his ministers listen to his plea and aid the Colonists in their extremity? There was one key upon which he knew he could play-the English had captured the French Colonies in America, and France had not yet recovered from the sting of defeat-the death of Montcalm and the fall of Quebec. England and France were rivals-commercial rivals-and there is no stronger food to whet warlike appetites than commercial greed. If England could be dispossessed of her colonies in America, it would be a sweet victory for France. But how could this aid be secured without embroiling the two nations in open warfare? This was the problem which Dr. Franklin faced, and some of its multiform phases were never absent from his mind during that long ride.

Franklin, throughout his life, which had now reached the allotted span of three-score and ten, had always been an inventive and constructive man. He also possessed that most valuable attribute, consecutivity-that faculty which intuitively, or by reasoning, discerns the relations between cause and effect and leads the possessor always to put, to use a homely simile, "the horse before the cart," instead of in a contrary position. In the ripeness of age, with his mental powers fully developed and ready for action, but with greatly impaired physical health, had come the time for concentration upon one object-and that, the securing of munitions of war in the shape of powder and guns, gold and silver for the army chest, privileges for the American privateers in French ports, loans of money for the extraordinary expenses of the Congress, and, as a last resort, men with valiant hearts and strong arms to cross the Atlantic and battle side by side with the American patriots to overthrow British supremacy in America.

Frances noticed her companion's preoccupation and contented herself with viewing the scenery, and the people whom they met. She found that she was much better acquainted with the French language than she had supposed, and was of real service to Dr. Franklin upon many occasions. Once, he remarked:

"I think I shall have to make you my private secretary, Miss Fentress-at least, until Mr. Shelby arrives." But he regretted the remark the moment it was made.

Sometimes, but seldom, Frances ventured to make inquiries about some object of interest. Then the doctor would awaken from his diplomatic dreams and, for an hour or more, would delight her with his pleasing conversation and common-sense philosophy.

When Paris was reached, Dr. Franklin secured accommodations at the Hotel Hamburg, where Silas Deane, one of the American Commissioners, was located, while lodgings for Frances were obtained at a pension near by. Dr. Franklin's first duty was to learn the whereabouts of Madame Raoul de Bressant. It took several days to discover that she was no longer in Paris, but had married a Monsieur Gustave Vaillarde and had gone to live at Geneva.

Did Frances wish to go to Geneva? was the question propounded by Dr. Franklin, and her answer was a decided negative. She had come to Paris only to be near Wilfrid. She was in a predicament, and so was Dr. Franklin; but he was not a man to selfishly try to rid himself of a charge which he had voluntarily assumed.

"Stay where you are for the present, my dear," he said, "until I get acquainted with one of these French dames, to whose motherly care I will commit you."

Then occurred one of those wonderful events, an

account of which would not seem out of place in an oriental romance. At Passy, a suburb of Paris, there was a superb estate which had been known for years as the Hotel Valentinois. There were two mansions, one much larger than the other, known respectively as the "Great House" and the "Little House." The owner of this estate was the Count de Chaumont.

To Franklin's inward surprise, which, however, he did not express outwardly, the count offered him the use of the Little House, with the express understanding that there should be no charge to Dr. Franklin or to the United States for the rent of house, furniture, food, or service. Some men would have been inquisitive and would have asked the count why he was so generous. Franklin kept his own counsel and thought the matter out for himself. He soon learned that the count was engaged in commercial ventures and large industrial enterprises. The United States needed ships and goods -the count had both for sale. Again, the count's business with the United States must be carried on with the connivance of the French government—although its ministers were not supposed to know officially what he was doing.

It occurred to Franklin that the count had shown extraordinary business sagacity in securing as his nextdoor neighbor-with whom he could be on the most intimate terms-an American ambassador who would have the ear of the ministry, and, through them, that of the king. The rent of a small house and the cost of maintaining it seemed a bagatelle compared with the financial advantages which might accrue to the owner from having an intermediary between himself and the

crown.

The location was particularly pleasing to Franklin.

The extensive grounds gave ample opportunity for needed physical exercise. It was near enough to the French court at Versailles for it to be easily reached, and far enough away to escape the daily gossip which occupied so much of the time of royalty and the nobility.

As soon as Franklin was domiciled in the Little House, he was anxious to proceed at once to Versailles and present his credentials to the Count de Vergennes, the French Minister of Foreign Affairs. He preferred this request to the Count de Chaumont, who had intended to introduce him at court on the twenty-third of December and again on the twenty-fourth.

"Be not impatient, my good doctor," said the count. "Wait a little while. These are days of rejoicing and festivity, and the court will give little attention to official business for a week to come. To-morrow will be Le Jour de Noël, what you call Christmas, and, if my memory be not at fault, the very day, one hundred and fifty-six years ago, upon which the Piligrims founded the colony-I mean the state-in which you were born. The day is always celebrated at Passy by a great gathering of the nobility and gentry of the neighborhood, and Paris. It has become universally known that you are here, and I begin to fear that even the Great House will not hold my guests to-morrow."

Then, the kind-hearted doctor thought of the Kentucky girl cooped up in the little pension in Paris, and he told the count the story of the lovers and how they had been separated by the fortunes of war.

"I will send a carriage for her," said the count. "My daughter will be happy to receive her as a guest, and she can remain with us until she is able to decide as to her future movements."

FF

CHAPTER IX

A STRING OF BEADS

RANCES found little comfort in her room at the pension. It was small and stuffy. Even with the window open there was little improvement in the atmosphere. To a young girl used to the green turf as a carpet and the broad dome of heaven for a roof, the situation soon became intolerable.

One evening after the early supper she ventured into the small garden, which was surrounded by a high brick wall. She had seen it from her window, but there had been too many occupants and she had not felt like making an extensive acquaintance, for Dr. Franklin told her that her stay there would be but temporary.

On the evening in question the little quadrangle was deserted. It was a fête day and the occupants of the pension were enjoying their holiday.

Frances loved flowers, and their beauty and perfume pleased and cheered her temporary exile. Where was Wilfrid? If he were with her, even this old-fashioned garden would become an Eden. She could only hope and pray for his safe return before her uncle discovered her whereabouts.

Thinking of her lover, she wandered about aimlessly, when her attention was attracted by a ladder leaning against the wall. She ascended it, and peering over the top, saw only a quiet street shaded by grand old trees