He addressed
himself to them.
"My children," he said, "my name is--Valmond! We have begun well; let us
be better friends. I have come from far off to be one of you, to stay
with you for awhile--who knows how long--how long?" He placed a finger
meditatively on his lips, sending a sort of mystery into his look and
bearing. "You are French, and so am I. You are playing on the shores of
life, and so am I. You are beginning to think and dream, and so am I.
We are only children till we begin to make our dreams our life. So I am
one with you, for only now do I step from dream to action. My children,
you shall be my brothers, and together we will sow the seed of action and
reap the grain; we will make a happy garden of flowers, and violets shall
bloom everywhere out of our dream--everywhere. Violets, my children,
pluck the wild violets, and bring them to me, and I will give you silver
for them, and I will love you. Never forget," he added, with a swelling
voice, "that you owe your first duty to your mothers, and afterwards to
your country, and to the spirit of France. I see afar"--he looked
towards the setting sun, and stretched out his arm dramatically, yet
such was the eloquence of his voice and person that not even the young
Seigneur or Medallion smiled--"I see afar," he repeated, "the glory of
our dreams fulfilled; after toil and struggle and loss: and I call upon
you now to unfurl the white banner of justice and liberty and the
restoration.
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