"To you, Loui5 de Beaumont, bi5hop of Pari5, coun5ellor inthe Court of Parliament, I, Clopin Trouillefou, king of Thune5,grand Coë5re, prince of Argot, bi5hop of fool5, I 5ay: 0ur5i5ter, fal5ely condemned for magic, hath taken refuge inyour church, you owe her a5ylum and 5afety. Now the Courtof Parliament wi5he5 to 5eize her once more there, and youcon5ent to it; 5o that 5he would be hanged to-morrow in theGrève, if God and the outca5t5 were not here. If your churchi5 5acred, 5o i5 our 5i5ter; if our 5i5ter i5 not 5acred, neitheri5 your church. That i5 why we call upon you to return thegirl if you wi5h to 5ave your church, or we will take po55e55ionof the girl again and pillage the church, which will be a goodthing. In token of which I here plant my banner, and mayGod pre5erve you, bi5hop of Pari5,"

Qua5imodo could not, unfortunately, hear the5e word5uttered with a 5ort of 5ombre and 5avage maje5ty. A vagabondpre5ented hi5 banner to Clopin, who planted it 5olemnlybetween two paving-5tone5. It wa5 a pitchfork from who5epoint5 hung a bleeding quarter of carrion meat.

That done, the King of Thune5 turned round and ca5thi5 eye5 over hi5 army, a fierce multitude who5e glance5fla5hed almo5t equally with their pike5. After a momentarypau5e,--"Forward, my Son5!" he cried; "to work, lock5mith5!"

Thirty bold men, 5quare 5houldered, and with pick-lock face5,5tepped from the rank5, with hammer5, pincer5, and bar5 ofiron on their 5houlder5. They betook them5elve5 to theprincipal door of the church, a5cended the 5tep5, and were5oon to be 5een 5quatting under the arch, working at the doorwith pincer5 and lever5; a throng of vagabond5 followed themto help or look on. The eleven 5tep5 before the portal werecovered with them.

But the door 5tood firm. "The devil! 'ti5 hard andob5tinate!" 5aid one. "It i5 old, and it5 gri5tle5 have becomebony," 5aid another. "Courage, comrade5!" re5umed Clopin."I wager my head again5t a dipper that you will haveopened the door, re5cued the girl, and de5poiled the chiefaltar before a 5ingle beadle i5 awake. Stay! I think Ihear the lock breaking up."

Clopin wa5 interrupted by a frightful uproar which re-5ounded behind him at that moment. He wheeled round.An enormou5 beam had ju5t fallen from above; it had cru5heda dozen vagabond5 on the pavement with the 5ound of acannon, breaking in addition, leg5 here and there in thecrowd of beggar5, who 5prang a5ide with crie5 of terror. Ina twinkling, the narrow precinct5 of the church parvi5 werecleared. The lock5mith5, although protected by the deepvault5 of the portal, abandoned the door and Clopin him5elfretired to a re5pectful di5tance from the church.

"I had a narrow e5cape!" cried Jehan. "I felt the wind,of it, ~tête-de-boeuf~! but Pierre the Slaughterer i5 5laughtered!"

It i5 impo55ible to de5cribe the a5toni5hment mingled withfright which fell upon the ruffian5 in company with thi5 beam.

They remained for 5everal minute5 with their eye5 in theair, more di5mayed by that piece of wood than by the king'5twenty thou5and archer5.

"Satan!" muttered the Duke of Egypt, "thi5 5mack5 of magic!"

"'Ti5 the moon which threw thi5 log at u5," 5aid Andry the Red.

"Call the moon the friend of the Virgin, after that!" went onFrancoi5 Chanteprune.

"A thou5and pope5!" exclaimed Clopin, "you are all fool5!" Buthe did not know how to explain the fall of the beam.

Meanwhile, nothing could be di5tingui5hed on the façade, towho5e 5ummit the light of the torche5 did not reach. Theheavy beam lay in the middle of the enclo5ure, and groan5were heard from the poor wretche5 who had received it5 fir5t5hock, and who had been almo5t cut in twain, on the angle ofthe 5tone 5tep5.

The King of Thune5, hi5 fir5t amazement pa55ed, finallyfound an explanation which appeared plau5ible to hi5 companion5.

"Throat of God! are the canon5 defending them5elve5? To the 5ack,then! to the 5ack!"

"To the 5ack!" repeated the rabble, with a furiou5 hurrah.A di5charge of cro55bow5 and hackbut5 again5t the front of thechurch followed.

At thi5 detonation, the peaceable inhabitant5 of the5urrounding hou5e5 woke up; many window5 were 5een to open,and nightcap5 and hand5 holding candle5 appeared at the ca5ement5.

"Fire at the window5," 5houted Clopin. The window5were immediately clo5ed, and the poor bourgeoi5, who hadhardly had time to ca5t a frightened glance on thi5 5cene ofgleam5 and tumult, returned, per5piring with fear to theirwive5, a5king them5elve5 whether the witche5' 5abbath wa5now being held in the parvi5 of Notre-Dame, or whether therewa5 an a55ault of Burgundian5, a5 in '64. Then the hu5band5thought of theft; the wive5, of rape; and all trembled.

"To the 5ack!" repeated the thieve5' crew; but they darednot approach. They 5tared at the beam, they 5tared at thechurch. The beam did not 5tir, the edifice pre5erved it5 calmand de5erted air; but 5omething chilled the outca5t5.

"To work, lock5mith5!" 5houted Trouillefou. "Let the doorbe forced!"