Exploring the Nexus of Geoecology,

Geography, Geoarcheology and

Geotourism: Advances and
Applications for Sustainable
Development in Environmental
Sciences and Agroforestry Research
Haroun Chenchouni
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Advances in Science, Technology & Innovation
IEREK Interdisciplinary Series for Sustainable Development

Haroun Chenchouni · Ezzoura Errami

Fernando Rocha · Luisa Sabato Editors

Exploring the Nexus

of Geoecology, Geography,
Geoarcheology
and Geotourism
Advances and Applications for Sustainable Development
in Environmental Sciences and Agroforestry Research
Proceedings of the 1st Springer Conference of the
Arabian Journal of Geosciences (CAJG-1), Tunisia 2018
Advances in Science, Technology & Innovation
IEREK Interdisciplinary Series for Sustainable
Development

Editorial Board Members

Hassan Abdalla
Md. Abdul Mannan
Chaham Alalouch
Sahar Attia
Sofia Natalia Boemi
Hocine Bougdah
Emmanuel Bozonnet
Luciano De Bonis
Dean Hawkes
Stella Kostopoulou
Yasser Mahgoub
Saleh Mesbah Elkaffas
Nabil Mohareb
Iman O. Gawad
Mieke Oostra
Gloria Pignatta
Anna Laura Pisello
Federica Rosso
Biswajeet Pradhan

Series editor
Mourad Amer
Advances in Science, Technology & Innovation (ASTI) is a series of peer-reviewed books
based on the best studies on emerging research that redefines existing disciplinary boundaries in
science, technology and innovation (STI) in order to develop integrated concepts for
sustainable development. The series is mainly based on the best research papers from various
IEREK and other international conferences, and is intended to promote the creation
and development of viable solutions for a sustainable future and a positive societal
transformation with the help of integrated and innovative science-based approaches. Offering
interdisciplinary coverage, the series presents innovative approaches and highlights how they
can best support both the economic and sustainable development for the welfare of all societies.
In particular, the series includes conceptual and empirical contributions from different
interrelated fields of science, technology and innovation that focus on providing practical
solutions to ensure food, water and energy security. It also presents new case studies offering
concrete examples of how to resolve sustainable urbanization and environmental issues. The
series is addressed to professionals in research and teaching, consultancies and industry, and
government and international organizations. Published in collaboration with IEREK, the ASTI
series will acquaint readers with essential new studies in STI for sustainable development.

More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/15883

Haroun Chenchouni • Ezzoura Errami
Fernando Rocha • Luisa Sabato
Editors

Exploring the Nexus

of Geoecology, Geography,
Geoarcheology
and Geotourism: Advances
and Applications
for Sustainable Development
in Environmental Sciences
and Agroforestry Research
Proceedings of the 1st Springer Conference
of the Arabian Journal of Geosciences
(CAJG-1), Tunisia 2018

123
Editors
Haroun Chenchouni Fernando Rocha
University of Tebessa Department of Geosciences
Tebessa, Algeria University of Aveiro
Aveiro, Portugal
Ezzoura Errami
Chouaïb Doukkali University Luisa Sabato
El Jadida, Morocco Università degli Studi di Bari
Aldo Moro
Bari, Italy

ISSN 2522-8714 ISSN 2522-8722 (electronic)

Advances in Science, Technology & Innovation
IEREK Interdisciplinary Series for Sustainable Development
ISBN 978-3-030-01682-1 ISBN 978-3-030-01683-8 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01683-8

Library of Congress Control Number: 2018958931

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019

This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is
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Preface

The valuation of ecosystem functions, goods and services of natural and cultural heritage and
bioresources of many regions worldwide is still little known. The Mediterranean, Middle East
region as well as the surrounding area are ecologically unique due to large differences in
climatic, geographical and geological features, which offer countries of these region weighty
socio-economic potentials in terms of fertile agricultural lands, rich natural resources and the
existence of strategic resources such as crude oil and natural gas. Environmental degradation is
one of the largest threats that are being looked at in the world today, and this specific region is
no exception. Inappropriate and adverse human practices and activities such as disturbances
land damage, different forms of pollutions, overpopulation, landfills, deforestation, combined
with natural drivers are the main causes of land degradation and ecosystem destruction. The
destruction of the environment ravages large parts of the planet, in particular, heavily popu-
lated and/or exploited regions, and thus threatens the existence of all species, including ours.
Furthermore, economic companies maximize their profits by ignoring environmental protec-
tion, while governments encourage investment rather than strict regulations. These challenging
issues hamper the social welfare and sustainable development, which depends on three pillars
of sustainability: ‘Environment’, ‘Society’ and ‘Economy’. Public environmental conscious-
ness, however, keeps increasing with the increase of major global problems such as climate
change. Nowadays, people are interested in learning more about new advances in environ-
mental research initiatives in view of the ever growing environmental degradation. If efforts of
scholar ecologists and environmental activists are considered to have paid off socially, the
state of the environment of our planet has not improved as looked-for, yet.
This proceedings volume is based on the accepted papers for both oral and poster pre-
sentations during the 1st Springer Conference of the Arabian Journal of Geosciences
(CAJG-1), Tunisia 2018. The book offers a broad range of new studies that discuss latest
advances in geoenvironmental sciences from diverse backgrounds including agroecology,
climate change, environmental biotechnology, biodiversity, geotourism and geoarchaeology.
It shares insights of experienced scholars from, but not limited to, research institutes in the
Mediterranean and Middle East region on how the understanding of ecological processes is the
key for improving practices in environment management and conservation. The main topics
include Environmental Assessment and Monitoring, Agroforestry Systems-Environment
interactions, Environmental Impacts, Restoration Ecology, Investigations and Applications of
Environmental Biotechnology, Spatiotemporal Patterns of Biodiversity, Paleobiology, and
Socio-economics of Geotourism and Archaeology. With its diverse topics and new results, this
volume enhances the understanding of environmental impacts and the state of restoration
ecology in natural and agricultural habitats as it maximizes the readers’ insights into emerging
environmental issues and challenges. It provides new insights and practical information based
on the latest data reconstructed from (i) various environmental assessments and monitoring of

v
vi Preface

agrisilvicultural systems, (ii) applications of environmental biotechnology in plant breeding

and plant-product valuation, (iii) spatiotemporal patterns of biodiversity and terrestrial pale-
obiodiversity, and (iv) socio-economic assessments of sustainable development involving
geotourism and archaeological sites.

Tebessa, Algeria Haroun Chenchouni

El Jadida, Morocco Ezzoura Errami
Aveiro, Portugal Fernando Rocha
Bari, Italy Luisa Sabato
July 2018
Acknowledgements

Our appreciation is extended to the authors of the papers for their hard and diligent work and
producing high-quality contributions. We would like to thank the reviewers of the papers for
their in-depth reviews and great efforts in improving the quality of the papers. Also, thanks are
extended to Amjad Kallel who supervised and handled the evaluation process, to Sahbi Moalla
who handled the submission and evaluation system for the ten conference proceedings
volumes, and the publishing staff of Springer headed by Nabil Khélifi, Senior Editor for
their efforts and contributions in completing this conference proceedings volume. All the
above-mentioned efforts were very important in making this book a success.

vii
About the 1st Springer Conference of the Arabian
Journal of Geosciences (CAJG-1), Tunisia 2018

The Arabian Journal of Geosciences (AJG) is a Springer journal publishing original articles on
the entire range of Earth sciences in partnership with the Saudi Society for Geosciences. The
journal focuses on, but not limited to, research themes which have regional significance to the
Middle East, the Euro-Mediterranean, Africa, and Asia. The journal receives on average 2000
submissions a year and accepts around 500 papers for publication in its 24 annual issues
(acceptance rate 25%). It enjoys the participation of an editorial team of 100 international
associate editors who generously help in evaluating and selecting the best papers.
In 2008, Prof. Abdullah Al-Amri, in close partnership with Springer, founded the Arabian
Journal of Geosciences (AJGS). In this year, the journal celebrates its tenth anniversary. On
this occasion and to mark this event, the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of the AJGS
Prof. Al-Amri organized in close collaboration with Springer the 1st Conference of the
Arabian Journal of Geosciences (1st CAJG) in Hammamet, Tunisia, from November 12 to 15,
2018 (www.cajg.org).

ix
x About the 1st Springer Conference of the Arabian Journal of Geosciences (CAJG-1), Tunisia 2018

The conference was an occasion to endorse the journal’s long-held reputation for bringing
together leading authors from the Middle East, the Euro-Mediterranean, Africa, and Asia who
work at the wide-ranging fields of Earth sciences. The conference covered all crosscutting
themes of Geosciences and focused principally on the following ten tracks:

• Track 1. Climate, paleoclimate, and paleoenvironmental changes

• Track 2. Geoinformatics, remote sensing, geodesy
• Track 3. Geoenvironmental engineering, geomechanics and geotechnics, geohazards
• Track 4. Geography, geoecology, geoarcheology, geotourism
• Track 5. Geophysics, seismology
• Track 6. Hydrology, hydrogeology, hydrochemistry
• Track 7. Mineralogy, geochemistry, petrology, and volcanology
• Track 8. Petroleum engineering and petroleum geochemistry
• Track 9. Sedimentology, stratigraphy, paleontology, geomorphology, pedology
• Track 10. Structural/petroleum/mining geology, geodynamics, marine geology

The dynamic four-day conference provided more than 450 attendees with opportunities to
share their latest unpublished findings and learn the newest geoscience studies. The event also
allowed attendees to meet and discuss with the journal’s editors and reviewers.
More than 950 short contributing papers to the conference were submitted by authors from
more than 70 countries. After a pre-conference peer review process by more than 500
reviewers, 700 papers were accepted. These papers were published as chapters in the
conference proceedings by Springer.
The conference proceedings consist of ten edited volumes, each edited by the following
group of Arabian Journal of Geosciences (AJGS) editors and other guest editors:

Volume 1. Patterns and Mechanisms of Climate, Paleoclimate, and Paleoenvironmental

Changes from Low-Latitude Regions

Zhihua Zhang (AJGS Editor): Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China

Nabil Khélifi (AJGS Editor): Earth Sciences Editorial Department, Springer, Heidelberg,
Germany
Abdelkader Mezghani (Guest Editor): Norwegian Meteorological Institute, Norway
Essam Heggy (Guest Editor): University of Southern California and NASA Jet Propulsion
Laboratory, Caltech, USA

Volume 2. Advances in Remote Sensing and Geo Informatics Applications

Hesham M. El-Askary (Guest Editor): Schmid College of Science and Technology at

Chapman University, USA
Saro Lee (AJGS Editor): Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, Daejeon,
South Korea
Essam Heggy (Guest Editor): University of Southern California and NASA Jet Propulsion
Laboratory, Caltech, USA
Biswajeet Pradhan (AJGS Editor): University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, Australia

Volume 3. Recent Advances in Geo-Environmental Engineering, Geomechanics and

Geotechnics, and Geohazards

Amjad Kallel (AJGS Editor): ENIS, University of Sfax, Tunisia

Zeynal Abiddin Erguler (AJGS Editor): Dumlupinar University, Kutahya, Turkey
Zhen-Dong Cui (AJGS Editor): China University of Mining and Technology,
Xuzhou, Jiangsu, China
Ali Karrech (AJGS Editor): The University of Western Australia, Australia
Murat Karakus (AJGS Editor): University of Adelaide, Australia
About the 1st Springer Conference of the Arabian Journal of Geosciences (CAJG-1), Tunisia 2018 xi

Pinnaduwa Kulatilake (AJGS Editor): Department of Materials Science and Engineering,

The University of Arizona, USA
Sanjay Kumar Shukla (AJGS Editor): School of Engineering, Edith Cowan University,
Perth, Australia

Volume 4. Exploring the Nexus of Geoecology, Geography, Geoarcheology, and

Geotourism: Advances and Applications for Sustainable Development in Environmental
Sciences and Agroforestry Research

Haroun Chenchouni (AJGS Editor): University of Tebessa, Algeria

Ezzoura Errami (Guest Editor): Chouaïb Doukkali University, El Jadida, Morocco
Fernando Rocha (Guest Editor): University of Aveiro, Portugal
Luisa Sabato (AJGS Editor): Università degli Studi di Bari “Aldo Moro”, Bari, Italy

Volume 5. On Significant Applications of Geophysical Methods

Narasimman Sundararajan (AJGS Editor): Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat, Oman

Mehdi Eshagh (AJGS Editor): University West, Trollhättan, Sweden
Hakim Saibi (AJGS Editor): United Arab Emirates University, Al-Ain, Abu Dhabi, UAE
Mustapha Meghraoui (AJGS Editor): Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
Mansour Al-Garni (AJGS Editor): King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Bernard Giroux (AJGS Editor): Centre Eau Terre Environnement, Québec, Canada

Volume 6. Advances in Sustainable and Environmental Hydrology, Hydrogeology,

Hydrochemistry and Water Resources

Helder I. Chaminé (AJGS Editor): School of Engineering—ISEP, Polytechnic of Porto,

Portugal
Maurizio Barbieri (AJGS Editor): University of Rome La Sapienza, Italy
Ozgur Kisi (AJGS Editor): Ilila State University, Tbilisi, Georgia
Mingjie Chen (AJGS Editor): Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat, Oman
Broder J. Merkel (AJGS Editor): TU Bergakademie Freiberg, Freiberg, Germany

Volume 7. Petrogenesis and Exploration of the Earth’s Interior

Domenico Doronzo (AJGS Editor): Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas, Spain

Emanuela Schingaro (AJGS Editor): Università degli Studi di Bari Aldo Moro—UniBa, Italy
John S. Armstrong-Altrin (AJGS Editor): The National Autonomous University of Mexico,
Mexico
Basem Zoheir (Guest Editor): Benha University, Egypt and University of Kiel, Germany

Volume 8. Advances in Petroleum Engineering and Petroleum Geochemistry

Santanu Banerjee (AJGS Editor): Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai, India
Reza Barati (AJGS Editor): The University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
Shirish Patil (Guest Editor): Saudi Aramco and King Fahd University of Petroleum and
Minerals, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia

Volume 9. Paleobiodiversity and Tectono-sedimentary Records in the Mediterranean

Tethys and Related Eastern Areas

Mabrouk Boughdiri (AJGS Editor): University of Carthage, Amilcar, Tunisia

Beatriz Bádenas (AJGS Editor): University of Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain
Paul Selden (AJGS Editor): University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
Etienne Jaillard (Guest Editor): Université Grenoble Alpes, France
Peter Bengtson (AJGS Editor): Universität Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
Bruno R. C. Granier (AJGS Editor): Université de Bretagne Occidentale, Brest, France
xii About the 1st Springer Conference of the Arabian Journal of Geosciences (CAJG-1), Tunisia 2018

Volume 10. The Structural Geology Contribution to the Africa-Eurasia Geology:

Basement and Reservoir Structure, Ore Mineralisation and Tectonic Modelling

Federico Rossetti (Guest Editor): Università Roma Tre, Roma, Italy

Ana Crespo Blanc (Guest Editor): University of Granada, Spain
Federica Riguzzi (Guest Editor): National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology, Roma,
Italy
Estelle Leroux (Guest Editor): IFREMER, Unité Géosciences Marines, Plouzané, France
Kosmas Pavlopoulos (Guest Editor): Paris Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, UAE
Olivier Bellier (Guest Editor): CEREGE, Aix-en-Provence, France
Vasilios Kapsimalis (Guest Editor): Institute of Oceanography, Hellenic Centre for Marine
Research, Anavyssos, Greece
About the Conference Steering Committee

General Chair
Abdullah Al-Amri: Founder and Editor-in-Chief of AJGS,
King Saud University, Saudi Arabia

Conference Supervisor
Nabil Khélifi: Senior Publishing Editor, Springer Middle East
and North African Program Springer, a part of Springer Nature,
Heidelberg, Germany

xiii
xiv About the Conference Steering Committee

Scientific Committee Chair

François Roure: Guest of Editorial Board of AJGS, IFP—
Energies Nouvelles, France

Walter D. Mooney: Guest of Editorial Board of AJGS,

US Geological Survey Western Region, USA

Local Organization Chair

Mabrouk Boughdiri: Associate Editor of AJGS, University of
Carthage, Bizerte, Tunisia
About the Conference Steering Committee xv

Evaluation Chair
Amjad Kallel: Assistant Editor of AJGS, ENIS, University of
Sfax, Tunisia

Publication Chair
Biswajeet Pradhan: Associate Editor of AJGS, University of
Technology Sydney, Sydney, Australia

Essam Heggy: Guest of Editorial Board of AJGS, University of

Southern California and NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory,
Caltech, USA
xvi About the Conference Steering Committee

Program Chair
Hakim Saibi: Associate Editor/Assistant Editor of AJGS,
United Arab Emirates University, Al-Ain, Abu Dhabi, UAE

Domenico Doronzo: Associate Editor/Assistant Editor of

AJGS, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas, Spain

Communication Chair
Mohamed Ksibi: Guest of Editorial Board of AJGS, ISBS,
University of Sfax, Tunisia
About the Conference Steering Committee xvii

English Language Advisory Committee

Abdelmajid Dammak: ENIS, University of Sfax, Tunisia

Chokri Khalaf: FMS, University of Sfax, Tunisia
Dhouha Mabrouk: FLSHS, University of Sfax, Tunisia
Mohamed Elbahi: ENIS, University of Sfax, Tunisia
Sami Shami: ENIS, University of Sfax, Tunisia
Yasmine Basha: FLSHS, University of Sfax, Tunisia

Conference Manager
Mohamed Sahbi Moalla: Coordinator of AJGS, ISET,
University of Sfax, Tunisia
Contents

Part I Keynote
Using Water Chemistry to Understand Ancient Maya Land
and Water Use Interactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Sheryl Luzzadder-Beach and Timothy Beach

Part II Environmental Assessment and Monitoring

of Agrisilvicultural Systems
Digital Diffusion for Inclusive Agroecosystems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Chandrashekhar Biradar, Jacques Wery, Fabian Löw, Khaled El-Shama,
Rajkumar Singh, Layal Atassi, Jalal Omari, Atef Swelam, Ashutosh Sarkar,
Mounir Louhaichi, Boubaker Dhehibi, Enrico Bonaiuti, Bao Le, Theib Oweis,
Yashpal Saharawat, Abdoul Aziz Niane, Ahmad Amri, Karan Nadagoudar,
Jawoo Koo, Xiangming Xiao, Hrishikesh Ballal, and M. H. Mehta
Climate and Territorial Suitability for the Vineyards Developed
Using GIS Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Matteo Gentilucci, Maurizio Barbieri, and Peter Burt
Projected Small-Scale Range Reductions of Cedrus atlantica Forests Due to
Climate Change at the Belezma National Park (Algeria) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Abdelkrim Arar, Slimane Tabet, Yacine Nouidjem, Rabah Bounar,
and Haroun Chenchouni
Sinuosity of Meandering Channels in Upper Krishna River Basin, India . . . . . . . . 21
Suchitra Pardeshi, Sudhakar Pardeshi, and Pallavi Kulkarni

Part III Environmental Impacts and Restoration Ecology

of Natural and Agricultural Habitats
An Assessment of Environmental Impact on Agriculture
in the Indus Delta Pakistan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Gohar Ali Mahar, and Nayyer Alam Zaigham
Conservation of Wetlands on Tunisian Islands: Kerkennah and Kuriat
Islands as a Case Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Khouloud Ben Charfi, Amjad Kallel, Thanos Giannakakis, and Imen Rais
Vegetation Analysis of Chott Tinsilt and Sebkhet Ezzemoul
(Two Ramsar Sites in Algeria) in Relation to Soil Proprieties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Adel Bezzalla, Moussa Houhamdi, and Haroun Chenchouni
Nabkha Morphometry and Properties of Aeolian Sediments
Around Native Plants in Kuwait . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Ali Al-Dousari, Modi Ahmed, Noor Al-Dousari, and Safaa Al-Awadhi

xix
xx Contents

The Ecological Role of Cornulalca aucheri (Amaranthaceae) in the Stabilization

of Degraded Sandy Soils in Kuwait: The Case Study of Liyah Area . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Modi M. Ahmed, Noor Al-Dousari, and Ali M. Al-Dousari
Orchard Understory Species Diversity in Relation to Orchard Age
and Soil Factors (in Ibadan, Southwestern Nigeria) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Olutoyin Adeola Fashae, Adeyemi Oludapo Olusola, Arioluwa Aribisala,
and Aishah Oyeniyi

Part IV Investigations and Applications in Environmental Biotechnology

Effect of Climatic Factors on Essential Oil Accumulation in Two Lamiaceae
Species from Algerian Semiarid Lands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Souad Mehalaine, and Haroun Chenchouni
A Biotechnological Method for Breeding Grapes Using in Vitro
Growth Stimulants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Abdulmalik Batukaev, Mukail Mukailov, Magomed Batukaev, Tatiana Minkina,
and Svetlana Sushkova
Effects of Inoculation with Rhizospheric Pseudomonas on Physiological
Responses in the Broad Bean (Vicia Faba) Grown Under Copper Stress . . . . . . . . 65
Boubaker Idder, Rachid Djibaoui, Abdelhakim Reguieg Yassaad El Hocine,
and Abdelhak Djoudi

Part V Spatiotemporal Patterns of Marine Biodiversity and Terrestrial

Paleobiodiversity
Arcellinida (Testate Lobose Amoebae) as Sensitive Bioindicators
of Arsenic Contamination in Lakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
R. Timothy Patterson, Nawaf A. Nasser, Braden R. B. Gregory, Melody J. Gavel,
Etienne Menard, Jennifer M. Galloway, and Helen M. Roe
Massive Molluscan Shell Accumulation on the Sea Side of Land Strips
of Amvrakikos Gulf Lagoon Complex (NW Greece) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Konstantinos Tsolakos, George Katselis, and John A. Theodorou
Vertical Distribution of Recent Benthic Ostracoda at Pullivasal
and Kurusadai Islands, Gulf of Mannar, Southeast Coast of India . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Kumari Deepali, Sithu G. D. Sridhar, Shaik M. Hussain,
and Subramanian Maniyarasan
Ecological Interactions of Miocene to Pleistocene Siwalik Bovids, Suids
and Giraffids Traced Out by Enamel Hypoplasia Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Abdul Majid Khan, Rana Manzoor Ahmad, and Ayesha Iqbal
Why Anthracotheroides had Faced Family Level Extinction: Enamel
Hypoplasia an Answer to the Question . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Rana Manzoor Ahmad, Abdul Majid Khan, Amtur Rafeh, Ayesha Iqbal,
and Ghazala Roohi

Part VI Socio-economics of Geotourism and Archaeology

Urban Accessibility and Its Economic Linkage Analysis: A Case Study
in Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei Region, China . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Chenxi Li
Contents xxi

An Assessment of Socio-economic Profile and Sustainable Development

in Tourism Potential Areas: A Case Study of Galiyat (Pakistan) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Razzaq Ahmed, Shaukat H. Khan, and Khalida Mahmood
Archaeology and Archaeometry of Ceramics of the Roman City of Thaenae
(Tunisia): Between Inland Roman Africa and the Mediterranean Basin . . . . . . . . 103
Rémi Rêve, Jean-Paul Ambrosi, Claudio Capelli, Michel Bonifay,
and Abdelhamid Barkaoui
“Giallo Antico” in Roman Architecture of Lombardy: A Preliminary
Survey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Roberto Bugini, Luisa Folli, and Romina Marchisio
About the Editors

Dr. Haroun Chenchouni is Senior Lecturer and Research

Ecologist in The Department of Natural and Life Sciences at The
University of Tebessa (Algeria). He teaches Forest Ecology, Soil
Ecology, Biostatistics and Ecological modelling. He graduated
as an Engineer in Plant Ecology and Forest Ecosystems from the
Department of Biological Sciences (University of Batna, Alge-
ria). He holds an M.Sc. in Dryland Ecology from the University
of Ouargla (Algeria) and a Doctoral Degree in Ecology from the
University of Batna. His research interests are fairly broad, but
revolve around biological interactions and community ecology
of arid and semiarid lands of North African ecosystems. He is
using statistical modelling approaches to understand how natural
environments and anthropogenic perturbations affect biological
interactions, shape trends in population dynamics and influence
community diversity. He has published more than 50 papers in
international journals, six proceedings in international confer-
ences and two books. He is editor and/or editorial board member
of many international journals. In 2017, he joined the AJGS as an
Associate Editor responsible for evaluating submissions in the
fields of Biogeosciences, Geoecology, Climate Change, Plant
and Soil Science, Agricultural and Forest Environment, and
Environmental Science.

Prof. Dr. Ezzoura Errami is a Moroccan geoscientist with

more than 12 years of activities at the continental and interna-
tional levels, during which she has been actively involved in
bilateral cooperation with many international professional
organizations of Earth sciences. She is currently working as a
Full Professor at the Geology Department of Chouaïb Doukkali
University in Morocco. There, she has also achieved in 2001 her
Ph.D. project in collaboration with Ruprecht Karls University in
Germany. Her research focuses on petrology, geochemistry,
structural geology, geoheritage, geotourism, geoeducation,
sustainable development and gender-related studies in geo-
sciences. She is the author and co-author of many scientific
papers, conferences papers, books, reports and guidebooks. She
has chaired many organizing committees and/or scientific com-
mittees of international scientific events. She serves as AAWG
assistant general secretary, president and AGN and DESAME
coordinator, IUGS councillor, ArabU vice president, CIFEG
Managing Board member and IAPG Africa coordinator.

xxiii
xxiv About the Editors

Prof. Fernando Rocha is born in Lisbon on 7 January 1956.

He achieved degree in Geology from the University of Lisbon,
in 1984; Ph.D. in Geosciences (Geology) from the University
of Aveiro, in 1994; and D.Sc. (Habilitation) in Geosciences
(Clay Science) from the University of Aveiro, in 2000. He is
Full Professor (Mineral Resources, Geosciences Department)
since 1 August 2002 and Director of GEOBIOTEC Research
Centre since 2007. He has played several positions at the
University of Aveiro, including Head of the Department of
Geosciences (1998–2002, 2011–2015), Pro-Rector (infras-
tructures and Campus management, 2003–2007) and
Vice-Rector (research, innovation and technology transfer,
2008–2010). After a brief passage (1984/85) by the private
sector of public works as Engineering Geologist, he developed
academic career at the University of Aveiro since 1986, with
scientific and pedagogical activity in the fields of mineral
resources, marine and coastal geology, and medical and envi-
ronmental geology.

Dr. Luisa Sabato is Associate Professor of Stratigraphy and

Sedimentology at the University of Bari (Italy) and currently is
the President of the Master degree in Geological Sciences.
She is tutor of several Ph.D. students and teaches Geology
at the degree courses in Geological Sciences, Natural Sciences,
Environmental Sciences, Sciences and management of mar-
itime activities.
She is in the Management Board of the GeoSed (Italian
Association for Sedimentary Geology) and SGI (Italian Geol-
ogy Society).
She has chaired many scientific national and international
geological meetings and organized national and international
geological Congresses and field trips. She participated also as
coordinator to projects regarding sedimentary geology and
geosites, and is author and co-author of many scientific papers,
geological maps and field trip guidebooks.
Her main research fields regard sedimentary geology, with
particular attention to the facies analysis of continental and
shallow marine systems. Other topics deal with problems of
fluvial dynamics and human impact in alluvial and coastal
plains. She also deals with geological mapping within the
CARG Project (promoted by the Geological Survey of Italy)
and with the study of geological heritage.
 Part I
Keynote
 Using Water Chemistry to Understand
Ancient Maya Land and Water Use
Interactions
Sheryl Luzzadder-Beach and Timothy Beach
Abstract
A major goal of Geoarchaeology is to understand
complex societies and their relationship with the envi-
ronment. The Ancient Maya encountered numerous
environmental challenges to live in the tropical landscape
of Mesoamerica. This research was intended to provide
insight into Ancient Maya Collapse and Resilience, and
provide environmental models for society now and in the
future. Here we focused on using geochemistry, with
special attention to water, as a tool for geoarchaeological
understanding of ancient Maya land and water use
potentials.
Keywords




Geoarchaeology Geochemistry Water resources
Mesoamerica Ancient Maya
1 Introduction
This paper synthesized and presented findings on ancient
Maya land and water management in perennial wetlands of
the Maya Lowlands (Beach et al. 2015a, b; Luzzadder-Beach
et al. 2012; Luzzadder-Beach and Beach 2008, 2009). We
presented prior background, then focused on regional studies
of water chemistry in the Three Rivers region of North-
western Belize, comparing surface and ground water results,
and wetland results. These watersheds were studied in the
context of Ancient Maya land and water use, including
wetland field sites we have studied in Northwestern Belize.
The focus of our geoarchaeological investigations was
centered on the Programme for Belize Rio Bravo Conser-
vation and Management Area, and in the Maya Research
S. Luzzadder-Beach (&)
T. Beach
The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
e-mail: slbeach@austin.utexas.edu
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019
H. Chenchouni et al. (eds.), Exploring the Nexus of Geoecology, Geography, Geoarcheology and Geotourism: Advances and Applications for Sustainable
Development in Environmental Sciences and Agroforestry Research, Advances in Science, Technology & Innovation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01683-8_1
Program Blue Creek Study Area (Beach et al. 2015a;
Luzzadder-Beach and Beach 2009).
It is also becoming clearer that wetland agriculture was
far more extensive than previously known in Northwestern
Belize, calling for more mapping, exploration, and ground
validation of remote sensing results. In addition to our
geochemical investigations, we have taken up this geospatial
challenge of testing hypotheses about the extent of Ancient
Maya agriculture and other land and water use impacts on
the environment through a campaign of airborne LiDAR
mapping of the region beginning in 2016.
2 Settings and Methods
The geographic setting of this research is in Northwestern
Belize, Central America. Between 1993 and 2018 we have
conducted hydrologic and geomorphic studies of the Three
Rivers Region of Belize, to understand ancient Maya land
and water use (Beach et al. 2015a, b; Luzzadder-Beach et al.
2012; Luzzadder-Beach and Beach 2008, 2009). The Three
Rivers include the Rio Bravo, the Rio Azul, and the Booth’s
River watersheds, draining the La Lucha and Rio Bravo
escarpments. This region is on the normally faulted limestone
platform of the southern Yucatan Peninsula. In the course of
our field work from 2000 to 2018, we have excavated scores
of trenches, and collected hundreds of soil and water chem-
istry samples thus far. This presentation will focus on syn-
thesizing the hydrologic and water chemistry portions of the
fieldwork (Beach et al. 2015a, b; Luzzadder-Beach et al.
2012; Luzzadder-Beach and Beach 2008, 2009) and their
relationship to other geoarchaeological results for the area.
Our analytical methods have been determining parallel
lines of proxy evidence at multiple spatial scales. These
methods include excavation to understand soil, geomor-
phological, and archaeological stratigraphy. We have also
engaged in over 2 decades of water quality monitoring to
establish the regional waters’ geochemical background and
links to geologic parent materials. Other lines of evidence
3
4 S. Luzzadder-Beach and T. Beach
include sampling artifacts and ecofacts that indicate past
environments and land use adaptations (e.g., soil chemistry
and physics, water chemistry, pollen, phytoliths, carbon
dating of samples, micromorphology, and macrobotanicals).
The spatial extent of these findings was measured using
surface and aerial survey, and remote sensing imagery
analysis.
3 Results
3.1 Water Quality Results
Upland wetland sites including springs and canals show
major geochemical differences from lowland or coastal plain
wetland field sites. This result mirrors the water quality
differences in the upland versus lowland portions of the
Three Rivers watersheds. The results are starkly different in
mineral components such as gypsum. This finding supports
an argument for anthropogenic origins for the rectilinear
wetland field patterns across a broad range of geomorphic
and hydrologic conditions in Central America (Beach et al.
2015a, b; Luzzadder-Beach and Beach 2008, 2009). The key
result is that SO4 and Ca are at or near saturation in coastal
plain wetland, surface water, and ground water samples, and
not so in upland surface and ground water samples (Beach
et al. 2015a; Luzzadder-Beach and Beach 2008, 2009).
Other cations and anions show similar magnitudes of con-
centration differences connected with location. We also
observed an elevational break point in the gypsum saturation
in the Rio Bravo itself, significantly increasing downstream
from the Rio Bravo escarpment, indicating a potential
change in groundwater chemistry contributions.
4 Discussion
Water chemistry matters in both geomorphic and human
contexts. Water chemistry can be a factor in soil and wetland
formation processes (Luzzadder-Beach and Beach 2009).
Domestic water consumption and use are influenced by
water quality, and. water chemistry imposes potential agri-
cultural limitations (Luzzadder-Beach and Beach 2008). The
mineral components of water provide a window on under-
lying geology and hydrologic connectivity. When these
factors are considered together at the broadest scale, spatial
variation in water chemistry across a region influences the
geographies of ecology and human land and water use
potentials (Beach et al. 2015a, b; Luzzadder-Beach et al.
2012; Luzzadder-Beach and Beach 2008, 2009).
5 Conclusion
Water chemistry is a major influence on the patterns of land
and water use of the ancient Maya of Central America
(Beach et al. 2015a, b; Luzzadder-Beach et al. 2012;
Luzzadder-Beach and Beach 2008, 2009). While archaeo-
logical settlement models of the past have considered
amount and accessibility of water as important variables, few
have considered the quality of that water as a factor. While it
is true that the water in any given river is fleeting, surface
water mineral characteristics, and especially the geochem-
istry of groundwater bodies, provide a window on the
long-term influence of underlying geology on water
resources. We can therefore consider water quality con-
nected to those mineral inputs or components that change
less over human generations, and typically over much longer
geologic time frames. These provide insights into the pos-
sibilities and limitations of land and water use for ancient
human populations (Luzzadder-Beach and Beach 2008), and
lessons from the past to guide modern and future societies
confronting similar hydrologic challenges, going forward.
References
Beach, T., Luzzadder-Beach, S., Krause, S., Walling, S., Dunning, N.,
Flood, J., Guderjan, T., Valdez, F.: ‘Mayacene’ Floodplain and
wetland formation in the Rio Bravo watershed of northwestern
Belize. The Holocene 25(10), 1612–1626 (2015a)
Beach, T., Luzzadder-Beach, S., Guderjan, T., Krause, S.: The floating
gardens of Chan Cahal: soils, water, and human interactions. Catena
132, 151–164 (2015b)
Luzzadder-Beach, S., Beach, T.: Water chemistry constraints and
possibilities for ancient and contemporary Maya wetlands. J. Eth-
nobiol. 28(2), 211–230 (2008)
Luzzadder-Beach, S., Beach, T.: Arising from the wetlands: mecha-
nisms and chronology of landscape aggradation in the northern
coastal plain of Belize. Ann. Assoc. Am. Geogr. 99(1), 1–26 (2009)
Luzzadder-Beach, S., Beach, T., Dunning, N.: Wetland fields as mirrors
of drought and the Maya abandonment. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. 109,
3646–3651 (2012)
 Part II
Environmental Assessment and Monitoring
of Agrisilvicultural Systems
 Digital Diffusion for Inclusive
Agroecosystems

Chandrashekhar Biradar, Jacques Wery, Fabian Löw, Khaled El-Shama,

Rajkumar Singh, Layal Atassi, Jalal Omari, Atef Swelam,
Ashutosh Sarkar, Mounir Louhaichi, Boubaker Dhehibi,
Enrico Bonaiuti, Bao Le, Theib Oweis, Yashpal Saharawat,
Abdoul Aziz Niane, Ahmad Amri, Karan Nadagoudar, Jawoo Koo,
Xiangming Xiao, Hrishikesh Ballal, and M. H. Mehta

Abstract services and risk management. Recent advances in geoin-

The technological advancements in agriculture have
resulted in higher yields but lower ecological efficiency
and nutritional value. Little innovations in later sectors such
as integrating ecological functions in the production
systems have crippled our agro-ecosystems to meet the
ever-growing demands. The digitization of the agro-
ecosystems has become the most essential entry point for
any large scale sustainable developmental entities whether
it is, crop diversification, sustainable intensification, input
use efficiency, agronomic practices, to restoring ecosystem
C. Biradar (&)
J. Wery
F. Löw
K. El-Shama
L. Atassi

J. Omari
A. Swelam
International Center for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas
(ICARDA), Cairo, Egypt
e-mail: c.biradar@cgiar.org
formatics technology and big-data analytics enabled the
diffusion of ecological functions in farm production to
achieve the desired return (production follows functions).
The overarching goal of the ongoing effort was to build an
integrated farming system by leveraging technological
diffusion with sound ecological functions to design an
‘inclusive agro-ecosystem’ for sustainable development.
Meta-analytics of farming systems dynamics in spatial
domains help quantifying changes, trajectories and drivers
under changing climate, demography and degradation
process to target site specific developmental interventions
and scaling the proven technologies, such as intensification
of food legumes in rice fallows, adoption of conservation
agriculture, quantification of yield gaps, land/water pro-
ductivity and transboundary cooperation.

R. Singh
A. Sarkar Keywords

ICARDA, New Delhi, India Inclusive agroecosystems Digital diffusion
A. A. Niane Ecological intensification Big-data Scaling
ICARDA, Beirut, Lebanon
A. Amri
ICARDA, Rabat, Morocco
M. Louhaichi
B. Dhehibi
E. Bonaiuti
B. Le
T. Oweis
1 Introduction
ICARDA, Amman, Jordan
Y. Saharawat
Dry lands host an enormous variety of biophysical envi-
ICARDA, Kabul, Afghanistan ronments with extremely contrasting socio-economic and
K. Nadagoudar
demographic conditions. This complexity leads to a wide
Data Grokr, Bengaluru, India variability in agricultural functions and productivity across
J. Koo
spatio-temporal scales. Therefore, there is a definite need for
International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington, an ecosystem-based approach for better managing natural
DC, USA resources to improve productivity in a sustainable way that
X. Xiao integrates three main goals—environmental health, eco-
University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA nomic profitability, and social equity. Enormous efforts are
H. Ballal underway to gather data and information on agricultural
Geodesign Hub, Ranelagh, Ireland production and related aspects at various scales (http://
M. H. Mehta bigdata.cgiar.org/). There are hundreds of data, tools, apps
Indian Council of Food and Agriculture, New Delhi, India

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 7

H. Chenchouni et al. (eds.), Exploring the Nexus of Geoecology, Geography, Geoarcheology and Geotourism: Advances and Applications for Sustainable
Development in Environmental Sciences and Agroforestry Research, Advances in Science, Technology & Innovation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01683-8_2
8 C. Biradar et al.
and much knowledge available for the increasing produc-
tivity but in silos, often without much focus on the ecolog-
ical functions. There is need for meta-analysis of the best
practices with diffusion of ecological functions for designing
demand-driven, location-based sustainable agro-ecosystems
for resilient livelihood in dry areas.
2 Approach
The dry areas represent a wide agro-biodiversity and the
origin of climate resilient crops. However, in the last few
decades, the productivity was a major driver rather than
functional systems which resulted in the loss of agro-
biodiversity in the farming systems. Production follows
function and functional agricultural systems are by far more
productive and sustainable than dysfunctional systems such
as few commodity oriented or mono-cropping systems over
long term. This requires dramatic transformational changes
from mono systems to multi-cropping systems and re-design
of the present agricultural landscape with functional metrics.
This entails the systematic quantification of the agricultural
production systems and farm analytics at multiple scale(s)
with a wide array of data sources to design science-based
innovative strategies and principles for inclusive multifunc-
tional agro-ecosystems that are both sustained by nature and
sustainable in their nature (Tittonell 2014). The effective use
of integrated data in geospatial domains help develop
ecological-intensification design eco-zones with location
specific crops/varieties, crop sequence, rotation, intensity and
crop water productivity (Biradar et al. 2009; Low et al. 2017)
under a variable and uncertain climate. Such ecologically
balanced agricultural production systems (agro-ecosystems)
contribute to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs).
3 Use Cases
Several ongoing efforts are made by leveraging the big-data
analytics to build use-cases, quantify the agricultural
dynamics and understand the variability and drivers for
sustainable production systems. Project based site specific
studies have been undertaken in different agro-ecologies
across the dry areas (http://geoagro.icarda.org/); such as
intensification of food legumes in rice fallows in South Asia,
adoption of conservation agriculture practices in North
Africa, quantification of yield gaps and land degradation in
central Asia, trans-boundary land/water productivity at river
basins. Here we presented one use-case on ‘sustainable
intensification of the rice fallows in India as an example and
other use-cases can be found in the dedicated portal (http://
geoagro.icarda.org/intensification).
3.1 Sustainable Intensification of Rice Fallows
As agricultural production, supply-demand gap continues to
rise, the total arable land area is not expected to increase
significantly, and future increase of agricultural production
will depend more upon sustainable intensification of crop
fallows. One such intensification opportunity lies in the use of
rice fallows. At present, nearly *11 million ha rice-fallows
are left unproductive. Such large-scale agricultural intensifi-
cation needs up-to-date information on the dynamics of the
rice-based production systems, farm typology, crop and
variety specific suitable areas, natural resource base and value
chains. Such requirements have led to the development of
digital agricultural platform designed to help intensification
and crop diversification in crop fallows with food legumes.
The digital interactive platform help analyze the farming
systems, patterns, dynamics of the crop fallows, length of
fallows duration, the start and end of the fallow periods, their
seasonality, cropping intensity, etc. helping target sustainable
intensification of the legumes crops in the rice fallows with
multiple benefits to farmers as well the environment (Fig. 1).
4 Towards Restoring Lost Agro-Ecosystems
Loss of soil health coupled with increasing temperature and
water scarcity remain key factors for determining sustainable
agricultural productivity and the agri-food systems future.
Agriculture production at present relies solely on few crops
predominantly under monocultures of industrial agriculture.
However, there are still many traditional farming systems
with wide array of practices and production functions, which
supports the resilience of agro-ecosystems (Altieri et al. 2015;
Mehta 2017). The diversified agro-ecosystems is found to be
more productive, helps in bridging the yield gaps, more
sustainable and resilient to extreme climate events (Astier
et al. 2012; Gaba et al. 2015; Low et al. 2018). A regular,
accurate and cost effective spatial monitoring of rice-based
production systems with satellite data made it feasible to
target specific legume intensification. It provides spatially
explicit information retrieval about crop productivity, pattern,
inter and intra seasonal as well as farm variability which helps
develop integrated agro-ecosystems. Such principles need to
be embedded in various farm practices and agricultural
development strategies, where each one has different effects
on productivity, stability and resiliency within the farm sys-
tem. The digital technology would play key role in an effec-
tive diffusion of sustainable agro-ecosystems and targeting a
wider and faster adaptation to changing climate and demog-
raphy. Finally, only by creating policies endorsed diffusion of
digital technology that integrates ecological functions with
economic and social welfare can we promote the adoption of
sustainable agricultural systems across the scales.
Digital Diffusion for Inclusive Agroecosystems
Fig. 1 Spatial Big-data based digital agricultural platform for ecological intensification of rice fallows in India
References
Altieri, M., Nicholls, C., Henao, A., Lana, M.: Agroecology and the
design of climate change-resilient farming systems. Agron. Sustain.
Dev. 35, 869–890 (2015)
Astier, M., García, L., Galván, Y., González, E., Masera, R.: Assesing
the sustainability of small-farmer natural resource management
systems. A critical analysis of the MESMIS program (1995–2010).
Ecol. Soc. 17(3), 25 (2012)
Biradar, C.M., Thenkabail, P.S., Noojipady, P., Yuanjie, L., Dheera-
vath, V., Velpuri, M., Turral, H., Gumma, M.K., Reddy, O.G.P.,
Xueliang, L.C., Xiao, X., Schull, M.A., Alankara, R.D., Gunas-
inghe, S., Mohideen, S.: A global map of rainfed cropland areas
(GMRCA) at the end of last millennium using remote sensing. Int.
J. Appl. Earth Obs. Geoinf. 11(2), 114–129 (2009)
Gaba, S., Lescourret, F., Boudsocq, S., Enjalbert, J., Hinsinger, P.,
Journet, E., Navas, M., Wery, J., Louarn, G., Malézieux, E., Pelzer,
E., Prudent, P., Lafontaineet, H.: Multiple cropping systems as
9
drivers for providing multiple ecosystem services: from concepts to
design. Agron. Sustain. Dev. 35(2), 607–623 (2015)
GeoAgro Homepage. http://geoagro.icarda.org/. Accessed 14 May
2018
Low, F., Biradar, C., Fliemanna, E., Lamers, J., Conrad, C.: Assessing
gaps in irrigated agricultural productivity through satellite earth
observations - A case study of the Fergana Valley, Central Asia. Int.
J. Appl. Earth Obs. Geoinf. 59, 118–134 (2017)
Low, F., Biradar, C., Dubovyk, O., Fliemann, E., Akramkhanov, A.,
Vallejo, A.N., Waldner, F.: Regional-scale monitoring of cropland
intensity and productivity with multi-source satellite image time
series. GIScience Remote Sens. 55(18), 539–567 (2018)
Mehta, M.H.: Eco Agri Revolution: Practical Lessons and The Way
Ahead. New India Publishing Agency—Nipa, New Delhi, India
(2017)
Tittonell, P.A.: Ecological intensification of agriculture—sustainable by
nature. Curr. Opin. Environ. Sustain. 2014(8), 53–61 (2014). https://
doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2014.08.006
Another random document with
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 "No! Not yet!..."

Lebas, pretending not to have heard, called out—

"Héron! Hér..."

Robespierre threw himself on him, and pinning him to the wall, said
breathlessly—

"Don't call, I tell you! Don't call!"

Then lowering his voice he muttered in a dry whisper—

"Be quiet, man, I say! Be quiet! ... It is my son!"

"Ah!" and Lebas looked at him in stupefied amazement.

When he had sufficiently recovered from his surprise, he asked in a low

voice—

"Why do you not tell him so?"

Could Robespierre tell him? Tell the lad who loathed him! Would he
believe him? Olivier would say it was false, or how could he hate him so?

"Oh, no! I cannot tell him that I am his father!" he said sadly, sinking
down exhausted on a chair.

Lebas took his hand and pressed it sympathetically, deeply touched.

"You are right!" he murmured.

And turning to Olivier he said aloud—

"Then let us discover the prisoners without him!"

Olivier understood that matters were becoming very serious. However,

Robespierre looked discouraged. How was it possible to find the women,
under their assumed names, in Vendée? But Lebas remarked that they might
be in Paris. At this Olivier visibly trembled, which Lebas did not fail to
notice.

"Why," he continued—"why should he be so far from them?"

The point of this remark struck Robespierre.

"Yes, to be sure; you are right," he said, and interpreting Lebas's

thoughts he bade him take a carriage and drive to each prison and interview
every woman that had been arrested with a young girl. Lebas, who had
already put on his hat, remarked that he did not think the night would
suffice; there were so many women arrested with a daughter or a younger
sister. And what if Olivier spoke the truth, and his mother had been
inscribed on the prison-register under another name—her husband's, for
instance?

"Mauluçon," interrupted Robespierre, the name suddenly recurring to

him.

Lebas took out a note-book from his pocket. Was he a soldier, or a

magistrate, this Mauluçon? Robespierre could not say. All he knew of him
was that among the people represented as having gone into mourning for
Louis XVI. he had seen the names of Pontivy, his son-in-law Mauluçon,
and his daughter Clarisse.

"Clarisse!" repeated Lebas, stopping his note-taking.

Robespierre looked at him in surprise. In what way could that name

interest him? Lebas had now closed his note-book, deep in thought.
Clarisse? Olivier's mother was called Clarisse? But the woman who
implored Robespierre's clemency for her son, aged nineteen, the woman
whose letter he had refused to read just now ...

"Was signed Clarisse?" cried Robespierre breathlessly.

"Yes," replied Lebas.

"That is his mother!"...

 And pointing to the young man, who was on the brink of swooning.

"You see, it is she! Look at him; there is no mistaking, it is she!"

"She is at the prison of La Bourbe, then," said Lebas.

Robespierre could no longer hide his joy, at last he knew where to find
them!

But he was interrupted by a cry of pain. Olivier, thinking his mother

now irretrievably lost, had fainted away. Robespierre ran to him, and
bending over tried to bring him to consciousness, gently reassuring him,
swearing he was going to give the prisoners their liberty.

But Lebas, who was also bending over the young man, reminded the
Incorruptible that Olivier no longer heard him. Then Robespierre, with
infinite precautions, assisted by Lebas, lifted him into an armchair, and
taking a bottle of scent left behind by the ladies, gently bathed Olivier's
temples with the perfume. Lebas, rather anxious lest Robespierre's paternal
solicitude should be discovered, remained on the watch, imploring him to
be prudent.

"Some one might come in!" he urged.

Robespierre, entirely taken up with Olivier, shrugged his shoulders.

"Let them come!" he said impatiently. "I have a right surely to pardon
my own son!"

Lebas recalled him to reality.

No! he had no right to pardon a chouan, who had insulted the Republic
the day before in presence of the whole nation. Robespierre's enemies
would seize the occasion to cite the example of Brutus sacrificing his son to
the interest of his country. They would exact from him a like proof of
patriotism....

Robespierre was trying to loosen Olivier's cravat, but not succeeding

asked Lebas's assistance. After all, he was right, especially as his enemies
on the Committee of Public Safety, out of hatred for him, would kill the lad
all the quicker. Opening the collar gently, he continued the while to reason
about it, saying that the only means of saving him was to throw him brutally
into prison, so as to mislead them, and to get him out secretly after three
days.

The young man heaved a sigh.

"He is coming to," said Robespierre, checking his speculations.

Lebas observed that it was high time to let others come in; they would
wonder at the length of the cross-examining. Robespierre assented, his eyes
fixed on his son, who seemed now coming to himself. As the Incorruptible
bent over him to ascertain if this was so, his lips touched the pale forehead.

But he heard steps, and had only time to pull himself up, when Héron
entered, followed by his men.

Héron looked straight at Olivier, who had now recovered his senses.

"What! Did he faint?" he asked.

Robespierre had regained possession of himself, and at once assumed a

brutal demeanour. Yes, the scoundrel had been playing a farce, and an
infamous farce too! The family now entered also, brimming with curiosity
and questions.

"Has the young man made a confession?"

"No; but he has betrayed himself, and I know all that I desired."

General satisfaction was expressed. At last, then, he was caught, and his
accomplices! At this moment Madame Lebas and Victoire discovered in
what a sad state Olivier was. Had he been ill, then? They would have come
to him; but Robespierre stopped them, assuming contempt.

"It was better," he said, "to leave the young madman alone, for he really
did not deserve that any one should take interest in him."
 "Monster!" Olivier groaned.

Robespierre had heard the word. He took hold of Lebas's arm, as if for
support, and pressed it convulsively. Then, in a voice which he tried to
render harsh, he told him to conduct Olivier to the Prison de la Force.
Héron had only waited for this; and his men seized their prisoner, who at
the roughness of the police-agents gave a sharp cry.

"You brutes!" exclaimed Robespierre, in a faltering voice, taking a step

towards his son in spite of himself. But Lebas stopped him.

"Be careful!" he whispered.

Robespierre sat down, realising his imprudence.

Lebas again whispered to him—

"Don't be uneasy, I will watch over him."

And telling the men not to handle the prisoner too roughly, he went out
with them.

Robespierre watched his son disappear, and when he had gone he felt
some one take his hand. This made him tremble. It was Cornélie.

How tired he seemed! Every one was around him now. That young
madman had given him terrible trouble, hadn't he?

"Yes," he replied, wiping his temple, "it was very trying! Exceedingly
trying!"

Duplay remarked that, judging from the length of the cross-

examination, he must have learnt something very important. Robespierre
made a gesture, as if protesting. Then rising abruptly he took leave of the
company, on the pretext of urgent work.

"The lad can rest assured," said Duplay, "it is his death-warrant our
friend has gone to sign."
 "What a pity!" observed Victoire; "the young fellow seemed so nice!"

But mother Duplay stopped her daughter indignantly, asking her if she
was mad. What would the Incorruptible say if he could hear her?

CHAPTER IX

HOURS OF ANGUISH

Once in his room, Robespierre sank exhausted into a chair. At last he

was alone! He could now give free vent to his long suppressed emotion.
The feeling uppermost at the moment was one of dread dismay, as the
terrible position rose before his mind, with all its fearful consequences. He
gave no thought to the insult, it was the fate of the two women which
haunted him. If he saved them it would atone for all in the eyes of his son.
They had been arrested, thrown into prison, and cast for death, but he would
set them free.

Who had arrested them? What had they done? Were they implicated in
some seditious plot which would render it difficult to deliver them? As to
Olivier's release, he would see to that. By causing things to drag a little,
Olivier's trial could be put off until Robespierre had the power in his own
hands, and could act as he liked towards his son. It was after all his concern,
for it was he whom Olivier had insulted, and not the Republic, which he
could not yet impersonate. Had he even been proclaimed dictator, and sole
representative of France, he would, he supposed, have had the right to
pardon. It would seem but natural that his first act on accession to power
should be an act of clemency! The most important thing then at present was
that Olivier should remain in prison as long as possible under the closest
supervision.
 But again, why had the women been arrested? By whose orders? They
were perhaps at that very moment at the Conciergerie, on their trial, before
the Revolutionary Tribunal. He could, no doubt, secure their acquittal, but
what if the inquiry brought Olivier's name to light?

"I am wandering!" he caught himself exclaiming. How, indeed, could

the name of Olivier be mentioned during the trial? The young man had
nothing to do with it. He had insulted Robespierre, it was to him personally
he had to answer.

The Incorruptible rubbed his eyes, unable longer to follow the thread of
his own thoughts. He was suddenly reminded of the law to be submitted by
him next day to the Convention, the vindictive law which would ensure
conviction without proof, evidence, or even cross-examination. This law
would be of twofold service to him; it would rekindle the Terror, would
help Robespierre to get rid of those who were still in his way, and be the
means of reducing the two women to silence, thus saving not only Olivier's
life, but theirs also. Olivier would then see that Robespierre was not the
monster he imagined, for he would owe the lives of his mother and of his
fiancée to him, the very man he had so wantonly insulted!

Robespierre's reflections were suddenly interrupted by a knock. He

started up. Some one was calling him. He listened, and recognising Lebas's
voice, hastened to open the door.

"I saw a light through your window," said Lebas, "and knew you had
not yet gone to bed."

"Well, what have you learnt?" Robespierre asked anxiously.

"They are still at the prison of La Bourbe."

"Both of them?"

"Yes, both of them."

"Ah!" sighed Robespierre, with relief.

 "And I have given strict instructions in your name, that they were not to
be allowed out, under any circumstances. I am quite satisfied on that point,
since the Concierge knows that they have been arrested by your orders."

"By my orders?"

"Yes, alas!"

And he whispered to the Incorruptible, as if fearing to be heard—

"They are the two women from Montmorency."

"The women of the forest?"

"Yes!"

Robespierre leant back against his desk for support. Lebas pulled an
armchair towards him, into which he sank quite overcome.

"You could not have prevented it!" said Lebas gently; "nowadays
surprises of that sort are common enough. How could you know?"

The Incorruptible gave no reply, but seemed lost in a dream.

"Take some rest now.... You must feel exhausted.... I feel so myself....
Au revoir till to-morrow. After all, why should you worry? Are we not the
masters?"

"That is the question!" murmured Robespierre, without lifting his eyes.

But Lebas had just closed the door, and wished him good night.

Robespierre, left alone, resumed his train of thought. He had, himself,

then, ordered the two women to be arrested. This made everything clear to
his mind! He now understood why Olivier had insulted him, and matters
were more complicated than he had imagined. But what was Clarisse doing
at Montmorency? How had she gained acquaintance with that man
Vaughan, who had proposed to him the Regency in the name of England?
For one moment he was vain enough to think that Clarisse had acted in
conjunction with the Englishman. She had perhaps an idea of winning
Robespierre over to the Royalist cause, and of rendering homage to his
exalted position and power, realising all the good he could do. If this were
indeed the fact, then she knew everything, was aware of the Englishman's
proposals, and of the forest interview! She was in possession of his secret
and could by a single word completely ruin him!

No! No! He was raving! ... Why! he was accusing the mother of his
child! For she was the mother of his son! Then he alone was in fault; ... he
who had her arrested for no reason! For no reason? Was that so certain?
And he sought about in his mind for excuses. Yes! he was the dupe of Fate,
the tool of blind Destiny! Why had Clarisse been there? Why had she been
implicated with the secret interview? Why? Ah! why?

With closed eyes, still repeating that unanswered "Why?" he fell into a
half sleep. Little by little the image of a cell in the prison of La Bourbe rose
before him; Clarisse was there. She appeared to him, as he had seen her in
her youth, at the Rue des Lions, with her sweet pale face, large blue eyes,
fair silken hair, so fair ... so fair.... He began to wonder that one so young
and frail should have a son so big as Olivier! His dream-thoughts became
more confused.... She was now Olivier's fiancée.... He was promising her to
marry them in London, through the intervention of Vaughan ... of Fox....
Fox was all powerful in England, as he, Robespierre, was in France.... His
head gradually sunk on his shoulder, and he fell asleep at last.

The lamp, turned very low, shed upon him a flickering light, pale and
subdued as the glow of a sanctuary lamp, softening as if in pity the stern
lines of his troubled countenance, which even in sleep did not relax the
painful contraction of its features. He had fallen asleep, dressed as he was,
his head aslant, his arms hanging by his sides listlessly. Now and then, his
whole frame would twitch and quiver nervously, and vague, incoherent
words escaped his lips at intervals; harsh, guttural sounds fell from him
suddenly in that silent apartment, whose curtains and drapery in the
subdued light assumed the soft and delicate tints of a young girl's chamber.

Its hangings were really of damask, with designs of white flowers on a

blue ground, cut out of an old dress by Madame Duplay. This was the one
obvious attempt at ornament. The Incorruptible's room was otherwise very
modestly furnished, containing only the armchair in which he had fallen
asleep, a few cane chairs, a very simple desk, a plain deal bookcase
overladen with books and fastened to the wall, and a bed of walnut-wood.

The room was situated, as already said, in a wing which connected the
main building occupied by the Duplay family with an outhouse opening on
the Rue Saint-Honoré. It also communicated with little Maurice's room, to
whom the Incorruptible in his leisure hours gave lessons in history, and on
the duties of a citizen. The child, who had been sent early to bed on the
arrival of the police-agents with Olivier, now slept soundly.

At about three o'clock, the boy awoke with a start. He heard a noise in
the next room, and, thinking he recognised Robespierre's voice, turned over
to sleep again. It was not the first time his good friend had talked aloud in
his sleep. But he was awakened again by the falling of a chair, and jumped
from his bed anxiously and ran to open the door. In the flickering light of
the nearly extinguished lamp he discerned the Incorruptible standing erect,
still dressed, and gesticulating wildly as if pushing some one back. The boy
advanced towards him, asking what was amiss. Robespierre stared at him
with a frightened look, then folding him in his arms, he fell on his knees
moaning. Between his groans the child could catch the words—

"My son! ... My son!"

Then the lamp went quite out.

The child gently disengaged himself. Bon ami had called him his son!
Yes, he was his son, his affectionate and dutiful son. Then with tender
solicitude he helped him to rise. The day was already peeping through the
half-closed shutters. Maurice with some difficulty succeeded in replacing
his friend on the armchair in which he had passed the night, and asked him
if he wished for anything. But Robespierre had fallen asleep again.

The boy returned to his room, walking backwards on tiptoe, fearing to

awaken him, and went to bed again.

At seven o'clock in the morning Robespierre opened his eyes. He

remembered nothing. The fact of having slept in his clothes, and in an
armchair, did not surprise him. He had often done so in the days of sore
trial. He drew aside the curtains, and the room was suddenly flooded with
daylight. Some one knocked. It was Maurice Duplay, asking if he could
come in.

The boy's early visit surprised Robespierre.

"Are you well, bon ami?"

"Yes, why?"

"Nothing ... only ... last night ... you know..."

"Last night? Well!"

"You rather frightened me!"

"Frightened you?"

"Yes, you frightened me!"

The child then told him what had taken place in the night.

"Are you quite sure?" asked Robespierre anxiously.

"Oh! quite sure, and since you called me your son it shows you
recognised me, and had not the fever so badly after all."

"Yes, you are right! It was nothing since ... as you said ... since I
recognised you; ... for it was you of course I called my son: ... you are my
good little son, are you not?"

And he patted his cheeks, adding—

"But you must not speak of it to anybody! not to anybody, mind! It is

not worth while worrying your father and mother."

"Oh no! I have never said anything!"

 Robespierre began again to feel uneasy.

"How do you mean? You have never said anything?"

"Why, it is not the first time it has happened to you."

"Have you heard me before, then?"

"Oh yes! speaking loud in your sleep."

"And what did I say?"

"Oh, I never understood anything, ... disconnected words, that's all....

And then I was so accustomed, I did not pay much attention. But last night
it was too much and I got up."

"You should not have done so, it was nothing more serious than usual,
only the worry and bother that upset me so."

"It was the cross-examination of the Chouan yesterday which unstrung

you, I suppose?"

"Perhaps; ... it may be.... But, you see, now I am quite well."

As the lad was going he called after him.

"Now you know, and you won't give it another thought, will you? And
not a word, mind, not a word! Now go, child."

He was subject to such nightmares then?

"Perhaps I don't take enough exercise," he thought, and he resolved to

go out at once into the open air. A good walk to the Champs-Elysées would
completely revive him. He changed his clothes, shaved, powdered and
perfumed himself as usual, and had actually started, but went back and took
from a drawer in his desk the draft of the new law which he had prepared
the day before, and put it in his pocket. He had decided after reflection not
to submit it himself, but to confide it to Couthon, one of the most faithful of
his friends on the Committee with Lebas, Saint-Just, and Augustin. Couthon
would read the document from the tribune, and this would leave him fresh
and fit for the ensuing debate.

Having called at Couthon's house, and concluded this arrangement,

Robespierre made his way to the Champs-Elysées through the Tuileries
with his dog Blount, who gambolled joyously in his new-found freedom
after a three days' confinement in the house. The Incorruptible walked
quickly and briskly as usual, in spite of the intense heat, which was but little
diminished by the shade of the chestnuts lining the avenue. He was already
telling over in his mind those among his enemies who would be the first
victims of the new law. As to Olivier and the two women, it was quite
decided. They should remain in prison in the most absolute secrecy until the
time came for him to be master.

At the end of the avenue he turned into the Allée de Veuves and went
towards the Seine. Blount, who had scented the water, leapt and bounded
forward in high glee. On fine summer days the dog used to swim in the
river under the eyes of Robespierre. When he reached the banks of the
Seine Blount was awaiting him, and at a sign jumped in the water, and the
Incorruptible found some release from his harrowing thoughts in watching
the gambols of his dog in the river.

At the Convention the Bill read by Couthon was received with loud
protests, and the subsequent debate opened amid turbulence and uproar.
That the judgments of the Revolutionary Tribunal should be accelerated by
the suppression of evidence and cross-examinations had already frightened
not a few; but when it became a question of transmitting to the Committee
of Public Safety the right of life or death, the whole assembly was filled
with fear. Up to that time the Convention alone had the right to sit in
judgment on a representative of the people!

A voice was heard exclaiming—

"If that law is passed, nothing is left but to blow out our brains!"

Robespierre appeared in the tribune. The Bill was voted. The next day
several attempts were made in the Convention to repeal the atrocious law
which brought the Terror into their very midst, but all such efforts failed.
 With so trenchant a law, a two-edged weapon which could be turned at
will either against the Committee of Public Safety or against the
Convention, according to the intricate windings of his subtle policy, with
such a weapon Robespierre could keep his enemies of the Committee at
bay. He had in future but to accuse them, and have them replaced by
creatures of his own, satellites of his will.

However, all was going well. His adversaries, blind and unwary, had
begun to tear each other to pieces in party disputes, and to split up into
factions, the very day after the passing of the atrocious law which made him
so dreaded.

The Incorruptible tried to take advantage of these cabals, but he was too
hasty. The Committee, realising their danger, united against him; and this
was the prelude to a terrible and decisive struggle, for in case of failure
there remained nothing for Robespierre but to have recourse to force.
Realising this to the full, he no longer attended the sittings of the
Committee, but worked silently in the shade, preparing the coup d'état
which was to rid him at once and for ever of all his enemies,—with Saint-
Just, whom he had sent for from the Northern Army, with Hauriot,
Commander-in-Chief of the armed force; Fleuriot-Lescot, Mayor of Paris;
Payan, Agent of the Commune; and Dumas, President; and Coffinhal, Vice-
President of the Revolutionary Tribunal. His design was very simple. He
would denounce his adversaries of the Committee of Public Safety at the
bar of the Convention and ask for their arrest and judgment. Should the
Convention resist, he would subdue them with the help of Hauriot and his
troops, and of all sections of the Commune, who on a sign from him and
from Fleuriot, Payan, Dumas, Coffinhal, and their friends, would be stirred
to insurrection, and would take the Tuileries by storm.

As to Olivier and the two women, they were always under his hand.
Olivier, at La Force Prison, was in no way disturbed. Clarisse and Thérèse
had been kept at La Bourbe by his orders. Twice the names of Olivier's
mother and fiancée had appeared on the list of the Revolutionary Tribunal,
and twice their names had been struck off by Robespierre, who, anxious and
watchful, took care that all lists should be submitted to him.
 Soon the decisive hour approached. It was the 7th Thermidor. Six weeks
had elapsed since the memorable Fête of the Supreme Being, and the
passing of the horrible Prairial law, which had sent hundreds of victims to
the scaffold. The Terror was at its height, and France, prostrate before the
knife of the guillotine, was awaiting in distracted anxiety the result of the
struggle. The guillotine was also waiting, ready to devour whichever of the
two parties was vanquished—Robespierre's opponents or Robespierre
himself and his partisans.

The Incorruptible, driven to the last extremity, had fixed the battle for
the next day, the 8th Thermidor, when he would throw off his mask and
accuse his adversaries of the Committee of Public Safety in presence of the
Convention. Although he was almost certain of the issue, he deemed it none
the less prudent to take infinite precautions, and to put Olivier and the two
women in perfect safety, in case of defeat, however impossible it might
seem. They must be taken from prison, and all three placed in some secure
retreat, out of the reach of danger, from whence they could escape if
necessary.

Robespierre thought of the Hôtel de Ville, where he reigned supreme.

Behind this, in the Rue du Martroy, were some unoccupied apartments, in a
building connected with and forming part of the hotel. Clarisse might live
there with her niece and Olivier until they could with safety leave Paris. He
unfolded his projects to Lebas, who alone knew of the secret drama which
poisoned the private life of the Incorruptible at the very moment when his
public career was reaching its climax. Lebas approved the plan.

"I am entirely at your service!"

"Thanks. I was counting on your help. But don't let us be too hasty. To-
morrow will be time enough. Everything depends on the sitting. If you see
that the majority hesitate from the commencement, go immediately to La
Bourbe and take the two women out, then to La Force and see about my
son. The apartments are ready. You have only to take them there. But save
the women first. Olivier must find his mother and his fiancée when he
arrives."
 Then taking two papers from his pocket, he added, "Here are the
warrants of release."

"Agreed!" said Lebas, after reading them.

Next day at the Convention, Lebas, a parliamentary expert, judged that

Robespierre would come out victorious from the contest, nor was he
mistaken. The Incorruptible had brought a general accusation, without
mentioning names, against members of the Committee of Public Safety and
General Security. This was received in anxious silence, a few only daring to
protest. But the printing of the speech, and its circulation in all the
communes of Paris, was none the less voted. It was an official accusation,
by the voice of Robespierre, of his adversaries, before the whole of France.
It was victory; and nothing was left but to name the victims.

But the implicated members of the Committee of Public Safety did not
give him time. Vadier boldly made for the tribune, followed by Cambon,
who, feeling it was a case of kill or cure, played a daring game, and replied
to the general accusation of Robespierre by a direct, personal accusation,
denouncing him openly to the astonished Assembly. The real traitor, he
declared, was this masterful Robespierre, who paralysed the will of the
National Convention!

There was a counter-wave of feeling among the members of the

Assembly at this public indictment, and censure of their slavish submission
to Robespierre. They seemed suddenly to realise their position, and the
more daring members, seeing the tide turn, prepared for the fight. Thus the
attacked were in their turn attacking.

Billaud-Varennes succeeded Cambon at the tribune.

"The mask must be torn aside, no matter whose face it covers!" he cried.
"I would rather my corpse should be the stepping-stone of the ambitious
than by my silence be an accomplice of their crimes!"

Others succeeded Billaud-Varennes, reiterating his accusations more

boldly and insultingly. Robespierre, disconcerted, tried to face the storm,
but it was too late. In confining himself to a general accusation, in
mentioning no names, he had frightened every one. The Assembly revoked
their previous decision, and amended the Bill. The speech was not to be
sent to the Communes, but to the Committee, to be examined.

"What!" cried Robespierre, "I have the courage to make before the
Convention revelations which I believe necessary to the salvation of the
country, and my speech is to be submitted for examination to the very men
whom I accuse!"

Victory had been followed by defeat; a partial defeat, it was true, for,
seeing the hesitating attitude of the Convention, Robespierre hoped to win
them back again the next day. He must, however, be prepared for every
emergency! That very evening he would take steps to organise an
insurrection of the Communes, which, in case of resistance, would
annihilate the whole set of dastardly cowards. The Incorruptible wished to
act within legal bounds as long as possible, and only to overstep them when
forced to do so.

Robespierre looked round for Lebas, but he had disappeared, and this
gave him grounds for hope that the two women, and perhaps Olivier, had
reached the private apartments chosen by him in the Rue du Martroy.

"I must go and make sure that all is well," he said to himself; "there is
not a moment to lose"—and leaving the Convention, he hastened in the
direction of the Hôtel de Ville.

CHAPTER X

THE TUMBRILS

At that very moment Lebas reached the Hôtel de Ville with Clarisse and
Thérèse. On leaving the prison of La Bourbe he had given a false address to
the coachman who drove the prisoners, and he followed them at a distance
in another carriage, accompanied by a man to superintend the luggage, who
was one of the attendants at the Hôtel de Ville, and a devoted adherent of
Robespierre. The second carriage soon overtook the first, when Lebas gave
the correct address to the driver—

"13, Rue du Martroy!"

Clarisse and Thérèse mounted the stairs more dead than alive, ushered
up respectfully by Lebas, and Urbain, the attendant, carrying their luggage.
Where were they going? Who were these people? Lebas at the prison had
scarcely spoken to Clarisse.

"For your safety," he had said simply, "for your niece's safety, do not
question me before we arrive at our destination."

For her safety? For Thérèse's safety! Then they were to be saved? Who
could save them? She would surely learn now who it was.

The two men stopped on the third floor, and Urbain opened a door.

"It is here!" said Lebas, making way for them to pass in.

The two women entered, and found themselves in a plain sitting-room

with fittings and furniture of dark grey wood. Urbain took the luggage to a
door opening on the left, through which a bedroom was visible.

"You must make yourself quite at home, here," said Lebas.

And he informed them that they were free, but from motives of
prudence he who had saved them, and for whom Lebas was acting, had
judged it advisable to offer them these apartments as a temporary residence,
where they would be entirely out of danger's reach. Clarisse and Thérèse
could not recover from their surprise, and wished to know to whom they
owed their deliverance. But Lebas would not tell them, having received no
orders to that effect. All he could say to reassure them was that their
protector was all-powerful at the Paris Commune, and that the apartments
were in direct communication, through a door which he indicated, with the
Hôtel de Ville, so that they were under his immediate care.

Clarisse started. She understood now. She owed her safety to the
Incorruptible! Her letter of the preceding month had reached Robespierre.
She knew this already, as he had acknowledged it in a few brief words three
days after receiving it—"Fear nothing, your son is safe!" And this was all
she had heard.

Lebas was still giving the women particulars of their new surroundings.
Everything had been arranged to render them as comfortable as possible.
The man who had accompanied them was entirely at their disposal, and it
was to his interest to serve them well. His wife would see also to their
wants, and take charge of their apartments, where they would be absolutely
free and unrestrained.

Only one precaution was earnestly recommended to them; to show

themselves as little as possible at the windows of their sitting or bed room,
so as not to attract the attention of neighbours. They were especially told to
avoid this in the afternoon, from four to six. The windows looked on to the
Rue du Martroy, through which the carts carrying the condemned passed.
The scaffold was now installed at the Barrière du Trône Renversé, and it
was the shortest way.

The two women shuddered.

"Unhappily we had no choice," Lebas added, seeing their repugnance,

"but you will be warned by the cries of the crowd, and you can then retire to
the dining-room which looks on to the courtyard. It lasts but a quarter of an
hour or twenty minutes, at the most."

But Clarisse scarcely listened, her whole mind occupied with one
thought, the longing to inform Olivier, whose whereabouts she hoped soon
to learn, of their release from prison.

"Could I write a few words to some one who is very dear to me?" she
asked. "I wish to set his mind at rest about our welfare."
 Lebas replied in the affirmative, and she thanked him gratefully. He
politely protested; she owed him no thanks, these were solely due to him
whose orders he was executing. He then offered to take the letter himself,
saying he would return for it in a quarter of an hour, as he had another
urgent duty to fulfil. And he retired, leaving the two women with Urbain,
who busied himself arranging the furniture of the sitting-room.

Thérèse, now full of hope, gave thanks to God. They would perhaps
soon see Olivier again. What joy! But to whom did they owe their release?
She looked inquiringly at her aunt. Clarisse owned that she believed it was
to an ex-secretary of Thérèse's grandfather, now all-powerful, and to whom
she had written from the prison of La Bourbe. Thérèse seemed astonished
that her aunt had not told her of this. But Clarisse made the very plausible
excuse that she did not wish to raise her hopes, not knowing whether her
appeal would have success.

The young girl was now looking through the shutters of one of the
windows which Urbain had partly opened.

"Ah! there is a church!" she exclaimed, and immediately she thought

that if they were allowed to go out she would go and pray for their
protector, for he could not be all-powerful and not have done wrong; he
must belong also to the Government of Terror.

At the mention of a church, Clarisse approached the window. She

recognised the building; it was St. Gervais Church, on whose portal could
be read in large letters the sadly ironical inscription: "National Property, to
be let as a Warehouse."

At Clarisse's request Urbain had placed an ink-stand and blotting-paper

on the table, and Clarisse hearing it was ready turned round joyfully. "At
last I can write to Olivier!" she thought.

She then seated herself at the table and began to write, while Thérèse
was making a tour round the room, taking a survey of the furniture.
Suddenly catching sight of an illustrated paper on a sofa, she took it up to
pass the time away. It was five weeks old, and had been preserved no doubt
on account of the illustrations. Its pages gave an elaborate account of the