"Less than three weeks after, he returned with an English mill engineer and several mechanics of the same nation; and since then he has kept earth and stone and iron constantly in commotion at Gargilesse. Being entirely absorbed by his work, he rises before daybreak and is the last to go to bed. No matter what the weather may be, he is in the mud up to his knees; not a movement on the part of his workmen escapes him; he knows the why and how of everything, and is pushing forward the construction of an enormous mill, a dwelling-house, with garden and buildings, sheds, dams, roads and bridges--in a word, a magnificent establishment. During his absence, his agents had managed the purchase of the property without allowing his name to appear. He paid a high price, but people thought at first that he didn't understand business and that he had come here to _take it easy_. They laughed at him still more when he increased the wages of his workmen, and when, to induce the municipal council to allow him to divert the course of the stream as he chose, he agreed to build a road, which cost him an enormous sum. They said: 'He's a fool; the extravagance of his plans will ruin him.' But after all is said, I believe he's as shrewd as most men, and I will wager that he will prove to be successful in his choice of a location and in the investment of his money. The stream troubled him a good deal last autumn, but luckily it has been very quiet this spring, and he will have time to finish his buildings before the rains come again, if we have no unusual storms during the summer. He does things on a large scale, and puts in more money than is necessary, that's the truth; but if he has a passion for finishing quickly what he has begun, and has the means and the inclination to pay a high price for the sweat of the poor laboring man's brow, where is the harm? It seems to me that it's an extremely good thing, on the contrary, and that, instead of calling the man a hare-brained fool, as some do, or a crafty speculator, as others do, we ought to thank him for bestowing on our province the advantage of industrial activity, I have said! Now let the other side take its turn." IV THE VISION Before the peasant, who had continued to nibble at his bread with a thoughtful expression, was prepared to begin, the young man thanked Monsieur Antoine warmly for his narrative and for his generous interpretation of Monsieur Cardonnet's course. Without admitting that he was in any way connected with that gentleman, he seemed to be deeply touched by the judgment of his character which the Comte de Châteaubrun expressed, and he added: "Yes, monsieur, I believe that by seeking the best side of things one goes astray less often than by doing the opposite. A determined speculator would be parsimonious in the details of his undertaking, and then one would be justified in suspecting his rectitude. But when we see an intelligent and active man pay handsomely for labor----"