Madame Stahl had now been living more than ten years continuously abroad, in the south, never leaving her couch.

And some people said that Madame Stahl had made her social position as a philanthropic, highly religious woman; other people said she really was at heart the highly ethical being, living for nothing but the good of her fellow creatures, which she represented herself to be.

No one knew what her faith was--Catholic, Protestant, or Orthodox.