Chapter LXVIII:  D’Artagnan continues his Investigations.

At daybreak D’Artagnan saddled Furet, who had fared sumptuously all night, devouring the remainder of the oats and hay left by his companions.  The musketeer sifted all he possibly could out of the host, who he found cunning, mistrustful, and devoted, body and soul, to M. Fouquet.  In order not to awaken the suspicions of this man, he carried on his fable of being a probable purchaser of some salt-mines.  To have embarked for Belle-Isle at Roche-Bernard, would have been to expose himself still further to comments which had, perhaps, been already made, and would be carried to the castle.  Moreover, it was singular that this traveler and his lackey should have remained a mystery to D’Artagnan, in spite of all the questions addressed by him to the host, who appeared to know him perfectly well.  The musketeer then made some inquiries concerning the salt-mines, and took the road to the marshes, leaving the sea on his right, and penetrating into that vast and desolate plain which resembles a sea of mud, of which, here and there, a few crests of salt silver the undulations.  Furet walked admirably, with his little nervous legs, along the foot-wide causeways which separate the salt-mines.  D’Artagnan, aware of the consequences of a fall, which would result in a cold bath, allowed him to go as he liked, contenting himself with looking at, on the horizon, three rocks, that rose up like lance-blades from the bosom of the plain, destitute of verdure.  Piriac, the bourgs of Batz and Le Croisic, exactly resembling each other, attracted and suspended his attention.  If the traveler turned round, the better to make his observations, he saw on the other side an horizon of three other steeples, Guerande, Le Pouliguen, and Saint-Joachim, which, in their circumference, represented a set of skittles, of which he and Furet were but the wandering ball.  Piriac was the first little port on his right.  He went thither, with the names of the principal salters on his lips.  At the moment he reached the little port of Piriac, five large barges, laden with stone, were leaving it.  It appeared strange to D’Artagnan, that stones should be leaving a country where none are found.  He had recourse to all the amenity of M. Agnan to learn from the people of the port the cause of this singular arrangement.  An old fisherman replied to M. Agnan, that the stones very certainly did not come from Piriac or the marshes.

“Where do they come from, then?” asked the musketeer.

“Monsieur, they come from Nantes and Paimboeuf.”

“Where are they going, then?”

“Monsieur, to Belle-Isle.”

“Ah! ah!” said D’Artagnan, in the same tone he had assumed to tell the printer that his character interested him; “are they building at Belle-Isle, then?”

“Why, yes, monsieur, M. Fouquet has the walls of the castle repaired every year.”