CHAPTER x

nr»HE Cure was more than a little disappointed at
JL the way in which his pupil received the news that
his future was being provided for. He had thought
that the boy would be overjoyed, for he knew very
well that Jan was ambitious. But Jan only looked
rather thoughtful and grave; and when the Cure
eagerly persisted:
'My son, have you realized all this means? Your
training will be paid for by the kindest of ladies/
Jan's answer was made in a doubtful voice:
'Yes, I know . . « but what will she do for
Christophe?'
So the Cure did his best to explain that the Comtesse
de Berac had only been asked to help Jan because he
would enter the Church, whereas Christophe would
continue to work with his father.
That night Jan remained awake a long time, for
his heart as well as his mind was uneasy. In a dim,
childish way he perceived a great difference between
being an arrogant leader in games and this real and
very substantial advantage which had suddenly come
to him out of the blue, and the more he considered
it the more he felt troubled, so that his pleasure in
the contemplation of going to the Grand Seminaire
at Versailles was damped because nothing would
be done for his friend — thus he paid his first youthful
toll to affection.