It was Combeferre，and this is what he was singing：——"Si Cesar m"avait donne[25]La gloire et la guerre，
Et qu"il me fallait quitter L"amour de ma mere，
Je dirais au grand Cesar：Reprends ton sceptre et ton char，
J"aime mieux ma mere，o gue！
J"aime mieux ma mere！"
[25]If Cesar had given me glory and war，and I were obliged to quit my mother"s love，I would say to great Caesar，"Take back thy sceptre and thy chariot；I prefer the love of my mother."
The wild and tender accents with which Combeferre sang communicated to this couplet a sort of strange grandeur.
Marius，thoughtfully，and with his eyes diked on the ceiling，repeated almost mechanically："My mother？——"
At that moment，he felt Enjolras"hand on his shoulder.
"Citizen，"said Enjolras to him，"my mother is the Republic."
BOOK FOURTH.——THE FRIENDS OF THE A B C
Chapter Ⅵ RES ANGUSTA
That evening left Marius profoundly shaken，and with a melancholy shadow in his soul.
He felt what the earth may possibly feel，at the moment when it is torn open with the iron，in order that grain may be deposited within it；it feels only the wound；the quiver of the germ and the joy of the fruit only arrive later.
Marius was gloomy.
He had but just acquired a faith；must he then reject it already？
He affirmed to himself that he would not.He declared to himself that he would not doubt，and he began to doubt in spite of himself.
To stand between two religions，from one of which you have not as yet emerged，and another into which you have not yet entered，is intolerable；and twilight is pleasing only to bat-like souls.
Marius was clear-eyed，and he required the true light.
The half-lights of doubt pained him.Whatever may have been his desire to remain where he was，he could not halt there，he was irresistibly constrained to continue，to advance，to examine，to think，to march further.
Whither would this lead him？He feared，after having taken so many steps which had brought him nearer to his father，to now take a step which should estrange him from that father.