A Gentleman from Gascony: A Romance of the Huguenots — page 62: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

58 A GENTLEMAN FROM GASCONY. the balcony. The song of his own sunny province, the very song he had sung himself as he rode away from the dismantled chateau of his ancestors! ‘These singers must be his countrymen. He started to hail them, and then drew back at the sudden thought of his impov- erished condition. He had not a maravédi to offer them a glass of wine. “They sing well,” said a voice at his elbow, and turning with a start he saw Madame Goujon, who had approached noiselessly during the music. “It is a song of my own country,” he answered. “They are Gascons! Ah! what would I not give to press their honest hands!” “And why not?” The chevalier did not answer. A shadow passed over his face, which quick-witted Rose was not slow to seize and understand the meaning of. “Bid them in, Monsieur le Chevalier,” she said, hurriedly. “I will order the wine for their entertain- ment. Oh! let monsieur have no scruple,” she added, as Raoul hesitated. “Monsieur will repay me. I am not so avaricious as my husband!” Although his conscience pricked him considerably for the deception he was practising, after a moment’s thought the chevalier decided to follow Madame Gou- jon’s suggestion, and signalled the singers to come up. After all, in the prosperous days Dame Fortune assuredly had in store for him, the little woman would not suffer for her present kindness, In a very few minutes the band of singers entered the room, and instantly Raoul was among them, press- ing their hands with all a Gascon’s enthusiasm. “Enter! enter! my good friends, my dear comrades! iam Raoul de Puycadére, Puycadére the Gascon, your (ORME COS (E(@) im eS)