man, who is as subtle as unprincipled; and the better to unmask his nefarious practices, it is necessary he should be allowed to think himself secure from all danger; a few days will enable me to perfect my schemes for bringing him to a severe reckoning. He it was who brought such unmerited affliction upon the interesting females I have been telling you of, by defrauding them of a large sum, which, it appears, was consigned to his care by the brother of the unfortunate widow." "And this money?" "Was their sole dependence." "This is, indeed, a crime of the most heinous description!"