About eleven o'clock
Clerambault smiled tenderly as he read the letter . No doubt happiness was on the way , but some of us can not wait for it . `` Greet it from me , my little Rose , and do not let it fly away . '' About eleven o'clock the Count de Coulanges came to ask after him ; he had seen Moreau and Gillot mounting guard before the door . They had come to escort Clerambault according to their promise , but they had not dared to come up because they were an hour too early . Clerambault sent for them , laughing at their excess of zeal , and they admitted that they had thought him perfectly capable of sneaking out of the house without waiting for them ; an idea which he confessed had crossed his mind . The news from the front was good ; during the last few days the German offensive had wavered ; strange signs of weakness began to appear ; and well-founded rumours made it evident that there was a secret disorganisation in the formidable mass .