9.“Alas！my child，”replied Monsieur Passot，（for that was the name of the unhappy man，）“it is impossible for me to take advantage of the offer which you are so kind as to make me.I am unfortunately obliged to fly，and to conceal myself，far from the haunts of my fellow-creatures；but I should rather prefer to perish here than to end my days on a scaffold.I can only thank you for your kindness，but I can not accept of it；bring me a little bread，it is all that I ask；and promise me faithfully that you will not mention，even to your father，your having seen me.”
10.Toinette did all in her power to persuade Monsieur Passot to alter his determination，and to confide in her father；but，finding that she could not succeed，she promised to keep his secret inviolable；and “do not think，”said she，“that I will abandon you here without assistance.Oh，no！I will procure you something to eat now，and will find the means to return to you every day，and to bring you some bread.No one shall know of your existence；and，for myself，I will die rather than betray you.”When she had gone，Monsieur Passot found himself much more composed and tranquil：he was thankful for the interest which Toinette had taken in his welfare，and he considered it as an especial interference of Providence to preserve his life.He could now keep himself concealed as long as he chose，since his little friend had undertaken to provide him with food；and he hoped to be enabled，by this means，to elude his enemies till his name should be forgotten，or a new order of things in France would permit his return to his home and his family.
11.In a few minutes，Toinette was again by his side，with some bread and a little cup of milk，from which the poor sufferer eagerly drank，and seemed much refreshed.Toinette would have been very glad to learn the particulars of Monsieur Passot‘s escape；but，fearing that her father would miss her，and inquire the cause of her absence，she took a reluctant leave of her protege；and hastening to the well，she took up her pitcher，and returned to the mill，rejoicing to have hadit in her power thus to save the life of a fellow-creature.
12.The little girl，faithful to her promise，continued to supply her pensioner，at stated periods，with bread，to which she occasionally added some vegetables or cheese.Monsieur Passot took great pleasure in her intelligent and child-like conversation；and，on her part，Toinette was so pleased with her friend，that she was never in a hurry to leave him and return to the mill.At the same time，she was grieved to see that he had no other covering or shelter than the wretched hovel where he lay，and which was，in fact，more fit to be the retreat of a wild beast than that of a human being.In vain she renewed，from time to time，her entreaties that he would confide in the protection of her father，and remove to the mill.He was too generous to endanger，by his presence，the safety of honest Maturin；and preferred enduring all the horrors of his present situation，from a conviction that to their kindness he was chiefly indebted for concealment and security.
13.One morning，when Toinette and he were deeply engaged in conversation，they were alarmed by the approach of a third person，who suddenly started from among the trees，and struck them with terror by his presence.Toinette，however，soon recovered her confidence when she recognized her father；and，turning to Monsieur Passot，she entreated him not to suspect her of having told Maturin of his living in the forest.“Ask himself，”said the little girl eagerly，“and he will assure you that I have not.”Her father，thus appealed to，replied，“It is very true，my child，that you never have；but how could you suppose that I could be so blind as not to observe your frequent absence，or that I should not feel uneasy when I was at home alone，while you have been here chatting with Monsieur？The quantities of bread，too，which you have been in the habit of carrying off，have excited my suspicions；but，Toinette，how could you think of permitting this gentleman to remain here so long in the midst of somuch misery？Had you told me of his being here，I would at once have found him an equally safe，and more commodious retreat.”
14.“My good sir，”interrupted Monsieur Passot，with great emotion，“it was not the fault of this dear child，for I have uniformly resisted her entreaties to take me to your home，through my fear of bringing you into difficulty or danger.I have suffered so much，that I would not willingly bring another into similar trouble.”“If that be all your fear，”replied the miller，with a smile，“you may set your mind at rest.I shall run no risks；and even if I should，I have，at most，but one life to lose，and that I shall gladly endanger to serve my suffering fellow-creatures.No；you must not stay here.This evening，at dusk，Toinette shall come for you.A few days ago，I was obliged to dismiss my assistant，who was an idle fellow.You shall take his place，and do his work when you are able；but we will first rid you of this long beard，which would make you look more like a Capuchin friar than a miller’s man；and having arrayed you in one of my dresses，all suspicion will be lulled，and，by the assistance of Providence，all will go on securely and well.But I must leave you now；farewell，Monsieur，for the present，and at night-fall I shall expect to see you at my mill.”So saying，Maturin took the hand of his daughter，and both went away together，leaving the heart of Monsieur Passot swelling with gratitude to heaven，and to them as the agents of its bounty.