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diff --git a/old/1235-h/1235-h.htm b/old/1235-h/1235-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..12efb21 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/1235-h/1235-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,17474 @@ +<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" +"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> +<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> +<head> +<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=utf-8" /> +<meta http-equiv="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css" /> +<title>The Project Gutenberg eBook of Captain Fracasse, by Théophile Gautier</title> +<link rel="coverpage" href="images/cover.jpg" /> +<style type="text/css"> + +body { margin-left: 20%; + margin-right: 20%; + text-align: justify; } + +h1, h2, h3, h4, h5 {text-align: center; font-style: normal; font-weight: +normal; line-height: 1.5; margin-top: .5em; margin-bottom: .5em;} + +h1 {font-size: 300%; + margin-top: 0.6em; + margin-bottom: 0.6em; + letter-spacing: 0.12em; + word-spacing: 0.2em; + text-indent: 0em;} +h2 {font-size: 150%; margin-top: 2em; margin-bottom: 1em;} +h3 {font-size: 130%; margin-top: 1em;} +h4 {font-size: 120%;} +h5 {font-size: 110%;} + +.no-break {page-break-before: avoid;} /* for epubs */ + +div.chapter {page-break-before: always; margin-top: 4em;} + +hr {width: 80%; margin-top: 2em; margin-bottom: 2em;} + +p {text-indent: 1em; + margin-top: 0.25em; + margin-bottom: 0.25em; } + +.p2 {margin-top: 2em;} + +p.poem {text-indent: 0%; + margin-left: 10%; + font-size: 90%; + margin-top: 1em; + margin-bottom: 1em; } + +p.noindent {text-indent: 0% } + +p.right {text-align: right; + margin-right: 10%; + margin-top: 1em; + margin-bottom: 1em; } + +a:link {color:blue; text-decoration:none} +a:visited {color:blue; text-decoration:none} +a:hover {color:red} + +</style> + +</head> + +<body> + +<div style='text-align:center; font-size:1.2em; font-weight:bold'>The Project Gutenberg eBook of Captain Fracasse, by Théophile Gautier</div> +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and +most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions +whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms +of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online +at <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you +are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the +country where you are located before using this eBook. +</div> +<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: Captain Fracasse</div> +<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Théophile Gautier</div> +<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Translator: Ellen Murray Beam</div> +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: March, 1998 [eBook #1235]<br /> +[Most recently updated: June 17, 2021]</div> +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</div> +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Character set encoding: UTF-8</div> +<div style='display:block; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Produced by: Dianne Bean and David Widger</div> +<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CAPTAIN FRACASSE ***</div> + +<h1>Captain Fracasse</h1> + +<h2 class="no-break">by Théophile Gautier</h2> + +<hr /> + +<h2>Contents</h2> + +<table summary="" style=""> + + + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap01">CHAPTER I. CASTLE MISERY</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap02">CHAPTER II THE CHARIOT OF THESPIS</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap03">CHAPTER III THE BLUE SUN INN</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap04">CHAPTER IV AN ADVENTURE WITH BRIGANDS</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap05">CHAPTER V AT THE CHATEAU DE BRUYERES</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap06">CHAPTER VI A SNOW-STORM AND ITS CONSEQUENCES</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap07">CHAPTER VII CAPTAIN FRACASSE</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap08">CHAPTER VIII THE DUKE OF VALLOMBREUSE</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap09">CHAPTER IX A MELEE AND A DUEL</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap10">CHAPTER X A MIDNIGHT ADVENTURE</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap11">CHAPTER XI THE PONT-NEUF</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap12">CHAPTER XII THE CROWNED RADISH</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap13">CHAPTER XIII A DOUBLE ATTACK</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap14">CHAPTER XIV LAMPOURDE’S DELICACY</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap15">CHAPTER XV MALARTIC AT WORK</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap16">CHAPTER XVI VALLOMBREUSE</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap17">CHAPTER XVII THE AMETHYST RING</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap18">CHAPTER XVIII A FAMILY PARTY</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap19">CHAPTER XIX NETTLES AND COBWEBS</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap20">CHAPTER XX CHIQUITA’S DECLARATION OF LOVE</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap21">CHAPTER XXI HYMEN! OH HYMEN!</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap22">CHAPTER XXII THE CASTLE OF HAPPINESS</a></td> +</tr> + +</table> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2>CAPTAIN FRACASSE</h2> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap01"></a>CHAPTER I.<br/> +CASTLE MISERY</h2> + +<p> +Upon the southern slope of one of those barren hills that rise abruptly here +and there in the desolate expanse of the Landes, in South-western France, +stood, in the reign of Louis XIII, a gentleman’s residence, such as +abound in Gascony, and which the country people dignify by the name of château. +</p> + +<p> +Two tall towers, with extinguisher tops, mounted guard at the angles of the +mansion, and gave it rather a feudal air. The deep grooves upon its facade +betrayed the former existence of a draw-bridge, rendered unnecessary now by the +filling up of the moat, while the towers were draped for more than half their +height with a most luxuriant growth of ivy, whose deep, rich green contrasted +happily with the ancient gray walls. +</p> + +<p> +A traveller, seeing from afar the steep pointed roof and lofty towers standing +out against the sky, above the furze and heather that crowned the hill-top, +would have pronounced it a rather imposing château—the residence probably +of some provincial magnate; but as he drew near would have quickly found reason +to change his opinion. The road which led to it from the highway was entirely +overgrown with moss and weeds, save a narrow pathway in the centre, though two +deep ruts, full of water, and inhabited by a numerous family of frogs, bore +mute witness to the fact that carriages had once passed that way. +</p> + +<p> +The roof, of dark red tiles, was disfigured by many large, leprous-looking, +yellow patches, while in some places the decayed rafters had given way, leaving +formidable gaps. The numerous weather-cocks that surmounted the towers and +chimneys were so rusted that they could no longer budge an inch, and pointed +persistently in various directions. The high dormer windows were partially +closed by old wooden shutters, warped, split, and in every stage of +dilapidation; broken stones filled up the loop-holes and openings in the +towers; of the twelve large windows in the front of the house, eight were +boarded up; the remaining four had small diamond-shaped panes of thick, +greenish glass, fitting so loosely in their leaden frames that they shook and +rattled at every breath of wind; between these windows a great deal of the +stucco had fallen off, leaving the rough wall exposed to view. +</p> + +<p> +Above the grand old entrance door, whose massive stone frame and lintel +retained traces of rich ornamentation, almost obliterated by time and neglect, +was sculptured a coat of arms, now so defaced that the most accomplished adept +in heraldry would not be able to decipher it. Only one leaf of the great double +door was ever opened now, for not many guests were received or entertained at +the château in these days of its decadence. Swallows had built their nests in +every available nook about it, and but for a slender thread of smoke rising +spirally from a chimney at the back of this dismal, half-ruined mansion, the +traveller would have surely believed it to be uninhabited. This was the only +sign of life visible about the whole place, like the little cloud upon the +mirror from the breath of a dying man, which alone gives evidence that he still +lives. +</p> + +<p> +Upon pushing open the practicable leaf of the great worm-eaten door, which +yielded reluctantly, and creaked dolefully as it turned upon its rusty hinges, +the curious visitor entered a sort of portico, more ancient than the rest of +the building, with fine, large columns of bluish granite, and a lofty vaulted +roof. At the point of intersection of the arches was a stone shield, bearing +the same coat of arms that was sculptured over the entrance without. This one +was in somewhat better preservation than the other, and seemed to bear +something resembling three golden storks (cigognes) on an azure field; though +it was so much in shadow, and so faded and dingy, that it was impossible to +make it out clearly. Fastened to the wall, at a convenient height from the +ground, were great iron extinguishers, blackened by the smoke from torches in +long by-gone years, and also iron rings, to which the guests’ horses were +made fast in the olden times, when the castle was in its glory. The dust that +lay thick upon them now showed that it was long since they had been made use +of. +</p> + +<p> +From this portico—whence a door on either side opened into the main +building; one leading into a long suite of apartments on the ground floor, and +the other into what had probably been a guard-room—the explorer passed +into an interior court, dismal, damp, and bare. In the corners nettles and +various rank weeds were growing riotously amid the great heaps of rubbish +fallen from the crumbling cornice high above, and grass had sprung up +everywhere in the crevices of the stone pavement. Opposite the entrance a +flight of dilapidated, shaky steps, with a heavy stone balustrade, led down +into a neglected garden, which was gradually becoming a perfect thicket. +Excepting in one small bed, where a few cabbages were growing, there was no +attempt at cultivation, and nature had reasserted her rights everywhere else in +this abandoned spot, taking, apparently, a fierce delight in effacing all +traces of man’s labour. The fruit trees threw out irregular branches +without fear of the pruning knife; the box, intended to form a narrow border to +the curiously shaped flower-beds and grass-plots, had grown up unchecked into +huge, bushy shrubs, while a great variety of sturdy weeds had usurped the +places formerly devoted to choice plants and beautiful, fragrant flowers. +Brambles, bristling with sharp thorns, which had thrown their long, straggling +arms across the paths, caught and tried to hold back any bold adventurer who +attempted to penetrate into the mysterious depths of this desolate wilderness. +Solitude is averse to being surprised in dishabille, and surrounds herself with +all sorts of defensive obstacles. +</p> + +<p> +However, the courageous explorer who persisted in following the ancient, +overgrown alley, and was not to be daunted by formidable briers that tore his +hands and clothing, nor low-hanging, closely interlaced branches that struck +him smart blows in the face as he forced his way through them, would have +reached at last a sort of rocky niche, fancifully arranged as a grotto. Besides +the masses of ivy, iris and gladiolus, that had been carefully planted long ago +in the interstices of the rock, it was draped with a profusion of graceful wild +vines and feathery ferns, which half-veiled the marble statue, representing +some mythological divinity, that still stood in this lonely retreat. It must +have been intended for Flora or Pomona, but now there were tufts of repulsive, +venomous-looking mushrooms in the pretty, graceful, little basket on her arm, +instead of the sculptured fruit or flowers that should have filled it. Although +her nose was broken, and her fair body disfigured by many dark stains, and +overgrown in part with clinging mosses, it could still plainly be seen that she +had once been very lovely. At her feet was a marble basin, shaped like a shell, +half full of discoloured, stagnant water; the lion’s head just above it, +now almost entirely concealed by a thick curtain of leaves, no longer poured +forth the sparkling stream that used to fall into it with a musical murmur. +This little grotto, with its fountain and statue, bore witness to former +wealth; and also to the aesthetic taste of some long-dead owner of the domain. +The marble goddess was in the Florentine style of the Renaissance, and probably +the work of one of those Italian sculptors who followed in the train of del +Rosso or Primaticcio, when they came to France at the bidding of that generous +patron of the arts, Francis I; which time was also, apparently, the epoch of +the greatest prosperity of this noble family, now so utterly fallen into decay. +</p> + +<p> +Behind the grotto rose a high wall, built of stone, crumbling and mouldy now, +but still bearing some broken remains of trellis-work, evidently intended to be +covered with creepers that would entirely conceal the wall itself with a rich +tapestry of verdure. This was the limit of the garden; beyond stretched the +wide expanse of the sandy, barren Landes, flecked here and there with patches +of scanty heather, and scattered groves of pine trees. +</p> + +<p> +Turning back towards the château it became apparent that this side of it was +even more neglected and ruinous than the one we have already described; the +recent poverty-stricken owners having tried to keep up appearances as far as +possible, and concentrated their efforts upon the front of their dilapidated +abode. In the stable, where were stalls for twenty horses, a miserable, old, +white pony stood at an empty manger, nibbling disconsolately at a scanty truss +of hay, and frequently turning his sunken, lack-lustre eyes expectantly towards +the door. In front of an extensive kennel, where the lord of the manor used to +keep a whole pack of hounds, a single dog, pathetically thin, lay sleeping +tranquilly and soundly, apparently so accustomed to the unbroken solitude of +the place that he had abandoned all habits of watchfulness. +</p> + +<p> +Entering the château the visitor found himself in a broad and lofty hall, +containing a grand old staircase, with a richly carved, wooden +balustrade—a good deal broken and defaced now, like everything else in +this doleful Castle Misery. The walls had been elaborately frescoed, +representing colossal figures of Hercules supporting brackets upon which rested +the heavily ornamented cornice. Springing from it fantastic vines climbed +upward on the arched ceiling, and above them the blue sky, faded and dingy, was +grotesquely variegated with dark spots, caused by the water filtering through +from the dilapidated roof. Between the oft-repeated figures of Hercules were +frescoed niches, wherein heads of Roman emperors and other illustrious +historical characters had been depicted in glowing tints; but all were so vague +and dim now that they were but the ghosts of pictures, which should be +described with the shadows of words—ordinary terms are too substantial to +apply to them. The very echoes in this deserted hall seemed startled and amazed +as they repeated and multiplied the unwonted sound of footsteps. +</p> + +<p> +A door near the head of the first flight of stairs opened into what had +evidently been the great banqueting hall in the old days when sumptuous repasts +and numerous guests were not uncommon things in the château. A huge beam +divided the lofty ceiling into two compartments, which were crossed at regular +intervals by smaller joists, richly carved, and retaining some traces of +gilding. The spaces between had been originally of a deep blue tint, almost +lost now under the thick coating of dust and spiders’ webs that no +housemaid’s mop ever invaded. Above the grand old chimney-piece was a +noble stag’s head, with huge, spreading antlers, and on the walls hung +rows of ancient family portraits, so faded and mouldy now that most of the +faces had a ghastly hue, and at night, by the dim, flickering lamp-light, they +looked like a company of spectres. Nothing in the world is sadder than a +collection of old portraits hanging thus, neglected and forgotten, in deserted +halls—representations, half obliterated themselves, of forms and faces +long since returned to dust. Yet these painted phantoms were most appropriate +inhabitants of this desolate abode; real living people would have seemed out of +place in the death-stricken house. +</p> + +<p> +In the middle of the room stood an immense dining-table of dark, polished wood, +much worm-eaten, and gradually falling into decay. Two tall buffets, +elaborately carved and ornamented, stood on opposite sides of the room, with +only a few odd pieces of Palissy ware, representing lizards, crabs, and +shell-fish, reposing on shiny green leaves, and two or three delicate +wine-glasses of quaint patterns remaining upon the shelves where gold and +silver plate used to glitter in rich profusion, as was the mode in France. The +handsome old chairs, with their high, carved backs and faded velvet cushions, +that had been so firm and luxurious once, were tottering and insecure; but it +mattered little, since no one ever came to sit in them now round the festive +board, and they stood against the wall in prim order, under the rows of family +portraits. +</p> + +<p> +A smaller room opened out of this one, hung round with faded, moth-eaten +tapestry. In one corner stood a large bed, with four tall, twisted columns and +long, ample curtains of rich brocade, which had been delicate green and white, +but now were of a dingy, yellowish hue, and cut completely through from top to +bottom in every fold. An ebony table, with some pretty gilded ornaments still +clinging to it, a mirror dim with age, and two large arm-chairs, covered with +worn and faded embroidery, that had been wrought by the fair fingers of some +noble dame long since dead and forgotten, completed the furniture of this +dismal chamber. +</p> + +<p> +In these two rooms were the latticed windows seen in the front of the château, +and over them still hung long sweeping curtains, so tattered and moth-eaten +that they were almost falling to pieces. Profound silence reigned here, +unbroken save by occasional scurrying and squeaking of mice behind the +wainscot, the gnawing of rats in the wall, or the ticking of the death-watch. +</p> + +<p> +From the tapestried chamber a door opened into a long suite of deserted rooms, +which were lofty and of noble proportions, but devoid of furniture, and given +up to dust, spiders, and rats. The apartments on the floor above them were the +home of great numbers of bats, owls, and jackdaws, who found ready ingress +through the large holes in the roof. Every evening they flew forth in flocks, +with much flapping of wings, and weird, melancholy cries and shrieks, in search +of the food not to be found in the immediate vicinity of this forlorn mansion. +</p> + +<p> +The apartments on the ground floor contained nothing but a few bundles of +straw, a heap of corn-cobs, and some antiquated gardening implements. In one of +them, however, was a rude bed, covered with a single, coarse blanket; +presumably that of the only domestic remaining in the whole establishment. +</p> + +<p> +It was from the kitchen chimney that the little spiral of smoke escaped which +was seen from without. A few sticks were burning in the wide, old-fashioned +fireplace, but the flames looked pale under the bright light that streamed down +upon them through the broad, straight flue. The pot that hung from the clumsy +iron crane was boiling sleepily, and if the curious visitor could have peeped +into it he would have seen that the little cabbage bed in the garden had +contributed of its produce to the <i>pot-au-feu</i>. An old black cat was +sitting as close to the fire as he could without singeing his whiskers, and +gravely watching the simmering pot with longing eyes. His ears had been closely +cropped, and he had not a vestige of a tail, so that he looked like one of +those grotesque Japanese chimeras that everybody is familiar with. Upon the +table, near at hand, a white plate, a tin drinking cup, and a china dish, +bearing the family arms stamped in blue, were neatly arranged, evidently in +readiness for somebody’s supper. For a long time the cat remained +perfectly motionless, intently watching the pot which had almost ceased to boil +as the fire got low, and the silence continued unbroken; but at last a slow, +heavy step was heard approaching from without, and presently the door opened to +admit an old man, who looked half peasant, half gentleman’s servant. The +black cat immediately quitted his place by the fire and went to meet him; +rubbing himself against the newcomer’s legs, arching his back and purring +loudly; testifying his joy in every way possible to him. +</p> + +<p> +“Well, well, Beelzebub,” said the old man, bending down and +stroking him affectionately, “are you really so glad to see me? Yes, I +know you are, and it pleases me, old fellow, so it does. We are so lonely here, +my poor young master and I, that even the welcome of a dumb beast is not to be +despised. They do say that you have no soul, Beelzebub, but you certainly do +love us, and understand most times what we say to you too.” These +greetings exchanged, Beelzebub led the way back to the fire, and then with +beseeching eyes, looking alternately from the face of his friend to the +<i>pot-au-feu</i>, seemed mutely begging for his share of its contents. Poor +Beelzebub was growing so old that he could no longer catch as many rats and +mice as his appetite craved, and he was evidently very hungry. +</p> + +<p> +Pierre, that was the old servant’s name, threw more wood on the +smouldering fire, and then sat down on a settle in the chimney corner, inviting +his companion—who had to wait still for his supper as patiently as he +might—to take a seat beside him. The firelight shone full upon the old +man’s honest, weather-beaten face, the few scattered locks of snow-white +hair escaping from under his dark blue woollen cap, his thick, black eyebrows +and deep wrinkles. He had the usual characteristics of the Basque race; a long +face, hooked nose, and dark, gipsy-like complexion. He wore a sort of livery, +which was so old and threadbare that it would be impossible to make out its +original colour, and his stiff, soldier-like carriage and movements proclaimed +that he had at some time in his life served in a military capacity. “The +young master is late to-night,” he muttered to himself, as the daylight +faded. “What possible pleasure can he find in these long, solitary +rambles over the dunes? It is true though that it is so dreary here, in this +lonely, dismal house, that any other place is preferable.” +</p> + +<p> +At this moment a joyous barking was heard without, the old pony in the stable +stamped and whinnied, and the cat jumped down from his place beside Pierre and +trotted off towards the door with great alacrity. In an instant the latch was +lifted, and the old servant rose, taking off his woollen cap respectfully, as +his master came into the kitchen. He was preceded by the poor old dog, trying +to jump up on him, but falling back every time without being able to reach his +face, and Beelzebub seemed to welcome them both—showing no evidence of +the antipathy usually existing between the feline and canine races; on the +contrary, receiving Miraut with marks of affection which were fully +reciprocated. +</p> + +<p> +The Baron de Sigognac, for it was indeed the lord of the manor who now entered, +was a young man of five or six and twenty; though at first sight he seemed much +older, because of the deep gravity, even sadness, of his demeanour; the feeling +of utter powerlessness which poverty brings having effectually chased away all +the natural piety and light-heartedness of youth. Dark circles surrounded his +sunken eyes, his cheeks were hollow, his mustache drooped in a sorrowful curve +over his sad mouth. His long black hair was negligently pushed back from his +pale face, and showed a want of care remarkable in a young man who was +strikingly handsome, despite his doleful desponding expression. The constant +pressure of a crushing grief had drawn sorrowful lines in a countenance that a +little animation would have rendered charming. All the elasticity and +hopefulness natural to his age seemed to have been lost in his useless +struggles against an unhappy fate. Though his frame was lithe, vigorous, and +admirably proportioned, all his movements were slow and apathetic, like those +of an old man. His gestures were entirely devoid of animation, his whole +expression inert, and it was evidently a matter of perfect indifference to him +where he might chance to find himself at home, in his dismal château, or abroad +in the desolate Landes. +</p> + +<p> +He had on an old gray felt hat, much too large for him, with a dingy, shabby +feather, that drooped as if it felt heartily ashamed of itself, and the +miserable condition to which it was reduced. A broad collar of guipure lace, +ragged in many places, was turned down over a just-au-corps, which had been cut +for a taller and much stouter man than the slender, young baron. The sleeves of +his doublet were so long that they fell over his hands, which were small and +shapely, and there were large iron spurs on the clumsy, old-fashioned +riding-boots he wore. These shabby, antiquated clothes had belonged to his +father; they were made according to the fashion that prevailed during the +preceding reign; and the poor young nobleman, whose appearance in them was both +ridiculous and touching, might have been taken for one of his own ancestors. +Although he tenderly cherished his father’s memory, and tears often came +into his eyes as he put on these garments that had seemed actually a part of +him, yet it was not from choice that young de Sigognac availed himself of the +paternal wardrobe. Unfortunately he had no other clothes, save those of his +boyhood, long ago outgrown, and so he was thankful to have these, distasteful +as they could not fail to be to him. The peasants, who had been accustomed to +hold them in respect when worn by their old seignior, did not think it strange +or absurd to see them on his youthful successor; just as they did not seem to +notice or be aware of the half-ruined condition of the château. It had come so +gradually that they were thoroughly used to it, and took it as a matter of +course. The Baron de Sigognac, though poverty-stricken and forlorn, was still +in their eyes the noble lord of the manor; the decadence of the family did not +strike them at all as it would a stranger; and yet it was a grotesquely +melancholy sight to see the poor young nobleman pass by, in his shabby old +clothes, on his miserable old pony, and followed by his forlorn old dog. +</p> + +<p> +The baron sat down in silence at the table prepared for him, having recognised +Pierre’s respectful salute by a kindly gesture. The old servant +immediately busied himself in serving his master’s frugal supper; first +pouring the hot soup—which was of that kind, popular among the poor +peasantry of Gascony, called “garbure”—upon some bread cut +into small pieces in an earthen basin, which he set before the baron; then, +fetching from the cupboard a dish of bacon, cold, and cooked in Gascon fashion, +he placed that also upon the table, and had nothing else to add to this meagre +repast. The baron ate it slowly, with an absent air, while Miraut and +Beelzebub, one on each side of him, received their full share from his kind +hand. +</p> + +<p> +The supper finished, he fell into a deep reverie. Miraut had laid his head +caressingly upon his master’s knee, and looked up into his face with +loving, intelligent eyes, somewhat dimmed by age, but still seeming to +understand his thoughts and sympathize with his sadness. Beelzebub purred +loudly meantime, and occasionally mewed plaintively to attract his attention, +while Pierre stood in a respectful attitude, cap in hand, at a little distance, +motionless as a statue, waiting patiently until his master’s wandering +thoughts should return. By this time the darkness had fallen, and the +flickering radiance from the few sticks blazing in the great fireplace made +strange effects of light and shade in the spacious old kitchen. It was a sad +picture; this last scion of a noble race, formerly rich and powerful, left +wandering like an uneasy ghost in the castle of his ancestors, with but one +faithful old servant remaining to him of the numerous retinue of the olden +times; one poor old dog, half starved, and gray with age, where used to be a +pack of thirty hounds; one miserable, superannuated pony in the stable where +twenty horses had been wont to stand; and one old cat to beg for caresses from +his hand. +</p> + +<p> +At last the baron roused himself, and signed to Pierre that he wished to retire +to his own chamber; whereupon the servant lighted a pine knot at the fire, and +preceded his master up the stairs, Miraut and Beelzebub accompanying them. The +smoky, flaring light of the torch made the faded figures on the wall seem to +waver and move as they passed through the hall and up the broad staircase, and +gave a strange, weird expression to the family portraits that looked down upon +this little procession as it moved by below them. When they reached the +tapestried chamber Pierre lighted a little copper lamp, and then bade the baron +good-night, followed by Miraut as he retraced his steps to the kitchen; but +Beelzebub, being a privileged character, remained, and curled himself up +comfortably in one of the old arm-chairs, while his master threw himself +listlessly into the other, in utter despair at the thought of his miserable +loneliness, and aimless, hopeless life. If the chamber seemed dreary and +forlorn by day, it was far more so by night. The faded figures in the tapestry +had an uncanny look; especially one, a hunter, who might have passed for an +assassin, just taking aim at his victim. The smile on his startlingly red lips, +in reality only a self-satisfied smirk, was fairly devilish in that light, and +his ghastly face horribly life-like. The lamp burned dimly in the damp heavy +air, the wind sighed and moaned along the corridors, and strange, frightful +sounds came from the deserted chambers close at hand. The storm that had long +been threatening had come at last, and large, heavy rain-drops were driven +violently against the window-panes by gusts of wind that made them rattle +loudly in their leaden frames. Sometimes it seemed as if the whole sash would +give way before the fiercer blasts, as though a giant had set his knee against +it, and was striving to force an entrance. Now and again, when the wind lulled +for a moment while it gathered strength for a fresh assault, the horrid shriek +of an owl would be heard above the dashing of the rain that was falling in +torrents. +</p> + +<p> +The master of this dismal mansion paid little attention to this lugubrious +symphony, but Beelzebub was very uneasy, starting up at every sound, and +peering into the shadowy corners of the room, as if he could see there +something invisible to human eyes. The baron took up a little book that was +lying upon the table, glanced at the familiar arms stamped upon its tarnished +cover, and opening it, began to read in a listless, absent way. His eyes +followed the smooth rhythm of Ronsard’s ardent love-songs and stately +sonnets, but his thoughts were wandering far afield, and he soon threw the book +from him with an impatient gesture, and began slowly unfastening his garments, +with the air of a man who is not sleepy, but only goes to bed because he does +not know what else to do with himself, and has perhaps a faint hope of +forgetting his troubles in the embrace of Morpheus, most blessed of all the +gods. The sand runs so slowly in the hour-glass on a dark, stormy night, in a +half-ruined castle, ten leagues away from any living soul. +</p> + +<p> +The poor young baron, only surviving representative of an ancient and noble +house, had much indeed to make him melancholy and despondent. His ancestors had +worked their own ruin, and that of their descendants, in various ways. Some by +gambling, some in the army, some by undue prodigality in living—in order +that they might shine at court—so that each generation had left the +estate more and more diminished. The fiefs, the farms, the land surrounding the +château itself, all had been sold, one after the other, and the last baron, +after desperate efforts to retrieve the fallen fortunes of the +family—efforts which came too late, for it is useless to try to stop the +leaks after the vessel has gone down—had left his son nothing but this +half-ruined château and the few acres of barren land immediately around it. The +unfortunate child had been born and brought up in poverty. His mother had died +young, broken-hearted at the wretched prospects of her only son; so that he +could not even remember her sweet caresses and tender, loving care. His father +had been very stern with him; punishing him severely for the most trivial +offences; yet he would have been glad now even of his sharp rebukes, so +terribly lonely had he been for the last four years; ever since his father was +laid in the family vault. His youthful pride would not allow him to associate +with the noblesse of the province without the accessories suitable to his rank, +though he would have been received with open arms by them, so his solitude was +never invaded. Those who knew his circumstances respected as well as pitied the +poor, proud young baron, while many of the former friends of the family +believed that it was extinct; which indeed it inevitably would be, with this +its only remaining scion, if things went on much longer as they had been going +for many years past. +</p> + +<p> +The baron had not yet removed a single garment when his attention was attracted +by the strange uneasiness of Beelzebub, who finally jumped down from his +arm-chair, went straight to one of the windows, and raising himself on his hind +legs put his fore-paws on the casing and stared out into the thick darkness, +where it was impossible to distinguish anything but the driving rain. A loud +howl from Miraut at the same moment proclaimed that he too was aroused, and +that something very unusual must be going on in the vicinity of the château, +ordinarily as quiet as the grave. Miraut kept up persistently a furious +barking, and the baron gave up all idea of going to bed. He hastily readjusted +his dress, so that he might be in readiness for whatever should happen, and +feeling a little excited at this novel commotion. +</p> + +<p> +“What can be the matter with poor old Miraut? He usually sleeps from +sunset to sunrise without making a sound, save his snores. Can it be that a +wolf is prowling about the place?” said the young man to himself, as he +buckled the belt of his sword round his slender waist. A formidable weapon it +was, that sword, with long blade, and heavy iron scabbard. +</p> + +<p> +At that moment three loud knocks upon the great outer door resounded through +the house. Who could possibly have strayed here at this hour, so far from the +travelled roads, and in this tempest that was making night horrible without? No +such thing had occurred within the baron’s recollection. What could it +portend? +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap02"></a>CHAPTER II.<br/> +THE CHARIOT OF THESPIS</h2> + +<p> +The Baron de Sigognac went down the broad staircase without a moment’s +delay to answer this mysterious summons, protecting with his hand the feeble +flame of the small lamp he carried from the many draughts that threatened to +blow it out. The light, shining through his slender fingers, gave them a rosy +tinge, so that he merited the epithet applied by Homer, the immortal bard, to +the laughing, beautiful Aurora, even though he advanced through the thick +darkness with his usual melancholy mien, and followed by a black cat, instead +of preceding the glorious god of day. +</p> + +<p> +Setting down his lamp in a sheltered corner, he proceeded to take down the +massive bar that secured the door, cautiously opened the practicable leaf, and +found himself face to face with a man, upon whom the light of the lamp shone +sufficiently to show rather a grotesque figure, standing uncovered in the +pelting rain. His head was bald and shining, with a few locks of gray hair +clustering about the temples. A jolly red nose, bulbous in form, a small pair +of twinkling, roguish eyes, looking out from under bushy, jet-black eyebrows, +flabby cheeks, over which was spread a network of purplish fibres, full, +sensual lips, and a scanty, straggling beard, that scarcely covered the short, +round chin, made up a physiognomy worthy to serve as the model for a Silenus; +for it was plainly that of a wine-bibber and <i>bon vivant</i>. Yet a certain +expression of good humour and kindness, almost of gentleness, redeemed what +would otherwise have been a repulsive face. The comical little wrinkles +gathering about the eyes, and the merry upward turn of the comers of the mouth, +showed a disposition to smile as he met the inquiring gaze of the young baron, +but he only bowed repeatedly and profoundly, with exaggerated politeness and +respect. +</p> + +<p> +This extraordinary pantomime finished, with a grand flourish, the burlesque +personage, still standing uncovered in the pouring rain, anticipated the +question upon de Sigognac’s lips, and began at once the following +address, in an emphatic and declamatory tone: +</p> + +<p> +“I pray you deign to excuse, noble seignior, my having come thus to knock +at the gates of your castle in person at this untimely hour, without sending a +page or a courier in advance, to announce my approach in a suitable manner. +Necessity knows no law, and forces the most polished personages to be guilty of +gross breaches of etiquette at times.” +</p> + +<p> +“What is it you want?” interrupted the baron, in rather a +peremptory tone, annoyed by the absurd address of this strange old creature, +whose sanity he began to doubt. +</p> + +<p> +“Hospitality, most noble seignior; hospitality for myself and my +comrades—princes and princesses, heroes and beauties, men of letters and +great captains, pretty waiting-maids and honest valets, who travel through the +provinces from town to town in the chariot of Thespis, drawn by oxen, as in the +ancient times. This chariot is now hopelessly stuck in the mud only a +stone’s throw from your castle, my noble lord.” +</p> + +<p> +“If I understand aright what you say,” answered the baron, +“you are a strolling band of players, and have lost your way. Though my +house is sadly dilapidated, and I cannot offer you more than mere shelter, you +are heartily welcome to that, and will be better off within here than exposed +to the fury of this wild storm.” +</p> + +<p> +The pedant—for such seemed to be his character in the troupe—bowed +his acknowledgments. +</p> + +<p> +During this colloquy, Pierre, awakened by Miraut’s loud barking, had +risen and joined his master at the door. As soon as he was informed of what had +occurred, he lighted a lantern, and with the baron set forth, under the +guidance of the droll old actor, to find and rescue the chariot in distress. +When they reached it Leander and Matamore were tugging vainly at the wheels, +while his majesty, the king, pricked up the weary oxen with the point of his +dagger. The actresses, wrapped in their cloaks and seated in the rude chariot, +were in despair, and much frightened as well—wet and weary too, poor +things. This most welcome re-enforcement inspired all with fresh courage, and, +guided by Pierre’s suggestions, they soon succeeded in getting the +unwieldy vehicle out of the quagmire and into the road leading to the château, +which was speedily reached, and the huge equipage safely piloted through the +grand portico into the interior court. The oxen were at once taken from before +it and led into the stable, while the actresses followed de Sigognac up to the +ancient banqueting hall, which was the most habitable room in the château. +Pierre brought some wood, and soon had a bright fire blazing cheerily in the +great fireplace. It was needed, although but the beginning of September and the +weather still warm, to dry the dripping garments of the company; and besides, +the air was so damp and chilly in this long disused apartment that the genial +warmth and glow of the fire were welcome to all. +</p> + +<p> +Although the strolling comedians were accustomed to find themselves in all +sorts of odd, strange lodgings in the course of their wanderings, they now +looked with astonishment at their extraordinary surroundings; being careful, +however, like well-bred people, not to manifest too plainly the surprise they +could not help feeling. +</p> + +<p> +“I regret very much that I cannot offer you a supper,” said their +young host, when all had assembled round the fire, “but my larder is so +bare that a mouse could not find enough for a meal in it. I live quite alone in +this house with my faithful old Pierre; never visited by anybody; and you can +plainly perceive, without my telling you, that plenty does not abound +here.” +</p> + +<p> +“Never mind that, noble seignior,” answered Blazius, the pedant, +“for though on the stage we may sit down to mock repasts—pasteboard +fowls and wooden bottles—we are careful to provide ourselves with more +substantial and savoury viands in real life. As quartermaster of the troupe I +always have in reserve a Bayonne ham, a game pasty, or something, of that sort, +with at least a dozen bottles of good old Bordeaux.” +</p> + +<p> +“Bravo, sir pedant,” cried Leander, “do you go forthwith and +fetch in the provisions; and if his lordship will permit, and deign to join us, +we will have our little feast here. The ladies will set the table for us +meanwhile I am sure.” +</p> + +<p> +The baron graciously nodded his assent, being in truth so amazed at the whole +proceeding that he could not easily have found words just then; and he followed +with wondering and admiring eyes the graceful movements of Serafina and +Isabelle, who, quitting their seats by the fire, proceeded to arrange upon the +worn but snow-white cloth that Pierre had spread on the ancient dining-table, +the plates and other necessary articles that the old servant brought forth from +the recesses of the carved buffets. The pedant quickly came back, carrying a +large basket in each hand, and with a triumphant air placed a huge pasty of +most tempting appearance in the middle of the table. To this he added a large +smoked tongue, some slices of rosy Bayonne ham, and six bottles of wine. +</p> + +<p> +Beelzebub watched these interesting preparations from a distance with eager +eyes, but was too much afraid of all these strangers to approach and claim a +share of the good things on the table. The poor beast was so accustomed to +solitude and quiet, never seeing any one beyond his beloved master and Pierre, +that he was horribly frightened at the sudden irruption of these noisy +newcomers. +</p> + +<p> +Finding the feeble light of the baron’s small lamp rather dim, Matamore +bad gone out to the chariot and brought back two showy candelabra, which +ordinarily did duty on the stage. They each held several candles, which, in +addition to the warm radiance from the blazing fire, made quite a brilliant +illumination in this room, so lately dark, cheerless, and deserted. It had +become warm and comfortable by this time; its family portraits and tarnished +splendour looked their best in the bright, soft light, which had chased away +the dark shadows and given a new beauty to everything it fell upon; the whole +place was metamorphosed; a festive air prevailed, and the ancient banqueting +hall once more resounded with cheery voices and gay laughter. +</p> + +<p> +The poor young baron, to whom all this had been intensely disagreeable at +first, became aware of a strange feeling of comfort and pleasure stealing over +him, to which, after a short struggle, he finally yielded himself entirely. +Isabelle, Serafina, even the pretty <i>soubrette</i>, seemed to him, +unaccustomed as he was to feminine beauty and grace, like goddesses come down +from Mount Olympus, rather than mere ordinary mortals. They were all very +pretty, and well fitted to turn heads far more experienced than his. The whole +thing was like a delightful dream to him; he almost doubted the evidence of his +own senses, and every few minutes found himself dreading the awakening, and the +vanishing of the entrancing vision. +</p> + +<p> +When all was ready de Sigognac led Isabelle and Serafina to the table, placing +one on each side of him, with the pretty <i>soubrette</i> opposite. Mme. +Léonarde, the duenna of the troupe, sat beside the pedant, Leander, Matamore, +his majesty the tyrant, and Scapin finding places for themselves. The youthful +host was now able to study the faces of his guests at his ease, as they sat +round the table in the full light of the candles burning upon it in the two +theatrical candelabra. He turned his attention to the ladies first, and it +perhaps will not be out of place to give a little sketch of them here, while +the pedant attacks the gigantic game pasty. +</p> + +<p> +Serafina, the “leading lady” of the troupe, was a handsome young +woman of four or five and twenty, who had quite a grand air, and was as +dignified and graceful withal as any veritable noble dame who shone at the +court of his most gracious majesty, Louis XIII. She had an oval face, slightly +aquiline nose, large gray eyes, bright red lips—the under one full and +pouting, like a ripe cherry—-a very fair complexion, with a beautiful +colour in her cheeks when she was animated or excited, and rich masses of dark +brown hair most becomingly arranged. She wore a round felt hat, with the wide +rim turned up at one side, and trimmed with long, floating plumes. A broad lace +collar was turned down over her dark green velvet dress, which was elaborately +braided, and fitted closely to a fine, well-developed figure. A long, black +silk scarf was worn negligently around her shapely shoulders and although both +velvet and silk were old and dingy, and the feathers in her hat wet and limp, +they were still very effective, and she looked like a young queen who had +strayed away from her realm; the freshness and radiant beauty of her face more +than made up for the shabbiness of her dress, and de Sigognac was fairly +dazzled by her many charms. +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle was much more youthful than Serafina, as was requisite for her role of +ingenuous young girl, and far more simply dressed. She had a sweet, almost +childlike face, beautiful, silky, chestnut hair, with golden lights in it, +dark, sweeping lashes veiling her large, soft eyes, a little rosebud of a +mouth, and an air of modesty and purity that was evidently natural to +her—not assumed. A gray silk gown, simply made, showed to advantage her +slender, graceful form, which seemed far too fragile to endure the hardships +inseparable from the wandering life she was leading. A high Elizabethan ruff +made a most becoming frame for her sweet, delicately tinted, young face, and +her only ornament was a string of pearl beads, clasped round her slender, white +neck. Though her beauty was less striking at first sight than Serafina’s, +it was of a higher order: not dazzling like hers, but surpassingly lovely in +its exquisite purity and freshness, and promising to eclipse the other’s +more showy charms, when the half-opened bud should have expanded into the +full-blown flower. +</p> + +<p> +The <i>soubrette</i> was like a beautiful Gipsy, with a clear, dark complexion, +rich, mantling colour in her velvety cheeks, intensely black hair—long, +thick, and wavy—great, flashing, brown eyes, and rather a large mouth, +with ripe, red lips, and dazzling white teeth—one’s very beau-ideal +of a bewitching, intriguing waiting-maid, and one that might be a dangerous +rival to any but a surpassingly lovely and fascinating mistress. She was one of +the beauties that women are not apt to admire, but men rave about and run after +the world over. She wore a fantastic costume of blue and yellow, which was odd, +piquant, and becoming, and seemed fully conscious of her own charms. +</p> + +<p> +Mme. Léonarde, the “noble mother” of the troupe dressed all in +black, like a Spanish duenna, was portly of figure, with a heavy, very pale +face, double chin, and intensely black eyes, that had a crafty, slightly +malicious expression. She had been upon the stage from her early childhood, +passing through all the different phases, and was an actress of decided talent, +often still winning enthusiastic applause at the expense of younger and more +attractive women, who were inclined to think her something of an old sorceress. +</p> + +<p> +So much for the feminine element. The principal roles were all represented; and +if occasionally a re-enforcement was required, they could almost always pick up +some provincial actress, or even an amateur, at a pinch. The actors were five +in number: The pedant, already described, who rejoiced in the name of Blazitis; +Leander; Hérode, the tragic tyrant; Matamore, the bully; and Scapin, the +intriguing valet. +</p> + +<p> +Leander, the romantic, irresistible, young lover—darling of the +ladies—was a tall, fine-looking fellow of about thirty, though apparently +much more youthful, thanks to the assiduous care he bestowed on his handsome +person. His slightly curly, black hair was worn long, so that he might often +have occasion to push it back from his forehead, with a hand as white and +delicate as a woman’s, upon one of whose taper fingers sparkled an +enormous diamond—a great deal too big to be real. He was rather +fancifully dressed, and always falling into such graceful, languishing +attitudes as he thought would be admired by the fair sex, whose devoted slave +he was. This Adonis never for one moment laid aside his role. He punctuated his +sentences with sighs, even when speaking of the most indifferent matters, and +assumed all sorts of preposterous airs and graces, to the secret amusement of +his companions. But he had great success among the ladies, who all flattered +him and declared he was charming, until they had turned his head completely; +and it was his firm belief that he was irresistibly fascinating. +</p> + +<p> +The tyrant was the most good-natured, easy-going creature imaginable; but, +strangely enough, gifted by nature with all the external signs of ferocity. +With his tall, burly frame, very dark skin, immensely thick, shaggy eyebrows, +black as jet, crinkly, bushy hair of the same hue, and long beard, that grew +far up on his cheeks, he was a very formidable, fierce-looking fellow; and when +he spoke, his loud, deep voice made everything ring again. He affected great +dignity, and filled his role to perfection. +</p> + +<p> +Matamore was as different as possible, painfully thin—scarcely more than +mere skin and bones—a living skeleton with a large hooked nose, set in a +long, narrow face, a huge mustache turned up at the ends, and flashing, black +eyes. His excessively tall, lank figure was so emaciated that it was like a +caricature of a man. The swaggering air suitable to his part had become +habitual with him, and he walked always with immense strides, head well thrown +back, and hand on the pommel of the huge sword he was never seen without. +</p> + +<p> +As to Scapin, he looked more like a fox than anything else, and had a most +villainous countenance; yet he was a good enough fellow in reality. +</p> + +<p> +The painter has a great advantage over the writer, in that he can so present +the group on his canvas that one glance suffices to take in the whole picture, +with the lights and shadows, attitudes, costumes, and details of every kind, +which are sadly wanting in our description—too long, though so +imperfect—of the party gathered thus unexpectedly round our young +baron’s table. The beginning of the repast was very silent, until the +most urgent demands of hunger had been satisfied. Poor de Sigognac, who had +never perhaps at any one time had as much to eat as he wanted since he was +weaned, attacked the tempting viands with an appetite and ardour quite new to +him; and that too despite his great desire to appear interesting and romantic +in the eyes of the beautiful young women between whom he was seated. The +pedant, very much amused at the boyish eagerness and enjoyment of his youthful +host, quietly heaped choice bits upon his plate, and watched their rapid +disappearance with beaming satisfaction. Beelzebub had at last plucked up +courage and crept softly under the table to his master, making his presence +known by a quick tapping with his fore-paws upon the baron’s knees; his +claims were at once recognised, and he feasted to his heart’s content on +the savoury morsels quietly thrown down to him. Poor old Miraut, who had +followed Pierre into the room, was not neglected either, and had his full share +of the good things that found their way to his master’s plate. +</p> + +<p> +By this time there was a good deal of laughing and talking round the festive +board. The baron, though very timid, and much embarrassed, had ventured to +enter into conversation with his fair neighbours. The pedant and the tyrant +were loudly discussing the respective merits of tragedy and comedy. Leander, +like Narcissus of old, was complacently admiring his own charms as reflected in +a little pocket mirror he always had about him. Strange to say he was not a +suitor of either Serafina’s or Isabelle’s; fortunately for them he +aimed higher, and was always hoping that some grand lady, who saw him on the +stage, would fall violently in love with him, and shower all sorts of favours +upon him. He was in the habit of boasting that he had had many delightful +adventures of the kind, which Scapin persistently denied, declaring that to his +certain knowledge they had never taken place, save in the aspiring +lover’s own vivid imagination. The exasperating valet, malicious as a +monkey, took the greatest delight in tormenting poor Leander, and never lost an +opportunity; so now, seeing him absorbed in self-admiration, he immediately +attacked him, and soon had made him furious. The quarrel grew loud and violent, +and Leander was heard declaring that he could produce a large chest crammed +full of love letters, written to him by various high and titled ladies; +whereupon everybody laughed uproariously, while Serafina said to de Sigognac +that she for one did not admire their taste, and Isabelle silently looked her +disgust. The baron meantime was more and more charmed with this sweet, dainty +young girl, and though he was too shy to address any high-flown compliments to +her, according to the fashion of the day, his eyes spoke eloquently for him. +She was not at all displeased at his ardent glances, and smiled radiantly and +encouragingly upon him, thereby unconsciously making poor Matamore, who was +secretly enamoured of her, desperately unhappy, though he well knew that his +passion was an utterly hopeless one. A more skilful and audacious lover would +have pushed his advantage, but our poor young hero had not learned courtly +manners nor assurance in his isolated château, and, though he lacked neither +wit nor learning, it must be confessed that at this moment he did appear +lamentably stupid. +</p> + +<p> +All the bottles having been scrupulously emptied, the pedant turned the last +one of the half dozen upside down, so that every drop might run out; which +significant action was noted and understood by Matamore, who lost no time in +bringing in a fresh supply from the chariot. The baron began to feel the wine a +little in his head, being entirely unaccustomed to it, yet he could not resist +drinking once again to the health of the ladies. The pedant and the tyrant +drank like old topers, who can absorb any amount of liquor—be it wine, or +something stronger—without becoming actually intoxicated. Matamore was +very abstemious, both in eating and drinking, and could have lived like the +impoverished Spanish hidalgo, who dines on three olives and sups on an air upon +his mandoline. There was a reason for his extreme frugality; he feared that if +he ate and drank like other people he might lose his phenomenal thinness, which +was of inestimable value to him in a professional point of view. If he should +be so unfortunate as to gain flesh, his attractions would diminish in an +inverse ratio, so he starved himself almost to death, and was constantly seen +anxiously examining the buckle of his belt, to make sure that he had not +increased in girth since his last meal. Voluntary Tantalus, he scarcely allowed +himself enough to keep life in his attenuated frame, and if he had but fasted +as carefully from motives of piety he would have been a full-fledged saint. +</p> + +<p> +The portly duenna disposed of solids and fluids perseveringly, and in +formidable quantities, seeming to have an unlimited capacity; but Isabelle and +Serafina had finished their supper long ago, and were yawning wearily behind +their pretty, outspread hands, having no fans within reach, to conceal these +pronounced symptoms of sleepiness. +</p> + +<p> +The baron, becoming aware of this state of things, said to them, +“Mesdemoiselles, I perceive that you are very weary, and I wish with all +my heart that I could offer you each a luxurious bed-chamber; but my house, +like my family, has fallen into decay, and I can only give to you and Madame my +own room. Fortunately the bed is very large, and you must make yourselves as +comfortable as you can—for a single night you will not mind. As to the +gentlemen, I must ask them to remain here with me, and try to sleep in the +arm-chairs before the fire. I pray you, ladies, do not allow yourselves to be +startled by the waving of the tapestry-which is only due to the strong draughts +about the room on a stormy night like this—the moaning of the wind in the +chimney, or the wild scurrying and squeaking of the mice behind the wainscot. I +can guarantee that no ghosts will disturb you here, though this place does look +dreary and dismal enough to be haunted.” +</p> + +<p> +“I am not a bit of a coward,” answered Serafina laughingly, +“and will do my best to reassure this timid little Isabelle. As to our +duenna,—she is something of a sorceress herself, and if the devil in +person should make his appearance he would meet his match in her.” +</p> + +<p> +The baron then took a light in his hand and showed the three ladies the way +into the bed-chamber, which certainly did strike them rather unpleasantly at +first sight, and looked very eerie in the dim, flickering light of the one +small lamp. +</p> + +<p> +“What a capital scene it would make for the fifth act of a +tragedy,” said Serafina, as she looked curiously about her, while poor +little Isabelle shivered with cold and terror. They all crept into bed without +undressing, Isabelle begging to lie between Serafina and Mme. Léonarde, for she +felt nervous and frightened. The other two fell asleep at once, but the timid +young girl lay long awake, gazing with wide-open, straining eyes at the door +that led into the shut-up apartments beyond, as if she dreaded its opening to +admit some unknown horror. But it remained fast shut, and though all sorts of +mysterious noises made her poor little heart flutter painfully, her eyelids +closed at last, and she forgot her weariness and her fears in profound slumber. +</p> + +<p> +In the other room the pedant slept soundly, with his head on the table, and the +tyrant opposite to him snored like a giant. Matamore had rolled himself up in a +cloak and made himself as comfortable as possible under the circumstances in a +large arm-chair, with his long, thin legs extended at full length, and his feet +on the fender. Leander slept sitting bolt upright, so as not to disarrange his +carefully brushed hair, and de Sigognac, who had taken possession of a vacant +arm-chair, was too much agitated and excited by the events of the evening to be +able to close his eyes. The coming of two beautiful, young women thus suddenly +into his life—which had been hitherto so isolated, sad and dreary, +entirely devoid of all the usual pursuits and pleasures of youth—could +not fail to rouse him from his habitual apathy, and set his pulses beating +after a new fashion. Incredible as it may seem yet it was quite true that our +young hero had never had a single love affair. He was too proud, as we have +already said, to take his rightful place among his equals, without any of the +appurtenances suitable to his rank, and also too proud to associate familiarly +with the surrounding peasantry, who accorded him as much respect in his poverty +as they had ever shown to his ancestors in their prosperity. He had no near +relatives to come to his assistance, and so lived on, neglected and forgotten, +in his crumbling château, with nothing to look forward to or hope for. In the +course of his solitary wanderings he had several times chanced to encounter the +young and beautiful Yolande de Foix, following the hounds on her snow-white +palfrey, in company with her father and a number of the young noblemen of the +neighbourhood. This dazzling vision of beauty often haunted his dreams, but +what possible relations could there ever be hoped for between the rich, courted +heiress, whose suitors were legion, and his own poverty-stricken self? Far from +seeking to attract her attention, he always got out of her sight as quickly as +possible, lest his ill-fitting, shabby garments and miserable old pony should +excite a laugh at his expense; for he was very sensitive, this poor young +nobleman, and could not have borne the least approach to ridicule from the fair +object of his secret and passionate admiration. He had tried his utmost to +stifle the ardent emotions that filled his heart whenever his thoughts strayed +to the beautiful Yolande, realizing how far above his reach she was, and he +believed that he had succeeded; though there were times even yet when it all +rushed back upon him with overwhelming force, like a huge tidal wave that +sweeps everything before it. +</p> + +<p> +The night passed quietly at the château, without other incident than the fright +of poor Isabelle, when Beelzebub, who had climbed up on the bed, as was his +frequent custom, established himself comfortably upon her bosom; finding it a +deliciously soft, warm resting-place, and obstinately resisting her frantic +efforts to drive him away. +</p> + +<p> +As to de Sigognac, he did not once close his eyes. A vague project was +gradually shaping itself in his mind, keeping him wakeful and perplexed. The +advent of these strolling comedians appeared to him like a stroke of fate, an +ambassador of fortune, to invite him to go out into the great world, away from +this old feudal ruin, where his youth was passing in misery and +inaction—to quit this dreary shade, and emerge into the light and life of +the outer world. +</p> + +<p> +At last the gray light of the dawn came creeping in through the lattice +windows, speedily followed by the first bright rays from the rising sun. The +storm was over, and the glorious god of day rose triumphant in a perfectly +clear sky. It was a strange group that he peeped in upon, where the old family +portraits seemed looking down with haughty contempt upon the slumbering +invaders of their dignified solitude. The <i>soubrette</i> was the first to +awake, starting up as a warm sunbeam shone caressingly full upon her face. She +sprang to her feet, shook out her skirts, as a bird does its plumage, passed +the palms of her hands lightly over her glossy bands of jet-black hair, and +then seeing that the baron was quietly observing her, with eyes that showed no +trace of drowsiness, she smiled radiantly upon him as she made a low and most +graceful curtsey. +</p> + +<p> +“I am very sorry,” said de Sigognac, as he rose to acknowledge her +salute, “that the ruinous condition of this château, which verily seems +better fitted to receive phantoms than real living guests, would not permit me +to offer you more comfortable accommodations. If I had been able to follow my +inclinations, I should have lodged you in a luxurious chamber, where you could +have reposed between fine linen sheets, under silken curtains, instead of +resting uneasily in that worm-eaten old chair.” +</p> + +<p> +“Do not be sorry about anything, my lord, I pray you,” answered the +<i>soubrette</i> with another brilliant smile; “but for your kindness we +should have been in far worse plight; forced to pass the night in the poor old +chariot, stuck fast in the mud; exposed to the cutting wind and pelting rain. +We should assuredly have found ourselves in wretched case this morning. +Besides, this château which you speak of so disparagingly is magnificence +itself in comparison with the miserable barns, open to the weather, in which we +have sometimes been forced to spend the night, trying to sleep as best we might +on bundles of straw, and making light of our misery to keep our courage +up.” +</p> + +<p> +While the baron and the actress were exchanging civilities the pedant’s +chair, unable to support his weight any longer, suddenly gave way under him, +and he fell to the floor with a tremendous crash, which startled the whole +company. In his fall he had mechanically seized hold of the table-cloth, and so +brought nearly all the things upon it clattering down with him. He lay +sprawling like a huge turtle in the midst of them until the tyrant, after +rubbing his eyes and stretching his burly limbs, came to the rescue, and held +out a helping hand, by aid of which the old actor managed with some difficulty +to scramble to his feet. +</p> + +<p> +“Such an accident as that could never happen to Matamore,” said +Hérode, with his resounding laugh; “he might fall into a spider’s +web without breaking through it.” +</p> + +<p> +“That’s true,” retorted the shadow of a man, in his turn +stretching his long attenuated limbs and yawning tremendously, “but then, +you know, not everybody has the advantage of being a second Polyphemus, a +mountain of flesh and bones, like you, or a big wine-barrel, like our friend +Blazius there.” +</p> + +<p> +All this commotion had aroused Isabelle, Serafina and the duenna, who presently +made their appearance. The two younger women, though a little pale and weary, +yet looked very charming in the bright morning light. In de Sigognac’s +eyes they appeared radiant, in spite of the shabbiness of their finery, which +was far more apparent now than on the preceding evening. But what signify faded +ribbons and dingy gowns when the wearers are fresh, young and beautiful? +Besides, the baron’s eyes were so accustomed to dinginess that they were +not capable of detecting such slight defects in the toilets of his fair guests, +and he gazed with delight upon these bewitching creatures, enraptured with +their grace and beauty. As to the duenna, she was both old and ugly, and had +long ago accepted the inevitable with commendable resignation. +</p> + +<p> +As the ladies entered by one door, Pierre came in by the other, bringing more +wood for the fire, and then proceeding to make the disordered room as tidy as +he could. All the company now gathered round the cheerful blaze that was +roaring up the chimney and sending out a warm glow that was an irresistible +attraction in the chill of the early morning. Isabelle knelt down and stretched +out the rosy palms of her pretty little hands as near to the flames as she +dared, while Serafina stood behind and laid her hands caressingly on her +shoulders, like an elder sister taking tender care of a younger one. Matamore +stood on one leg like a huge heron, leaning against the corner of the carved +chimney-piece, and seemed inclined to fall asleep again, while the pedant was +vainly searching for a swallow of wine among the empty bottles. +</p> + +<p> +The baron meantime had held a hurried private consultation with Pierre as to +the possibility of procuring a few eggs, or a fowl or two, at the nearest +hamlet, so that he might give the travellers something to eat before their +departure, and he bade the old servant be quick about it, for the chariot was +to make an early start, as they had a long day’s journey before them. +</p> + +<p> +“I cannot let you go away fasting, though you will have rather a scanty +breakfast I fear,” he said to his guests, “but it is better to have +a poor one than none at all; and there is not an inn within six leagues of this +where you could be sure of getting anything to eat. I will not make further +apologies, for the condition of everything in this house shows you plainly +enough that I am not rich; but as my poverty is mainly owing to the great +expenditures made by my honoured ancestors in many wars for the defence of king +and country, I do not need to be ashamed of it.” +</p> + +<p> +“No indeed, my lord,” answered Hérode in his deep, bass voice, +“and many there be in these degenerate days who hold their heads very +high because of their riches, who would not like to have to confess how they +came in possession of them.” +</p> + +<p> +“What astonishes me,” interrupted Blazius, “is that such an +accomplished young gentleman as your lordship seems to be should be willing to +remain here in this isolated spot, where Fortune cannot reach you even if she +would. You ought to go to Paris, the great capital of the world, the rendezvous +of brave and learned men, the El Dorado, the promised land, the Paradise of all +true Frenchmen. There you would be sure to make your way, either in attaching +yourself to the household of some great nobleman, a friend of your family, or +in performing some brilliant deed of valour, the opportunity for which will not +be long to find.” +</p> + +<p> +These words, although rather high-flown, were not devoid of sense, and de +Sigognac could not help secretly admitting that there was some truth in them. +He had often, during his long rambles over the desolate Landes, thought +wishfully of undertaking what the pedant had just proposed; but he had not +money enough for the journey even, and he did not know where to look for more. +Though brave and high-spirited, he was very sensitive, and feared a smile of +derision more than a sword-thrust. He was not familiar with the prevailing +fashions in dress, but he felt that his antiquated costume was ridiculous as +well as shabby, and sure to be laughed at anywhere but among his own simple +peasantry. Like most of those who are disheartened and crushed by extreme +poverty, he only looked at the dark side of things, and made no allowance for +any possible advantages. Perhaps he might have been delicately as well as +generously assisted by some of his father’s old friends if he would only +have let them know of his situation, but his pride held him back, and he would +have died of starvation rather than ask for aid in any form. +</p> + +<p> +“I used to think sometimes of going to Paris,” he answered slowly, +after some hesitation, “but I have no friends or even acquaintances +there; and the descendants of those who perhaps knew my ancestors when they +were rich and powerful, and in favour at court, could scarcely be expected to +welcome a poverty-stricken Baron de Sigognac, who came swooping down from his +ruined tower to try and snatch a share of any prey that chanced to lie within +reach of his talons. And besides—I do not know why I should be ashamed to +acknowledge it—I have not any of the appurtenances suitable to my rank, +and could not present myself upon a footing worthy of my name. I doubt if I +have even money enough for the expenses of the journey alone, and that in the +humblest fashion.” +</p> + +<p> +“But it is not necessary,” Blazius hastened to reply, “that +you should make a state entry into the capital, like a Roman emperor, in a +gilded chariot drawn by four white horses abreast. If our humble equipage does +not appear too unworthy to your lordship, come with us to Paris; we are on our +way there now. Many a man shines there to-day in brave apparel, and enjoys high +favour at court, who travelled thither on foot, carrying his little bundle over +his shoulder, swung on the point of his rapier, and his shoes in his hand, for +fear of wearing them out on the way.” +</p> + +<p> +A slight flush, partly of shame, partly of pleasure, rose to de +Sigognac’s cheek at this speech. If on the one side his pride revolted at +the idea of being under an obligation to such a person as the pedant, on the +other he was touched and gratified by this kind proposition so frankly made, +and which, moreover, accorded so well with his own secret desires. He feared +also that if he refused the actor’s kindly-meant offer he would wound his +feelings, and perhaps miss an opportunity that would never be afforded to him +again. It is true that the idea of a descendant of the noble old house of +Sigognac travelling in the chariot of a band of strolling players, and making +common cause with them, was rather shocking at first sight, but surely it would +be better than to go on any longer leading his miserable, hopeless life in this +dismal, deserted place. He wavered between those two decisive little +monosyllables, yes and no, and could by no means reach a satisfactory +conclusion, when Isabelle, who had been watching the colloquy with breathless +interest, advanced smilingly to where he was standing somewhat apart with +Blazius, and addressed the following words to him, which speedily put an end to +all his uncertainty: +</p> + +<p> +“Our poet, having fallen heir to a fortune, has lately left us, and his +lordship would perhaps be good enough to take his place. I found accidentally, +in opening a volume of Ronsard’s poems that lay upon the table in his +room, a piece of paper with a sonnet written upon it, which must be of his +composition, and proves him not unaccustomed to writing in verse. He could +rearrange our parts for us, make the necessary alterations and additions in the +new plays we undertake, and even perhaps write a piece for us now and then. I +have now a very pretty little Italian comedy by me, which, with some slight +modifications, would suit us nicely, and has a really charming part for +me.” +</p> + +<p> +With her last words, accompanied though they were with a smile, she gave the +baron such a sweet, wistful look that he could no longer resist; but the +appearance of Pierre at this moment with a large omelette created a diversion, +and interrupted this interesting conversation. They all immediately gathered +round the table, and attacked the really good breakfast, which the old servant +had somehow managed to put before them, with great zest. As to de Sigognac, he +kept them company merely out of politeness, and trifled with what was on his +plate while the others were eating, having partaken too heartily of the supper +the night before to be hungry now, and, besides, being so much preoccupied with +weightier matters that he was not able to pay much attention to this. +</p> + +<p> +After the meat was finished, and while the chariot was being made ready for a +start, Isabelle and Serafina expressed a desire to go into the garden, which +they looked down upon from the court. +</p> + +<p> +“I am afraid,” said de Sigognac, as he aided them to descend the +unsteady, slippery stone steps, “that the briers will make sad work with +your dresses, for thorns abound in my neglected garden, though roses do +not.” +</p> + +<p> +The young baron said this in the sad, ironical tone he usually adopted when +alluding to his poverty; but a moment after they suddenly came upon two +exquisite little wild roses, blooming directly in their path. With an +exclamation of surprise de Sigognac gathered them, and as he offered one to +each lady, said, with a smile, “I did not know there was anything of this +sort here, having never found aught but rank weeds and brambles before; it is +your gracious presence that has brought forth these two blossoms in the midst +of ruin and desolation.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle put her little rose carefully in the bosom of her dress, giving him +her thanks mutely by an eloquent glance, which spoke more perhaps than she +knew, and brought a flush of pleasure to his cheeks. They walked on to the +statue in its rocky niche at the end of the garden, de Sigognac carefully +bending back the branches that obstructed the way. The young girl looked round +with a sort of tender interest at this overgrown, neglected spot, so thoroughly +in keeping with the ruined château that frowned down upon them, and thought +pityingly of the long, dreary hours that the poor baron must have spent here in +solitude and despair. Serafina’s face only expressed a cold disdain, but +slightly masked by politeness. To her mind the ruinous condition of things was +anything but interesting, and though she dearly loved a title she had still +greater respect for wealth and magnificence. +</p> + +<p> +“My domain ends here,” said the baron, as they reached the grotto +of the statue, “though formerly all the surrounding country, as far as +the eye can reach from the top of that high tower yonder, belonged to my +ancestors. But barely enough remains now to afford me a shelter until the day +comes when the last of the de Sigognacs shall be laid to rest amid his +forefathers in the family vault, thenceforward their sole possession.” +</p> + +<p> +“Do you know you are very much out of spirits this morning?” said +Isabelle in reply, touched by the expression of this sad thought that had +occurred to her also, and assuming a bright, playful air, in the hope that it +might help to chase away the heavy shadow that lay upon her young host’s +brow. “Fortune is blind, they say, but nevertheless she does sometimes +shower her good gifts upon the worthy and the brave; the only thing is that +they must put themselves in her way. Come, decide to go with us, and perhaps in +a few years the Château de Sigognac, restored to its ancient splendour, may +loom up as proudly as of old; think of that, my lord, and take courage to quit +it for a time. And besides,” she added in a lower tone that only de +Sigognac could hear, “I cannot bear to go away and leave you here alone +in this dreary place.” +</p> + +<p> +The soft light that shone in Isabelle’s beautiful eyes as she murmured +these persuasive words was irresistible to the man who already loved her madly; +and the idea of following his divinity in a humble disguise, as many a noble +knight had done of old, reconciled him to what would otherwise have seemed too +incongruous and humiliating. It could not be considered derogatory to any +gentleman to accompany his lady-love, be she what she might, actress or +princess, and to attach himself, for love of her bright eyes, to even a band of +strolling players. The mischievous little boy of the bow had compelled even +gods and heroes to submit to all sorts of odd tests and means. Jupiter himself +took the form of a bull to carry off Europa, and swam across the sea with her +upon his back to the island of Crete. Hercules, dressed as a woman, sat +spinning meekly at Omphale’s feet. Even Aristotle went upon all fours +that his mistress might ride on his back. What wonder then that our youthful +baron thought that nothing could be too difficult or repulsive in the service +of the lovely being at his side! So he decided at once not to let her leave him +behind, and begging the comedians to wait a few moments while he made his +hurried preparations, drew Pierre aside and told him in few words of his new +project. The faithful old servant, although nearly heart-broken at the thought +of parting with his beloved master, fully realized how greatly it would be to +his advantage to quit the dreary life that was blighting his youth, and go out +into the world; and while he felt keenly the incongruity of such fellow +travellers for a de Sigognac, yet wisely thought that it was better for him to +go thus than not at all. He quickly filled an old valise with the few articles +of clothing that formed the baron’s scanty wardrobe, and put into a +leathern purse the little money he still possessed; secretly adding thereto his +own small hoard, which he could safely do without fear of detection, as he had +the care of the family finances, as well as everything else about the +establishment. The old white pony was brought out and saddled, for de Sigognac +did not wish to get into the chariot until they had gone some distance from +home, not caring to make his departure public. He would seem thus to be only +accompanying his guests a little way upon their journey, and Pierre was to +follow on foot to lead the horse back home. +</p> + +<p> +The oxen, great slow-moving, majestic creatures, were already harnessed to the +heavy chariot, while their driver, a tall, sturdy peasant lad, standing in +front of them leaning upon his goad, had unconsciously assumed an attitude so +graceful that he closely resembled the sculptured figures in ancient Greek +bas-reliefs. Isabelle and Serafina had seated themselves in the front of the +chariot, so that they could enjoy the fresh, cool air, and see the country as +they passed along; while the others bestowed themselves inside, where they +might indulge in a morning nap. At last all were ready; the driver gave the +word of command, and the oxen stepped slowly forward, setting in motion the +great unwieldy, lumbering vehicle, which creaked and groaned in lamentable +fashion, making the vaulted portico ring again as it passed through it and out +of the château. +</p> + +<p> +In the midst of all this unwonted commotion, Beelzebub and Miraut moved +restlessly about the court, evidently very much perplexed as to what could be +the meaning of it. The old dog ran back and forth from his master, who always +had a caress for him, to Pierre, looking up into their faces with questioning, +anxious eyes, and Beelzebub finally went and held a consultation with his good +friend, the old white pony, now standing with saddle and bridle on, quietly +awaiting his master’s pleasure. He bent down his head so that his lips +almost touched Beelzebub, and really appeared to be whispering something to +him; which the cat in his turn imparted to Miraut, in that mysterious language +of animals which Democritus, claimed that he understood, but which we are not +able to translate. Whatever it might have been that Bayard, the old pony, +communicated to Beelzebub, one thing is certain, that when at last the baron +vaulted into his saddle and sallied forth from his ancient castle, he was +accompanied by both cat and dog. Now, though it was no uncommon thing for +Miraut to follow him abroad, Beelzebub had never been known to attempt such a +feat before. +</p> + +<p> +As he rode slowly out through the grand old portico de Sigognac felt his heart +heavy within him, and when, after going a few paces from the château, he turned +round for one last look at its crumbling walls, he felt an acute grief at +bidding them farewell which was an astonishment to himself. As his eyes sought +and dwelt upon the roof of the little chapel where his father and mother lay +sleeping side by side, he almost reproached himself for wishing to go and leave +them, and it required a mighty effort to turn away and ride after the chariot, +which was some distance in advance of him. He had soon overtaken and passed it, +when a gentle gust of wind brought to him the penetrating, faintly aromatic +scent of his native heather, still wet from last night’s rain, and also +the silvery sound of a distant convent bell that was associated with his +earliest recollections. They both seemed to be reproaching him for his +desertion of his home, and he involuntarily checked the old pony, and made as +if he would turn back. Miraut and Beelzebub, seeming to understand the +movement, looked up at him eagerly, but as he was in the very act of turning +the horse’s head he met Isabelle’s soft eyes fixed on him with such +an entreating, wistful look that he flushed and trembled under it, and entirely +forgetting his ancient château, the perfume of the heather, and the quick +strokes of the distant bell, that still continued ringing, he put spurs to his +horse and dashed on in advance again. The struggle was over—Isabelle had +conquered. +</p> + +<p> +When the highway was reached, de Sigognac again fell behind the +chariot—which moved more quickly over the smooth, hard road—so that +Pierre might be able to catch up to him, and rode slowly forward, lost in +thought; he roused himself, however, in time to take one last look at the +towers of Sigognac, which were still visible over the tops of the pine trees. +Bayard came to a full stop as he gazed, and Miraut took advantage of the pause +to endeavour to climb up and lick his master’s face once more; but he was +so old and stiff that de Sigognac had to lift him up in front of him; holding +him there he tenderly caressed the faithful companion of many sad, lonely +years, even bending down and kissing him between the eyes. Meantime the more +agile Beelzebub had scrambled up on the other side, springing from the ground +to the baron’s foot, and then climbing up by his leg; he purred loudly as +his master affectionately stroked his head, looking up in his face as if he +understood perfectly that this was a leave-taking. We trust that the kind +reader will not laugh at our poor young hero, when we say that he was so deeply +touched by these evidences of affection from his humble followers that two +great tears rolled down his pale cheeks and fell upon the heads of his dumb +favourites, before he put them gently from him and resumed his journey. +</p> + +<p> +Miraut and Beelzebub stood where he had put them down, looking after their +beloved master until a turn in the road hid him from their sight, and then +quietly returned to the château together. The rain of the previous night had +left no traces in the sandy expanse of the Landes, save that it had freshened +up the heather with its tiny purple bells, and the furze bushes with their +bright yellow blossoms. The very pine trees themselves looked less dark and +mournful than usual, and their penetrating, resinous odour filled the fresh +morning air. Here and there a little column of smoke rising from amid a grove +of chestnut trees betrayed the homestead of some farmer, and scattered over the +gently rolling plain, that extended as far as the eye could reach, great flocks +of sheep could be discerned, carefully guarded by shepherd and dog; the former +mounted on stilts, and looking very odd to those unaccustomed to the shepherds +of the Landes. On the southern horizon the snow-clad tops of the more lofty +peaks of the Pyrenees rose boldly into the clear sky, with light wreaths of +mist still clinging round them here and there. +</p> + +<p> +Oxen travel slowly, especially over roads where at times the wheels sink deep +into the sand, and the sun was high above the horizon before they had gone two +leagues on their way. The baron, loath to fatigue his old servant and poor +Bayard, determined to bid adieu to them without further delay; so he sprang +lightly to the ground, put the bridle into Pierre’s trembling hand, and +affectionately stroked the old pony’s neck, as he never failed to do when +he dismounted. It was a painful moment. The faithful servant had taken care of +his young master from his infancy, and he turned very pale as he said in +faltering tones, “God bless and keep your lordship. How I wish that I +could go with you.” +</p> + +<p> +“And so do I, my good Pierre, but that is impossible. You must stay and +take care of the château for me; I could not bear to think of it entirely +abandoned, or in any other hands than yours, my faithful friend! And besides, +what would become of Bayard and Miraut and Beelzebub, if you too deserted +them?” +</p> + +<p> +“You are right, master,” answered Pierre, his eyes filling with +tears as he bade him farewell before he turned and led Bayard slowly back by +the road they had come. The old pony whinnied loudly as he left his master, and +long after he was out of sight could be heard at short intervals calling out +his adieux. +</p> + +<p> +The poor young baron, left quite alone, stood for a moment with downcast eyes, +feeling very desolate and sad; then roused himself with an effort, and hastened +after the chariot. As he walked along beside it with a sorrowful, preoccupied +air, Isabelle complained of being tired of her somewhat cramped position, and +said that she would like to get down and walk a little way for a change; her +real motive being a kind wish to endeavour to cheer up poor de Sigognac and +make him forget his sad thoughts. The shadow that had overspread his +countenance passed away entirely as he assisted Isabelle to alight, and then +offering his arm led her on in advance of the lumbering chariot. They had +walked some distance, and she was just reciting some verses, from one of her +parts, which she wished to have altered a little, when the sound of a horn +close at hand startled them, and from a by-path emerged a gay party returning +from the chase. The beautiful Yolande de Foix came first, radiant as Diana, +with a brilliant colour in her cheeks and eyes that shone like stars. Several +long rents in the velvet skirt of her riding habit showed that she had been +following the hounds through the thickets of furze that abound in the Landes, +yet she did not look in the least fatigued, and as she came forward made her +spirited horse fret and prance under quick, light strokes of her +riding-whip—in whose handle shone a magnificent amethyst set in massive +gold, and engraved with the de Foix arms. Three or four young noblemen, +splendidly dressed and mounted, were with her, and as she swept proudly past +our hero and his fair companion-upon whom she cast a glance of haughty +disdain—she said in clear ringing tones, “Do look at the Baron de +Sigognac, dancing attendance upon a <i>Bohémienne</i>.” And the little +company passed on with a shout of laughter. +</p> + +<p> +The poor baron was furious, and instinctively grasped the handle of his sword +with a quick, angry movement; but as quickly released it—for he was on +foot and those who had insulted him were on horseback, so that he could not +hope to overtake them; and besides, he could not challenge a lady. But the +angry flush soon faded from his cheek, and the remembrance of his displeasure +from his mind, under the gentle influence of Isabelle, who put forth all her +powers of fascination to make her companion forget the affront he had received +because of her. +</p> + +<p> +The day passed without any other incident worthy of being recorded, and our +travellers arrived in good season at the inn where they were to sup and sleep. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap03"></a>CHAPTER III.<br/> +THE BLUE SUN INN</h2> + +<p> +It was in front of the largest house in a wretched little hamlet that the weary +oxen drawing the chariot of Thespis stopped of their own accord. The wooden +sign that creaked distractingly as it swung to and fro at every breath of wind +bore a large, blue sun, darting its rays, after the most approved fashion, to +the utmost dimensions of the board on which it was painted. Rather an original +idea, one would say, to have a blue orb of day instead of a golden +one—such as adorned so many other inns on the great post-road—but +originality had had nothing whatever to do with it. The wandering painter who +produced this remarkable work of art happened to have no vestige of any colour +but blue left upon his palette, and he discoursed so eloquently of the +superiority of this tint to all others that he succeeded in persuading the +worthy innkeeper to have an azure sun depicted on his swinging sign. And not +this one alone had yielded to his specious arguments, for he had painted blue +lions, blue cocks, blue horses, on various signs in the country round, in a +manner that would have delighted the Chinese—who esteem an artist in +proportion to the unnaturalness of his designs and colouring. +</p> + +<p> +The few scrawny, unwholesome-looking children feebly playing in the muddy, +filthy, little street, and the prematurely old, ghastly women standing at the +open doors of the miserable thatched huts of which the hamlet was composed, +were but too evidently the wretched victims of a severe type of malarial fever +that prevails in the Landes. They were truly piteous objects, and our +travellers were glad to take refuge in the inn—though it was anything but +inviting—and so get out of sight of them. +</p> + +<p> +The landlord, a villainous looking fellow, with an ugly crimson scar across his +forehead, who rejoiced in the extraordinary name of Chirriguirri, received them +with many low obeisances, and led the way into his house, talking volubly of +the excellent accommodations to be found therein. +</p> + +<p> +The Baron de Sigognac hesitated ere he crossed the threshold, though the +comedians had all drawn back respectfully to allow him to precede them. His +pride revolted at going into such a place in such company, but one glance from +Isabelle put everything else out of his head, and he entered the dirty little +inn at her side with an air of joyful alacrity. In the happy kingdom of France +the fortunate man who escorted a pretty woman, no matter where, needed not to +fear ridicule or contumely, and was sure to be envied. +</p> + +<p> +The large low room into which Maître Chirriguirri ushered the party, with much +ceremony and many bows, was scarcely so magnificent as he had given them reason +to expect, but our strolling players had long ago learned to take whatever came +in their way without grumbling, and they seated themselves quietly on the rude +wooden settles ranged round a rough, stone platform in the centre of the +apartment, upon which a few sticks of wood were blazing the smoke escaping +through an opening in the roof above. From an iron bar which crossed this +opening a strong chain was suspended, and fastened to it was the crane, so that +it hung at the proper height over the fire—for this was the kitchen as +well as the reception room. The low ceiling was blackened with the smoke that +filled the upper part of the room and escaped slowly through the hole over the +fire, unless a puff of wind drove it back again. A row of bright copper +<i>casseroles</i> hanging against the wall—like the burnished shields +along the sides of the ancient triremes, if this comparison be not too noble +for such a lowly subject—gleamed vaguely in the flashing of the red +fire-light, and a large, half-empty wine-skin lying on the floor in one corner +looked like a beheaded body carelessly flung down there. Certainly not a +cheerful looking place, but, the fire being newly replenished burned brightly, +and our weary travellers were glad to bask in its genial warmth. +</p> + +<p> +At the end of one of the wooden benches a little girl was sitting, apparently +sound asleep. She was a poor, thin, little creature, with a mass of long, +tangled, black hair, which hung down over her face and almost concealed it, as +she sat with her head drooping forward on her breast. Her scanty clothing was +tattered and dirty, her feet and poor, thin, little legs brown and bare, and +covered with scratches—some still bleeding which bore witness to much +running through the thorny furze thickets. +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle, who chanced to sit down near her, cast many pitying glances upon this +forlorn little figure, but took care not to disturb the quiet sleep she seemed +to be enjoying in her uncomfortable resting-place. After a little, when she had +turned to speak to Serafina, who sat beside her, the child woke with a start, +and pushing back the mass of dishevelled hair revealed a sad little face, so +thin that the cheek bones were painfully prominent, and pale to ghastliness. A +pair of magnificent, dark brown eyes, with heavy sweeping lashes, looked +preternaturally large in her woe-begone little countenance, and at this moment +were filled with wondering admiration, mingled with fierce covetousness, as she +stared at Serafina’s mock jewels—and more especially at +Isabelle’s row of pearl beads. She seemed fairly dazzled by these latter, +and gazed at them fixedly in a sort of ecstasy—having evidently never +seen anything like them before, and probably thinking they must be of immense +value. Occasionally her eyes wandered to the dresses of the two ladies, and at +last, unable to restrain her ardent curiosity any longer, she put out her +little brown hand and softly felt of Isabelle’s gown, apparently finding +exquisite delight in the mere contact of her finger-tips with the smooth, +glossy surface of the silk. Though her touch was so light Isabelle immediately +turned towards the child and smiled upon her encouragingly, but the poor little +vagabond, finding herself detected, in an instant had assumed a stupid, almost +idiotic look—with an instinctive amount of histrionic art that would have +done honour to a finished actress. Then dropping her eyelids and leaning her +shoulders against the hard back of the wooden settle she seemed to fall into a +deep sleep, with her head bent down upon her breast in the old attitude. +</p> + +<p> +Meanwhile Maître Chirriguirri had been talking long and loudly about the choice +delicacies he could have set before his guests if they had only come a day or +two earlier, and enumerating all sorts of fine dishes—which doubtless had +existed only in his own very vivid imagination—though he told a +high-sounding story about the noblemen and grandees who had supped at his house +and devoured all these dainties only yesterday. When at length the flow of his +eloquence was checked by a display of ferocity on the part of the tyrant, and +he was finally brought to the point, he acknowledged that he could only give +them some of the soup called garbure—with which we have already made +acquaintance at the Château de Sigognac, some salt codfish, and a dish of +bacon; with plenty of wine, which according to his account was fit for the +gods. Our weary travellers were so hungry by this time that they were glad of +even this frugal fare, and when Mionnette, a gaunt, morose-looking creature, +the only servant that the inn could boast, announced that their supper was +ready in an adjoining room, they did not wait to be summoned a second time. +</p> + +<p> +They were still at table when a great barking of dogs was heard without, +together with the noise of horses’ feet, and in a moment three loud, +impatient knocks upon the outer door resounded through the house. Mionnette +rushed to open it, whereupon a gentleman entered, followed by a number of dogs, +who nearly knocked the tall maid-servant over in their eagerness to get in, and +rushed into the dining-room where our friends were assembled, barking, jumping +over each other, and licking off the plates that had been used and removed to a +low side table, before their master could stop them. A few sharp cuts with the +whip he held in his hand distributed promiscuously among them, without +distinction between the innocent and the guilty ones, quieted this uproar as if +by magic, and the aggressive hounds, taking refuge under the benches ranged +along the walls, curled themselves round on the floor and went comfortably to +sleep, or lay panting, with their red tongues hanging out of their mouths and +heads reposing on their fore-paws—not daring to stir. +</p> + +<p> +The obstreperous dogs thus disposed of, the cavalier advanced into the room, +with the calm assurance of a man who feels perfectly at his ease; his spurs +ringing against the stone floor at every step. The landlord followed him +obsequiously, cap in hand, cringing and bowing in most humble +fashion—having entirely laid aside his boasting air and evidently feeling +very ill at ease—this being a personage of whom he stood in awe. As the +gentleman approached the table he politely saluted the company, before turning +to give his orders to Maître Chirriguirri, who stood silently awaiting them. +</p> + +<p> +The newcomer was a handsome man of about thirty, with curly light hair, and a +fair complexion, somewhat reddened by exposure to the sun. His eyes were blue, +and rather prominent, his nose slightly retroussi; his small blond mustache was +carefully turned up at the ends, and scarcely shaded a well-formed but sensual +mouth, below which was a small, pointed beard—called a royal in those +days, an imperial in these. As he took off his broad felt hat, richly +ornamented with long sweeping plumes, and threw it carelessly down on one of +the benches, it was seen that his smooth, broad forehead was snowy white, and +the contrast with his sunburnt cheeks was not by any means displeasing. Indeed +it was a very handsome, attractive face, in which an expression of frank gaiety +and good humour tempered the air of pride that pervaded it. +</p> + +<p> +The dress of this gay cavalier was extremely rich and elegant; almost too much +so for the country. But when we say that the marquis—for such was his +title—had been following the hounds in company with the beautiful Yolande +de Foix, we feel that his costume, of blue velvet elaborately decorated with +silver braid, is fully accounted for. He was one of the gallants that shone at +court in Paris—where he was in the habit of spending a large portion of +every year—and he prided himself on being one of the best dressed +noblemen in France. +</p> + +<p> +His order to the obsequious landlord was in few words. “I want some broth +for my dogs, some oats for my horses, a piece of bread and a slice of ham for +myself, and something or other for my grooms”—and then he advanced +smilingly to the table and sat down in a vacant place beside the pretty +<i>soubrette</i>, who, charmed with such a gay, handsome seignior, had been +pleased to bestow a languishing glance and a brilliant smile upon him. +</p> + +<p> +Maître Chirriguirri hastened to fetch what he had demanded, while the +<i>soubrette</i>, with the grace of a Hebe, filled his glass to the brim with +wine; which he accepted with a smile, and drank off at a single draught. For a +few minutes he was fully occupied in satisfying his hunger—which was +veritably that of a hunter—and then looking about him at the party +assembled round the table, remarked the Baron de Sigognac, with whom he had a +slight acquaintance, seated beside the fair Isabelle—in whose company +indeed he had seen him already once before that day. The two young people were +talking together in low tones, and quite absorbed in each other; but the +language of their eyes was unmistakable, and the marquis smiled to himself as +he took note of what he supposed to be a very promising intrigue—wherein +he did the youthful pair great injustice. As a thorough man of the world he was +not at all surprised at finding de Sigognac with this band of vagabond players, +from such a motive, and the half-pitying contempt he had formerly felt for the +shabby, retiring young baron was straightway changed to a certain admiration +and respect by this evidence of his gallantry. When he caught his eye he made a +little gesture of recognition and approval—to show that he understood and +appreciated his position—but paid no further attention to him, evidently +meaning to respect his incognito, and devoted himself to the <i>soubrette</i>. +She received his high-flown compliments with peals of laughter, and paid him +back in his own coin with considerable wit and much merriment, to the great +delight of the marquis—who was always delighted to meet with any +adventure of this sort. +</p> + +<p> +Wishing to pursue this one, which opened so well, he declared loudly that he +was passionately fond of the theatre, and complained pathetically of being +deprived altogether of this, his favourite amusement, in the country; then +addressing himself to the tyrant he asked whether the troupe had any pressing +engagements that would prevent their turning aside a little from the usual +route to visit the Château de Bruyères and give one of their best plays +there—it would be an easy matter to rig up a theatre for them in the +great hall or the orangery. +</p> + +<p> +The tyrant hastened to reply that nothing could be easier, and that the troupe, +one of the best that had ever travelled through the provinces, was entirely at +his lordship’s disposition—“from the king to the +<i>soubrette</i>”—he added, with a broad grin. +</p> + +<p> +“That is capital,” said the marquis, “and as to money +matters, you can arrange them to suit yourself. I should not think of +bargaining with the votaries of Thalia—a muse so highly favoured by +Apollo, and as eagerly sought after, and enthusiastically applauded, at the +court of his most gracious majesty as in town and country everywhere.” +</p> + +<p> +After arranging the necessary preliminaries, the marquis, who had meantime +surreptitiously squeezed the <i>soubrette’s</i> hand under the table, +rose, called his dogs together, put on his hat, waved his hand to the company +in token of adieu, and took his departure amid much barking and +commotion—going directly home, in order to set on foot his preparations +to receive the comedians on the morrow at his château. +</p> + +<p> +As it was growing late, and they were to make an early start the next morning, +our tired travellers lost no time in going to rest; the women in a sort of +loft, where they had to make themselves as comfortable as they could with the +bundles of straw that were to serve them for beds, whilst the men slept on the +benches in the room where they had supped. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap04"></a>CHAPTER IV.<br/> +AN ADVENTURE WITH BRIGANDS</h2> + +<p> +Let us return now to the little girl we left feigning to sleep soundly upon a +settle in the kitchen. There was certainly something suspicious about the +fierce way in which she eyed Isabelle’s pearl necklace, and her little +bit of clever acting afterwards. As soon as the door had closed upon the +comedians she slowly opened her large, dark eyes, looked sharply round the +great, dim kitchen, and when she found that nobody was watching her, slipped +quietly down from the bench, threw back her hair with a quick movement of the +head peculiar to her, crept softly to the door, which she cautiously unlatched, +and escaped into the open air without making any more sound than a shadow, then +walked slowly and listlessly away until she had turned a corner and was out of +sight of the house, when she set off running as fleetly as a deer pursued by +the hounds—jumping over the frequent obstacles in her path with wonderful +agility, never stumbling, and flying along, with her black hair streaming out +behind her, like some wild creature of the desolate pine barrens through which +she was skilfully threading her way. +</p> + +<p> +She reached at last a little knoll, crowned by a group of pine trees crowded +closely together, and dashing up the steep bank with undiminished speed came to +a sudden stop in the very middle of the grove. Here she stood still for a +moment, peering anxiously about her, and then, putting two fingers in her +mouth, gave three shrill whistles, such as no traveller in those desolate +regions can hear without a shudder. In an instant what seemed to be a heap of +pine twigs stirred, and a man emerging from beneath them rose slowly to his +feet at a little distance from the child. +</p> + +<p> +“Is it you, Chiquita?” he asked. “What news do you bring? You +are late. I had given over expecting you to-night, and gone to sleep.” +</p> + +<p> +The speaker was a dark, fierce-looking fellow of about five and twenty, with a +spare, wiry frame, brilliant black eyes, and very white teeth—which were +long and pointed like the fangs of a young wolf. He looked as if he might be a +brigand, poacher, smuggler, thief, or assassin—all of which he had been +indeed by turns. He was dressed like a Spanish peasant, and in the red woollen +girdle wound several times around his waist was stuck a formidable knife, +called in Spain a <i>navaja</i>. The desperadoes who make use of these terrible +weapons usually display as many red stripes, cut in the steel, upon their long +pointed blades as they have committed murders, and are esteemed by their +companions in proportion to the number indicated by this horrible record. We do +not know exactly how many of these scarlet grooves adorned Agostino’s +<i>navaja</i>, but judging by the savage expression of his countenance, and the +fierce glitter of his eye, we may safely suppose them to have been creditably +numerous. +</p> + +<p> +“Well, Chiquita,” said he, laying his hand caressingly on the +child’s head, “and what did you see at Maître Chirriguirri’s +inn?” +</p> + +<p> +“A great chariot full of people came there this afternoon,” she +answered. “I saw them carry five large chests into the barn, and they +must have been very heavy, for it took two men to lift them.” +</p> + +<p> +“Hum!” said Agostino, “sometimes travellers put stones into +their boxes to make them seem very weighty and valuable, and deceive the +inn-keepers.” +</p> + +<p> +“But,” interrupted the child eagerly, “the three young ladies +had trimmings of gold on their clothes; and one of them, the prettiest, had +round her neck a row of round, shining, white things, and oh! they were so +beautiful!” and she clasped her hands in an ecstasy of admiration, her +voice trembling with excitement. +</p> + +<p> +“Those must be pearls,” muttered Agostino to himself, “and +they will be worth having—provided they are real—but then they do +make such perfect imitations now-a-days, and even rich people are mean enough +to wear them.” +</p> + +<p> +“My dear Agostino, my good Agostino,” continued Chiquita, in her +most coaxing tones, and without paying any attention to his mutterings, +“will you give me the beautiful, shining things if you kill that +lady?” +</p> + +<p> +“They would go so well with your rags and tatters!” he answered +mockingly. +</p> + +<p> +“But I have so often kept watch for you while you slept, and I have run +so far to tell you when any one was coming, no matter how cold it was, nor how +my poor, bare feet ached—and I have never once kept you waiting for your +food, when I used to carry it to you in your hiding places, even when I was bad +with the fever, or my teeth chattering with the chill, and I so weak that I +could hardly drag myself along. Oh Agostino! do remember what I have done for +you, and let me have the beautiful, shining things.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, you have been both brave and faithful, Chiquita, I admit; but we +have not got the wonderful necklace yet, you know. Now, tell me, how many men +were there in the party.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! a great many. A big, tall man with a long beard; an old, fat +man—one that looked like a fox—two thin men, and one that looked +like a gentleman, though his clothes were very old and shabby.” +</p> + +<p> +“Six men,” said Agostino, who had counted them on his fingers as +she enumerated them, and his face fell. “Alas! I am the only one left of +our brave band now; when the others were with me we would not have minded +double the number. Have they arms, Chiquita?” +</p> + +<p> +“The gentleman has a sword, and so has the tall, thin man—a very +long one.” +</p> + +<p> +“No pistols or guns?” +</p> + +<p> +“I didn’t see any,” answered Chiquita, “but they might +have left them in the chariot, you know; only Maître Chirriguirri or Mionnette +would have been sure to send you word if they had, and they said nothing to me +about them.” +</p> + +<p> +“Well, we will risk it then, and see what we can do,” said Agostino +resolutely. “Five large, heavy chests, gold ornaments, a pearl necklace! +they certainly are worth trying for.” +</p> + +<p> +The brigand and his little companion then went to a secret place in the thick +pine grove, and set to work industriously, removing a few large stones, a +quantity of branches, and finally the five or six boards they had concealed, +disclosing a large hole that looked like a grave. It was not very deep, and +Agostino, jumping down into it, stooped and lifted out what seemed to be a dead +body—dressed in its usual every-day clothes—which he flung down +upon the ground beside the hole. Chiquita, who did not appear to be in the +least agitated or alarmed by these mysterious proceedings, seized the figure by +the feet, with the utmost <i>sang-froid</i>, and dragged it out of +Agostino’s way, with a much greater degree of strength than could have +been expected from such a slight, delicate little creature. Agostino continued +his work of exhumation until five other bodies lay beside the first +one—all neatly arranged in a row by the little girl, who seemed to +actually enjoy her lugubrious task. It made a strange picture in the weird +light of the nearly full moon, half veiled by driving clouds—the open +grave, the bodies lying side by side under the dark pine trees, and the figures +of Agostino and Chiquita bending over them. But the tragic aspect of the affair +soon changed to a comic one; for when Agostino placed the first of the bodies +in an upright position it became apparent that it was only a sort of a +scarecrow—a rude figure intended to frighten timid traveller—which +being skilfully disposed at the edge of the grove, partly hidden among the +trees, looked at a little distance exactly like a brigand—gun and all. +Indeed it really was dressed in the garments of one of his old comrades, who +had paid the penalty of his crimes on the gallows. He apostrophized the figure +as he arranged it to his liking, calling it by name, relating some of the brave +deeds of its prototype, and bewailing the sad fate that had left him to ply his +nefarious trade single-handed, with a rude eloquence that was not wanting in +pathos. Returning to where the others lay, he lifted up one which he reminded +Chiquita, represented her father—whose valour and skill he eulogized +warmly—whilst the child devoutly made the sign of the cross as she +muttered a prayer. This one being put in position, he carried the remaining +figures, one by one, to the places marked for them, keeping up a running +commentary upon the ci-devant brigands whose representatives they were, and +calling them each repeatedly by name, as if there were a certain sad +satisfaction in addressing them in the old, familiar way. +</p> + +<p> +When this queer task was completed, the bandit and his faithful little +companion, taking advantage of a flood of moonlight as the clouds drifted away +before the wind, went and stood on the road—not very far from their +retreat—by which our travellers were to pass, to judge of the effect of +their group of brigands. It was really very formidable, and had often been of +great service to the bold originator of the plan; for on seeing so numerous a +band apparently advancing upon them, most travellers took to their heels, +leaving the coveted spoils behind them for Agostino to gather up at his +leisure. +</p> + +<p> +As they slowly returned to the pine grove he said to the child, who was +clinging to his arm affectionately as she walked beside him, “The first +stage of their journey to-morrow is a long one, and these people will be sure +to start in good season, so that they will reach this spot just at the right +time for us—in the uncertain light of the dawn. In the darkness of night +our brigands yonder could not be seen, and in broad daylight the ruse would be +apparent; so we are in luck, Chiquita! But now for a nap—we have plenty +of time for it, and the creaking of the wheels will be sure to wake us.” +Accordingly Agostino threw himself down upon a little heap of pine branches and +heather, Chiquita crept close to him, so that the large cloak with which he had +covered himself might protect her also from the chilly night air, and both were +soon sound asleep. +</p> + +<p> +It was so early when our travellers were roused from their slumbers and told +that it was time for them to resume their journey, by the treacherous landlord +of the Blue Sun Inn, that it seemed to them like the middle of the night; to +they arranged themselves as comfortably as they could in the great, roomy +chariot, and despite the loud creaking and groaning that accompanied its every +movement as it went slowly lumbering along, and the shrill cries of the driver +to his oxen, they were all soon asleep again, excepting de Sigognac, who walked +beside the chariot, lost in thoughts of Isabelle’s beauty, grace and +modesty, and adorable goodness, which seemed better suited to a young lady of +noble birth than a wandering actress. He tormented himself with trying to +devise some means to induce her to reciprocate the ardent love that filled his +heart for her, not for an instant suspecting that it was already a <i>fait +accompli</i>, and that the sweet, pure maiden had given him, unasked, her +gentle, faithful heart. The bashful young baron imagined all sorts of romantic +and perilous incidents in which he might constitute himself her knight and +protector, and show such brave and tender devotion to her as he had read of in +the old books of chivalry; and which might lead up to the avowal he was burning +to make, yet dared not. It never occurred to him that the look in his dark eyes +whenever they rested on her face, the tone of his voice when he addressed her, +the deep sighs he vainly sought to stifle, and the tender, eager care with +which he strove to anticipate her every wish had spoken for him, as plainly as +any words could do; and that, though he had not dared to breathe one syllable +of his passionate love to Isabelle, she knew it, rejoiced in it, and was proud +of it, and that it filled her with a delicious, rapturous joy, such as she had +never felt before, or even dreamed of. +</p> + +<p> +The morning began to break—the narrow band of pale light on the horizon, +which was growing rapidly brighter and assuming a rosy tinge, was reflected +here and there in the little pools of water that shone like bits of a broken +mirror scattered over the ground—distant sounds were heard, and columns +of smoke rising into the still morning air proved that even in this desolate, +God-forsaken part of the Landes there were human habitations to be found. +Stalking along with giant strides on the highest part of some rising ground not +very far off was a grotesque figure, clearly defined against the bright eastern +sky, which would have been a puzzle to a stranger, but was a familiar sight to +de Sigognac—a shepherd mounted on his high stilts, such as are to be met +with everywhere throughout the Landes. +</p> + +<p> +But the young baron was too much absorbed in his own engrossing thoughts to +take any note of his surroundings as he kept pace with the slow-moving chariot, +until his eye was caught and his attention fixed by a strange little point of +light, glittering among the sombre pines that formed the dense grove where we +left Agostino and Chiquita sleeping. He wondered what it could +be—certainly not a glow-worm, the season for them was past long +ago—and he watched it as he advanced towards it with a vague feeling of +uneasiness. Approaching nearer he caught a glimpse of the singular group of +figures lurking among the trees, and at first feared an ambuscade; but finding +that they continued perfectly motionless he concluded that he must have been +mistaken, and that they were only old stumps after all; so he forbore to arouse +the comedians, as he had for a moment thought of doing. +</p> + +<p> +A few steps farther and suddenly a loud report was heard from the grove, a +bullet sped through the air, and struck the oxen’s yoke—happily +without doing any damage, further than causing the usually quiet, steady-going +beasts to swerve violently to one side—when fortunately a considerable +heap of sand prevented the chariot’s being overturned into the ditch +beside the road. The sharp report and violent shock startled the sleeping +travellers in the chariot, and the younger women shrieked wildly in their +terror, whilst the duenna, who had met with such adventures before, slipped the +few gold pieces she had in her purse into her shoe. Beside the chariot, from +which the actors were struggling to extricate themselves, stood +Agostino—his cloak wrapped around his left arm and the formidable +<i>navaja</i> in his right hand-and cried in a voice of thunder, “Your +money or your lives! Resistance is useless! At the first sign of it my band +will fire upon you.” +</p> + +<p> +Whilst the bandit was shouting out these terrible words, de Sigognac had +quietly drawn his sword, and as he finished attacked him furiously. Agostino +skilfully parried his thrusts, with the cloak on his left arm, which so +disposed made an excellent shield, and watched his opportunity to give a +murderous stab with his <i>navaja</i>, which indeed he almost succeeded in +doing; a quick spring to one side alone saved the baron from a wound which must +have been fatal, as the brigand threw the knife at him with tremendous force, +and it flew through the air and fell ringing upon the ground at a marvellous +distance, instead of piercing de Sigognac’s heart. His antagonist turned +pale, for he was quite defenceless, having depended entirely upon his trusty +<i>navaja</i>, which had never failed him before, and he very well knew that +his vaunted band could not come to his rescue. However, he shouted to them to +fire, counting upon the sudden terror that command would inspire to deliver him +from his dilemma; and, indeed, the comedians, expecting a broadside, did take +refuge behind the chariot, whilst even our brave hero involuntarily bent his +head a little, to avoid the shower of bullets. +</p> + +<p> +Meantime Chiquita, who had breathlessly watched all that passed from her hiding +place among some furze bushes close at hand, when she saw her friend in peril, +crept softly forth, glided along on the ground like a snake until she reached +the knife, lying unnoticed where it had fallen, and, seizing it, in one instant +had restored it to Agostino, She looked like a little fury as she did so, and +if her strength had been equal to her ferocity she would have been a formidable +foe. +</p> + +<p> +Agostino again aimed his <i>navaja</i> at the baron, who was at that moment off +his guard, and would not perhaps have escaped the deadly weapon a second time +if it had been hurled at him from that skilful hand, but that a grasp of iron +fastened upon the desperado’s wrist, just in time to defeat his purpose. +He strove in vain to extricate his right arm from the powerful grip that held +it like a vice—struggling violently, and writhing with the pain it caused +him—but he dared not turn upon this new assailant, who was behind him, +because de Sigognac would have surely scored his back for him; and he was +forced to continue parrying his thrusts with his left arm, still protected by +the ample cloak firmly wound around it. He soon discovered that he could not +possibly free his right hand, and the agony became so great that his fingers +could no longer keep their grasp of the knife, which fell a second time to the +ground. +</p> + +<p> +It was the tyrant who had come to de Sigognac’s rescue, and now suddenly +roared out in his stentorian voice, “What the deuce is nipping me? Is it +a viper? I felt two sharp fangs meet in the calf of my leg.” +</p> + +<p> +It was Chiquita, who was biting his leg like a dog, in the vain hope of making +him turn round and loose his hold upon Agostino; but the tyrant shook her off +with a quick movement, that sent her rolling in the dust at some distance, +without relinquishing his captive, whilst Matamore dashed forward and picked up +the <i>navaja</i>, which he shut together and put into his pocket. +</p> + +<p> +Whilst this scene was enacting the sun had risen, and poured a flood of +radiance upon the earth in which the sham brigands lost much of their life-like +effect. “Ha, ha!” laughed the peasant, “it would appear that +those gentlemen’s guns take a long time to go off; they must be wet with +dew. But whatever may be the matter with them they are miserable cowards, to +stand still there at a safe distance and leave their chief to do all the +fighting by himself.” +</p> + +<p> +“There is a good reason for that,” answered Matamore, as he climbed +up the steep bank to them, “these are nothing but scarecrows.” And +with six vigorous kicks he sent the six absurd figures rolling in every +direction, making the most comical gestures as they fell. +</p> + +<p> +“You may safely alight now, ladies,” said the baron, reassuringly, +to the trembling actresses, “there’s nothing more to fear; it was +only a sham battle after all.” +</p> + +<p> +In despair at his overwhelming defeat, Agostino hung his head mournfully, and +stood like a statue of grief, dreading lest worse still should befall him, if +the comedians, who were in too great force for him to attempt to struggle any +longer against them, decided to take him on to the next town and deliver him +over to the jailor to be locked up, as indeed he richly deserved. His faithful +little friend, Chiquita, stood motionless at his side, as downcast as himself. +But the farce of the false brigands so tickled the fancy of the players that it +seemed as if they never would have done laughing over it, and they were +evidently inclined to deal leniently with the ingenious rascal who had devised +it. The tyrant, who had loosened, but not quitted, his hold upon the bandit, +assumed his most tragic air and voice, and said to him, “You have +frightened these ladies almost to death, you scoundrel, and you richly deserve +to be strung up for it; but if, as I believe, they will consent to pardon +you—for they are very kind and good—-I will not take you to the +lock-up. I confess that I do not care to furnish a subject for the gallows. +Besides, your stratagem is really very ingenious and amusing—a capital +farce to play at the expense of cowardly travellers—who have doubtless +paid you well for the entertainment, eh? As an actor, I appreciate the joke, +and your ingenuity inclines me to be indulgent. You are not simply and brutally +a robber, and it would certainly be a pity to cut short such a fine +career.” +</p> + +<p> +“Alas!” answered Agostino mournfully, “no other career is +open to me, and I am more to be pitied than you suppose. I am the only one left +of a band formerly as complete as yours; the executioner has deprived me of my +brave comrades one by one, and now I am obliged to carry on my operations +entirely alone—dressing up my scarecrows, as your friend calls them, and +assuming different voices to make believe that I am supported by a numerous +company. Ah! mine is a sad fate; and then my road is such a poor one—so +few travellers come this way—and I have not the means to purchase a +better one. Every good road is owned by a band of brigands, you know. I wish +that I could get some honest work to do, but that is hopeless; who would employ +such a looking fellow as I am? all in rags and tatters, worse than the poorest +beggar. I must surely have been born under an unlucky star. And now this +attempt has failed, from which I hoped to get enough to keep us for two months, +and buy a decent cloak for poor Chiquita besides; she needs it badly enough, +poor thing! Yesterday I had nothing to eat, and I had to tighten my belt to +sustain my empty stomach. Your unexpected resistance has taken the very bread +out of my mouth; and since you would not let me rob you, at least be generous +and give me something.” +</p> + +<p> +“To be sure,” said the tyrant, who was greatly amused; “as we +have prevented your successfully plying your trade we certainly do owe you an +indemnity. Here, take these two <i>pistoles</i> to drink our healths +with.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle meantime sought in the chariot for a piece of new woollen stuff she +happened to have with her, which was soft and warm, and gave it to Chiquita, +who exclaimed, “Oh! but it is the necklace of shining white things that I +want.” +</p> + +<p> +Kind Isabelle immediately unclasped it, and then fastened it round the slender +neck of the child, who was so overwhelmed with delight that she could not +speak. She silently rolled the smooth, white beads between her little brown +fingers in a sort of mute ecstasy for a few moments, then suddenly raising her +head and tossing back her thick black hair, she fixed her sparkling eyes on +Isabelle, and said in a low, earnest voice, “Oh! you are very, very good, +and I will never, never kill you.” Then she ran swiftly back to the pine +grove, clambered up the steep bank, and sat down to admire and enjoy her +treasure. As to Agostino, after making his best bow, and thanking the tyrant +for his really princely munificence, he picked up his prostrate comrades, and +carried them back to be buried again until their services should be needed on +some, he hoped, more auspicious occasion. +</p> + +<p> +The driver, who had deserted his oxen and run to hide himself among the furze +bushes at the beginning of the affray, returned to his post when he saw that +all danger was over, and the chariot once more started upon its way—the +worthy duenna having taken her doubloons out of her shoes and restored them to +her purse, which was then deposited in the depths of a mysterious pocket. +</p> + +<p> +“You behaved like a real hero of romance,” Isabelle said in an +undertone to de Sigognac, “and I feel that under your protection we can +travel securely; how bravely you attacked that bandit single-handedly when you +had every reason to believe that he was supported by an armed band.” +</p> + +<p> +“You overestimate my little exploit,” the baron replied modestly, +“there was no danger worth mentioning,” then sinking his voice to a +whisper, “but to protect you I would meet and conquer giants, put to +flight a whole host of Saracens, attack and destroy dragons and horrid +monsters; I would force my way through enchanted forests filled with snares and +perils, such as we read of, and even descend into hell itself, like Æneas of +old. In your dear service the most difficult feats would be easy; your +beautiful eyes inspire me with indomitable courage, and your sweet presence, or +even the bare thought of you, seems to endue me with a super-human +strength.” +</p> + +<p> +This was, perhaps, rather exaggerated, but perfectly sincere, and Isabelle did +not doubt for a moment that de Sigognac would be able to accomplish fabulous +deeds of prowess in her honour and for her sake; and she was not so very far +wrong, for he was becoming hourly more passionately enamoured of her, and +ardent young lovers are capable of prodigies of valour, inspired by the fair +objects of their adoration. +</p> + +<p> +Serafina, who had overheard some of the baron’s impassioned words, could +not repress a scornful smile; so many women are apt to find the fervid +protestations of lovers, when addressed to others than themselves, supremely +ridiculous, yet they joyfully receive the very same protestations, without +detecting anything in the least absurd in them when whispered into their own +ears. For a moment she was tempted to try the power of her many charms, which +she believed to be irresistible, with the young baron, and win him away from +Isabelle; but this idea was speedily rejected, for Serafina held beauty to be a +precious gem that should be richly set in gold—the gem was hers, but the +golden setting was lamentably wanting, and poor de Sigognac could not possibly +furnish it. So the accomplished coquette decided not to interfere with this +newly-born love affair, which was “all very well for a simple-minded +young girl like Isabelle,” she said to herself, with a disdainful smile +and toss of the head. +</p> + +<p> +Profound silence had fallen upon the party after the late excitement, and some +of them were even growing sleepy again, when several hours later the driver +suddenly called out, “There is the Château de Bruyères.” +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap05"></a>CHAPTER V.<br/> +AT THE CHÂTEAU DE BRUYÈRES</h2> + +<p> +The extensive domain of the Marquis de Bruyères was situated just upon the edge +of the Landes, and consisted mostly of productive, highly-cultivated +land—the barren sand reaching only to the boundary wall of the great park +that surrounded the château. An air of prosperity pervaded the entire estate, +in pleasing contrast with the desolate region of country close at hand. Outside +the park wall was a broad, deep ditch, filled with clear water and spanned by a +handsome stone bridge, wide enough for two carriages abreast, which led to the +grand entrance gates. These were of wrought iron, and quite a marvel of +delicate workmanship and beauty. There was a good deal of gilding about them, +and the lofty apex bore a marquis’s crown above a shield supported by two +naked savages, upon which the de Bruyères arms were richly emblazoned—it +was an entrance worthy of a royal demesne. When our party paused before it, in +the course of the morning, a servant in a rich, showy livery was slowly opening +the folding leaves of the magnificent gates, so as to admit them into the park. +The very oxen hesitated ere they took their slow way through it, as if dazzled +by so much splendour, and ashamed of their own homeliness—the honest +brutes little suspecting that the wealthy nobleman’s pomp and glitter are +derived from the industry of the lowly tillers of the soil. It certainly would +seem as if only fine carriages and prancing horses should be permitted to pass +through such a portal as this, but the chariot of Thespis, no matter how +humble, is privileged, and not only enters, but is welcome everywhere. +</p> + +<p> +A broad avenue led from the bridge to the château, passing by carefully clipped +shrubbery, whence marble statues peeped out here and there, and a beautiful +garden, with flower-beds ingeniously laid out in geometrical patterns, and +brilliant with well contrasted colours. The narrow walks among them were +bordered with box, and strewn with fine sand of various tints, and several +little fountains threw up their sparkling jets among the flowers. In the centre +of the garden was a magnificent fountain, with a large, oblong, marble basin, +and a Triton, on a high pedestal, pouring water from a shell. A row of yews, +skilfully trimmed into pyramids, balls, and various fanciful shapes, and placed +at regular distances on each side of the grand avenue, extended from the +entrance gates to the château, their sombre hue contrasting well with the +brighter green of the foliage behind them. Everything was in the most perfect +order; not a leaf out of place, nor a particle of dust to be seen anywhere, as +if the gardeners had just freshly washed and trimmed every tree, shrub, and +plant under their care. +</p> + +<p> +All this magnificence astonished and delighted the poor comedians, who rarely +gained admission to such an abode as this. Serafina, affecting indifference, +but noting everything carefully from under her lowered eye-lashes, promised +herself to supplant the <i>soubrette</i> in the marquis’s favour, feeling +that this great seignior was her own legitimate prey, and ought to have devoted +himself to her in the first place, instead of weakly yielding to the vulgar +blandishments of the pretty waiting-maid, as he should no longer be permitted +to do—if she had any power. +</p> + +<p> +Meanwhile the <i>soubrette</i>, feeling sure of her conquest, had given herself +up to castle-building with all the fervour of her ardent southern nature. +Isabelle, who was not preoccupied by any ambitious projects, turned her head +now and then to glance and smile tenderly at de Sigognac, who was sitting in +the chariot behind her and who she knew must be feeling acutely the painful +contrast between this splendid estate and his own desolate, half-ruined +château. Her loving heart ached for him, and her eyes spoke sweetest sympathy +to the poor young nobleman, reduced so low a fortune, yet so worthy of a better +fate. +</p> + +<p> +The tyrant was deep in thought, trying to decide how, much he might venture to +demand for the services of his troupe, and mentally increasing the amount at +every step, as new glories disclosed themselves to his wondering eyes. The +pedant was looking forward impatiently to the copious draughts of generous wine +he felt sure of enjoying in the splendid château that was now in full view, and +Leander, striving to smooth his slightly dishevelled locks with a dainty little +tortoise-shell pocket-comb, was wondering, with a fluttering heart, whether a +fair <i>marquise</i> dwelt within those walls, and would gaze down upon him +from one of those windows as he alighted—indulging in high hopes of the +impression he should make upon her susceptible heart. +</p> + +<p> +The Château de Bruyères, which had been entirely rebuilt in the preceding +reign, was a noble structure, of immense size, three stories in height, and +enclosing a large interior court. It was built of red brick, with elaborate, +white stone facings. There were many pretty balconies with sculptured stone +railings, and large, clear panes of glass—an unusual luxury at that +epoch—in the numerous lofty windows, through which the rich hangings +within were visible; and a projecting porch, reached by an imposing flight of +broad stone steps, in the centre of the facade, marked the main entrance. The +high, steep roof was of slate, in several shades, wrought into a quaint, pretty +pattern, and the groups of tall chimneys were symmetrically disposed and +handsomely ornamented. There was a look of gaiety and luxury about this really +beautiful château which gave the idea of great prosperity, but not the +slightest approach to vulgar pretension. There was nothing meretricious or +glaring; everything was substantial and in perfect taste, and an indescribably +majestic, dignified air, if we may be allowed the expression, pervaded the +whole establishment, which spoke of ancient wealth and nobility under all this +modern splendour. +</p> + +<p> +Behind the château, its gardens and terraces, was a veritable forest of lofty, +venerable trees, forming the magnificent park, which was of great extent, and +for centuries had been the pride of the Bruyères. +</p> + +<p> +Although our high-minded young hero had never been envious of any one in his +life, he could not altogether suppress the melancholy sigh with which he +remembered that in former years the de Sigognacs had stood higher than the de +Bruyères in the province, and had taken precedence of them at court; nor could +he help contrasting in his own mind this fresh, new château, replete with every +beauty and luxury that a cultivated taste could devise and plentiful wealth +procure, with his own desolate, dilapidated mansion—the home of owls and +rats—which was gradually but surely crumbling into dust, and a keen pang +shot through his heart at the thought. He recalled the dreary, solitary, +hopeless life he had led there, and said to himself that the Marquis de +Bruyères ought to be a very happy man, with so much to make his existence +delightful. The stopping of the chariot at the foot of the broad stone steps in +the front of the château aroused him from his reverie; he dismissed as quickly +as he could the sad thoughts that had engrossed him, endeavoured to dismiss +also the dark shadow from his brow, and jumping lightly to the ground turned +and held out his hand to help Isabelle to descend, before any one else could +offer her that little service. +</p> + +<p> +The Marquis de Bruyères, who had seen the chariot advancing slowly up the +avenue, stood in the porch to receive them. He was superbly dressed, and looked +very handsome, as both Serafina and the <i>soubrette</i> secretly remarked. He +descended two or three steps as the chariot stopped, and welcomed his guests +with a friendly wave of the hand—doing them as much honour as if they had +been of his own rank—which act of courtesy, let us hasten to explain, was +because of the Baron de Sigognac’s presence among them; but for that they +would not have been brought to the main entrance at all. +</p> + +<p> +At this moment the wily <i>soubrette</i>, seeing her opportunity for a bold +stroke, prepared to alight; and as de Sigognac was fully occupied with +Isabelle, and nobody else thought of paying any attention to her—for she +always jumped to the ground as lightly as a bird, disdaining +assistance—she hesitated for a moment, with an adorable little air of +timidity, and then raised an appealing glance to the marquis. He could not +resist it, and, rushing down the steps to her aid, held out both hands to her. +With wonderful art the clever little actress managed to slip and lose her +balance, so as to fall into his extended arms, clasping him around the neck as +she did so. +</p> + +<p> +“Pardon me, my lord,” said she, breathlessly, to the marquis, +feigning a confusion she was far from really feeling, “I thought I was +going to fall, and grasped your collar, just as a drowning man clutches at the +nearest object. A fall is a bad omen, you know, as well as a serious matter, +for a poor actress.” +</p> + +<p> +“Permit me to look upon this little accident as a favour,” the +marquis replied, giving her a most significant glance, and lightly pressing her +yielding form in his arms before he released her. +</p> + +<p> +Serafina had watched this little by-play out of the corner of her eye, though +her face was apparently turned away from them, and she bit her lip till it +bled, with vexation; so after all the <i>soubrette</i> had succeeded, by an +abominably bold action, in compelling the marquis to neglect her betters and +give his warmest welcome to a low <i>intrigante</i>, said the “leading +lady” to herself, swelling with righteous indignation, and abusing the +offender roundly in her thoughts—wishing that she could do it aloud, and +expose her outrageous, unmannerly artifice. +</p> + +<p> +“Jean,” said the marquis to a servant in livery who stood near, +“have this chariot taken into the court, and see that the decorations, +scenery, etc., are carefully put in some convenient place; have the luggage of +these ladies and gentlemen carried to the rooms that I ordered to be made ready +for them, and take care that they have everything they want;” then in a +lower tone, but very emphatically, “I desire that they should be treated +with the utmost courtesy and respect.” +</p> + +<p> +These orders being given, the marquis gravely ascended the steps, followed by +the comedians, and having consigned them to his major-domo to show them to +their respective rooms and make them comfortable, he gracefully bowed and left +them; darting an admiring glance at the <i>soubrette</i> as he did so, which +she acknowledged by a radiant smile, that Serafina, raging inwardly, pronounced +“abominably bold.” +</p> + +<p> +The chariot meantime had made its way into a back court, accompanied by the +tyrant, the pedant and Scapin, who superintended the unloading of the various +articles that would be needed—a strange medley, which the supercilious +servants of the château, in their rich liveries, handled with a very lofty air +of contempt and condescension, feeling it quite beneath their dignity to wait +upon a band of strolling players. But they dared not rebel, for the marquis had +ordered it, and he was a severe master, as well as a very generous one. +</p> + +<p> +The major-domo, however, conducted his charges to their appointed chambers with +as profound an air of respect as if they had been real princes and princesses; +for the marquis himself had visited the left wing of the château, where they +were to be lodged, had specified the room for each guest, and ordered that they +should want for nothing—a very unusual proceeding on his part, as he was +in the habit of leaving all such minor details to his trusty major-domo. A +beautiful chamber, hung with tapestry which represented the loves of Cupid and +Psyche, was given to the <i>soubrette</i>, the pretty, dainty, blue one to +Isabelle, and the luxurious red one to Serafina, whilst the more sober brown +one was assigned to the duenna. The Baron de Sigognac was installed in a +magnificent apartment, whose panelled walls were covered with richly embossed +Spanish leather. It was close to Isabelle’s room—a delicate +attention on the part of the marquis. This superb chamber was always reserved +for his most honoured guests, and in giving it to our young hero he desired to +testify that he recognised and appreciated his rank, though he religiously +respected his incognito. +</p> + +<p> +When de Sigognac was left alone, and at liberty to think over quietly the odd +situation in which he found himself, he looked at his magnificent surroundings +with surprise as well as admiration—for he had never in his life seen, or +even imagined, such splendour and luxury. The rich glowing colours of the +chimerical flowers and foliage embossed on a golden ground of the Spanish +leather on the walls, the corresponding tints in the frescoed ceiling and the +heavy, silken hangings at the windows and doors and round the bed, the +elaborately carved and gilded furniture, the luxurious easy-chairs and sofas, +the large mirrors with bevelled edges, and the dainty dressing-table, lavishly +furnished with all the accessories of the toilet, with its oval glass draped +with lace which was tied back with knots of gay ribbon, certainly did make up a +charming whole, and the wood fire burning brightly in the open fireplace gave a +cheerful, cosy air to it all. +</p> + +<p> +Our poor young baron blushed painfully as he caught sight of his own figure in +one of the long mirrors—his shabby, ill-fitting clothes looked so sadly +out of place amidst all this magnificence—and for the first time in his +life he felt ashamed of his poverty. Highly unphilosophical this, but surely +excusable in so young a man as our hero. With a natural desire to improve his +forlorn appearance if he could, he unpacked the scanty supply of clothing that +his faithful Pierre had put up for him—hoping that he might come across +something a little less thread-bare than the suit he actually had on his +back—but the inspection was not satisfactory, and he groaned as he +discarded one faded, shabby garment after another. The linen was not any +better—worn so that it was thin everywhere, with numerous darns and +patches, and many holes, he could not find a single shirt that was whole and in +good condition. He was so absorbed in this melancholy inspection that he did +not hear a low knock at the door, nor notice that it was slowly pushed open, +having been already ajar, to admit the stout person of Blazius, who approached +him with many bows and flourishes, though entirely unobserved. When the pedant +reached his side de Sigognac was just holding up before him a shirt that had as +many openings as the rose window of a cathedral, and slowly shaking his head as +he gazed at it, with an expression of utter discouragement. +</p> + +<p> +“Body of Bacchus!” exclaimed the pedant—his voice, so close +at hand, startling the astonished baron, who had believed himself alone, and +safe from intrusion—“that shirt has verily a valiant and triumphant +air. It looks as if it had been worn by Mars himself in battle, so riddled has +it been by lances, spears, darts, arrows, and I know not what besides. +Don’t be ashamed of it, Baron!—these holes are honourable to you. +Many a shirt of fine linen, ruffled and embroidered, according to the latest +fashion, disguises the graceless person of some rascally parvenu—and +usurer as well perhaps—who usurps the place of his betters. Several of +the great heroes, of immortal fame, had not a shirt to their +backs—Ulysses, for example, that wise and valiant man, who presented +himself before the beautiful Princess Nausicaa, with no other covering than a +bunch of sea-weed—as we are told, in the Odyssey, by the grand old bard, +Homer.” +</p> + +<p> +“Unfortunately,” de Sigognac replied, “there is no point of +resemblance, my dear Blazius, between me and the brave King of Ithaca, save the +lack of linen. <i>I</i> have done no deeds of valour to shed a lustre over MY +poverty. I have had no chance to make myself famous, and I fear that the poets +will never celebrate my praises in glowing hexameters. But, jesting aside, I +must confess that I do feel greatly annoyed at being forced to appear in this +guise here. The Marquis de Bruyères recognised me, though he made no sign, and +he may betray my secret.” +</p> + +<p> +“It <i>is</i> a pity,” said the pedant in reply, “but +there’s a remedy for every ill under the sun, save death, according to +the old saying, and if you will permit me, I think that I can help you out of +this awkward dilemma. We, poor players, shadows of real men and women, phantoms +of personages of every degree, from the highest to the lowest, have the means +necessary for assuming almost any character, you know. As +‘<i>costumier</i>’ of the troupe I am accustomed to make all sorts +of transformations, and can turn a miserable vagabond into an Alexander, or a +vulgar wench into a princess. Now, if you are not too proud, I will exercise my +poor skill in your lordship’s service. Since you have been willing to +join our company for this journey, do not disdain to make use of our resources, +such as they are, and put aside these ill-fitting garments, which disguise your +natural advantages, and make you feel ill at ease. Most fortunately I happen to +have in reserve a handsome suit of black velvet, which has not the least of a +theatrical air about it, and has never been used; any gentleman could wear it, +and unless I am much mistaken it will fit you capitally. I have also the fine +linen shirt, silk stockings, shoes—with broad buckles, and cloak to go +with it—there is nothing wanting, not even the sword.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! as to that,” cried de Sigognac, with a gesture expressive of +all that pride of birth which no misfortunes could crush, “I have my +father’s sword.” +</p> + +<p> +“True,” answered Blazius, “and guard it sacredly, my lord! +for a sword is a faithful friend—defender of its master’s life and +honour. <i>It</i> does not abandon him in times of peril and disaster, like the +false friends who cling only to prosperity. Our stage swords have neither edge +nor point, for they are only intended for show; the wounds they make disappear +suddenly when the curtain falls, without the aid of the surgeon with his +instruments and lint. That trusty sword of yours you can depend upon in any +emergency, and I have already seen it doing good service in our behalf. But +permit me to go and fetch the things I spoke of; I am impatient to see the +butterfly emerge from the chrysalis.” +</p> + +<p> +Having thus spoken, in the theatrical way that had become habitual with him, +the worthy pedant quitted the room, and soon reappeared, carrying a large +package, which he deposited on the table in the centre of the chamber. +</p> + +<p> +“If your lordship will accept an old actor as +<i>valet-de-chambre</i>,” he said, rubbing his hands joyfully together, +“I will beautify you in no time. All the ladies will be sure to fall in +love with you, for—with no disrespect to the larder at the Château de +Sigognac be it said—you have fasted so much in your lonely life there +that it has made you most interestingly slender and pale—just what the +dear creatures delight in. They would not listen to a word from a stout lover, +even if the diamonds and pearls of the fairy tale dropped from his lips +whenever he spoke. That is the sole reason for my want of success with the fair +sex, and I long ago deserted the shrine of Venus for the worship of Bacchus. A +big paunch is not amiss among the devotees of that merry god, for it bears +witness to plentiful libations.” +</p> + +<p> +Thus running on gaily, the worthy pedant strove to amuse the melancholy young +nobleman, while he deftly performed his duties as valet; and they were very +quickly completed, for the requirements of the stage necessitate great +dexterity on the part of the actors to make the metamorphoses frequently needed +with sufficient promptness and rapidity. Charmed with the result of his efforts +he led de Sigognac up to one of the large mirrors, wherein, upon raising his +eyes, he saw a figure which, at the first glance, he thought must be that of +some person who had entered the room without his knowledge, and turned to ask +who the intruder was—but there was no stranger there, and he discovered +that it was his own reflection—so changed that he was mute with +astonishment. A young, handsome, richly-dressed de Sigognac stood before him, +and a radiant smile parted his lips and lighted up his face as he gazed at his +own image, which perfected the really marvellous transformation. Blazius, +standing near, contemplated his work with undisguised pride and satisfaction, +changing his position several times so as to get different views, as a sculptor +might who had just put the finishing touches to his statue altogether to his +liking. +</p> + +<p> +“When you have made your way at court, my lord, and regained the position +held by your ancestors, as I hope and expect that you will do, I shall pray you +to give me a refuge for my old age in your household, and make me intendant of +your lordship’s wardrobe,” said he, with a profound bow to the +baron. +</p> + +<p> +“I will not forget your request, my good Blazius, even though I fear that +I shall never be able to comply with it,” de Sigognac answered with a +melancholy smile. “You, my kind friend, are the first human being that +has ever asked a favour of me.” +</p> + +<p> +“After our dinner, which we are to have very shortly, we are to consult +with his lordship, the marquis, as to what play shall be given this evening, +and learn from him where we are to rig our theatre. You will pass for the poet +of the troupe; it is by no means an unheard-of thing for men of learning and +position to join a band of players thus—either for the fun of the thing, +and in hope of adventures, or for the love of a young and beautiful actress. I +could tell you of several notable instances; and it is thought to be rather to +a man’s credit than otherwise in fashionable circles. Isabelle is a very +good pretext for you; she is young, beautiful, clever, modest, and virtuous. In +fact many an actress who takes like her the role of the ingenuous young girl is +in reality all that she personates, though a frivolous and frequently +licentious public will not credit it for a moment.” +</p> + +<p> +Herewith the pedant discreetly retired, having accomplished, to his great +satisfaction, what he had really feared to propose to the young baron, for whom +he had conceived a very warm affection. +</p> + +<p> +Meanwhile the elegant Leander, indulging in delightful dreams of the possible +fair <i>châtelaine</i> who was to fall a victim to his charms, was making his +careful toilet—arraying himself in his most resplendent finery, +scrupulously kept for grand occasions—convinced that great good fortune +awaited him, and determined to carry the noble lady’s heart by storm. +</p> + +<p> +As to the actresses, to whom the gallant marquis, with princely munificence, +had sent several pieces of rich stuffs and silks, it is needless to say that +they spared no pains to make themselves as charming as possible, and obeyed the +summons to dinner radiant with smiles and in high good humour—excepting +indeed the fair Serafina, who was inwardly consumed with envy and spite, but +careful to conceal it from all beholders. +</p> + +<p> +The marquis, who was of an ardent, impatient nature, made his appearance in the +dining-room before they had quite finished the sumptuous repast which had been +served to them; he would not allow them to rise, but seated himself at the +table with them, and when the last course had been removed, asked the tyrant to +be good enough to give him a list of the plays they were in the habit of +acting, so that he might select one for the evening’s entertainment. But +so many were enumerated that his lordship found it not easy to make a choice, +and expressed his desire to have the tyrant’s ideas upon the subject. +</p> + +<p> +“There is one piece we often play,” Hérode said, “which never +fails to please, and is so full of good-natured fun and nonsense that it keeps +the audience in a roar of laughter from the beginning to the end.” +</p> + +<p> +“Let us have that one, by all means,” the marquis exclaimed; +“and pray what is the name of this delightful play?” +</p> + +<p> +“The Rodomontades of Captain Matamore.” +</p> + +<p> +“A capital title, upon my word! and has the <i>soubrette</i> a good part +in it?” asked his lordship, with a languishing glance at her. +</p> + +<p> +“The most racy, mischievous role imaginable,” said Hérode warmly, +“and she plays it to perfection—it is her chef d’oeuvre. She +is always applauded to the echo in it.” +</p> + +<p> +At this high praise from the manager, Zerbine—for such was the +<i>soubrette’s</i> name—tried her best to get up a becoming blush, +but in vain. Modesty she had none, and the tint she would fain have called into +requisition at that moment was not contained in any of her numerous rouge-pots. +So she cast down her eyes, thereby displaying to advantage the length and +thickness of her jet-black lashes, and raised her hand with a deprecating +gesture, which called attention to its pretty, taper fingers and rosy nails. +The marquis watched he admiringly, and she certainly was very charming in her +way. He did not vouchsafe even a glance to the other two young +actresses—refraining from testifying any marked admiration for Isabelle +because of the prior claim of the Baron de Sigognac—though he was +secretly very much delighted with her sweet, refined style of beauty, and the +quiet dignity and grace of her deportment. Serafina, who was naturally +indignant that the marquis had not even asked if there was a part for her in +the piece to be performed, accused him in her heart of being no gentleman, and +of having very low, vulgar tastes, but she was the only one of the party that +felt any dissatisfaction. +</p> + +<p> +Before the marquis left them he said to Hérode, “I have given orders to +have the orangery cleared so that our theatre can be arranged there; they are +carrying planks, trestles, benches, hangings, and all other needful articles in +there now. Will you kindly superintend the workmen, who are new to this sort of +business? They will obey your orders as they would my own.” +</p> + +<p> +Accordingly the tyrant, Blazius and Scapin repaired to the orangery, which was +at a little distance from the château and admirably calculated for the purpose +it was now to serve, and where they found everything necessary to convert it +into a temporary theatre. +</p> + +<p> +Whilst this work is going forward we will make our amiable, indulgent readers +acquainted with the fair mistress of the château—having heretofore +forgotten to mention that the Marquis de Bruyères was a married man; he thought +of it so seldom himself that we may surely be pardoned for this omission. As +can be readily imagined, from our last remark, love had not been the moving +cause in this union. Adjoining estates, which, united in one, formed a noble +domain, and equality of rank had been the chief considerations. After a very +brief honeymoon, during which they had become painfully aware of a total want +of congeniality, the marquis and <i>marquise</i>—like well-bred people, +making no outcry about their matrimonial failure—had tacitly agreed to +live amicably under the same roof, but entirely independent of each +other—he to go his way and she hers, with perfect freedom. They always +treated each other in public, and indeed whenever they chanced to meet, with +the greatest courtesy, and might easily have been mistaken by a casual observer +for an unusually happy and united pair. Mme. la Marquise occupied a sumptuous +suite of apartments in the château, which her husband never thought of entering +without first sending to ascertain whether it would be convenient for madame to +receive him, like a formal visitor. But we will avail ourselves of the +time-honoured privilege of authors, and make our way into the noble +<i>châtelaine’s</i> bed-chamber, without any form or +ceremony—feeling sure of not disturbing its fair occupant, since the +writer of a romance wears upon his finger the wonder-working ring of Gyges, +which renders him invisible. +</p> + +<p> +It was a large, lofty room, hung with superb tapestry representing the +adventures of Apollo, and exhibiting every luxury that wealth could procure. +Here also a bright wood fire was, burning cheerily, and the Marquise de +Bruyères sat before her dressing table, with two maids in attendance upon her, +absorbed in the all-important business of putting the finishing touches to her +extremely becoming as well as effective toilet. Mme. la Marquise was a handsome +brunette, whose embonpoint, which had succeeded to the slender outline of early +youth, had added to her beauty; her magnificent black hair, which was one of +her ladyship’s greatest charms, was dressed in the most elaborate +fashion—an intricate mass of glossy braids, puffs and curls, forming a +lofty structure, and ornamented with a large bow of crimson ribbon, while one +long curl fell upon her fair neck, making it look all the whiter by contrast. +Her dress of crimson silk, cut very low, displayed to advantage—the +plump, dimpled shoulders, and her snowy bosom, and from a band of black velvet +round her throat was suspended a heart-shaped locket, set with superb rubies +and brilliants. A white satin petticoat covered with priceless old lace, over +which the crimson silk gown, open in front, was looped high upon the hips, and +then swept back in a long, ample, richly trimmed train, completed the elegant +toilet of Mme. la Marquise. +</p> + +<p> +Jeanne, the favourite maid and confidante, held open the box of tiny black, +“<i>mouches</i>”—without which no fashionable lady of that +epoch considered herself fully equipped—while the <i>marquise</i> placed +one, with most happy effect, near the corner of her rather pretty mouth, and +then hesitated some time before she could decide where to put the other, which +she held ready on the tip of her forefinger. The two maids stood motionless, +breathlessly watching their mistress, as if fully impressed with the importance +of this grave question, until at last the little black star found a +resting-place just above the edge of the crimson silk bodice, to the +left—indicating, in the accepted hieroglyphics of that age of gallantry, +that he who aspired to the lips of the fair wearer must first win her heart. +</p> + +<p> +After a last lingering look in the mirror Mme. la Marquise rose and walked +slowly towards the fire, but suddenly, remembering that there was yet one +adornment wanting, turned back, and took from a beautiful casket standing open +on the toilet-table, a large, thick watch—called in those days a +Nuremberg egg—which was curiously enamelled in a variety of bright +colours, and set with brilliants. It hung from a short, broad chain of rich +workmanship, which she hooked into her girdle, near another chain of the same +description, from which depended a small hand-mirror in a pretty gold frame. +</p> + +<p> +“Madame is looking her loveliest to-day,” said Jeanne in flattering +tones; “her hair is dressed to perfection, and her gown fits like a +glove.” +</p> + +<p> +“Do you really think so?” asked her mistress languidly, and with +affected indifference. “It seems to me, on the contrary, that I am +positively hideous. My eyes are sunken, and this colour makes me look immensely +stout. I have half a mind to exchange this dress for a black one now. What do +you think, Jeanne? Black makes people look slender, they say.” +</p> + +<p> +“If madame insists upon it I can quickly make the exchange; but it would +be a sad pity not to wear such an elegant and becoming costume as madame has on +now.” +</p> + +<p> +“Well, let it be then; but it will be all your fault, Jeanne, if I fail +to receive as much admiration as usual this evening. Do you know whether the +marquis has invited many people to come and see this play?” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, madame, several messengers have been sent off on horseback in +different directions, and there will be sure to be a large gathering—they +will come from all the châteaux within driving distance—for such an +occasion as this is rare, here in the depths of the country.” +</p> + +<p> +“You are right,” said Mme. la Marquise, with a deep sigh, which was +almost a groan; “we are buried alive in this dreary place. And what about +these players?—have you seen them, Jeanne?—are there any handsome +young actors among them?” +</p> + +<p> +“I have only had a glimpse of them, madame, and such people are so +painted and fixed up, they say, that it is hard to tell what they really do +look like; but there was one slender young man, with long, black curls and a +very good figure, who had quite a grand air.” +</p> + +<p> +“That must be the lover, Jeanne, for it is always the best looking young +actor in the troupe who takes that part. It would be ridiculous, you know, to +have a stout old codger, or a very ugly man, or even an awkward one, making +declarations of love, and going down on their knees, and all that sort of +thing—it would not do at all, Jeanne!” +</p> + +<p> +“No, madame, it would not be very nice,” said the maid with a merry +laugh, adding shrewdly, “and although it seems to make very little +difference what husbands may be like, lovers should always be everything that +is charming.” +</p> + +<p> +“I confess that I have a weakness for those stage gallants,” Mme. +la Marquise said with a little sigh, “they are so handsome, and so +devoted—they always use such beautiful language, and make such graceful +gestures—they are really irresistible. I cannot help feeling vexed when +their impassioned appeals are received coldly, and they are driven to despair, +as so often happens in plays; I would like to call them to me and try to +console them, the bewitching creatures!” +</p> + +<p> +“That is because madame has such a kind heart that she can’t bear +to see any one suffer without trying to help and comfort them,” said the +specious Jeanne. “Now I am of quite a different mind—nothing I +would like better than to flout a sentimental suitor; fine words would not gain +any favour with me—I should distrust them.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! you don’t understand the matter, Jeanne! You have not read as +many romances, or seen as many plays as I have. Did you say that young actor +was very handsome?” +</p> + +<p> +“Mme. la Marquise can judge for herself,” answered the maid, who +had gone to the window, “for he is just crossing the court this blessed +minute, on his way to the orangery, where they are rigging up their +theatre.” +</p> + +<p> +Mme. la Marquise hastened to the window, and there was Leander in full view, +walking along slowly, apparently lost in thought, and wearing a tender, sad +expression, which he considered especially effective and interesting—as +we have said, he never for a moment forgot his role. As he drew near he looked +up, as by a sudden inspiration, to the very window where the <i>marquise</i> +stood watching him, and instantly taking off his hat with a grand flourish, so +that its long feather swept the ground, made a very low obeisance, such as +courtiers make to a queen; then drew himself up proudly to his full height, and +darting an ardent glance of admiration and homage at the beautiful unknown, put +on his broad felt hat again and went composedly on his way. It was admirably +well done; a genuine cavalier, familiar with all the gallant usages in vogue at +court, could not have acquitted himself better. Flattered by this mark of +respect for her rank and admiration of her beauty, so gracefully tendered, Mme. +la Marquise could not help acknowledging it by a slight bend of the head, and a +little half suppressed smile. These favourable signs did not escape Leander, +who, with his usual self-conceit, took a most exaggerated view of their import. +He did not for a moment doubt that the fair mistress of the château—for +he took it for granted it was she—had fallen violently in love with him, +then and there; he felt sure that he had read it in her eyes and her smile. His +heart beat tumultuously; he trembled with excitement; at last it had come! the +dream of his life was to be accomplished; he, the poor, strolling player, had +won the heart of a great lady; his fortune was made! He got through the +rehearsal to which he had been summoned as best he might, and the instant it +was over hastened back to his own room, to indite an impassioned appeal to his +new divinity, and devise some means to insure its reaching her that same +evening. +</p> + +<p> +As everything was in readiness the play was to begin as soon as the invited +guests had all assembled. The orangery had been transformed into a charming +little theatre, and was brilliantly lighted by many clusters of wax candles. +Behind the spectators the orange trees had been arranged in rows, rising one +above the other, and filled the air with their delicious fragrance. In the +front row of seats, which was composed of luxurious arm-chairs, were to be seen +the beautiful Yolande de Foix, the Duchesse de Montalban, the Baronne +d’Hagémeau, the Marquise de Bruyres, and many other titled dames, +resplendent in gorgeous array, and vying with each other in magnificence and +beauty. Rich velvets, brilliant satins, cloth of silver and gold, misty laces, +gay ribbons, white feathers, tiaras of diamonds, strings of pearls, superb +jewels, glittering in delicate shell-like ears, on white necks and rounded +arms, were in profusion, and the scene would have graced the court itself. If +the surpassingly lovely Yolande de Foix had not been present, several radiant +mortal goddesses in the exceptionally brilliant assemblage might have made it +difficult for a Paris to decide between their rival claims to the golden apple; +but her beauty eclipsed them all, though it was rather that of the haughty +Diana than the smiling Venus. Men raved about her, declared her irresistible, +worshipped at her shrine, but never dared aspire to her love; one scornful +glance from her cold blue eyes effectually extinguished any nascent hope, and +the cruel beauty punished presumption as relentlessly, and won and flung away +hearts with as much nonchalance, as ever did her immortal prototype, the fair +goddess of the chase. +</p> + +<p> +How was this exquisite creature dressed? It would require more +<i>sang-froid</i> than we are possessed of to venture upon a description of her +perfect toilet; her raiment floated about her graceful form like a luminous +cloud, in which one could think only of herself; we believe, however, that +there were clusters of pearls nestling amid the bright curls that made an +aureola—a veritable golden glory—about her beautiful head. +</p> + +<p> +Behind these fair ladies sat or stood the nobles and gentlemen who had the +honour of being their fathers, husbands, and brothers. Some were leaning +forward to whisper soft nothings and dainty compliments into willing ears, +others lounging and fanning themselves lazily with their broad felt hats, and +others still standing in the background looking admiringly at the pretty group +before them. The hum of conversation filled the air, and a slight impatience +was just beginning to manifest itself among the waiting audience, when the +traditional three knocks were heard, and all suddenly subsided into silence. +</p> + +<p> +The curtain rose slowly and revealed a very pretty scene representing a public +square where several streets met, surrounded by picturesque houses with small +latticed windows, overhanging gables, high peaked roofs, and smoke curling +upwards from the slender chimneys against the blue sky. +</p> + +<p> +One of these houses had a practicable door and window, whilst two of those in +the side scenes enjoyed equal advantages, and one of them was furnished with a +balcony. A few trees were scattered about in front of the houses, and, though +the painting was not of the highest order of scenic art, the general effect was +very good, and won a round of applause from the aristocratic audience. The +piece opens with a quarrel between the testy old <i>bourgeois</i>, Pandolphe, +and his daughter, Isabelle, who, being in love with a handsome young suitor, +obstinately refuses to obey her father’s commands and marry a certain +Captain Matamore, with whom he is perfectly infatuated. She is ably supported +in her resistance by her pretty maid, Zerbine, who is well paid by Leander, the +favoured lover, to espouse his cause. To all the curses and abuse that +Pandolphe showers upon her, she answers gaily with the most exasperating and +amusing impertinences, advising him to marry this fine captain himself if he is +so fond of him; as for her part she will never suffer her dear, beautiful +mistress to become the wife of that horrid old codger, that abominable bully, +that detestable scarecrow! Whereupon Pandolphe, furiously angry, orders her +into the house, so that he may speak to his daughter alone; and when she +refuses to obey, and defies him to make her, he takes her by the shoulders and +attempts to force her to go, but she, bending forward with admirable +elasticity, from the waist only, at each vigorous effort of his, stands her +ground and does not budge one inch from her place, breaking into peals of +laughter at every fresh attempt, and accompanying it all with an irresistibly +saucy, comical by-play, that wins her round after round of enthusiastic +applause—whilst the Marquis de Bruyères, enchanted with her spirited +acting, congratulates himself anew upon the happy chance that threw this +charming creature in his way. +</p> + +<p> +Another character now enters upon the scene, looking cautiously about him at +every step, as if he feared an unpleasant surprise. This is Leander, the horror +of fathers, husbands, and guardians, the delight of wives, daughters, and +wards—in one word, the lover—the very beau-ideal of a lover; young, +handsome, ardent, ready for anything, winning over strict old duennas, bribing +pert waiting-maids, climbing up rope-ladders, overcoming every obstacle to +reach the fair mistress of his affections, and kneeling at her feet to pour out +burning protestations of love and devotion, that no mortal woman could ever +resist. Suddenly perceiving that Pandolphe is here, where he only expected to +find Isabelle, Leander stops and throws himself into an attitude, which he has +frequently practised before the mirror, and which, he flatters himself, shows +his handsome person to great advantage; standing with his weight thrown upon +the left leg, the right one advanced and slightly bent at the knee; one hand on +the hilt of his sword, the other stroking his chin, so as to make the big +diamond on his finger flash in the light, and a slight smile playing about his +lips. He really did look very handsome as he stood there, and was greatly +admired by all the ladies—even the haughty Yolande herself not disdaining +to smile upon him approvingly. Profiting by the opportunity that this pause +gave him, Leander fixed his eyes upon the Marquise de Bruyères, with such a +look of passionate entreaty and admiration that she blushed crimson in spite of +herself under his ardent gaze; then he turned reluctantly towards Isabelle, +with an absent, indifferent air, which he intended should indicate to the fair +object of his aspirations the difference between real and simulated passion. +</p> + +<p> +When Pandolphe becomes aware of the presence of Leander he is more furious than +ever, and hustles his daughter and her maid into the house as quickly as +possible, not, however, without Zerbine’s finding means to take from +Leander a note for Isabelle, which she slips into the pocket of her coquettish +little apron. The young man, left alone with the irate father, assures him in +the most respectful manner that his intentions are honourable; that he asks the +hand of his fair daughter in marriage; that he is of gentle birth, has an ample +fortune, and is in high favour at court; that nothing could ever induce him to +give up Isabelle; he is ready to risk everything to win her, for he loves her +better than his life—delicious words, which the young girl listens to +with rapture from her balcony, whence she makes little signs of approval and +encouragement to her lover, quite unknown to the stern father, whose back is +turned to her, and who believes her safely locked up in the house. Despite the +mellifluous eloquence of the ardent young suitor Pandolphe remains obstinate +and unmoved, and swears, by all the gods that either he will have Captain +Matamore for his son-in-law, or his refractory daughter shall be shut up in a +convent and forced to become a nun. Off he bustles in hot haste to find a +notary and have the contract of marriage drawn without further delay. +</p> + +<p> +As soon as he is out of sight Leander tries to persuade Isabelle—who is +still in her balcony, her father having carried off the key of the street door +in his pocket—to consent to fly from such persecution, and accompany him +to the cell of a certain holy hermit whom he knows, and who is always willing +and ready to marry runaway couples like themselves, whose loves are thwarted by +tyrannical parents. But the young girl answers modestly, yet firmly, that, +although she wishes nothing so earnestly as to be permitted to bestow her hand +upon her faithful Leander, who already has her heart, she cannot disobey her +father, for that she, like all dutiful daughters, is in duty bound to respect +and submit to the commands of the author of her being; but she promises never +to marry the detested Captain Matamore—she will go into the convent +rather than listen to him for a moment. Unable to shake her decision Leander +then retires to devise plans, with the aid of his clever valet, to overcome the +formidable obstacles in his way—more than ever determined not to give up +the fair Isabelle, and promising her to return in the evening and report +progress. +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle retires from her balcony and closes her window, and a moment after +Captain Matamore strides fiercely upon the stage—his appearance is +greeted with peals of laughter—his tall, attenuated figure is encased in +an absurd costume, in which the bright red and yellow stripes of his tunic meet +in points in front and behind, whilst they run spirally round his long, thin +arms and legs, producing the most preposterously comical effect imaginable; a +stiffly-starched ruff, immensely broad, encircles his neck, upon which his head +seems to be set, like that of John the Baptist on the charger; a large felt +hat, turned up at one side, and ornamented with a huge tuft of red and yellow +feathers, is stuck jauntily on his head, and a short cloak of the same colour, +fastened round his neck and thrown back from his shoulders, floats behind him. +He wears an enormous sword, whose heavily weighted hilt keeps the point always +raised and standing out prominently behind him, whilst from it dangles a clever +imitation of a spider’s web—a convincing proof of how much he is in +the habit of making use of this formidable weapon. Closely followed by his +valet, Scapin, who is in imminent danger of having an eye put out by the end of +his master’s big sword, he marches several times around the stage, taking +preternaturally long strides, rolling his eyes about fiercely, twisting the +long ends of his huge mustache, and indulging in a variety of ridiculous +gestures indicative of exaggerated rage and fury, which are irresistibly +funny—all the more so because there is nothing whatever to provoke this +display of ferocity. Finally he stops in front of the footlights, strikes an +attitude, and delivers himself thus: “For to-day, Scapin, I am willing to +let my man-killer here have a little rest, so that there may be an opportunity +to get all its recent victims decently buried, in the cemeteries I contribute +so largely towards filling. When a man has performed such feats of courage and +carnage as I have—killing my hundreds single-handed, while my dastardly +comrades trembled with fear, or turned and fled from the foe—to say +nothing of my daily affairs of honour, now that the wars are over—he may +assuredly indulge himself occasionally in milder amusements. Besides, the whole +civilized world, having now been subjugated by my good sword, no longer offers +any resistance to my indomitable arm, and Atropos, the eldest of the dread +Parcae sisters, has sent word to me that the fatal scissors, with which she +cuts the threads of human lives, have become so dulled by the great amount of +work my trusty blade has given her to do with them, that she has been obliged +to send them to Vulcan to be sharpened, and she begs for a short respite. So +you see, Scapin, I must put force upon myself and restrain my natural +ardour—refrain for a time from wars, massacres, sacking of cities, +stand-up fights with giants, killing of monsters and dragons, like Theseus and +Hercules of glorious memory, and all the other little pastimes which usually +occupy my good sword and me. I will take my ease now for a brief period, and +Death may enjoy a short rest too. But to whom did my worthy prototype, Mars, +the great god of war, devote <i>his</i> leisure hours? in whose sweet society +did <i>he</i> find delight? Ask Venus, the immortal goddess of love and beauty, +who had the good taste to prefer a warlike man to all others, and lent a +willing ear to the suit of my valiant predecessor. So I, following his +illustrious example, condescend to turn my attention for the moment to the +tender sex, and pay my court to the fair Isabelle, the young and beautiful +object of my ardent love. Being aware that Cupid, with all his assurance, would +not dare to aim one of his golden-tipped arrows at such an all-conquering hero +as my unworthy self, I have given him a little encouragement; and, in order +that the shaft may penetrate to the generous lion’s heart that beats in +this broad breast, I have laid aside the world-famed coat of mail—made of +the rings given to me by goddesses, empresses, queens, infantas, princesses, +and great ladies of every degree, my illustrious admirers the world +over—which is proof against all weapons, and has so often saved my life +in my maddest deeds of daring.” +</p> + +<p> +“All of which signifies,” interrupts the valet, who had listened to +this high-blown tirade with ill-concealed impatience, “as far as my +feeble intellect can comprehend such magnificent eloquence, that your most +redoubtable lordship has fallen in love with some young girl hereabouts, like +any ordinary mortal.” +</p> + +<p> +“Really, Scapin,” says Matamore, with good-humoured condescension, +“you have hit the nail upon the head—you are not so stupid after +all, for a valet. Yes, I have fallen in love, but do not imagine for a moment +that my courage will suffer diminution on that account. It was all very well +for Samson to allow his hair to be cut off, and for Alcides to handle the +distaff at the bidding of his mistress; but Delilah would not have dared to +touch one hair of my head, and Omphale should have pulled off my boots for +me—at the least sign of revolt I would have given her worse to do: +cleaning the skin of the Nemaean lion, for instance, when I brought it home all +fresh and bleeding, just as I had torn it from the quivering carcass. The +thought that has lately occurred to me, that I have subjugated only half of the +human race, is humiliating. Women, by reason of their weakness, escape me; I +cannot treat them as I do my masculine opponents—cut their throats, run +them through the body, or hew off their arms and legs; I must lay siege to +their hearts, and conquer them in that way. It is true that I have stormed and +taken a greater number of such fair citadels than there are drops of water in +the ocean, or stars in the sky—why, I sleep on a mattress stuffed with +thousands of beautiful curls and tresses of every shade, light and dark, golden +and jet-black, which are among my most treasured trophies. Juno herself has +made overtures to me, but I turned a deaf ear to her blandishments, finding her +charms rather too ripe for my taste; I prefer the first flush of youthful +beauty; it is a pure and innocent maiden that I would honour with my notice +now, but she repulses me—that I should live to say it!—she dares to +repulse me. I cannot permit such an impertinence on her part, and the fair +Isabelle must humbly sue to me for pardon, and herself bringing the golden keys +of the citadel of her heart, upon a salver of silver, offer them to me upon her +bended knees, with streaming eyes and dishevelled tresses, begging for grace +and favour in my sight. Go now, and summon the fortress to surrender—this +house contains the rebellious fair.” +</p> + +<p> +But doors and windows remain inexorably closed, and no notice is taken of the +valet’s thundering knocks and mocking summons to surrender; secure in the +strength of their bolts and bars, the garrison, which consists of Isabelle and +her maid, vouchsafes no reply. Matamore, becoming more enraged at each vain +attempt to gain a response from his fair enemy, stamps about the stage, roaring +out his defiance, threatening to sack and burn the place, pouring out volleys +of remarkable oaths, and lashing himself into such a fury that he actually +foams at the mouth. When his valet at length, after many vain efforts, is able +to gain a hearing, and tells him of his formidable rival, Leander, and how he +has already won the lady’s heart, all his rage is turned against that +fortunate suitor, of whom he vows that he will make mince-meat as soon as he +can lay hands on him. At this very moment Leander himself returns, and Scapin +points him out to his master as he approaches, adding that he will keep a sharp +look-out for the police while Matamore is giving him his quietus. But the +cowardly braggadocio would fain withdraw, now that the enemy is actually in +sight, and is only restrained from flight by his servant, who pushes him +forward directly in Leander’s path. +</p> + +<p> +Seeing that escape is impossible, Matamore settles his hat firmly on his head, +twists the long ends of his mustache, puts his hand on the hilt of his big +sword, and advances threateningly towards Leander—but it is pure bravado, +for his teeth are chattering with fear, and his long, thin legs waver and +tremble under him visibly, like reeds shaken by the wind. Only one hope remains +to him—that of intimidating Leander by loud threats and ferocious +gestures, if, by a happy chance, he be a fellow of his own kidney. So in a +terrible voice he addresses him thus: “Sir, do you know that I am the +great Captain Matamore of the celebrated house of Cuerno de Cornazan, and +allied to the no less illustrious family of Escobombardon de la Papirontonda? I +am a descendant, on my mother’s side, of the famous Antacus, the ancient +hero and giant.” +</p> + +<p> +“Well, you may be a descendant of the man in the moon for all that I +care,” answers Leander, with a disdainful shrug of the shoulders; +“what the devil have I to do with such absurd stuff and nonsense?” +</p> + +<p> +“Blood and bones! thunder and Mars! You see, sir, you shall see, and that +very quickly, what you have to do with it, unless you take yourself off in the +twinkling of an eye. I will give you one minute’s grace, for your extreme +youth touches me, so take to your heels and fly while there is yet time. +Observe me well! I am the terror of the whole world—my path is marked +with graves—my own shadow scarcely dares to follow me into the perils I +delight in. If I enter a besieged city, it is by the breach—when I quit +it I pass under a triumphal arch; if I cross a river, it is one of blood, and +the bridge is made of the bodies of my adversaries. I can toss a knight and his +horse, both, weighted with armour, high into the air. I can snap +elephants’ bones, as you would pipe-stems. When great Mars himself +chances to meet me on the battle-field he turns and flees, dreading the weight +of my arm. My prowess is so well known, and the terror I inspire so great, that +no one dares to meet me face to face, and I never see anything but the backs of +my retreating foes.” +</p> + +<p> +“Is it so? well, you shall meet <i>me</i> face to face. Take <i>that</i>, +and see how you like it!” says Leander laughing merrily, and giving him a +sounding slap on one cheek which almost knocks the poor devil over, and is +instantly followed by an equally hearty one on the other, to restore his +equilibrium. +</p> + +<p> +During this scene Isabelle and Zerbine come out upon the balcony. The +mischievous <i>soubrette</i> goes into convulsions of laughter, whilst her +mistress nods encouragingly to Leander. Meantime Pandolphe, accompanied by the +notary, turns the corner of one of the streets and enters the square just in +time to see Leander’s extraordinary exploit, whereat he is horrified and +amazed. The valiant captain bellows like a bull, shrieks out the most frightful +threats and curses, vowing all sorts of vengeance, and making prodigious +efforts to draw his big sword, so that he may forthwith set about cutting up +his unmannerly assailant into mince-meat. He tugs and strains until he is red +in the face, but his “man-killer” cannot be induced to quit the +scabbard and Leander, growing impatient, follows up his first attack with a +vigorous, well directed kick, which sends the unlucky bully flying to the other +side of the stage, where he falls all in a heap and rolls in the dust. The +handsome, young gallant then bows gracefully to Isabelle and retires from the +scene. +</p> + +<p> +Captain Matamore meanwhile lies sprawling on the ground, making ludicrous and +ineffectual efforts to regain his feet. Pandolphe and Scapin go to his +assistance, and when they have hauled him up, and he has made sure that Leander +is no longer present, he roars out in a voice of thunder: “Scapin, quick, +hoop me with iron bands or I shall burst! I am in such a rage! I shall explode +like a bomb! and you, treacherous blade, do <i>you</i> play me false at such a +moment? Is it thus you reward me for having always tried to slake your +insatiable thirst with the blood of the bravest and noblest? I don’t know +why I have not already broken you into a thousand pieces, as you so richly +deserve—false, ungrateful weapon that you are! But stay—was it to +teach me that it is unworthy of the true warrior to desert his post?—or +forget his sterner duties in the soft delights of love?—was it for that +you refused to leap from your scabbard as of old? It is true, alas! that thus +far this week I have not defeated a single army—I have killed neither +ogre nor dragon—I have not furnished his usual rations to Death—and +in consequence my trusty blade has rusted in the scabbard—that I should +live to say it! rusted!—and I have been forced to submit to insults, and +even blows, before the very eyes of my mistress. What a lesson! Henceforth I +shall make it a rule to kill at least three men every morning before I break my +fast, so as to be sure that my good sword plays freely—keep me in mind, +Scapin, do you hear?” +</p> + +<p> +“Perhaps Leander will return before long,” says the valet; +“suppose we all help you to draw your ‘<i>trusty blade</i>,’ +so that you may be ready for him.” +</p> + +<p> +Matamore, accordingly, plants himself firmly, holding the scabbard in both +hands, Scapin seizes the handle of the sword, Pandolphe clasps him firmly round +the waist, the notary tries to do as much by Pandolphe’s stout person, +and they all pull and pull. For some time the rusty old sword resists all their +efforts, but at last yields suddenly, and the three fall in a confused heap on +the ground, with legs and arms waving wildly in the air, while Matamore tumbles +the other way, still clinging to the now empty scabbard. Picking himself up as +quickly as possible he seizes his big sword, which has dropped from the +valet’s hand, and waving it triumphantly says with stern emphasis, +“Now Leander’s fate is sealed! There is but one way for him to +escape certain death. He must emigrate to some distant planet. If he be +sufficiently fool-hardy to remain on this globe I will find him, no matter in +what distant land he strives to hide himself, and transfix him with this good +sword—unless indeed he be first turned to stone by the terrible +Medusa-like power of my eye.” +</p> + +<p> +In spite of all that he has witnessed, the obstinate old father still feels +unbounded faith in Matamore’s valour, and persists in his lamentable +intention to bestow the hand of his fair daughter upon this magnificent hero. +Poor Isabelle bursts into tears, and declares that she prefers the convent to +such a fate. Zerbine loudly swears that this marriage shall never take place, +and tries to console her weeping mistress. Matamore attributes this rather +discouraging demonstration on the part of Isabelle to an excess of maidenly +modesty, not doubting her <i>penchant</i> for himself, though he acknowledges +that he has not yet properly paid his court, nor shown himself in all his glory +to her—this last from prudential motives, fearing lest she might be +dangerously dazzled and overwhelmed if he should burst upon her too suddenly in +the full splendour of his heroic character, remembering, and taking warning by, +the sad and terrible fate that befell Semele, when Jupiter, reluctantly +yielding to her wishes, appeared before her with all the insignia of his +majesty. +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle and her maid withdrew from the balcony, without taking any further +notice of the valiant Matamore; but he, undaunted, wishing to play the lover +after the most approved fashion, plants himself resolutely under her window and +sends Scapin to fetch a guitar; upon which he thrums awkwardly for a while, and +then accompanies it with his voice, in an attempt at a Spanish love song, which +sounds much like the nocturnal caterwauling of a disconsolate tabby than +anything else we can compare it to. A dash of cold water, mischievously thrown +down on him by Zerbine under pretext of watering the plants in the balcony, +does not extinguish his musical ardour. “A gentle shower from the sweet +eyes of my Isabelle, moved to tears by this plaintive melody,” says he, +“for it is universally conceded that I excel in music as in arms, and +wield the lyre as skilfully as the sword.” +</p> + +<p> +Unfortunately for him, Leander suddenly reappears, and highly indignant that +this miserable rascal should presume to serenade <i>his</i> mistress, snatches +the guitar from his hands and begins whacking him over the head with it, so +furiously that it is quickly broken through, and slipping over the unhappy +serenader’s head remains fixed round his neck, so that he is completely +at the mercy of his assailant. Holding fast to the handle of the guitar, +Leander hauls him about the stage, banging him against the side-scenes, +dragging him forward to the footlights—making the most absurd scene +imaginable—and finally, letting go of him suddenly, sends him sprawling +on the ground. Fancy the ridiculous appearance of the unfortunate bully, who +looked as if he had put his head through a frying-pan! +</p> + +<p> +But his miseries are not yet at an end. Leander’s valet had been +arranging a clever little plot to prevent the fulfilment of the proposed +marriage between Isabelle and Captain Matamore. At his instigation, a certain +Doralice, very pretty and coquettish, makes her appearance, accompanied by a +fierce-looking brother—represented by Hérode—carrying two immensely +long rapiers under his arm, and evidently “spoiling for a fight.” +The young lady complains that she has been shamefully jilted by Captain +Matamore, who has deserted her for Isabelle, the daughter of a certain +Pandolphe, and demands instant reparation for this outrage, adding that her +brother is ready to exact it at the point of the sword, or avenge the insult by +taking the life of the heartless villain who has trifled with her youthful +affections. +</p> + +<p> +“Make haste to give this rascal his quietus,” says Pandolphe to his +future son-in-law; “it will be only child’s play for you, who have +fearlessly encountered, single-handed, a whole army of Saracens.” +</p> + +<p> +Very reluctantly, and after many most absurd grimaces, Matamore crosses swords +with Doralice’s ferocious brother, but he trembles so that the latter, +with one quick movement, sends his weapon flying out of his hand, and chastises +him with the flat of his sword until he roars for mercy. +</p> + +<p> +To cap the climax, Mme. Léonarde comes upon the scene, mopping her streaming +eyes with an enormous pocket-handkerchief, sighing and sobbing, and bewailing +herself. She goes straight to Pandolphe and shows him a written promise of +marriage, over Matamore’s signature, cleverly counterfeited; whereupon +the poor wretch, convicted of such abominable and complicated perfidy, is +assailed with a new shower of blows and curses, and finally condemned, by the +unanimous vote of all present, to marry old Mme. Léonarde—who has made +herself as hideous as possible—as a fitting punishment for all his +deviltries, rodomontades, and cowardice. Pandolphe, thoroughly disgusted with +Matamore at last, makes no further objections to Leander’s suit, and the +curtain falls as he gives his consent to the marriage of the two young lovers. +</p> + +<p> +This <i>bouffonnade</i>, being played with great spirit, was enthusiastically +applauded. The gentlemen were charmed with the mischievous, coquettish +<i>soubrette</i>, who was fairly radiant with beauty that evening; the ladies +were greatly pleased with Isabelle’s refinement and modesty; whilst +Matamore received the well merited encomiums of all. It would have been +impossible to find, even in the great Parisian theatres, an actor better fitted +for the part he had played so admirably. Leander was much admired by all the +younger ladies, but the gentlemen agreed, without a dissenting voice, that he +was a horridly conceited coxcomb. Wherever he appeared indeed this was the +universal verdict, with which he was perfectly content—caring far more +for his handsome person, and the effect it produced upon the fair sex, than for +his art; though, to do him justice, he was a very good actor. Serafina’s +beauty did not fail to find admirers, and more than one young gentleman swore +by his mustache that she was an adorable creature—quite regardless of the +displeasure of the fair ladies within hearing. +</p> + +<p> +During the play, de Sigognac, hidden in the <i>coulisses</i>, had enjoyed +intensely Isabelle’s charming rendering of her part, though he was more +than a little jealous of the favour she apparently bestowed upon +Leander—and especially at the tender tone of her voice whenever she spoke +to him—not being yet accustomed to the feigned love-making on the stage, +which often covers profound antipathies and real enmity. When the play was +over, he complimented the young actress with a constrained, embarrassed air, +which she could not help remarking, and perfectly understood. +</p> + +<p> +“You play that part admirably, Isabelle! so well that one might almost +think there was some truth in it.” +</p> + +<p> +“Is it not my duty to do so?” she asked smilingly, secretly pleased +at his displeasure; “did not the manager engage me for that?” +</p> + +<p> +“Doubtless,” de Sigognac replied, “but you seemed to be +<i>really</i> in love with that conceited fellow, who never thinks of anything +but his own good looks, and how to display them to the best advantage.” +</p> + +<p> +“But the role required it. You surely would not have had me play it as if +he disgusted me! besides, did I not preserve throughout the quiet demeanour of +a well-bred, respectable girl? If I failed in that you must tell me how and +where, so that I may endeavour to correct it in future.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh no! you appeared from the beginning to the end like a modest, +retiring, young lady—no, there is no fault to be found with you in that +respect; your acting was inimitable—so graceful, lady-like, and +easy—but withal so true to nature that it was almost too real.” +</p> + +<p> +“My dear baron, they are putting out the lights; everybody has gone but +ourselves, and we shall be left in the dark if we don’t make haste. Be +good enough to throw this cloak around my shoulders and accompany me to the +château.” +</p> + +<p> +De Sigognac acquitted himself of this novel duty with less awkwardness than +might have been expected, though his hands trembled a little, and he felt an +almost irresistible desire to take her into his arms as he wrapped the mantle +round her slender form; but he restrained himself, and respectfully offering +his arm led her out of the orangery, which by this time was entirely deserted. +It was, as we have said, at a little distance from the château, and on the +level of the park, lower than the mansion, which stood on a high terrace, with +a handsome stone balustrade at the edge, supporting at regular intervals large +vases filled with blooming plants, in the pretty Italian fashion. A broad, easy +flight of stone steps led up to the terrace, affording in their ascent a most +imposing view of the château, which loomed up grandly against the evening sky. +Many of the windows on this side were lighted, whilst the others glistened +brightly as the silvery moon-beams struck upon them—as did also the +dewdrops on the shrubbery and the grass-plots—as if a shower of diamonds +had fallen on this favoured spot. Looking towards the park, the long vistas cut +through the wood, losing themselves in the hazy blue of the distance, called to +mind Breughel’s famous picture of Paradise, or else disclosed the +far-away gleam of a marble statue, or the spray of a misty fountain sparkling +in the moonlight. +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle and de Sigognac slowly ascended the broad steps, pausing frequently to +turn and look back at this enchanting scene, and charmed with the beauty of the +night walked for a little while to and fro upon the terrace before retiring to +their rooms. As they were in full sight of the windows, and it was not yet very +late, the modest young girl felt that there could be no impropriety in this +little indulgence; and besides, the baron’s extreme timidity was very +reassuring to her, and she knew that he would not presume upon the favour +accorded to him. He had not made a formal avowal of his love to her, but she +was as well aware of it as if he had, and also of his profound respect for her, +which sentiment is indeed always an accompaniment of a worthy passion. She knew +herself beloved—the knowledge was very sweet to her—and she felt +herself safe from all fear of offence in the company of this honourable +gentleman and true lover. With the delicious embarrassment of nascent, unavowed +love, this young couple wandering by moonlight in a lonely garden, side by +side, arm in arm, only exchanged the most insignificant, commonplace remarks; +but if no undercurrent was betrayed by actual words, the trembling, voices, +long pauses, stifled sighs, and low, confidential tones told of strong emotions +beneath this quiet surface. +</p> + +<p> +The chamber assigned to the beautiful Yolande de Foix, near that of Mme. la +Marquise, was on this side of the château, overlooking the park, and after she +had dismissed her maid, she went to the window to look out once more upon the +exceeding beauty of the night, and caught sight of de Sigognac and Isabelle, +pacing slowly back and forth on the terrace below, without any other company +than their own shadows. Assuredly the disdainful Yolande, haughty as a goddess, +could never have felt anything but scorn for our poor young baron, past whom +she had sometimes flashed in a whirlwind of light and noise in the chase, and +whom she had so recently cruelly insulted; but still it displeased her to see +him devoting himself thus to a beautiful young girl, to whom he was undoubtedly +making love at that very moment. She had regarded him as her own humble +vassal—for she had not failed to read the passionate admiration in his +eyes whenever they met her own—and could not brook his shaking off his +allegiance thus; her slaves ought to live and die in her service, even though +their fidelity were never rewarded by a single smile. She watched them, with a +frowning brow, until they disappeared, and then sought her couch in anything +but a tranquil mood, haunted by the lover-like pair that had so roused her +wrath, and still kept her long awake. +</p> + +<p> +De Sigognac escorted Isabelle to the door of her chamber, where he bade her +good-night, and as he turned away towards his own, saw, at the end of the +corridor, a mysterious looking individual closely wrapped in a large cloak, +with one end thrown over the shoulder in Spanish fashion, and so drawn up round +his face that only the eyes were visible; a slouch hat concealed his forehead, +so that he was completely disguised, yet he drew back hurriedly into a dark +corner when de Sigognac turned towards him, as if to avoid his notice. The +baron knew that the comedians had all gone to their rooms already, and besides, +it could not be one of them, for the tyrant was much larger and taller, the +pedant a great deal stouter, Leander more slender, Matamore much thinner, and +Scapin of quite a different make. Not wishing to appear curious, or to annoy +the unknown in any way, de Sigognac hastened to enter his own room—not +however without having observed that the door of the tapestry-hung chamber +stood ajar. When he had closed his, he heard stealthy footsteps approaching, +and presently a bolt shot home softly, then profound silence. +</p> + +<p> +About an hour later, Leander opened his door as quietly as possible, looked +carefully to see if the corridor was empty, and then, stepping as lightly and +cautiously as a gipsy performing the famous egg-dance, traversed its whole +length, reached the staircase, which he descended as noiselessly as the +phantoms in a haunted castle, and passed out into the moonlight; he crept along +in the shadow of the wall and of some thick shrubbery, went down the steps into +the park, and made his way to a sort of bower, where stood a charming statue of +the mischievous little god of love, with his finger on his lip—an +appropriate presiding genius of a secret rendezvous, as this evidently must be. +Here he stopped and waited, anxiously watching the path by which he had come, +and listening intently to catch the first sound of approaching footsteps. +</p> + +<p> +We have already related how Leander, encouraged by the smile with which Mme. la +Marquise acknowledged his salutation, and convinced that she was smitten with +his beauty and grace, had made bold to address a letter to her, which he bribed +Jeanne to place secretly upon her mistress’s toilet-table, where she +would be sure to see it. This letter we copy here at length, so as to give an +idea of the style of composition employed by Leander in addressing the great +ladies of whose favours he boasted so loudly. +</p> + +<p> +“Madame, or rather fair goddess of beauty, do not blame anything but your +own incomparable charms for this intrusion upon you. I am forced by their +radiance to emerge from the deep shadow in which I should remain shrouded, and +approach their dazzling brilliancy—just as the dolphins are attracted +from the depths of ocean, by the brightness of the fisherman’s lanterns, +though they are, alas! to find destruction there, and perish by the sharp +harpoons hurled pitilessly at them with unerring aim. I know but too well that +the waves will be reddened by my blood; but as I cannot live without your +favour, I do not fear to meet death thus. It may be strangely audacious, on my +part to pretend to the privileges of gods and demi-gods—to die by your +fair hand—but I dare to aspire to it; being already in despair, nothing +worse can come to me, and I would rather incur your wrath than your scorn, or +your disdain. In order to direct the fatal blow aright, the executioner must +look upon his victim, and I shall have, in yielding up my life under your fair, +cruel hand, the supreme delight of being for one blissful moment the object of +your regard. Yes, I love you, madame! I adore you! And if it be a crime, I +cannot repent of it. God suffers himself to be adored; the stars receive the +admiration of the humblest shepherd; it is the fate of all such lofty +perfection as yours to, be beloved, adored, only by inferior beings, since it +has not its equal upon earth, nor scarcely indeed in heaven. I, alas! am but a +poor, wandering actor, yet were I a haughty duke or prince, my head would not +be on a level with your beauteous feet, and there would be, all the same, +between your heavenly height and my kneeling adoration, as great a distance as +from the soaring summit of the loftiest Alp to the yawning abyss far, far +below. You must always stoop to reach a heart that adores you. I dare to say, +madame, that mine is as proud as it is tender, and she who would deign not to +repulse it, would find in it the most ardent love, the most perfect delicacy, +the most absolute respect, and unbounded devotion. Besides, if such divine +happiness be accorded me, your indulgence would not have to stoop so low as you +might fancy. Though reduced by an adverse destiny and the jealous hatred of one +of the great ones of the earth, who must be nameless, to the dire necessity of +hiding myself under this disguise, I am not what I seem. I do not need to blush +for my birth—rather I may glory in it. If I dared to betray the secrecy +imposed upon me, for reasons of state, I could prove to you that most +illustrious blood runs in my veins. Whoever may love me, noble though she be, +will not degrade herself. But I have already said too much—my lips are +sealed. I shall never be other than the humblest, most devoted of your slaves; +even though, by one of those strange coincidences that happen sometimes in real +life, I should come to be recognised by all the world as a king’s son. If +in your great goodness you will condescend to show me, fair goddess of beauty, +by the slightest sign, that my boldness has not angered you, I shall die happy, +consumed by the burning brightness of your eyes upon the funeral pyre of my +love.” +</p> + +<p> +How would Mme. la Marquise have received this ardent epistle? which had perhaps +done him good service already more than once. Would she have looked favourably +upon her humble suitor?—who can tell?—for the feminine heart is +past comprehension. Unfortunately the letter did not reach her. Being entirely +taken up with great ladies, Leander overlooked their waiting-maids, and did not +trouble himself to show them any attentions or gallantries—wherein he +made a sad mistake—for if the <i>pistoles</i> he gave to Jeanne, with his +precious epistle, had been supplemented by a few kisses and compliments, she +would have taken far more pains to execute his commission. As she held the +letter carelessly in her hand, the marquis chanced to pass by, and asked her +idly what she had got there. +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! nothing much,” she answered scornfully, “only a note +from Mr. Leander to Mme. la Marquise.” +</p> + +<p> +“From Leander? that jackanapes who plays the lover in the Rodomontades of +Captain Matamore? What in the world can <i>he</i> have to say to Mme. la +Marquise? Doubtless he asks for a gratuity!” +</p> + +<p> +“I don’t think so,” said the spiteful waiting-maid; +“when he gave me this letter he sighed, and rolled up his eyes like a +love-sick swain.” +</p> + +<p> +“Give me the letter,” said the marquis, “<i>I</i> will answer +it—and don’t say anything about it to your mistress. Such chaps are +apt to be impertinent—they are spoiled by admiration, and sometimes +presume upon it.” +</p> + +<p> +The marquis, who dearly loved a joke, amused himself by answering +Leander’s extraordinary epistle with one in much the same +style—written in a delicate, lady-like hand upon perfumed paper, and +sealed with a fanciful device—altogether a production well calculated to +deceive the poor devil, and confirm him in his ridiculous fancies. Accordingly, +when he regained his bed-chamber after the play was over, he found upon his +dressing-table a note addressed to himself. He hastened to open it, trembling +from head to foot with excitement and delight, and read as follows: “It +is true, as you say so eloquently—too eloquently for my peace of +mind—that goddesses can only love mortals. At eleven o’clock, when +all the world is sunk in slumber, and no prying human eyes open to gaze upon +her, Diana will quit her place in the skies above and descend to earth, to +visit the gentle shepherd, Endymion—not upon Mount Latmus, but in the +park—at the foot of the statue of silent love. The handsome shepherd must +be sure to have fallen asleep ere Diana appears, so as not to shock the modesty +of the immortal goddess—who will come without her cortege of nymphs, +wrapped in a cloud and devoid of her silvery radiance.” +</p> + +<p> +We will leave to the reader’s imagination the delirious joy that filled +to overflowing the foolish heart of the susceptible Leander, who was fooled to +the top of his bent, when he read this precious note, which exceeded his +wildest hopes. He immediately began his preparations to play the part of +Endymion—poured a whole bottle of perfume upon his hair and hands, chewed +a flower of mace to make his breath sweet, twisted his glossy curls daintily +round his white fingers—though not a hair was awry—and then waited +impatiently for the moment when he should set forth to seek the rendezvous at +the foot of the statue of silent love—where we left him anxiously +awaiting the arrival of his goddess. He shivered nervously from excitement, and +the penetrating chilliness of the damp night air, as he stood motionless at the +appointed spot. He trembled at the falling of a leaf—the crackling of the +gravel under his feet whenever he moved them sounded so loud in his ears that +he felt sure it would be heard at the château. The mysterious darkness of the +wood filled him with awe, and the great, black trees seemed like terrible +genii, threatening him. The poor wretch was not exactly frightened, but not +very far from it. Mme. la Marquise was tardy—Diana was leaving her +faithful Endymion too long cooling his heels in the heavy night dew. At last he +thought he heard heavy footsteps approaching,—but they could not be those +of his goddess—he must be mistaken—goddesses glide so lightly over +the sward that not even a blade of grass is crushed beneath their +feet—and, indeed, all was silent again. +</p> + +<p> +“Unless Mme. la Marquise comes quickly, I fear she will find only a +half-frozen lover, instead of an ardent, impatient one,” murmured Leander +with chattering teeth; and even as the words escaped him four dark shadows +advanced noiselessly from behind upon the expectant gallant. Two of these +shadows, which were the substantial bodies of stout rascals in the service of +the Marquis de Bruyères, seized him suddenly by the arms, which they held +pinioned closely to his sides, while the other two proceeded to rain blows +alternately upon his back—keeping perfect time as their strokes fell +thick and fast. Too proud to run the risk of making his woes public by an +outcry, their astonished victim took his punishment bravely—without +making a sound. Mutius Scaevola did not bear himself more heroically while his +right hand lay among the burning coals upon the altar in the presence of +Porsenna, than did Leander under his severe chastisement. When it was finished +the two men let go of their prisoner, all four saluted him gravely, and retired +as noiselessly as they had come, without a single word being spoken. +</p> + +<p> +What a terrible fall was this! that famous one of Icarus himself, tumbling down +headlong from the near neighbourhood of the sun, was not a greater. Battered, +bruised, sore and aching all over, poor Leander, crestfallen and forlorn, +limping painfully, and suppressing his groans with Spartan resolution, crept +slowly back to his own room; but so overweening was his self-conceit that he +never even suspected that a trick had been played upon him. He said to himself +that without doubt Mme. la Marquise had been watched and followed by her +jealous husband, who had overtaken her before she reached the rendezvous in the +park, carried her back to the château by main strength, and forced her, with a +poniard at her throat, to confess all. He pictured her to himself on her knees, +with streaming eyes, disordered dress and dishevelled hair, imploring her stern +lord and master to be merciful—to have pity upon her and forgive her this +once—vowing by all she held sacred never to be faithless to him again, +even in thought. Suffering and miserable as he was after his tremendous +thrashing, he yet pitied and grieved over the poor lady who had put herself in +such peril for his sake, never dreaming that she was in blissful ignorance of +the whole affair, and at that very moment sleeping peacefully in her luxurious +bed. As the poor fellow crept cautiously and painfully along the corridor +leading to his room and to those of the other members of the troupe he had the +misfortune to be detected by Scapin, who, evidently on the watch for him, was +peeping out of his own half-open door, grinning, grimacing, and gesticulating +significantly, as he noted the other’s limping gait and drooping figure. +</p> + +<p> +In vain did Leander strive to straighten himself up and assume a gay, careless +air; his malicious tormentor was not in the least taken in by it. +</p> + +<p> +The next morning the comedians prepared to resume their journey; no longer, +however, in the slow-moving, groaning ox-cart, which they were glad, indeed, to +exchange for the more roomy, commodious vehicle that the tyrant had been able +to hire for them—thanks to the marquis’s liberality—in which +they could bestow themselves and their belongings comfortably, and to which was +harnessed four stout draught horses. +</p> + +<p> +Leander and Zerbine were both rather late in rising, and the last to make their +appearance—the former with a doleful countenance, despite his best +efforts to conceal his sufferings under a cheerful exterior, the latter beaming +with satisfaction, and with smiles for everybody. She was decidedly inclined to +be munificent towards her companions, and bestow upon them some of the rich +spoils that had fallen plentifully to her share—taking quite a new +position among them—even the duenna treating her with a certain +obsequious, wheedling consideration, which she had been far from ever showing +her before. Scapin, whose keen observation nothing ever escaped, noticed that +her box had suddenly doubled in weight, by some magic or other, and drew his +own conclusions therefrom. Zerbine was a universal favourite, and no one +begrudged her her good fortune, save Serafina, who bit her lip till it bled, +and murmured indignantly, “Shameless creature!” but the +<i>soubrette</i> pretended not to hear it, content for the moment with the +signal humiliation of the arch-coquette. +</p> + +<p> +At last the new Thespian chariot was ready for a start, and our travellers bade +adieu to the hospitable château, where they had been so honourably received and +so generously treated, and which they all, excepting poor Leander, quitted with +regret. The tyrant dwelt upon the bountiful supply of <i>pistoles</i> he had +received; the pedant upon the capital wines of which he had drunk his fill; +Matamore upon the enthusiastic applause that had been lavished upon him by that +aristocratic audience; Zerbine upon the pieces of rich silk, the golden +necklaces and other like treasures with which her chest was replete—no +wonder that it was heavy—while de Sigognac and Isabelle, thinking only of +each other, and happy in being together, did not even turn their heads for one +last glimpse of the handsome Château de Bruyere. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap06"></a>CHAPTER VI.<br/> +A SNOW-STORM AND ITS CONSEQUENCES</h2> + +<p> +As may be readily supposed, the comedians were well satisfied with the kind +treatment they had received during their brief sojourn at the Château de +Bruyères; such a piece of good fortune did not often fall to their lot, and +they rejoiced in it exceedingly. The tyrant had distributed among them each +one’s share of the marquis’s liberal remuneration for their +services, and it was wonderfully pleasant to them to have broad pieces in the +purses usually so scantily supplied, and not infrequently quite empty. Zerbine, +who was evidently rejoicing over some secret source of satisfaction, accepted +good-naturedly all the taunts and jokes of her companions upon the irresistible +power of her charms. She was triumphant, and could afford to be laughed +at—indeed, joined heartily in the general merriment at her own +expense—while Serafina sulked openly, with “envy, hatred, and +malice” filling her heart. Poor Leander, still smarting from his severe +beating, sore and aching, unable to find an easy position, and suffering +agonies from the jolting of the chariot, found it hard work to join in the +prevailing gaiety. +</p> + +<p> +When he thought no one was looking at him, he would furtively rub his poor, +bruised shoulders and arms with the palm of his hand, which stealthy manœuvre +might very readily have passed unobserved by the rest of the company, but did +not escape the wily valet, who was always on the lookout for a chance to +torment Leander; his monstrous self-conceit being intensely exasperating to +him. A harder jolt than usual having made the unfortunate gallant groan aloud, +Scapin immediately opened his attack, feigning to feel the liveliest +commiseration for him. +</p> + +<p> +“My poor Leander, what is the matter with you this morning? You moan and +sigh as if you were in great agony! Are you really suffering so acutely? You +seem to be all battered and bruised, like the Knight of the Sorrowful +Countenance, after he had capered stark naked, for a love penance, among the +rocks in the Sierra Morena, in humble imitation of his favourite hero, Amadis +de Gaul. You look as if you had not slept at all last night, and had been lying +upon hard sticks, rods, or clubs, instead of in a soft, downy bed, such as were +given to the rest of us in the fine château yonder. Tell us, I pray you, did +not Morpheus once visit you all the night through?” +</p> + +<p> +“Morpheus may have remained shut up in his cavern, but Cupid is a +wanderer by night, who does not need a lantern to find the way to those +fortunate individuals he favours with a visit,” Leander replied, hoping +to divert attention from the tell-tale bruises, that he had fancied were +successfully concealed. +</p> + +<p> +“I am only a humble valet, and have had no experience in affairs of +gallantry. I never paid court to a fine lady in my life; but still, I do know +this much, that the mischievous little god, Cupid, according to all the poets, +aims his arrows at the hearts of those he wishes to wound, instead of using his +bow upon their backs.” +</p> + +<p> +“What in the world do you mean?” Leander interrupted quickly, +growing seriously uneasy at the turn the conversation was taking. +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! nothing; only that I see, in spite of all your efforts to hide it +with that handkerchief knotted so carefully round your neck, that you have +there on the back of it a long, black mark, which to-morrow will be indigo, the +day after green, and then yellow, until it fades away altogether, like any +other bruise—a black mark that looks devilishly like the authentic +flourish which accompanies the signature of a good, stout club on a +calf’s skin—or on vellum, if that term pleases you better.” +</p> + +<p> +“Ah! my good Scapin, you do not understand such matters,” Leander +replied, a scarlet flush mounting to the very roots of his hair, and at his +wits’ ends to know how to silence his tormentor; “doubtless some +dead and gone beauty, who loved me passionately during her lifetime, has come +back and kissed me there while I was sleeping; as is well known, the contact of +the lips of the dead leave strange, dark marks, like bruises, on human flesh, +which the recipient of the mysterious caress is astonished to find upon +awaking.” +</p> + +<p> +“Your defunct beauty visited you and bestowed her mysterious caress very +apropos,” remarked Scapin, incredulously; “but I would be willing +to take my oath that yonder vigorous kiss had been imprinted upon your +lily-white neck by the stinging contact of a stout club.” +</p> + +<p> +“Unmannerly jester and scoffer that you are! is nothing sacred to +you?” broke in Leander, with some show of heat. +</p> + +<p> +“You push my modesty too far. I endeavoured delicately to put off upon a +dead beauty what I should have ascribed to a living one. Ignorant and +unsophisticated though you claim to be, have you never heard of kisses so +ardent that such traces of them are left?—where pearly teeth have closed +upon the soft flesh, and made their mark on the white skin?” +</p> + +<p> +“Memorem dente notam,” interrupted the pedant, charmed to have a +chance to quote Horace. +</p> + +<p> +“This explanation appears to me very judicious,” Scapin said; then, +with a low bow to the pedant, “and is sustained by unquestionable if +incomprehensible authority; but the mark is so long that this nocturnal beauty +of yours, dead or alive, must have had in her lovely mouth that famous tooth +which the three Gorgon sisters owned among them, and passed about from one to +the other.” +</p> + +<p> +This sally was followed by a roar of laughter, and Leander, beside himself with +rage, half rose, to throw himself upon Scopin, and chastise him then and there +for his insufferable impertinence; but he was so stiff and sore from his own +beating, and the pain in his back, which was striped like a zebra’s, was +so excruciating, that he sank back into his place with a suppressed groan, and +concluded to postpone his revenge to some more convenient season. Hérode and +Blazius, who were accustomed to settle such little disputes, insisted upon +their making up their differences, and a sort of reconciliation took +place-Scapin promising never to allude to the subject again, but managing to +give poor Leander one or two more digs that made him wince even as he did so. +</p> + +<p> +During this absurd altercation the chariot had been making steady progress, and +soon arrived at an open space where another great post-road crossed the one +they were following, at right angles. A large wooden crucifix, much the worse +for long exposure to the weather, had been erected upon a grassy mound at the +intersection of the two highways. A group, consisting of two men and three +mules, stood at its foot, apparently awaiting some one’s arrival. As they +approached, one of the mules, as if weary of standing still, impatiently shook +its head, which was gaily decorated with bright, many-coloured tufts and +tassels, and set all the little silver bells about it ringing sharply. Although +a pair of leather blinkers, decked with gay embroidery, effectually prevented +its seeing to the right or to the left, it evidently was aware of the approach +of the chariot before the men’s senses had given them any intimation of +it. +</p> + +<p> +“The Colonelle shakes her ear-trumpets and shows her teeth,” said +one of them; “they cannot be far off now.” +</p> + +<p> +In effect, after a very few minutes the chariot was seen approaching, and +presently rolled into the open space. Zerbine, who sat in front, glanced +composedly at the little group of men and mules standing there, without +betraying any surprise at seeing them. +</p> + +<p> +“By Jove! those are fine beasts yonder,” exclaimed the tyrant, +“splendid Spanish mules, especially that foremost one; they can easily do +their fifteen or twenty leagues a day, I’ll venture, and if we were +mounted on the like we should soon find ourselves in Paris. But what the devil +are they doing in this lonely place? it must be a relay, waiting for some rich +seignior travelling this way.” +</p> + +<p> +“No,” said the duenna, “that foremost mule is intended for a +lady—don’t you see the cushions and housings?” +</p> + +<p> +“In that case,” he replied, “there must be an abduction in +the wind; those two equerries, in gray liveries, certainly have a very +mysterious, knowing sort of an air.” +</p> + +<p> +“Perhaps you are right,” said Zerbine, demurely, with a significant +little smile and shrug. +</p> + +<p> +“Can it be possible that the lady is among us?” asked Scapin; +“one of the men is coming this way by himself, as if he desired to parley +before resorting to violence.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! there’ll be no need,” said Serafina, casting a scornful +glance at the <i>soubrette</i>, who returned it with interest. +</p> + +<p> +“There are bold creatures that go of their own accord, without waiting to +be carried off.” +</p> + +<p> +“And there are others who are NOT carried off, that would like to +be,” retorted the <i>soubrette</i>, “but the desire is not +sufficient; a few charms are needed too.” +</p> + +<p> +At this point the equerry who had advanced to meet the chariot made a sign to +them to stop, and, cap in hand, politely asked if Mlle. Zerbine was among them. +The <i>soubrette</i> herself answered this inquiry in the affirmative, and +sprang to the ground as lightly as a bird. +</p> + +<p> +“Mademoiselle, I am at your disposal,” said the equerry to her, in +a respectful and gallant tone. Zerbine shook out her skirts, adjusted her +wraps, and then, turning towards the comedians, delivered this little harangue: +“My dear comrades, I pray you pardon me for quitting you in this +unceremonious manner. There are times when Opportunity offers itself suddenly +for our acceptance, and we must seize it without delay, or lose it altogether; +he would be a fool who let it slip through his fingers, for once relinquished +it returns not again. The face of Fortune, which until now has always frowned +upon me, at last vouchsafes me a smile, and I am delighted to enjoy its +brightness, even though it may prove to be only fleeting. In my humble role of +<i>soubrette</i>, I could not aspire to, or expect to receive, the admiration +of rich lords and gentlemen—that is for my betters; and now that a happy +chance has thrown such an unhoped-for piece of good luck in my way, you will +not blame me, I am confident, for gladly accepting it. Let me take my +belongings then—which are packed in the chariot with the others—and +receive my adieux. I shall be sure to rejoin you some day, sooner or later, at +Paris, for I am a born actress; the theatre was my first love, and I have never +long been faithless to it.” +</p> + +<p> +The two men accordingly, aided by the comedians, took Zerbine’s boxes out +of the chariot, and adjusted them carefully on the pack-mule. The +<i>soubrette</i> made a sweeping curtsey to her friends in the chariot, and +threw a kiss to Isabelle from her finger tips, then, aided by one of the +equerries, sprang to her place behind him, on the back of the Colonelle, as +lightly and gracefully as if she had been taught the art of mounting in an +equestrian academy, nodded a last farewell, and striking the mule sharply with +the high heel of her pretty little shoe, set off at a round pace. +</p> + +<p> +“Good-bye, and good luck to you, Zerbine,” cried the comedians +heartily, one and all; save only Serafina, who was more furiously angry with +her than ever. +</p> + +<p> +“This is an unfortunate thing for us,” said the tyrant regretfully, +“a serious loss. I wish with all my heart that we could have kept that +capital little actress with us; we shall not easily find any one to replace +her, even in Paris; she is really incomparable in her own role—but she +was not in any way bound to stay with us a moment longer than she chose. We +shall have to substitute a duenna, or a chaperon, for the <i>soubrette</i> in +our pieces for the present; it will be less pleasing of course, but still Mme. +Léonarde here is a host in herself, and we shall manage to get on very nicely, +I dare say.” +</p> + +<p> +The chariot started on its way again as he spoke, at rather a better pace than +the lumbering old ox-cart. They were travelling through a part of the country +now which was a great contrast to the desolate Landes. To the Baron de +Sigognac, who had never been beyond their desolate expanse before, it was a +revelation, and he could not sufficiently admire the richness and beauty of +this region. The productive, red soil was highly cultivated—not an inch +of ground neglected—comfortable, often handsome, stone houses scattered +along their route at frequent intervals, and surrounded by large, luxuriant +gardens, spoke of a well-to-do population. On each side of the broad, smooth +road was a row of fine trees, whose falling leaves lay piled upon the ground in +yellow heaps, or whirled in the wind before de Sigognac and Isabelle, as they +walked along beneath their spreading branches, finding the exercise a welcome +relief after sitting for a long time in the chariot in rather a cramped +position. One day as they were walking thus side by side, de Sigognac said to +his fair companion, “I wish you would tell me, Isabelle, how it has +happened that you, with all the characteristics of a lady of lofty lineage in +the innate modesty and dignity of your manners, the refinement and purity of +your language, the incomparable grace of your carriage, the elevation of your +sentiments upon all subjects, to say nothing of the delicate, aristocratic type +of your beauty—should have become a member of a wandering band of players +like this—good, honest people no doubt, but not of the same rank or race +as yourself.” +</p> + +<p> +“Don’t fancy that I am a princess in disguise, or a great lady +reduced to earn my living in this way,” she replied, with an adorable +smile, “merely because of some good qualities you think you have +discovered in me. The history of my life is a very simple, uneventful one, but +since you show such kind interest in me I will gladly relate it to you. So far +from being brought down to the station I occupy by some grievous catastrophe or +romantic combination of adverse circumstances, I was born to the profession of +an actress—the chariot of Thespis was, so to say, my birthplace. My +mother, who was a very beautiful woman and finished actress, played the part of +tragic princess. She did not confine her role to the theatre, but exacted as +much deference and respect from those around her when off the stage, as she +received upon it, until she came to consider herself a veritable princess. She +had all the majesty and grace of one, and was greatly admired and courted, but +never would suffer any of the gallants, who flutter about pretty actresses like +moths around a candle, to approach her—holding herself entirely above +them, and keeping her good name unsullied through everything. An account of +this unusual conduct on the part of a beautiful young actress chanced to reach +the ears of a certain rich and powerful prince, who was very much struck and +interested by it, and immediately sought an introduction to my mother. As his +actual rank and position equalled hers of imaginary princess, she received his +attentions with evident pleasure. He was young, handsome, eloquent, and very +much in love with her—what wonder then that she yielded at last to his +impassioned entreaties, and gave herself to him, though, because of his high +station, he could not do as his heart dictated, and make her his wife. They +were very happy in each other’s love, and after I was born my young +father was devoted to me.” +</p> + +<p> +“Ah!” interrupted de Sigognac, eagerly, “that explains it +all; princely blood does flow in your veins. I knew it—was sure of +it!” +</p> + +<p> +“Their happiness continued,” resumed Isabelle, “until reasons +of state made it necessary for him to tear himself away from her, to go on a +diplomatic mission to one of the great capitals of Europe; and ere his return +to France an illustrious marriage had been arranged for him by his family, with +the sanction of royalty, which he found it impossible to evade. In these cruel +circumstances he endeavoured to do everything in his power to soften the pain +of this rupture to my poor mother—himself almost broken-hearted at being +forced to leave her—and made every possible arrangement for her comfort +and well-being; settling a generous income on her, and providing lavishly for +my maintenance and education. But she would accept nothing from him—she +could not receive his money without his love—‘all or nothing’ +was her motto; and taking me with her she fled from him, successfully +concealing her place of refuge. She soon after joined a band of players +travelling through the provinces, and resumed her old role; but her heart was +broken, and she gradually faded away, dying at last when I was only about seven +years old. Even then I used to appear upon the stage in parts suitable to my +age. I was a precocious little thing in many ways. My mother’s death +caused me a grief far more acute than most children, even a good deal older +than I was then, are capable of feeling. How well I remember being punished +because I refused to act the part of one of Medea’s children, the day +after she died. But my grief was not very long-lived—I was but a child +after all, and the actors and actresses of the troupe were so good to me, +always petting me, and devising all sorts of ways to please and divert +me—theatrical people are proverbially kind to comrades in distress, you +know. The pedant, who belonged to our company, and looked just as old and +wrinkled then as he does now, took the greatest interest in me, constituted +himself my master, and taught me thoroughly and indefatigably all the secrets +of the histrionic art—taking unwearied pains with me. I could not have +had a better teacher; perhaps you do not know that he has a great reputation, +even in Paris. You will wonder that a man of his fame and attainments should be +found in a strolling company of players like this, but his unfortunate habits +of intemperance have been the cause of all his troubles. He was professor of +elocution in one of the celebrated colleges, holding an enviable and lucrative +position, but lost it because of his inveterate irregularities. He is his own +worst enemy, poor Blazius! In the midst of all the confusion and serious +disadvantages of a vagabond life, I have always been able to hold myself +somewhat apart, and remain pure and innocent. My companions, who have known me +from babyhood, look upon me as a sister or daughter, and treat me with +invariable affection and respect; and as for the men of the outside world who +haunt the <i>coulisses</i>, and seem to think that an actress is public +property, off the stage as well as upon it, I have thus far managed to keep +them at a distance—continuing in real life my role of modest, ingenuous, +young girl, without hypocrisy or false pretensions.” +</p> + +<p> +Thus, as they strolled along together, and could talk confidentially without +fear of listeners, Isabelle related the story of her life to de Sigognac, who +was a most attentive and delighted listener, and ever more and more charmed +with his fair divinity. +</p> + +<p> +“And the name of the prince,” said he, after a short pause, +“do you remember it?” +</p> + +<p> +“I fear that it might be dangerous to my peace to disclose it,” she +replied; “but it is indelibly engraven upon my memory.” +</p> + +<p> +“Are there any proofs remaining to you of his connection with your +mother?” +</p> + +<p> +“I have in my possession a seal-ring bearing his coat of arms” +Isabelle answered; “it is the only jewel of all he had lavished upon her +that my mother kept, and that entirely on account of the associations connected +with it, not for its intrinsic value, which is small. If you would like to see +it I will be very glad to show it to you some day.” +</p> + +<p> +It would be too tedious to follow our travellers step by step on their long +journey, so we will skip over a few days—which passed quietly, without +any incidents worth recording—and rejoin them as they were drawing near +to the ancient town of Poitiers. In the meantime their receipts had not been +large, and hard times had come to the wandering comedians. The money received +from the Marquis de Bruyères had all been spent, as well as the modest sum in +de Sigognac’s purse-who had contributed all that he possessed to the +common fund, in spite of the protestations of his comrades in distress. The +chariot was drawn now by a single horse-instead of the four with which they had +set off so triumphantly from the Château de Bruyères—and such a horse! a +miserable, old, broken-down hack, whose ribs were so prominent that he looked +as if he lived upon barrel-hoops instead of oats and hay; his lack-lustre eyes, +drooping head, halting gait, and panting breath combined to make him a most +pitiable object, and he plodded on at a snail’s pace, looking as if he +might drop down dead on the road at any moment. Only the three women were in +the chariot—the men all walking, so as to relieve their poor, jaded beast +as much as possible. The weather was bitterly cold, and they wrapped their +cloaks about them and strode on in silence, absorbed in their own melancholy +thoughts. +</p> + +<p> +Poor de Sigognac, well-nigh discouraged, asked himself despondingly whether it +would not have been better for him to have remained in the dilapidated home of +his fathers, even at the risk of starving to death there in silence and +seclusion, than run the risk of such hardships in company with these Bohemians. +His thoughts flew back to his good old Pierre, to Bayard, Miraut, and +Beelzebub, the faithful companions of his solitude; his heart was heavy within +him, and at the sudden remembrance of his dear old friends and followers his +throat contracted spasmodically, and he almost sobbed aloud; but he looked back +at Isabelle, wrapped in her cloak and sitting serenely in the front of the +chariot, and took fresh courage, feeling glad that he could be near her in this +dark hour, to do all that mortal man, struggling against such odds, could +compass for her comfort and protection. She responded to his appealing glance +with a sweet smile, that quickened his pulses and sent a thrill of joy through +every nerve. She did not seem at all disheartened or cast down by the greatness +of their misery. Her heart was satisfied and happy; why should she be crushed +by mere physical suffering and discomforts? She was very brave, although +apparently so delicate and fragile, and inspired de Sigognac, who could have +fallen down and worshipped her as he gazed up into her beautiful eyes, with +some of her own undaunted courage. +</p> + +<p> +The great, barren plain they were slowly traversing, with a few dreary +skeletons of misshapen old trees scattered here and there, and not a dwelling +in sight, was not calculated to dissipate the melancholy of the party. Save one +or two aged peasants trudging listlessly along, bending under the weight of the +fagots they carried on their backs, they had not seen a human being all day +long. The spiteful magpies, that seemed to be the only inhabitants of this +dreary waste, danced about in front of them, chattering and almost laughing at +them, as if rejoicing in and making fun of their miseries. A searching north +wind, that penetrated to the very marrow in their bones, was blowing, and the +few white flakes that flew before it now and then were the +<i>avant-couriers</i> of the steady fall of snow that began as nightfall +approached. +</p> + +<p> +“It would appear,” said the pedant, who was walking behind the +chariot trying to find shelter from the icy wind, “that the celestial +housewife up above has been plucking her geese, and is shaking the feathers out +of her apron down upon us. She might a great deal better send us the geese +themselves. I for one would be glad enough to eat 114 them, without being very +particular as to whether they were done to a turn, and without sauce or +seasoning either.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, so would I, even without salt,” added the tyrant, “for +my stomach is empty. I could welcome now an omelette such as they gave us this +morning, and swallow it without winking, though the eggs were so far gone that +the little chicks were almost ready to peep.” +</p> + +<p> +By this time de Sigognac also had taken refuge behind the +chariot—Isabelle having been driven from her seat in front to a place in +the interior by the increasing violence of the storm-and Blazius said to him, +“This is a trying time, my lord, and I regret very much that you should +have to share our bad fortune; but I trust it will be only of brief duration, +and although we do get on but slowly, still every step brings us nearer to +Paris.” +</p> + +<p> +“I was not brought up in the lap of luxury,” de Sigognac answered, +“and I am not a man to be frightened by a few snowflakes and a biting +wind; but it is for these poor, suffering women that I am troubled; they are +exposed to such severe hardships—cold, privations, fatigue—and we +cannot adequately shelter and protect them, do what we will.” +</p> + +<p> +“But you must remember that they are accustomed to roughing it, my dear +baron, and what would be simply unendurable to many of their sex, who have +never been subjected to such tests, they meet bravely, and make light of, in a +really remarkable manner.” +</p> + +<p> +The storm grew worse and worse; the snow, driven with great force by the wind, +penetrated into the chariot where Isabelle, Serafina, and Mme. Léonarde had +taken refuge among the luggage, in spite of all that could be done to keep it +out, and had soon covered their wraps with a coating of white. The poor horse +was scarcely able to make any headway at all against the wind and snow; his +feet slipped at every step, and he panted painfully. Hérode went to his head, +and took hold of the bridle with his strong hand to lead him and try to help +him along, while the pedant, de Sigognac, and Scapin put their shoulders to the +wheels at every inequality in the road and whenever he paused or stumbled +badly, and Leander cracked the whip loudly to encourage the poor beast; it +would have been downright cruelty to strike him. As to Matamore, he had +lingered behind, and they were expecting every moment to see his tall, spare +figure emerge from the gloom with rapid strides and rejoin them. Finally the +storm became so violent that it was impossible to face it any longer; and +though it was so important that they should reach the next village before the +daylight was all gone, they were forced to halt, and turn the chariot, with its +back to the wind. The poor old horse, utterly exhausted by this last effort, +slipped and fell, and without making any attempt to rise lay panting on the +ground. Our unhappy travellers found themselves in a sad predicament +indeed—wet, cold, tired and hungry, all in the superlative +degree—blinded by the driving snow, and lost, without any means of +getting on save their own powers of locomotion, in the midst of a great +desert—for the white covering which now lay upon everything had +obliterated almost all traces of the road; they did not know which way to turn, +or what to do. For the moment they all took refuge in the chariot, until the +greatest violence of the tempest should be over, huddled close together for +warmth, and striving not to lose heart entirely. Presently the wind quieted +down all of a sudden, as if it had expended its fury and wanted to rest; but +the snow continued to fall industriously, though noiselessly, and as far as the +eye could reach through the gathering darkness the surface of the earth was +white, as if it had been wrapped in a winding sheet. +</p> + +<p> +“What in the world has become of Matamore?” cried Blazius suddenly; +“has the wind carried him off to the moon I wonder?” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes; where can he be?” said the tyrant, in an anxious tone; +“I can’t see him anywhere—I thought he was among us; perhaps +he is lying asleep among the stage properties at the back of the chariot; I +have known him curl himself down there for a nap before now. Holloa! Matamore! +where are you? wake up and answer us!” But no Matamore responded, and +there was no movement under the great heap of scenery, and decorations of all +sorts, stowed away there. +</p> + +<p> +“Holloa! Matamore!” roared Hérode again, in his loudest tones, +which might have waked the seven sleepers in their cavern, and roused their dog +too. +</p> + +<p> +“We have not seen him here in the chariot at all today,” said one +of the actresses; “we thought he was walking with the others.” +</p> + +<p> +“The deuce!” exclaimed Blazius, “this is very strange. I hope +no accident has happened to the poor fellow.” +</p> + +<p> +“Undoubtedly he has taken shelter in the worst of the storm on the lee +side of the trunk of a tree somewhere,” said de Sigognac, “and will +soon come up with us.” +</p> + +<p> +After a short discussion, it was decided to wait where they were a few minutes +longer, and then if he did not make his appearance go in search of him. They +anxiously watched the way by which they had come, but no human form appeared on +the great expanse of white, and the darkness was falling rapidly upon the +earth, as it does after the short days of December. The distant howling of a +dog now came to their ears, to add to the lugubrious effect of their +surroundings, but they were all so troubled at the strange absence of their +comrade that their own individual miseries were for the moment forgotten. The +doleful howling, so far away at first, gradually became louder, until at last a +large, black dog came in sight, and sitting down upon the snow, still a long +distance from them, raised his head so that his muzzle pointed upward to the +sky and howled, as if in the greatest distress. +</p> + +<p> +“I’m afraid something terrible has happened to our poor +Matamore,” cried the tyrant, and his voice trembled a little; “that +dog howls as if for a death.” +</p> + +<p> +At this speech the two young women turned even paler than they had been before, +if that were possible, and made the sign of the cross devoutly, while Isabelle +murmured a prayer. +</p> + +<p> +“We must go in search of him without a moment’s delay,” said +Blazius, “and take the lantern with us; it will as a guiding star to him +if he has wandered off from the road, as is very probable, with everything +covered with snow like this.” +</p> + +<p> +They accordingly lighted their horn lantern, and set off with all possible +speed—the tyrant, Blazius, and de Sigognac—whilst Scapin and +Leander remained with the three women in the chariot. The dog, meantime, kept +up his dismal howling without a moment’s intermission as the three men +hastened towards him. The darkness and the newfallen snow, which had completely +obliterated all traces of footsteps, made the task of looking for the missing +actor a very difficult one, and after walking nearly a mile without seeing a +sign of him, they began to fear that their search would prove fruitless. They +kept calling, “Matamore! Matamore!” but there was no reply, nothing +to be heard but the howling of the large black dog, at intervals now, or the +scream of an owl, disturbed by the light of the lantern. At last de Sigognac, +with his penetrating vision, thought he could make out a recumbent figure at +the foot of a tree, a little way off from the road, and they all pressed +forward to the spot he indicated. +</p> + +<p> +It was indeed poor Matamore, sitting on the ground, with his back against the +tree, and his long legs, stretched out in front of him, quite buried under the +snow; he did not stir at the approach of his comrades, or answer their joyful +shout of recognition, and when Blazius, alarmed at this strange apathy, +hastened forward and threw the light of the lantern upon his face, he had +nearly let it fall from fright at what it revealed. Poor Matamore was dead, +stiff and stark, with wide-open, sunken eyes staring out vaguely into the +darkness, and his ghastly face wearing that pinched, indescribable expression +which the mortal puts on when the spirit that dwelt within has fled. The three +who had found him thus were inexpressibly shocked, and stood for a moment +speechless and motionless, in the presence of death. The tyrant was the first +to recover himself, and hoping that some sign of life might yet remain he +stooped and took the cold hand into his, and essayed to find a pulse at the +wrist—in vain! it was still and icy. Unwilling yet to admit that the +vital spark was extinct, he asked Blazius for his gourd, which he always +carried with him, and endeavoured to pour a few drops of wine into his +mouth—in vain! the teeth were tightly locked together, and the wine +trickled from between his pale lips, and dropped slowly down upon his breast. +</p> + +<p> +“Leave him in peace! do not disturb these poor remains!” said de +Sigognac in trembling tones; “don’t you see that he is dead?” +“Alas! you are right,” Blazius added, “he is dead; dead as +Cheops in the great pyramid. Poor fellow! he must have been confused by the +blinding snow, and unable to make his way against that terrible wind, turned +aside and sat down under this tree, to wait until its violence should be spent; +but he had not flesh enough on his bones to keep them warm, and must have been +quickly frozen through and through. He has starved himself more than ever +lately, in hopes of producing a sensation at Paris, and he was thinner than any +greyhound before. Poor Matamore! thou art out of the way of all trouble now; no +more blows, and kicks, and curses for thee, my friend, whether on or off the +stage, and thou wilt be laughed at no more forever.” +</p> + +<p> +“What shall we do about his body?” interrupted the more practical +tyrant. “We cannot leave it here for dogs, and wolves, and birds of prey +to devour—though indeed I almost doubt whether they would touch it, there +is so little flesh upon his bones.” +</p> + +<p> +“No, certainly, we cannot leave him here,” Blazius replied; +“he was a good and loyal comrade; he deserves better of us than that; we +will not abandon him, poor Matamore! He is not heavy; you take his head and I +will take his feet, and we will carry him to the chariot. To-morrow morning we +will bury him as decently as we can in some quiet, retired spot, where he will +not be likely to be disturbed. Unfortunately we cannot do better for him than +that, for we, poor actors, are excluded by our hard-hearted and very unjust +step-mother, the church, from her cemeteries; she denies us the security and +comfort of being laid to rest for our last long sleep in consecrated ground. +After having devoted our lives to the amusement of the human race—the +highest as well as the more lowly among them, and faithful sons and daughters +of holy church too—we must be thrown into the next ditch when the end +comes, like dead dogs and horses. Now, Hérode, are you ready? and will you, my +lord, lead the way with the lantern?” +</p> + +<p> +The mournful little procession moved slowly forward; the howling dog was quiet +at last, as if his duty was done, and a deathlike stillness prevailed around +them. It was well that there were no passers-by at that hour; it would have +been a strange sight, almost a frightful one, for any such, for they might well +have supposed that a hideous crime had been committed; the two men bearing the +dead body away at night, lighted by the third with his lantern, which threw +their shadows, long, black and misshapen, upon the startling whiteness of the +snow, as they advanced with measured tread. Those who had remained with the +chariot saw from afar the glimmer of de Sigognac’s lantern, and wondered +why they walked so slowly, not perceiving at that distance their sad burden. +Scapin and Leander hastened forward to meet them, and as soon as they got near +enough to see them distinctly the former shouted to them—“Well, +what is the matter? why are you carrying Matamore like that? is he ill, or has +he hurt himself?” +</p> + +<p> +“He is not ill,” answered Blazius, quietly, as they met, “and +nothing can ever hurt him again—he is cured forever of the strange malady +we call life, which always ends in death.” +</p> + +<p> +“Is he really dead?” Scapin asked, with a sob he did not even try +to suppress, as he bent to look at the face of the poor comic actor, for he had +a tender heart under his rough exterior, and had cherished a very sincere +affection for poor Matamore. +</p> + +<p> +“Very dead indeed, for he is frozen as well,” Blazius replied, in a +voice that belied the levity of his words. +</p> + +<p> +“He has lived! as they always say at the end of a tragedy,” said +Hérode; “but relieve us, please, it is your turn now; we have carried the +poor fellow a long way, and it is well for us that he is no heavier.” +</p> + +<p> +Scapin took Hérode’s place, reverently and tenderly, while Leander +relieved the pedant—though this office was little to his taste—and +they resumed their march, soon reaching the chariot. In spite of the cold and +snow, Isabelle and Serafina sprang to the ground to meet them, but the duenna +did not leave her seat—with age had come apathy, and selfishness had +never been wanting. When they saw poor Matamore stiff and motionless, and were +told that he was dead, the two young women were greatly shocked and moved, and +Isabelle, bursting into tears, raised her pure eyes to heaven and breathed a +fervent prayer for the departed soul. +</p> + +<p> +And now came the question, what was to be done? The village for which they were +bound was still a league away; but they could not stay where they were all +night, and they decided to go on, even if they had to abandon the chariot and +walk—anything would be better than freezing to death like poor Matamore. +But after all, things were not at such a desperate pass as they supposed; the +long rest, and a good feed of oats that Scapin had been thoughtful enough to +give their tired horse, had so revived the poor old beast that he seemed to be +ready and willing to go forward again—so their most serious difficulty +was removed. Matamore’s body was laid in the chariot, and carefully +covered with a large piece of white linen they fortunately happened to have +among their heterogeneous belongings, the women resumed their seats, not +without a slight shudder as they thought of their ghastly companion, and the +men walked—Scapin going in front with the lantern, and Hérode leading the +horse. They could not make very rapid progress, but at the end of two hours +perceived—oh, welcome sight!—the first straggling houses of the +village where they were to spend the night. At the noise of the approaching +vehicle the dogs began to bark furiously, and more than one nightcapped head +appeared at the windows as they passed along through the deserted +street—so the pedant was able to ask the way to the inn, which proved to +be at the other end of the hamlet—and the worn-out old horse had to make +one more effort; but he seemed to feel that the stable, where he should find +shelter, rest and food, was before him, and pushed on with astonishing +alacrity. +</p> + +<p> +They found it at last—the inn—with its bunch of holly for a sign. +It looked a forlorn place, for travellers did not usually stop over night in +this small, unimportant village; but the comedians were not in a mood to be +fastidious, and would have been thankful for even a more unpromising house of +entertainment than this one. It was all shut up for the night, with not a sign +of life to be seen, so the tyrant applied himself diligently to pounding on the +door with his big fists, until the sound of footsteps within, descending the +stairs, showed that he had succeeded in rousing somebody. A ray of light shone +through the cracks in the rickety old door, then it was cautiously opened just +a little, and an aged, withered crone, striving to protect the flame of her +flaring candle from the wind with one skinny hand, and to hold the rags of her +most extraordinary undress together with the other, peered out at them +curiously. She was evidently just as she had turned out of her bed, and a more +revolting, witch-like old hag it would be hard to find; but she bade the +belated travellers enter, with a horrible grimace that was intended for a +smile, throwing the door wide open, and telling them they were welcome to her +house as she led the way into the kitchen. She kindled the smouldering embers +on the hearth into a blaze, threw on some fresh wood, and then withdrew to +mount to her chamber and make herself a little more presentable—having +first roused a stout peasant lad, who served as hostler, and sent him to take +the chariot into the court, where he was heard directly unharnessing the weary +horse and leading him into the stable. +</p> + +<p> +“We cannot leave poor Matamore’s body in the chariot all night, +like a dead deer brought home from the chase,” said Blazius; “the +dogs out there in the court might find it out. Besides, he had been baptized, +and his remains ought to be watched with and cared for, like any other good +Christian’s.” +</p> + +<p> +So they brought in the sad burden tenderly, laid it on the long table, and +covered it again carefully with the white linen cloth. When the old woman +returned, and saw this strange and terrible sight, she was frightened almost to +death, and, throwing herself on her knees, began begging volubly for +mercy—evidently taking the troupe of comedians for a band of assassins, +and the dead man for their unfortunate victim. It was with the greatest +difficulty that Isabelle finally succeeded in calming and reassuring the poor, +distracted, old creature, who was beside herself with terror, and made her +listen to the story of poor Matamore’s death. When, at last, she fully +understood the true state of the case, she went and fetched more candles, which +she lighted and disposed symmetrically about the dead body, and kindly offered +to sit up and watch it with Mme. Léonarde—also to do all that was +necessary and usual for it—adding that she was always sent for in the +village when there was a death, to perform those last, sad offices. All this +being satisfactorily arranged—whereat they were greatly +relieved—the weary travellers were conducted into another room, and food +was placed before them; but the sad scenes just enacted had taken away their +appetites, though it was many long hours since they had eaten. And be it here +recorded that Blazius, for the first time in his life, forgot to drink his +wine, though it was excellent, and left his glass half full. He could not have +given a more convincing proof of the depth and sincerity of his grief. +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle and Serafina spent the night in an adjoining chamber, sharing the one +small bed it contained, and the men lay down upon bundles of straw that the +stable-boy brought in for them. None of them slept much—being haunted by +disturbing dreams inspired by the sad and trying events of the previous +day—and all were up and stirring at an early hour, for poor +Matamore’s burial was to be attended to. For want of something more +appropriate the aged hostess and Mme. Léonarde had enveloped the body in an old +piece of thick canvass—still bearing traces of the foliage and garlands +of flowers originally painted in bright colours upon it—in which they had +sewed it securely, so that it looked not unlike an Egyptian mummy. A board +resting on two cross pieces of wood served as a bier, and, the body being +placed upon it, was carried by Hérode, Blazius, Scapin and Leander. A large, +black velvet cloak, adorned with spangles, which was used upon the stage by +sovereign pontiffs or venerable necromancers, did duty as a pall—not +inappropriately surely. The little cortege left the inn by a small door in the +rear that opened upon a deserted common, so as to avoid passing through the +street and rousing the curiosity of the villagers, and set off towards a +retired spot, indicated by the friendly old woman, where no one would be likely +to witness or interfere with their proceedings. The early morning was gray and +cold, the sky leaden—no one had ventured abroad yet save a few peasants +searching for dead wood and sticks, who looked with suspicious eyes upon the +strange little procession making its way slowly through the untrodden snow, but +did not attempt to approach or molest it. They reached at last the lonely spot +where they were to leave the mortal remains of poor Matamore, and the +stable-boy, who had accompanied them carrying a spade, set to work to dig the +grave. Several carcasses of animals lay scattered about close at hand, partly +hidden by the snow—among them two or three skeletons of horses, picked +clean by birds of prey; their long heads, at the end of the slender vertebral +columns, peering out horribly at them, and their ribs, like the sticks of an +open fan stripped of its covering, appearing above the smooth white surface, +bearing each one its little load of snow. The comedians observed these ghastly +surroundings with a shudder, as they laid their burden gently down upon the +ground, and gathered round the grave which the boy was industriously digging. +He made but slow progress, however, and the tyrant, taking the spade from him, +went to work with a will, and had soon finished the sad task. Just at the last +a volley of stones suddenly startled the little group, who, intent upon the +mournful business in hand, had not noticed the stealthy approach of a +considerable number of peasants. +</p> + +<p> +These last had been hastily summoned by their friends who had first perceived +the mysterious little funeral procession, without priest, crucifix, or lighted +tapers, and taken it for granted that there must be something uncanny about it. +</p> + +<p> +They were about to follow up the shower of stones by a charge upon the group +assembled round the open grave, when de Sigognac, outraged at this brutal +assault, whipped out his sword, and rushed upon them impetuously, striking some +with the flat of the blade, and threatening others with the point; while the +tyrant, who had leaped out of the grave at the first alarm, seized one of the +cross pieces of the improvised bier, and followed the baron into the thick of +the crowd, raining blows right and left among their cowardly assailants; who, +though they far outnumbered the little band of comedians, fled before the +vigorous attack of de Sigognac and Hérode, cursing and swearing, and shouting +out violent threats as they withdrew. Poor Matamore’s humble obsequies +were completed without further hindrance. When the first spadeful of earth fell +upon his body the pedant, with great tears slowly rolling down his cheeks, bent +reverently over the grave and sighed out, “Alas! poor Matamore!” +little thinking that he was, using the very words of Hamlet, prince of Denmark, +when he apostrophized the skull of Yorick, an ancient king’s jester, in +the famous tragedy of one Shakespeare—a poet of great renown in England, +and protégé of Queen Elizabeth. +</p> + +<p> +The grave was filled up in silence, and the tyrant—after having trampled +down the snow for some distance around it, so that its exact whereabouts might +not be easy to find in case the angry peasants should come back to disturb +it—said as they turned away, “Now let us get out of this place as +fast as we can; we have nothing more to do here, and the sooner we quit it the +better. Those brutes that attacked us may return with +reinforcements—indeed I think it more than likely that they will—in +which case your sword, my dear baron, and my stick might not be enough to +scatter them again. We don’t want to kill any of them, and have the cries +of widows and orphans resounding in our ears; and besides, it might be awkward +for us if we were obliged to do it in self-defence, and then were hauled up +before the local justice of peace to answer for it.” +</p> + +<p> +There was so much good sense in this advice that it was unanimously agreed to +follow it, and in less than an hour, after having settled their account at the +inn, they, were once more upon the road. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap07"></a>CHAPTER VII.<br/> +CAPTAIN FRACASSE</h2> + +<p> +The comedians pushed forward at first as rapidly as the strength of their +horse—resuscitated by a night’s rest in a comfortable stable, and a +generous feed of oats—would allow; it being important to put a good +distance between themselves and the infuriated peasants who had been repulsed +by de Sigognac and the tyrant. They plodded on for more than two leagues in +profound silence, for poor Matamore’s sad fate weighed heavily upon their +hearts, and each one thought, with a shudder, that the day might come when he +too would die, and be buried secretly and in haste, in some lonely and +neglected spot by the roadside, wherever they chanced to be, and there +abandoned by his comrades. +</p> + +<p> +At last Blazius, whose tongue was scarcely ever at rest, save when he slept, +could restrain it no longer, and began to expatiate upon the mournful theme of +which all were thinking, embellishing his discourse with many apt quotations, +apothegms and maxims, of which in his role of pedant he had an ample store laid +up in his memory. The tyrant listened in silence, but with such a scowling, +preoccupied air that Blazius finally observed it, and broke off his eloquent +disquisition abruptly to inquire what he was cogitating so intently. +</p> + +<p> +“I am thinking about Milo, the celebrated Crotonian,” he replied, +“who killed a bullock with one blow of his fist, and devoured it in a +single day. I always have admired that exploit particularly, and I feel as if I +could do as much myself to-day.” +</p> + +<p> +“But as bad luck will have it,” said Scapin, putting in his oar, +“the bullock is wanting.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes,” rejoined the tyrant, “I, alas! have only the fist and +the stomach. Oh! thrice happy the ostrich, that, at a pinch, makes a meal of +pebbles, bits of broken glass, shoe-buttons, knife-handles, belt-buckles, or +any such-like delicacies that come in its way, which the poor, weak, human +stomach cannot digest at all. At this moment I feel capable of swallowing whole +that great mass of scenery and decorations in the chariot yonder. I feel as if +I had as big a chasm in me as the grave I dug this morning for poor Matamore, +and as if I never could get enough to fill it. The ancients were wise old +fellows; they knew what they were about when they instituted the feasts that +always followed their funerals, with abundance of meats and all sorts of good +things to eat, washed down with copious draughts of wine, to the honour of the +dead and the great good of the living. Ah! if we only had the wherewithal now +to follow their illustrious example, and accomplish worthily that philosophical +rite, so admirably calculated to stay the tears of mourners and raise their +drooping spirits.” +</p> + +<p> +“In other words,” said Blazius, “you are hankering after +something to eat. Polyphemus, ogre, Gargantua, monster that you are! you +disgust me.” +</p> + +<p> +“And you,” retorted the tyrant, “I know that you are +hankering after something to drink. Silenus, hogshead, wine-bottle, sponge that +you are! you excite my pity.” +</p> + +<p> +“How delightful it would be for us all if you both could have your +wish,” interposed Scapin, in a conciliatory tone. +</p> + +<p> +“Look, yonder by the roadside is a little grove, capitally situated for a +halting-place. We might stop there for a little, ransack the chariot to find +whatever fragments may yet remain in it of our last stock of provisions, and +gathering them all up take our breakfast, such as it may be, comfortably +sheltered from this cold north wind on the lee side of the thicket there. The +short halt will give the poor old horse a chance to rest, and we meantime, +while we are breakfasting, can discuss at our leisure some expedients for +supplying our immediate needs, and also talk over our future plans and +prospects—which latter, it seems to me, look devilishly dark and +discouraging.” +</p> + +<p> +“Your words are golden, friend Scapin,” the pedant said, “let +us by all means gather up the crumbs that are left of former plenty, though +they will be but few and musty, I fear. There are still, however, two or three +bottles of wine remaining—the last of a goodly store—enough for us +each to have a glass. What a pity that the soil hereabouts is not of that +peculiar kind of clay upon which certain tribes of American savages are said to +subsist, when they have been unlucky in their hunting and fishing, and have +nothing better to eat.” +</p> + +<p> +They accordingly turned the chariot off from the road into the edge of the +thicket, unharnessed the horse, and left him free to forage for himself; +whereupon he began to nibble, with great apparent relish, at the scattered +spears of grass peeping up here and there through the snow. A large rug was +brought from the chariot and spread upon the ground in a sheltered spot, upon +which the comedians seated themselves, in Turkish fashion, in a circle, while +Blazius distributed among them the sorry rations he had managed to scrape +together; laughing and jesting about them in such an amusing manner that all +were fain to join in his merriment, and general good humour prevailed. The +Baron de Sigognac, who had long, indeed always, been accustomed to extreme +frugality, in fact almost starvation, and found it easier to bear such trials +with equanimity than his companions, could not help admiring the wonderful way +in which the pedant made the best of a really desperate situation, and found +something to laugh at and make merry over where most people would have grumbled +and groaned, and bewailed their hard lot, in a manner to make themselves, and +all their companions in misery, doubly unhappy. But his attention was quickly +absorbed in his anxiety about Isabelle, who was deathly pale, and shivering +until her teeth chattered, though she did her utmost to conceal her suffering +condition, and to laugh with the rest. Her wraps were sadly insufficient to +protect her properly from such extreme cold as they were exposed to then, and +de Sigognac, who was sitting beside her, insisted upon sharing his cloak with +her—though she protested against his depriving himself of so much of +it—and beneath its friendly shelter gently drew her slender, shrinking +form close to himself, so as to impart some of his own vital warmth to her. She +could feel the quickened beating of his heart as he held her respectfully, yet +firmly and tenderly, embraced, and he was soon rewarded for his loving care by +seeing the colour return to her pale lips, the happy light to her sweet eyes, +and even a faint flush appear on her delicate cheeks. +</p> + +<p> +While they were eating—or rather making believe to eat their make-believe +breakfast—a singular noise was heard near by, to which at first they paid +no particular attention, thinking it was the wind whistling through the matted +branches of the thicket, if they thought of it at all; but presently it grew +louder, and they could not imagine what it proceeded from. It was a sort of +hissing sound, at once shrill and hoarse, quite impossible to describe +accurately. +</p> + +<p> +As it grew louder and louder, and seemed to be approaching them, the women +manifested some alarm. +</p> + +<p> +“Oh!” shrieked Serafina “I hope it’s not a snake; I +shall die if it is; I am so terrified by the horrid, crawling creatures.” +</p> + +<p> +“But it can’t possibly be a snake,” said Leander, +reassuringly; “in such cold weather as this the snakes are all torpid and +lying in their holes underground, stiffer than so many sticks.” +</p> + +<p> +“Leander is right,” added the pedant, “this cannot be a +snake; and besides, snakes never make such a sound as that at any time. It must +proceed from some wild creature of the wood that our invasion has disturbed; +perhaps we may be lucky enough to capture it and find it edible; that would be +a piece of good fortune, indeed, quite like a fairy-tale.” +</p> + +<p> +Meantime Scapin was listening attentively to the strange, incomprehensible +sound, and watching keenly that part of the thicket from which it seemed to +come. Presently a movement of the underbrush became noticeable, and just as he +motioned to the company to keep perfectly quiet a magnificent big gander +emerged from the bushes, stretching out his long neck, hissing with all his +might, and waddling along with a sort of stupid majesty that was most +diverting—closely followed by two geese, his good, simple-minded, +confiding wives, in humble attendance upon their infuriated lord and master. +</p> + +<p> +“Don’t stir, any of you,” said Scapin, under his breath, and +I will endeavour to capture this splendid prize”—with which the +clever scamp crept softly round behind his companions, who were still seated in +a circle on the rug, so lightly that he made not the slightest sound; and while +the gander—who with his two followers had stopped short at sight of the +intruders—was intently examining them, with some curiosity mingled with +his angry defiance, and apparently wondering in his stupid way how these +mysterious figures came to be in that usually deserted spot, Scapin succeeded, +by making a wide detour, in getting behind the three geese unseen, and +noiselessly advancing upon them, with one rapid, dexterous movement, threw his +large heavy cloak over the coveted prize. In another instant he had the +struggling gander, still enveloped in the cloak, in his arms, and, by +compressing his neck tightly, quickly put an end to his resistance—and +his existence at the same time; while his two wives, or rather widows, rushed +back into the thick underbrush to avoid a like fate, making a great cackling +and ado over the terrible catastrophe that had befallen their quondam lord and +master. +</p> + +<p> +“Bravo, Scapin! that was a clever trick indeed,” cried Hérode; +“it throws those you are so often applauded for on the stage quite into +the shade—a masterpiece of strategy, friend Scapin!—for, as is well +known, geese are by nature very vigilant, and never caught off their +guard—of which history gives us a notable instance, in the watchfulness +of the sacred geese of the Capitol, whose loud cackling in the dead of night at +the stealthy approach of the Gauls woke the sleeping soldiers to a sense of +their danger just in time to save Rome. This splendid big fellow here saves +us—after another fashion it is true, but one which is no less +providential.” +</p> + +<p> +The goose was plucked and prepared for the spit by Mme. Léonarde, while +Blazius, the tyrant, and Leander busied themselves in gathering together a +goodly quantity of dead wood and twigs, and laying them ready to light in a +tolerably dry spot. Scapin, with his large clasp-knife, cut a straight, strong +stick, stripped off the bark for a spit, and found two stout forked branches, +which he stuck firmly into the ground on each side of the fire so that they +would meet over it. A handful of dry straw from the chariot served as kindling, +and they quickly had a bright blaze, over which the goose was suspended, and +being duly turned and tended by Scapin, in a surprisingly short space of time +began to assume a beautiful light brown hue, and send out such a savoury +delicious odour that the tyrant sprang up and strode away from its immediate +vicinity, declaring that if he remained near it the temptation to seize and +swallow it, spit and all, would surely be too strong for him. Blazius had +fetched from the chariot a huge tin platter that usually figured in theatrical +feasts, upon which the goose, done to a turn, was finally placed with all due +ceremony, and a second breakfast was partaken of, which was by no means a +fallacious, chimerical repast like the first. The pedant, who was an +accomplished carver, officiated in that capacity on this auspicious occasion; +begging the company, as he did so, to be kind enough to excuse the unavoidable +absence, which he deeply regretted, of the slices of Seville oranges that +should have formed a part of the dish—being an obligatory accessory of +roast goose—and they with charming courtesy smilingly expressed their +willingness to overlook for this once such a culinary solecism. +</p> + +<p> +“Now,” said Hérode, when nothing remained of the goose but its +well-picked bones, “we must try to decide upon what is best to be done. +Only three or four <i>pistoles</i> are left in the exchequer, and my office as +treasurer bids fair to become a sinecure. We have been so unfortunate as to +lose two valuable members of the troupe, Zerbine and poor Matamore, rendering +many of our best plays impossible for us, and at any rate we cannot give +dramatic representations that would bring in much money here in the fields, +where our audience would be mainly composed of crows, jackdaws, and +magpies—who could scarcely be expected to pay us very liberally for our +entertainment. With that poor, miserable, old horse there, slowly dying between +the shafts of our chariot, hardly able to drag one foot after another, we +cannot reasonably expect to reach Poitiers in less than two days—if we do +then—and our situation is an unpleasantly tragic one, for we run the risk +of being frozen or starved to death by the wayside; fat geese, already roasted, +do not emerge from every thicket you know.” +</p> + +<p> +“You state the case very clearly,” the pedant said as he paused, +“and make the evil very apparent, but you don’t say a word about +the remedy.” +</p> + +<p> +“My idea is,” rejoined Hérode, “to stop at the first village +we come to and give an entertainment. All work in the fields is at a standstill +now, and the peasants are idle in consequence; they will be only too delighted +at the prospect of a little amusement. Somebody will let us have his barn for +our theatre, and Scapin shall go round the town beating the drum, and +announcing our programme, adding this important clause, that all those who +cannot pay for their places in money may do so in provisions. A fowl, a ham, or +a jug of wine, will secure a seat in the first row; a pair of pigeons, a dozen +eggs, or a loaf of bread, in the second, and so on down. Peasants are +proverbially stingy with their money, but will be liberal enough with their +provisions; and though our purse will not be replenished, our larder will, +which is equally important, since our very lives depend upon it. After that we +can push on to Poitiers, and I know an inn-keeper there who will give us credit +until we have had time to fill our purse again, and get our finances in good +order.” +</p> + +<p> +“But what piece can we play, in case we find our village?” asked +Scapin. “Our <i>repertoire</i> is sadly reduced, you know. Tragedies, and +even the better class of comedies, would be all Greek to the stupid rustics, +utterly ignorant as they are of history or fable, and scarcely even +understanding the French language. The only thing to give them would be a +roaring farce, with plenty of funny by-play, resounding blows, kicks and cuffs, +ridiculous tumbles, and absurdities within their limited comprehension. The +Rodomontades of Captain Matamore would be the very thing; but that is out of +our power now that poor Matamore is dead.” +</p> + +<p> +When Scapin paused, de Sigognac made a sign with his hand that he wished to +speak, and all the company turned respectfully towards him to listen to what he +had to say. A little flush spread itself over his pale countenance, and it was +only after a brief but sharp struggle with himself that he opened his tightly +compressed lips, and addressed his expectant audience, as follows: +“Although I do not possess poor Matamore’s talent, I can almost +rival him in thinness, and <i>I</i> will take his role, and do the best I can +with it. I am your comrade, and I want to do my part in this strait we find +ourselves in. I should be ashamed to share your prosperity, as I have done, and +not aid you, so far as lies in my power, in your adversity, and this is the +only way in which I can assist you. There is no one in the whole world to care +what may become of the de Sigognacs; my house is crumbling into dust over the +tombs of my ancestors; oblivion covers my once glorious name, and the arms of +my family are almost entirely obliterated above the deserted entrance to the +Château de Sigognac. Perhaps I may yet see the three golden storks shine out +brilliantly upon my shield, and life, prosperity, and happiness return to the +desolate abode where my sad, hopeless youth was spent. But in the meantime, +since to you I owe my escape from that dreary seclusion, I beg you to accept me +freely as your comrade, and my poor services as such; to you I am no longer de +Sigognac.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle had laid her hand on his arm at his first sentence, as soon as she +comprehended what he meant to say, to try to stop him, and here she made +another effort to interrupt; but for once he would not heed her, and continued, +“I renounce my title of baron for the present; I fold it up and put it +away at the bottom of my portmanteau, like a garment that is laid aside. Do not +make use of it again, I pray you; we will see whether under a new name I may +not succeed in escaping from the ill fortune that has thus far pursued me as +the Baron de Sigognac. Henceforth then I take poor Matamore’s place, and +my name is Captain Fracasse.” +</p> + +<p> +“Bravo! <i>vive</i> Captain Fracasse!” cried they all, with enthusiasm, +“may applause greet and follow him wherever he goes.” +</p> + +<p> +This sudden move on de Sigognac’s part, at which the comedians were +greatly astonished, as well as deeply touched, was not so unpremeditated as it +seemed; he had been thinking about it for some time. He blushed at the idea of +being a mere parasite, living upon the bounty of these honest players—who +shared all they had with him so generously, and without ever making him feel, +for a moment, that he was under any obligation to them, but—rather that +he was conferring an honour upon them—he deemed it less unworthy a +gentleman to appear upon the stage and do his part towards filling the common +purse than to be their pensioner in idleness; and after all, there was no +disgrace in becoming an actor. The idea of quitting them and going back to +Sigognac had indeed presented itself to his mind, but he had instantly repulsed +it as base and cowardly—it is not in the hour of danger and disaster that +the true soldier retires from the ranks. Besides, if he had wished to go ever +so much, his love for Isabelle would have kept him near her; and then, though +he was not given to day-dreams, he yet fancied that wonderful adventures, +sudden changes, and strokes of good fortune might possibly be awaiting him in +the mysterious future, into which he fain would peer, and he would inevitably +lose the chance of them all if he returned to his ruinous château. +</p> + +<p> +Everything being thus satisfactorily arranged, the old horse was harnessed up +again, and the chariot moved slowly forward on its way. Their good meal had +revived everybody’s drooping spirits, and they all, excepting the duenna +and Serafina, who never walked if they could possibly help it, trudged cheerily +along, laughing and talking as they went. +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle had taken de Sigognac’s offered arm, and leaned on it proudly, +glancing furtively up into his face, whenever he was looking away from her, +with eyes full of tenderness and loving admiration, never suspecting, in her +modesty, that it was for love of her that he had decided to turn actor—a +thing so revolting, as she knew, to his pride as a gentleman. He was a hero in +her eyes, and though she wished to reproach him for his hasty action, which she +would have prevented if she could, she had not the heart to find fault with him +for his noble devotion to the common cause after all. Yet she would have done +anything, suffered everything herself, to have saved him this humiliation; hers +being one of those true, loyal hearts that forget themselves in their love, and +think only of the interests and happiness of the being beloved. She walked on +beside him until her strength was exhausted, and then returned to her place in +the chariot, giving him a look so eloquent of love and admiration, as he +carefully drew her wraps about her, that his heart bounded with joy, and he +felt that no sacrifice could be too great which was made for her sweet sake. +</p> + +<p> +In every direction around them, as far as the eye could reach, the snow-covered +country was utterly devoid of town, village, or hamlet; not a sign of life was +anywhere to be seen. +</p> + +<p> +“A sorry prospect for our fine plan,” said the pedant, after a +searching examination of their surroundings, “and I very much fear that +the plentiful store of provisions Hérode promised us will not be forthcoming. I +cannot see the smoke of a single chimney, strain my eyes as I will, nor the +weather-cock on any village spire.” +</p> + +<p> +“Have a little patience, Blazius!” the tyrant replied. “Where +people live too much crowded together the air becomes vitiated, you know, and +it is very salubrious to have the villages situated a good distance +apart.” +</p> + +<p> +“What a healthy part of the country this must be then the inhabitants +need not to fear epidemics—for to begin with there are no inhabitants. At +this rate our Captain Fracasse will not have a chance very soon to make his +debut.” +</p> + +<p> +By this time it was nearly dark, the sky was overcast with heavy leaden clouds, +and only a faint lurid glow on the horizon in the west showed where the sun had +gone down. An icy wind, blowing full in their faces, and the hard, frozen +surface of the snow, made their progress both difficult and painful. The poor +old horse slipped at every step, though Scapin was carefully leading him, and +staggered along like a drunken man, striking first against one shaft and then +against the other, growing perceptibly weaker at every turn of the wheels +behind him. Now and again he shook his head slowly up and down, and cast +appealing glances at those around him, as his trembling legs seemed about to +give way under him. His hour had come—the poor, old horse! and he was +dying in harness like a brave beast, as he was. At last he could no more, and +falling heavily to the ground gave one feeble kick as he stretched himself out +on his side, and yielded up the ghost. Frightened by the sudden shock, the +women shrieked loudly, and the men, running to their assistance, helped them to +clamber out of the chariot. Mme. Léonarde and Serafina were none the worse for +the fright, but Isabelle had fainted quite away, and de Sigognac, lifting her +light weight easily, carried her in his arms to the bank at the side of the +road, followed by the duenna, while Scapin bent down over the prostrate horse +and carefully examined his ears. +</p> + +<p> +“He is stone dead,” said he in despairing tones; “his ears +are cold, and there is no pulsation in the auricular artery.” +</p> + +<p> +“Then I suppose we shall have to harness ourselves to the chariot in his +place,” broke in Leander dolefully, almost weeping. “Oh! cursed be +the mad folly that led me to choose an actor’s career.” +</p> + +<p> +“Is this a time to groan and bewail yourself?” roared the tyrant +savagely, entirely out of patience with Leander’s everlasting jeremiads; +“for heaven’s sake pluck up a little courage, and be a man! And now +to consider what is to be done; but first let us see how our good little +Isabelle is getting on; is she still unconscious? No; she opens her eyes, and +there is the colour coming back to her lips; she will do now, thanks to the +baron and Mme. Léonarde. We must divide ourselves into two bands; one will stay +with the women and the chariot, the other will scour the country in search of +aid. We cannot think of remaining here all night, for we should be frozen stiff +long before morning. Come, Captain Fracasse, Leander, and Scapin, you three +being the youngest, and also the fleetest of foot, off with you. Run like +greyhounds, and bring us succour as speedily as may be. Blazius and I will +meantime do duty as guardians of the chariot and its contents.” +</p> + +<p> +The three men designated signified their readiness to obey the tyrant, and set +off across country, though not feeling at all sanguine as to the results of +their search, for the night was intensely dark; but that very darkness had its +advantages, and came to their aid in an unexpected manner, for though it +effectually concealed all surrounding objects, it made visible a tiny point of +light shining at the foot of a little hill some distance from the road. +</p> + +<p> +“Behold,” cried the pedant, “our guiding star! as welcome to +us weary travellers, lost in the desert, as the polar star to the distressed +mariner ‘in periculo maris.’ That blessed star yonder, whose rays +shine far out into the darkness, is a light burning in some warm, comfortable +room, which forms—Heaven be praised!—part of the habitation of +human and civilized beings—not Laestrygon savages. Without doubt there is +a bright fire blazing on the hearth in that cosy room, and over it hangs a +famous big pot, from which issue puffs of a delicious odour—oh, +delightful thought!—round which my imagination holds high revel, and in +fancy I wash down with generous wine the savoury morsels from that glorious +<i>pot-au-feu</i>.” +</p> + +<p> +“You rave, my good Blazius,” said the tyrant, “the frost must +have gotten into your brain—that makes men mad, they say, or silly. Yet +there is some method in your madness, some truth in your ravings, for yonder +light must indicate an inhabited dwelling. This renders a change in the plans +for our campaign advisable. We will all go forward together towards the +promised refuge, and leave the chariot where it is; no robbers will be abroad +on such a night as this to interfere with its contents. We will take our few +valuables—they are not so numerous or weighty but that we can carry them +with us; for once it is an advantage that our possessions are few. To-morrow +morning we will come back to fetch the chariot: now, forward, march!—and +it is time, for I am nearly frozen to death.” +</p> + +<p> +The comedians accordingly started across the fields, towards the friendly light +that promised them so much—Isabelle supported by de Sigognac, Serafina by +Leander, and the duenna dragged along by Scapin; while Blazius and the tyrant +formed the advance guard. It was not easy work; sometimes plunging into deep +snow, more than knee high, as they came upon a ditch, hidden completely under +the treacherously smooth white surface, or stumbling, and even falling more +than once, over some unseen obstacle; but at length they came up to what seemed +to be a large, low building, probably a farm-house, surrounded by stone walls, +with a big gate for carts to enter. In the expanse of dark wall before them +shone the light which had guided their steps, and upon approaching they found +that it proceeded from a small window, whose shutters—most fortunately +for them, poor, lost wanderers—had not yet been closed. The dogs within +the enclosure, perceiving the approach of strangers, began to bark loudly and +rush about the yard; they could hear them jumping up at the walls in vain +efforts to get at the intruders. Presently the sound of a man’s voice and +footsteps mingled with their barking, and in a moment the whole establishment +seemed to be on the alert. +</p> + +<p> +“Stay here, all of you,” said the pedant, halting at a little +distance from the gate, “and let me go forward alone to knock for +admission. Our numbers might alarm the good people of the farm, and lead them +to fancy us a band of robbers, with designs upon their rustic Penates; as I am +old, and inoffensive looking, they will not be afraid of me.” +</p> + +<p> +This advice was approved by all, and Blazius, going forward by himself, knocked +gently at the great gate, which was first opened cautiously just a very little, +then flung impetuously back; and then the comedians, from their outpost in the +snow, saw a most extraordinary and inexplicable scene enacted before their +astonished eyes. The pedant and the farmer who had opened the gate, after +gazing at each other a moment intently, by the light of the lantern which the +latter held up to see what manner of man his nocturnal visitor might be, and +after exchanging rapidly a few words, that the others could not hear, +accompanied by wild gesticulations, rushed into each other’s arms, and +began pounding each other heartily upon the back—mutually bestowing +resounding accolades—as is the manner upon the stage of expressing joy at +meeting a dear friend. Emboldened by this cordial reception, which yet was a +mystery to them, the rest of the troupe ventured to approach, though slowly and +timidly. +</p> + +<p> +“Halloa! all of you there,” cried the pedant suddenly, in a joyful +voice, “come on without fear, you will be made welcome by a friend and a +brother, a world-famed member of our profession, the darling of Thespis, the +favourite of Thalia, no less a personage than the celebrated +Bellombre—you all know his glorious record. Blessed is the happy chance +that has directed our steps hither, to the philosophic retreat where this +histrionic hero reposes tranquilly upon his laurels.” +</p> + +<p> +“Come in, I pray you, ladies and gentlemen,” said Bellombre, +advancing to meet them, with a graceful courtesy which proved that the +ci-devant actor had not put aside his elegant, courtly manners when he donned +his peasant dress. +</p> + +<p> +“Come in quickly out of this biting wind; my dwelling is rude and homely, +but you will be better off within it than here in the open air.” +</p> + +<p> +They needed no urging, and joyfully accepting his kind invitation followed +their host into the house, charmed with this unhoped-for good fortune. Blazius +and Bellombre were old acquaintances, and had formerly been members Of the same +troupe; as their respective roles did not clash there was no rivalry between +them, and they had become fast friends—being fellow worshippers at the +shrine of the merry god of wine. Bellombre had retired from the stage some +years before, when at his father’s death he inherited this farm and a +small fortune. The parts that he excelled in required a certain degree of +youth, and he was not sorry to withdraw before wrinkles and whitening locks +should make it necessary for him to abandon his favourite roles. In the world +he was believed to be dead, but his splendid acting was often quoted by his +former admirers—who were wont to declare that there had been nothing to +equal it seen on the stage since he had made his last bow to the public. +</p> + +<p> +The room into which he led his guests was very spacious, and served both as +kitchen and sitting-room—there was also a large curtained bed standing in +an alcove at the end farthest from the fire, as was not unusual in ancient +farm-houses. The blaze from the four or five immense logs of wood heaped up on +the huge andirons was roaring up the broad chimney flue, and filling the room +with a bright, ruddy glow—a most welcome sight to the poor half-frozen +travellers, who gathered around it and luxuriated in its genial warmth. The +large apartment was plainly and substantially furnished, just as any well-to-do +farmer’s house might be, but near one of the windows stood a round table +heaped up with books, some of them lying open as if but just put down, which +showed that the owner of the establishment had not lost his taste for literary +pursuits, but devoted to them his long winter evenings. +</p> + +<p> +The cordiality of their welcome and the deliciously warm atmosphere in which +they found themselves had combined to raise the spirits of the +comedians—colour returned to pale faces, light to heavy eyes, and smiles +to anxious lips—their gaiety was in proportion to the misery and peril +from which they had just happily escaped, their hardships were all forgotten, +and they gave themselves up entirely to the enjoyment of the hour. Their host +had called up his servants, who bustled about, setting the table and making +other preparations for supper, to the undisguised delight of Blazius, who said +triumphantly to the tyrant, “You see now, Hérode, and must acknowledge, +that my predictions, inspired by the little glimmer of light we saw from afar, +are completely verified—they have all come literally true. Fragrant puffs +are issuing even now from the mammoth <i>pot-au-feu</i> there over the fire, +and we shall presently wash down its savoury contents with draughts of generous +wine, which I see already awaiting us on the table yonder. It is warm and +bright and cosy in this room, and we appreciate and enjoy it all doubly, after +the darkness and the cold and the danger from which we have escaped into the +grateful shelter of this hospitable roof; and to crown the whole, our host is +the grand, illustrious, incomparable Bellombre—flower and cream of all +comedians, past, present and future, and best of good fellows.” +</p> + +<p> +“Our happiness would be complete if only poor Matamore were here,” +said Isabelle with a sigh. +</p> + +<p> +“Pray what has happened to him?” asked Bellombre, who knew him by +reputation. +</p> + +<p> +The tyrant told him the tragic story of the snow-storm, and its fatal +consequences. “But for this thrice-blessed meeting with my old and +faithful friend here,” Blazius added, “the same fate would probably +have overtaken us ere morning—we should all have been found, frozen stiff +and stark, by the next party of travellers on the post road.” +</p> + +<p> +“That would have been a pity indeed,” Bellombre rejoined, and +glancing admiringly at Isabelle and Serafina, added gallantly, “but +surely these young goddesses would have melted the snow, and thawed the ice, +with the fire I see shining in their sparkling eyes.” +</p> + +<p> +“You attribute too much power to our eyes,” Serafina made answer; +“they could not even have made any impression upon a heart, in the thick, +impenetrable darkness that enveloped us; the tears that the icy cold forced +from them would have extinguished the flames of the most ardent love.” +</p> + +<p> +While they sat at supper, Blazius told their host of the sad condition of their +affairs, at which he seemed no way surprised. +</p> + +<p> +“There are always plenty of ups and downs in a theatrical career,” +he said—“the wheel of Fortune turns very fast in that profession; +but if misfortunes come suddenly, so also does prosperity follow quickly in +their train. Don’t be discouraged!—things are brightening with you +now. Tomorrow morning I will send one of my stout farm-horses to bring your +chariot on here, and we will rig up a theatre in my big barn; there is a large +town not far from this which will send us plenty of spectators. If the +entertainment does not fetch as good a sum as I think it will, I have a little +fund of <i>pistoles</i> lying idle here that will be entirely at your service, +for, by Apollo! I would not leave my good Blazius and his friends in distress +so long as I had a copper in my purse.” +</p> + +<p> +“I see that you are always the same warm-hearted, openhanded Bellombre as +of old,” cried the pedant, grasping the other’s outstretched hand +warmly; “you have not grown rusty and hard in consequence of your bucolic +occupations.” +</p> + +<p> +“No,” Bellombre replied, with a smile; “I do not let my brain +lie fallow while I cultivate my fields. I make a point of reading over +frequently the good old authors, seated comfortably by the fire with my feet on +the fender, and I read also such new works as I am able to procure, from time +to time, here in the depths of the country. I often go carefully over my own +old parts, and I see plainly what a self-satisfied fool I was in the old days, +when I was applauded to the echo every time I appeared upon the stage, simply +because I happened to be blessed with a sonorous voice, a graceful carriage, +and a fine leg; the doting stupidity of the public, with which I chanced to be +a favourite, was the true cause of my success.” +</p> + +<p> +“Only the great Bellombre himself would ever be suffered to say such +things as these of that most illustrious ornament of our profession,” +said the tyrant, courteously. +</p> + +<p> +“Art is long, but life is short,” continued the ci-devant actor, +“and I should have arrived at a certain degree of proficiency at last +perhaps, but—I was beginning to grow stout; and I would not allow myself +to cling to the stage until two footmen should have to come and help me up from +my rheumatic old knees every time I had a declaration of love to make, so I +gladly seized the opportunity afforded me by my little inheritance, and retired +in the height of my glory.” +</p> + +<p> +“And you were wise, Bellombre,” said Blazius, “though your +retreat was premature; you might have given ten years more to the theatre, and +then have retired full early.” +</p> + +<p> +In effect he was still a very handsome, vigorous man, about whom no signs of +age were apparent, save an occasional thread of silver amid the rich masses of +dark hair that fell upon his shoulders. +</p> + +<p> +The younger men, as well as the three actresses, were glad to retire to rest +early; but Blazius and the tyrant, with their host, sat up drinking the +latter’s capital wine until far into the night. At length they, too, +succumbed to their fatigue; and while they are sleeping we will return to the +abandoned chariot to see what was going on there. In the gray light of the +early morning it could be perceived that the poor old horse still lay just as +he had fallen; several crows were flitting about, not yet venturing to attack +the miserable carcass, peering at it suspiciously from a respectful distance, +as if they feared some hidden snare. At last one, bolder than its fellows, +alighted upon the poor beast’s head, and was just bending over that +coveted dainty, the eye—which was open and staring—when a heavy +step, coming over the snow, startled him. With a croak of disappointment he +quitted his post of vantage, rose heavily in the air, and flapped slowly off to +a neighbouring tree, followed by his companions, cawing and scolding hoarsely. +The figure of a man appeared, coming along the road at a brisk pace, and +carrying a large bundle in his arms, enveloped in his cloak. This he put down +upon the ground when he came up with the chariot, standing directly in his way, +and it proved to be a little girl about twelve years old; a child with large, +dark, liquid eyes that had a feverish light in them—eyes exactly like +Chiquita’s. There was a string of pearl beads round the slender neck, and +an extraordinary combination of rags and tatters, held together in some +mysterious way, hung about the thin, fragile little figure. It was indeed +Chiquita herself, and with her, Agostino—the ingenious rascal, whose +laughable exploit with his scarecrow brigands has been already +recorded—who, tired of following a profession that yielded no profits, +had set out on foot for Paris—where all men of talent could find +employment they said—marching by night, and lying hidden by day, like all +other beasts of prey. The poor child, overcome with fatigue and benumbed by the +cold, had given out entirely that night, in spite of her valiant efforts to +keep up with Agostino, and he had at last picked her up in his arms and carried +her for a while—she was but a light burden—hoping to find some sort +of shelter soon. +</p> + +<p> +“What can be the meaning of this?” he said to Chiquita. +“Usually we stop the vehicles, but here we are stopped by one in our +turn; we must look out lest it be full of travellers, ready to demand our money +or our lives.” +</p> + +<p> +“There’s nobody in it,” Chiquita replied, having peeped in +under the cover. +</p> + +<p> +“Perhaps there may be something worth having inside there,” +Agostino said; “we will look and see,” and he proceeded to light +the little dark lantern he always had with him, for the daylight was not yet +strong enough to penetrate into the dusky interior of the chariot. Chiquita, +who was greatly excited by the hope of booty, jumped in, and rapidly searched +it, carefully directing the light of the lantern upon the packages and confused +mass of theatrical articles stowed away in the back part of it, but finding +nothing of value anywhere. +</p> + +<p> +“Search thoroughly, my good little Chiquita!” said the brigand, as +he kept watch outside, “be sure that you don’t overlook +anything.” +</p> + +<p> +“There is nothing here, absolutely nothing that is worth the trouble of +carrying away. Oh, yes! here is a bag, with something that sounds like money in +ft.” +</p> + +<p> +“Give it to me,” cried Agostino eagerly, snatching it from her, and +making a rapid examination of its contents; but he threw it down angrily upon +the ground, exclaiming, “the devil take it! I thought we had found a +treasure at last, but instead of good money there’s nothing but a lot of +pieces of gilded lead and such-like in it. But we’ll get one thing out of +this anyhow—a good rest inside here for you, sheltered from the wind and +cold. Your poor little feet are bleeding, and they must be nearly frozen. Curl +yourself down there on those cushions, and I will cover you with this bit of +painted canvas. Now go to sleep, and I will watch while you have a nap; it is +too early yet for honest folks to be abroad, and we shall not be +disturbed.” In a few minutes poor little Chiquita was sound asleep. +</p> + +<p> +Agostino sat on the front seat of the chariot, with his <i>navaja</i> open and +lying beside him, watching the road and the fields all about, with the keen, +practised eye of a man of his lawless profession. All was still. No sound or +movement any where, save among the crows. In spite of his iron will and +constitution he began to feel an insidious drowsiness creeping over him, which +he did not find it easy to shake off; several times his eyelids closed, and he +lifted them resolutely, only to have them fall again in another instant. In +fact he was just dropping into a doze, when he felt, as in a dream, a hot +breath on his face, and suddenly waked to see two gleaming eyeballs close to +his. With a movement more rapid than thought itself, he seized the wolf by the +throat with his left hand, and picking up his <i>navaja</i> with the other, +plunged it up to the hilt into the animal’s breast. It must have gone +through the heart, for he dropped down dead in the road, without a struggle. +</p> + +<p> +Although he had gained the victory so easily over his fierce assailant, +Agostino concluded that this was not a good place for them to tarry in, and +called to Chiquita, who jumped up instantly, wide awake, and manifested no +alarm at sight of the dead wolf lying beside the chariot. +</p> + +<p> +“We had better move on,” said he, “that carcass of the horse +there draws the wolves; they are often mad with hunger in the winter time you +know, and especially when there is snow on the ground. I could easily kill a +pretty good number of them, but they might come down upon us by scores, and if +I should happen to fall asleep again it would not be pleasant to wake up and +find myself in the stomach of one of those confounded brutes. When I was +disposed of they would make only a mouthful of you, little one! So come along, +we must scamper off as fast as ever we can. That fellow there was only the +advance guard, the others will not be far behind him—this carcass will +keep them busy for a while, and give us time to get the start of them. You can +walk now, Chiquita, can’t you?” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, indeed,” she replied cheerily, “that little nap has +done me so much good. Poor Agostino! you shall not have to carry me again, like +a great clumsy parcel. And Agostino,” she added with a fierce energy, +“when my feet refuse to walk or run in your service you must just cut my +throat with your big knife there, and throw me into the next ditch. I will +thank you for it, Agostino, for I could not bear to have your precious life in +danger for the sake of poor, miserable little me.” Thereupon this strange +pair, both very fleet of foot, set off running, side by side, the brigand +holding Chiquita by the hand, so as to give her all the aid and support he +could, and they quickly passed out of sight. No sooner had they departed than +the crows came swooping down from their perch in the nearest tree, and fell to +fiercely upon their horrible feast, in which they were almost directly joined +by several ravenous wolves—and they made such good use of their time, +that in a few hours nothing remained of the poor old horse but his bones, his +tail, and his shoes. When somewhat later the tyrant arrived, accompanied by one +of Bellombre’s farm-hands, leading the horse that was to take the chariot +back with them, he was naturally astonished to find only the skeleton, with the +harness and trappings, still intact, about it, for neither birds nor beasts had +interfered with them, and his surprise was increased when he discovered the +half-devoured carcass of the wolf lying under the chariot wheels. There also, +scattered on the road, were the sham <i>louis-d’or</i> that did duty upon +the stage when largesses were to be distributed; and upon the snow were the +traces, clearly defined, of the footsteps of a man, approaching the chariot +from the way it had come, and of those of the same man, and also of a child, +going on beyond it. +</p> + +<p> +“It would appear,” said Hérode to himself, “that the chariot +of Thespis has received visitors, since we abandoned it, of more than one sort, +and for my part I am very thankful to have missed them all. Oh, happy accident! +that, when it happened, seemed to us so great a misfortune, yet is proven now +to have been a blessing in disguise. And you, my poor old horse, you could not +have done us a greater service than to die just when and where you did. Thanks +to you we have escaped the wolves—two-legged ones, which are perhaps the +most to be dreaded of all, as well as the ravenous brethren of this worthy +lying here. What a dainty feast the sweet, tender flesh of those plump little +pullets, Isabelle and Serafina, would have been for them, to say nothing of the +tougher stuff the rest of us are made of. What a bountiful meal we should have +furnished them—the murderous brutes!” While the tyrant was +indulging in this soliloquy Bellombre’s servant had detached the chariot +from the skeleton of the poor old horse, and had harnessed to it, with +considerable difficulty, the animal he had been leading, which was terrified at +sight of the bleeding, mutilated carcass of the wolf lying on the snow, and the +ghastly skeleton of its predecessor. Arrived at the farm, the chariot was +safely stowed away under a shed, and upon examination it was found that nothing +was missing. Indeed, something had been left there, for a small clasp-knife was +picked up in it, which had fallen out of Chiquita’s pocket, and excited a +great deal of curiosity and conjecture. It was of Spanish make, and bore upon +its sharp, pointed blade, a sinister inscription in that language, to this +effect— +</p> + +<p class="poem"> +“When this viper bites you, make sure<br/> +That you must die—for there is no cure.” +</p> + +<p> +No one could imagine how it had come there, and the tyrant was especially +anxious to clear up the mystery that puzzled them all. Isabelle, who was a +little inclined to be superstitious, and attach importance to omens, signs of +evil, and such-like, felt troubled about it. She spoke Spanish perfectly, and +understood the full force and significance of the strange inscription upon the +wicked-looking blade of the tiny weapon. +</p> + +<p> +Meantime, Scapin, dressed in his freshest and most gaudy costume, had marched +into the neighbouring town, carrying his drum; he stationed himself in the +large, public square, and made such good play with his drum-sticks that he soon +had a curious crowd around him, to whom he made an eloquent address, setting +forth in glowing terms the great attractions offered by “the illustrious +comedians of Hérode’s celebrated troupe,” who, “for this +night only,” would delight the public by the representation of that +screaming farce, the Rodomontades of Captain Fracasse; to be followed by a +“bewitching Moorish dance,” performed by the “incomparable +Mlle. Serafina.” After enlarging brilliantly upon this theme, he added, +that as they were “more desirous of glory than profit,” they would +be willing to accept provisions of all kinds, instead of coin of the realm, in +payment of places, from those who had not the money to spare, and asked them to +let all their friends know. This closing announcement made a great sensation +among his attentive listeners, and he marched back to the farm, confident that +they would have a goodly number of spectators. There he found the stage already +erected in the barn, and a rehearsal in progress, which was necessary on de +Sigognac’s account. +</p> + +<p> +Bellombre was instructing him in various minor details as the play went on, and +for a novice he did wonderfully well—acting with much spirit and grace, +showing decided talent, and remarkable aptitude. But it was very evident that +he was greatly annoyed by some portions of the piece, and an angry flush +mounted to the roots of his hair at the whacks and cuffs so liberally bestowed +upon the doughty captain. +</p> + +<p> +His comrades spared him as much as possible—feeling that it must be +intensely repugnant to him—but he grew furious in spite of all his +efforts to control his temper, and at each fresh attack upon him his flashing +eyes and knitted brows betrayed the fierce rage he was in; then, suddenly +remembering that his role required a very different expression of countenance, +he would pull himself up, and endeavour to imitate that which Matamore had been +wont to assume in this character. Bellombre, who was watching him critically, +stopped him a moment, to say: “You make a great mistake in attempting to +suppress your natural emotions; you should take care not to do it, for they +produce a capital effect, and you can create a new type of stage bully; when +you have gotten accustomed to this sort of thing, and no longer feel this +burning indignation, you must feign it. Strike out in a path of your own, and +you will be sure to attain success—far more so than if you attempt to +follow in another’s footsteps. Fracasse, as you represent him, loves and +admires courage, and would fain be able to manifest it—he is angry with +himself for being such an arrant coward. When free from danger, he dreams of +nothing but heroic exploits and superhuman enterprises; but when any actual +peril threatens him, his too vivid imagination conjures up such terrible +visions of bleeding wounds and violent death that his heart fails him. Yet his +pride revolts at the idea of being beaten; for a moment he is filled with rage, +but his courage all disappears with the first blows he receives, and he finally +shows himself to be the poltroon that he himself despises. This method it +appears to me is far superior to the absurd grimaces, trembling legs, and +exaggerated gestures, by which indifferent actors endeavour to excite the +laughter of their audience—but meantime lose sight entirely of their +art.” +</p> + +<p> +The baron gratefully accepted the veteran actor’s advice, and played his +part after the fashion indicated by him with so much spirit that all present +applauded his acting enthusiastically, and prophesied its success. The +performances were to begin at an early hour, and as the time approached, de +Sigognac put on poor Matamore’s costume, to which he had fallen heir, and +which Mme. Léonarde had taken in hand and cleverly altered for him, so that he +could get into it. He had a sharp struggle with his pride as be donned this +absurd dress, and made himself ready for his debut as an actor, but resolutely +repressed all rising regrets, and determined faithfully to do his best in the +new role he had undertaken. +</p> + +<p> +A large audience had gathered in the big barn, which was brilliantly lighted, +and the representation began before a full house. At the end farthest from the +stage, and behind the spectators, were some cattle in their stalls, that stared +at the unwonted scene with an expression of stupid wonder in their great, soft +eyes—the eyes that Homer, the grand old Greek poet, deemed worthy to +supply an epithet for the beauteous orbs of majestic Juno herself—and in +the midst of one of the most exciting parts of the play, a calf among them was +moved to express its emotions by an unearthly groan, which did not in the least +disconcert the audience, but had nearly been too much for the gravity of the +actors upon the stage. +</p> + +<p> +Captain Fracasse won much applause, and indeed acted his part admirably, being +under no constraint; for he did not need to fear the criticism of this rustic +audience as he would have done that of a more cultivated and experienced one; +and, too, he felt sure that there could be nobody among the spectators that +knew him, or anything about him. The other actors were also vigorously clapped +by the toil-hardened hands of these lowly tillers of the soil—whose +applause throughout was bestowed, Bellombre declared, judiciously and +intelligently. Serafina executed her Moorish dance with a degree of agility and +voluptuous grace that would have done honour to a professional ballet-dancer, +or to a Spanish gipsy, and literally brought down the house. +</p> + +<p> +But while de Sigognac was thus employed, far from his ancient château, the +portraits of his ancestors that hung upon its walls were frowning darkly at the +degeneracy of this last scion of their noble race, and a sigh, almost a groan, +that issued from their faded lips, echoed dismally through the deserted house. +In the kitchen, Pierre, with Miraut and Beelzebub on either side of +him—all three looking melancholy and forlorn—sat thinking of his +absent lord, and said aloud, “Oh, where is my poor, dear master +now?” a big tear rolling down his withered cheek as he stooped to caress +his dumb companions. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap08"></a>CHAPTER VIII.<br/> +THE DUKE OF VALLOMBREUSE</h2> + +<p> +The next morning Bellombre drew Blazius aside, and untying the strings of a +long leathern purse emptied out of it into the palm of his hand a hundred +<i>pistoles</i>, which he piled up neatly on the table by which they were +standing; to the great admiration of the pedant, who thought to himself that +his friend was a lucky fellow to be in possession of so large a +sum—absolute wealth in his eyes. But what was his surprise when Bellombre +swept them all up and put them into his own hands. +</p> + +<p> +“You must have understood,” he said, “that I did not bring +out this money in order to torment you in like manner with Tantalus, and I want +you to take it, without any scruples, as freely as it is given—or loaned, +if you are too proud to accept a gift from an old friend. These pieces were +made to circulate—they are round, you see—and by this time they +must be tired of lying tied up in my old purse there. I have no use for them; +there’s nothing to spend them on here; the farm produces everything that +is needed in my household, so I shall not miss them, and it is much better in +every way that they should be in your hands.” +</p> + +<p> +Not finding any adequate reply to make to this astonishing speech, Blazius put +the money into his pocket, and, after first administering to his friend a +cordial accolade, grasped and wrung his hand with grateful fervour, while an +inconvenient tear, that he had tried in vain to wink away, ran down his jolly +red nose. As Bellombre had said the night before, affairs were brightening with +the troupe; good fortune had come at last, and the hard times they had met and +struggled against so bravely and uncomplainingly were among the things of the +past. The receipts of the previous evening—for there had been some money +taken in, as well as plentiful stores of edibles—added to +Bellombre’s <i>pistoles</i>, made a good round sum, and the chariot of +Thespis, so deplorably bare of late, was now amply provisioned. Not to do +things by halves, their generous host lent to the comedians two stout farm +horses, with a man to drive them into Poitiers, and bring them back home again. +They had on their gala-day harness, and from their gaudily-painted, high-peaked +collars hung strings of tiny bells, that jingled cheerily at every firm, +regular step of the great, gentle creatures. So our travellers set out in high +feather, and their entry into Poitiers, though not so magnificent as +Alexander’s into Babylon, was still in very fine style indeed. As they +threaded their way through the narrow, tortuous streets of that ancient town, +the noise of their horses’ iron shoes ringing out against the rough stone +pavement, and the clatter of their wheels drew many inmates of the houses they +passed to the windows, and a little crowd collected around them as they stood +waiting for admission before the great entrance door of the <i>Armes de +France;</i> the driver, meanwhile, cracking his whip till it sounded like a +volley of musketry, to which the horses responded by shaking their heads, and +making all the little bells about them jingle sharply and merrily. There was a +wonderful difference between this and their arrival at the last inn they had +stopped at—the night of the snow-storm—and the landlord, hearing +such welcome sounds without, ran himself to admit his guests, and opened the +two leaves of the great door, so that the chariot could pass into the interior +court. This hotel was the finest in Poitiers, where all the rich and noble +travellers were in the habit of alighting, and there was an air of gaiety and +prosperity about it very pleasing to our comedians, in contrast with all the +comfortless, miserable lodgings they had been obliged to put up with for a long +time past. The landlord, whose double, or rather triple chin testified to +bountiful fare, and the ruddy tints of his face to the excellence of his wines, +seemed to be the incarnation of good humour. +</p> + +<p> +He was so plump, so fresh, so rosy and so smiling, that it was a pleasure only +to look at him. When he saw the tyrant, he fairly bubbled over with delight. A +troupe of comedians always attracted people to his house, and brought him in a +great deal of money; for the young men of leisure of the town sought their +company, and were constantly drinking wine with the actors, and giving dainty +little suppers, and treats of various kinds, to the actresses. +</p> + +<p> +“You are heartily welcome, Seignior Hérode! What happy chance brings you +this way?” said the landlord, smilingly. “It is a long time since +we have had the pleasure of seeing you at the <i>Armes de France</i>.” +</p> + +<p> +“So it is, Maître Bilot,” the tyrant answered; “but we cannot +be giving our poor little performances always in the same place, you see; the +spectators would become so familiar with all our tricks that they could do them +themselves, so we are forced to absent ourselves for a while. And how are +things going on here, now? Have you many of the nobility and gentry in town at +present?” +</p> + +<p> +“A great many, Seignior Hérode, for the hunting is over, so they have +come in from the châteaux. But they don’t know what to do with +themselves, for it is so dull and quiet here. People can’t be eating and +drinking all the time, and they are dying for want of a little amusement. You +will have full houses.” +</p> + +<p> +“Well,” rejoined the tyrant, “then please give us seven or +eight good rooms, have three or four fat capons put down to roast, bring up, +from that famous cellar of yours, a dozen of the capital wine I used to drink +here—you know which I mean—and spread abroad the news of the +arrival of Hérode’s celebrated troupe at the <i>Armes de France</i>, with +a new and extensive <i>repertoire</i>, to give a few representations in +Poitiers.” +</p> + +<p> +While this conversation was going on the rest of the comedians had alighted, +and were already being conducted to their respective rooms by several servants. +The one given to Isabelle was a little apart from the others—those in +their immediate vicinity being occupied—which was not displeasing to the +modest young girl, who was often greatly annoyed and embarrassed by the +promiscuous, free-and-easy way of getting on, inseparable from such a Bohemian +life. She always accepted the inevitable with a good grace, and never +complained of the vexation she felt at being obliged to share her bed-chamber +with Serafina or the duenna, or perhaps both; but it was a luxury she had +scarcely dared to hope for to have her room entirely to herself, and moreover +sufficiently distant from her companions to insure her a good deal of privacy. +</p> + +<p> +In a marvellously short space of time the whole town had become acquainted with +the news of the arrival of the comedians, and the young men of wealth and +fashion began flocking to the hotel, to drink a bottle of Maître Bilot’s +wine, and question him about the beauty and charms of the actresses; curling up +the points of their mustaches as they did so with such an absurdly conceited, +insolent air of imaginary triumph, that the worthy landlord could not help +laughing in his sleeve at them as he gave his discreet, mysterious answers, +accompanied by significant gestures calculated to turn the silly heads of these +dandified young calves, and make them wild with curiosity and impatience. +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle, when left alone, had first unpacked a portion of her clothing, and +arranged it neatly on the shelves of the wardrobe in her room, and then +proceeded to indulge in the luxury of a bath and complete change of linen. She +took down her long, fine, silky hair, combed it carefully, and arranged it +tastefully, with a pale blue ribbon entwined artistically in it; which delicate +tint was very becoming to her, with her fair, diaphanous complexion, and lovely +flush, like a rose-leaf, on her cheek. When she had put on the silvery gray +dress, with its pretty blue trimmings, which completed her simple toilet, she +smiled at her own charming reflection in the glass, and thought of a pair of +dark, speaking eyes that she knew would find her fair, and pleasant to look +upon. As she turned away from the mirror a sunbeam streamed in through her +window, and she could not resist the temptation to open the casement and put +her pretty head out, to see what view there might be from it. She looked down +into a narrow, deserted alley, with the wall of the hotel on one side and that +of the garden opposite on the other, so high that it reached above the tops of +the trees within. From her window she could look down into this garden, and +see, quite at the other end of it, the large mansion it belonged to, whose +lofty, blackened walls testified to its antiquity. Two gentlemen were walking +slowly, arm in arm, along one of the broad paths leading towards the house, +engrossed in conversation; both were young and handsome, but they were scarcely +of equal rank, judging by the marked deference paid by one, the elder, to the +other. +</p> + +<p> +We will call this friendly pair Orestes and Pylades for the present, until we +ascertain their real names. The former was about one or two and twenty, and +remarkably handsome and <i>distingué</i>—strikingly so—with a very +white skin, intensely black hair and eyes, a tall, slender, lithe figure, shown +to advantage by the rich costume of tan-coloured velvet he wore; and +well-formed feet, with high, arched insteps, small and delicate enough for a +woman’s—that more than one woman had envied him—encased in +dainty, perfectly fitting boots, made of white Russia leather. From the +careless ease of his manners, and the haughty grace of his carriage, one would +readily divine that he was a great noble; one of the favoured few of the earth, +who are sure of being well received everywhere, and courted and flattered by +everybody. Pylades, though a good-looking fellow enough, with auburn hair and +mustache, was not nearly so handsome or striking, either in face or figure, as +his companion. They were talking of women; Orestes declaring himself a +woman-hater from that time forward, because of what he was pleased to call the +persecutions of his latest mistress, of whom he was thoroughly tired—no +new thing with him—but who would not submit to be thrown aside, like a +cast-off glove, without making a struggle to regain the favour of her ci-devant +admirer. He was anathematizing the vanity, treachery, and deceitfulness of all +women, without exception, from the duchess down to the dairy-maid, and +declaring that he should renounce their society altogether for the future, when +they reached the end of the walk, at the house, and turned about to pace its +length again. +</p> + +<p> +As they did so he chanced to glance upward, and perceived Isabelle at her +window. He nudged his companion, to direct his attention to her, as he said, +“Just look up at that window! Do you see the delicious, adorable creature +there? She seems a goddess, rather than a mere mortal woman—Aurora, +looking forth from her chamber in the East—with her golden brown hair, +her heavenly countenance, and her sweet, soft eyes. Only observe the exquisite +grace of her attitude—leaning slightly forward on one elbow, so as to +bring into fine relief the shapely curves of her beautiful form. I would be +willing to swear that hers is a lovely character—different from the rest +of her sex. She is one by herself—a peerless creature—a very pearl +of womanhood—a being fit for Paradise. Her face tells me that she is +modest, pure, amiable, and refined. Her manners must be charming, her +conversation fresh, sparkling, and elevating.” +</p> + +<p> +“The deuce!” exclaimed Pylades, laughingly, “what good eyes +you must have to make out all that at such a distance! Now I see merely a woman +at a window, who is rather pretty, to tell the honest truth, but not likely to +possess half the perfections you so lavishly bestow upon her. Take care, or you +will be in love with her directly.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! I’m that now, over head and ears. I must find out forthwith +who she is, and what; but one thing is certain, mine she must be, though it +cost me the half, nay, the whole of my fortune to win her, and there be a +hundred rivals to overcome and slay ere I can carry her off from them in +triumph.” +</p> + +<p> +“Come, come, don’t get so excited,” said Pylades, “you +will throw yourself into a fever; but what has become of the contempt and +hatred for the fair sex you were declaring so vehemently just now? The first +pretty face has routed it all.” +</p> + +<p> +“But when I talked like that I did not know that this lovely angel +existed upon earth, and what I said was an odious, outrageous blasphemy—a +monstrous, abominable heresy—for which I pray that Venus, fair goddess of +love and beauty, will graciously forgive me.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh, yes! she’ll forgive you fast enough, never fear, for she is +always very indulgent to such hot-headed lovers as you are.” +</p> + +<p> +“I am going to open the campaign,” said Orestes, “and declare +war courteously on my beautiful enemy.” +</p> + +<p> +With these words he stopped short, fixed his bold eyes on Isabelle’s +face, took off his hat, in a gallant and respectful way, so that its long plume +swept the ground, and wafted a kiss on the tips of his fingers towards the new +object of his ardent admiration. The young actress, who saw this demonstration +with much annoyance, assumed a cold, composed manner, as if to show this +insolent fellow that he had made a mistake, drew back from the window, closed +it, and let fall the curtain; all done calmly and deliberately, and with the +frigid dignity with which she was wont to rebuke such overtures. +</p> + +<p> +“There,” exclaimed Pylades, “your Aurora is hidden behind a +cloud; not very promising, that, for the rest of the day.” +</p> + +<p> +“I don’t agree with you; I regard it, on the contrary, as a +favourable augury that my little beauty has retired. Don’t you know that +when the soldier hides himself behind the battlements of the tower, it +signifies that the besieger’s arrow has hit him? I tell you she has mine +now, sticking in under her left wing; that kiss will force her to think of me +all night, if only to be vexed with me, and tax me with effrontery—a +fault which is never displeasing to ladies, I find, though they do sometimes +make a great outcry about it, for the sake of appearances. There is something +between me and the fair unknown now; a very slight, almost imperceptible thread +it may seem at present, but I will so manage as to make from it a rope, by +which I shall climb up into her window.” +</p> + +<p> +“I must admit,” rejoined Pylades respectfully, “that you +certainly are wonderfully well versed in all the stratagems and ruses of +love-making.” +</p> + +<p> +“I rather pique myself upon my accomplishments in that line, I will +confess,” Orestes said, laughingly; “but come, let’s go in +now; the little beauty was startled, and will not show herself at the window +again just yet. This evening I shall begin operations in earnest.” And +the two friends turned about and strolled slowly back towards the house, which +they presently entered, and disappeared from sight. +</p> + +<p> +There was a large tennis-court not far from the hotel, which was wonderfully +well suited to make a theatre of; so our comedians hired it, took immediate +possession, set carpenters and painters to work, furbished up their own rather +dilapidated scenery and decorations, and soon had a charming little theatre, in +which all the numbered seats and boxes were eagerly snapped up, directly they +were offered to “the nobility and gentry of Poitiers,” who secured +them for all the representations to be given by the troupe, so that success was +insured. The dressing-room of the tennis players had to serve as green-room, +and dressing-room as well for the comedians, large folding screens being +disposed round the toilet tables of the actresses, so as to shut them off as +much as possible from the gentlemen visitors always lounging there. Not a very +agreeable arrangement for the former, but the best that could be done, and +highly approved by the latter, of course. +</p> + +<p> +“What a pity it is,” said the tyrant to Blazius, as they were +arranging what pieces they could play, seated at a window looking into the +interior court of the <i>Armes de France</i>, “what a great pity it is +that Zerbine is not with us here. She is almost worth her weight in gold, that +little minx; a real treasure, so full of fun and deviltry that nobody can +resist her acting; she would make any piece go off well—a pearl of +<i>soubrette</i>s is Zerbine.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, she is a rare one,” Blazius replied, with a deep sigh, +“and I regret more and more every day our having lost her. The devil fly +away with that naughty marquis who must needs go and rob us of our paragon of +waiting-maids.” +</p> + +<p> +Just at this point they were interrupted by the noise of an arrival, and +leaning out of the window saw three fine mules, richly caparisoned in the gay +Spanish fashion, entering the court, with a great jingling of bells and +clattering of hoofs. On the first one was mounted a lackey in gray livery, and +well armed, who led by a long strap a second mule heavily laden with baggage, +and on the third was a young woman, wrapped in a large cloak trimmed with fur, +and with her hat, a gray felt with a scarlet feather, drawn down over her eyes, +so as to conceal her face from the two interested spectators at the window +above. +</p> + +<p> +“I say, Hérode,” exclaimed the pedant, “doesn’t all +this remind you of something? It seems to me this is not the first time we have +heard the jingling of those bells, eh?” +</p> + +<p> +“By Saint Alipantin!” cried the tyrant, joyfully, “these are +the very mules that carried Zerbine off so mysteriously. Speak of a +wolf—” +</p> + +<p> +“And you will hear the rustling of his wings,” interrupted Blazius, +with a peal of laughter. “Oh! thrice happy day!—day to be marked +with white!—for this is really Mlle. Zerbine in person. Look, she jumps +down from her mule with that bewitching little air peculiar to herself, and +throws her cloak to that obsequious lackey with a nonchalance worthy of a +princess; there, she has taken off her hat, and shakes out her raven tresses as +a bird does its feathers; it delights my old eyes to see her again. Come, +let’s go down and welcome her.” +</p> + +<p> +So Blazius and his companions hastened down to the court, and met Zerbine just +as she turned to enter the house. +</p> + +<p> +The impetuous girl rushed at the pedant, threw her arms around his neck, and +kissed him heartily, crying, “I must kiss your dear, jolly, ugly old +face, just the same as though it were young and handsome, for I am so glad, so +very glad to see it again. Now don’t you be jealous, Hérode, and scowl as +if you were just going to order the slaughter of the innocents; wait a minute! +I’m going to kiss you, too; I only began with my dear old Blazius here +because he’s the ugliest.” +</p> + +<p> +And Zerbine loyally fulfilled her promise. Then giving a hand to each of her +companions, went up-stairs between them to the room Maître Bilot had ordered to +be made ready for her. The moment she entered it she threw herself down into an +arm-chair standing near the door, and began to draw long deep breaths, like a +person who has just gotten rid of a heavy load. +</p> + +<p> +“You cannot imagine,” she said after a little, “how glad I am +to get back to you again, though you needn’t go and imagine that I am in +love with your old phizes because of that; I’m not in love with anybody, +Heaven be praised! I’m so joyful because I’ve gotten back into my +own element once more. Everything is badly off out of its own element, you +know. The water will not do for birds, nor the air for fishes. I am an actress +by nature, and the atmosphere of the theatre is my native air; in it alone do I +breathe freely; even its unpleasant odours are sweet to my nostrils. Real, +everyday life seems very dull and flat. I must have imaginary love affairs to +manage for other people, and take part in the whirl of romantic adventures to +be found only on the stage, to keep me alive and happy. So I’ve come back +to claim my old place again. I hope you haven’t found any one else to +fill it; though of course I know that you couldn’t get anybody to really +replace me. If you had I should scratch her eyes out, that I promise you, for I +am a real little devil when my rights are encroached upon, though you might not +think it.” +</p> + +<p> +“There’s no need for you to show your prowess in that way,” +said the tyrant, “for we have not had any one to take your role, and +we’re delighted, overjoyed, to have you back again. If you had had some +of the magic compound Apuleius tells us of, and had thereby changed yourself +into a bird, to come and listen to what Blazius and I were saying a little +while ago, you would have heard nothing but good of yourself—a rare thing +that for listeners—and you would have heard some very enthusiastic praise +besides.” +</p> + +<p> +“That’s charming!” the <i>soubrette</i> exclaimed. “I +see that you two are just the same good old souls as ever, and that you have +missed your little Zerbine.” +</p> + +<p> +Several servants now came in, carrying trunks, boxes, portmanteaus, packages, +no end of baggage, which Zerbine counted over and found correct; and when they +had gone she opened two or three of the larger chests with the keys she had on +a small silver ring. They were filled with all sorts of handsome +things—silks and velvets, laces and jewels—and among the rest a +long purse, crammed as full as it could hold of gold pieces, which Zerbine +poured out in a heap on the table; seeming to take a childish delight in +looking at and playing with her golden treasure, while laughing and chattering +merrily all the time. +</p> + +<p> +“Serafina would burst with rage and envy if she should see all this +money,” said she gaily, “so we will keep it out of her sight. I +only show it to you to prove that I didn’t need to return to my +profession, but was actuated by a pure love of my art. As to you, my good old +friends, if your finances happen to be not just as you could wish, put your +paws into this and help yourselves; take just as much as ever they will +hold.” +</p> + +<p> +The two actors thanked her heartily for her generous offer, but assured her +that they were very well off, and in need of no assistance. +</p> + +<p> +“Ah well!” said Zerbine, “it will be for another time then. I +shall put it away in my strong box, and keep it for you, like a faithful +treasurer.” +</p> + +<p> +“But surely you haven’t abandoned the poor marquis,” said +Blazius, rather reproachfully. “Of course I know there was no question of +his giving you up; you are not one of that sort. The role of Ariadne would not +suit you at all; you are a Circe. Yet he is a splendid young nobleman-handsome, +wealthy, amiable, and not wanting in wit.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! I haven’t given him up; very far from it,” Zerbine +replied, with a saucy smile. “I shall guard him carefully, as the most +precious gem in my casket. Though I have quitted him for the moment, he will +shortly follow me.” +</p> + +<p> +“Fugax sequax, sequax fugax,” the pedant rejoined; “these +four Latin words, which have a cabalistic sound, not unlike the croaking of +certain batrachians, and might have been borrowed, one would say, from the +‘Comedy of the Frogs,’ by one Aristophanes, an Athenian poet, +contain the very pith and marrow of all theories of love and lovemaking; they +would make a capital rule to regulate everybody’s conduct—of the +virile as well as of the fair sex.” +</p> + +<p> +“And what under the sun do your fine Latin words mean, you pompous old +pedant?” asked Zerbine. “You have neglected to translate them, +entirely forgetting that not everybody has been professor in a college, and +knight of the ferule, like yourself.” +</p> + +<p> +“Their meaning,” he replied, “may be expressed in this little +couplet: +</p> + +<p class="poem"> +‘If you fly from men, they’ll be sure to pursue,<br/> +But if you follow them, they will fly from you.” +</p> + +<p> +“Ha! ha!” laughed Zerbine, “that’s a verse that ought +to be set to music.” And she began singing it to a merry tune at the top +of her voice; a voice so clear and ringing that it was a pleasure to hear it. +She accompanied her song with such an amusing and effective pantomime, +representing flight and pursuit, that it was a pity she had not had a larger +audience to enjoy it. After this outburst of merriment she quieted down a +little, and gave her companions a brief, history of her adventures since she +had parted from them, declaring that the marquis had invariably treated her +with the courtesy and generosity of a prince. But in spite of it all she had +longed for her old wandering life with the troupe, the excitement of acting, +and the rounds of applause she never failed to win; and at last she confessed +to the marquis that she was pining for her role of <i>soubrette</i>. +</p> + +<p> +“‘Very well,’ he said to me, ‘you can take your mules +and your belongings and go in pursuit of the troupe, and I will shortly follow +in pursuit of you. I have some matters to look after in Paris, that have been +neglected of late, and I have been too long absent from the court. You will +permit me to applaud you I suppose, and truth to tell I shall be very glad to +enjoy your bewitching acting again.’ So I told him I would look for him +among the audience every evening till he made his appearance, and, after the +most tender leave-taking, I jumped on my mule and caught you up here at the +<i>Armes de France</i>, as you know.” +</p> + +<p> +“But,” said Hérode, “suppose your marquis should not turn up +at all! you would be regularly sold.” +</p> + +<p> +This idea struck Zerbine as being so utterly absurd that she threw herself back +and laughed until she had to hold her sides, and was fairly breathless. +“The marquis not come!” she cried, when she could speak, “you +had better engage rooms for him right away—not come! Why my fear was that +he would overtake me on the road; you will see him very soon, I can guarantee. +Ah! you abominable old bear! you doubt the power of my charms, do you? +You’re decidedly growing stupid, Hérode, as you grow old; you used to be +rather clever than otherwise.” +</p> + +<p> +At this moment appeared Leander and Scapin, who had heard of Zerbine’s +arrival from the servants, and came to pay their respects, soon followed by old +Mme. Léonarde, who greeted the <i>soubrette</i> with as much obsequiousness as +if she had-been a princess. Isabelle came also to welcome her, to the great +delight of Zerbine, who was devotedly fond of her, and always trying to do +something to please her. She now insisted upon presenting her with a piece of +rich silk, which Isabelle accepted very reluctantly, and only when she found +that the warm-hearted <i>soubrette</i> would be really wounded if she refused +her first gift. Serafina had shut herself up in her own room, and was the only +one that failed to come and bid Zerbine welcome. She could neither forget nor +forgive the inexplicable preference of the Marquis de Bruyères for her humble +rival, and she called the <i>soubrette</i> all sorts of hard names in her wrath +and indignation; but nobody paid any attention to her bad humour, and she was +left to sulk in solitude. +</p> + +<p> +When Zerbine asked why Matamore had not come to speak to her with the rest, +they told her the sad story of his death, and also that the Baron de Sigognac +now filled his role, under the name of Captain Fracasse. +</p> + +<p> +“It will be a great honour for me to act with a gentleman whose ancestors +figured honourably in the crusades,” said she, “and I only hope +that my profound respect for him will not overwhelm me, and spoil my acting; +fortunately I have become pretty well accustomed to the society of people of +rank lately.” +</p> + +<p> +A moment later de Sigognac knocked at the door, and came in to greet Zerbine, +and courteously express his pleasure at her return. She rose as he approached, +and making a very low curtsey, said, “This is for the Baron de Sigognac; +and this is for my comrade, Captain Fracasse;” kissing him on both +cheeks—which unexpected and unprecedented proceeding put poor de Sigognac +completely out of countenance; partly because he was not used to such little +theatrical liberties, but more, because he was ashamed to have such a thing +happen in the presence of his pure and peerless Isabelle. +</p> + +<p> +And now we will return to Orestes and Pylades, who, after their eventful +promenade in the garden, were cosily dining together. The former, that is to +say the young Duke of Vallombreuse, had scarcely eaten any dinner, and had even +neglected his glass of wine, so preoccupied was he with thoughts of his lovely +unknown. The Chevalier de Vidalinc, his friend and confidant, tried in vain to +draw him into conversation; he replied only by monosyllables, or not at all, to +the other’s brilliant sallies. When the dessert had been put upon the +table, and the servants had retired and left them alone, the chevalier said to +the duke: “I am entirely at your service in this new affair, of course, +ready to help you bag your bird in any way you please; shall I go and send out +the beaters to drive it towards your nets?” +</p> + +<p> +“No, indeed, you will do nothing of the kind; I shall go myself, for +there is nothing I enjoy so much as the pursuit of game, of whatever sort it +may be. I would follow a deer, or a pheasant, to the ends of the earth but what +I would have it; how much more a divine creature like this. It is only after I +have captured the flying prize that I lose all interest in it; so do not, I +pray you, propose to deprive me of the delights of the chase; the more +difficult it is the better I like it, the more fascinating I find it. The most +annoying thing is that women are always so willing to be caught; if I could +only find an obdurate, cruel fair one, who would fly from me in earnest, how I +should adore her! but, alas! such an anomaly does not exist on this terraqueous +globe.” +</p> + +<p> +“If I were not so well acquainted with your innumerable triumphs, I +should be obliged to tax you with conceit,” said Vidalinc, “but as +it is I must admit that you are justified in what you say. But perhaps your +wish may be gratified this time, for the young beauty certainly did seem to be +very modest and retiring, as well as positively cold and forbidding in her +manner of receiving your little act of gallantry.” +</p> + +<p> +“We will see about that, and without any delay. Maître Bilot is always +ready and glad to tell all he knows whenever he can secure a good listener, and +he is sharp enough to find out very quickly pretty much all that’s worth +knowing about his guests in the hotel. Come, we’ll go and drink a bottle +of his best Madeira; I will draw him out, and get all the information he can +give us about this fair inmate of his house.” +</p> + +<p> +A few minutes later the two young gentlemen entered the <i>Armes de France</i>, +and asked for Maître Bilot. The worthy landlord came forward at once, and +himself conducted them into a cosy, well-lighted room on the ground floor, +where a bright fire was burning cheerily; he took the old, dusty bottle, with +cobwebs clinging about it, from the waiter’s hands, drew the cork very +carefully, and then poured the amber wine, as clear as a topaz, into the +delicate Venetian glasses held out for it by the duke and his companion, with a +hand as steady as if it had been of bronze. In taking upon himself this office +Maître Bilot affected an almost religious solemnity, as though he were a priest +of Bacchus, officiating at his altar, and about to celebrate the mysterious +rites of the ancient worshippers of that merry god; nothing was wanting but the +crown of vine leaves. He seemed to think that this ceremoniousness was a sort +of testimony to the superior quality of the wine from his well-stocked cellar, +which needed no recommendation, for it was really very good, worthy of even a +royal table, and of wide-spread fame. +</p> + +<p> +Maître Bilot, having finished his little performance, was about to withdraw, +when a significant glance from the duke made him pause respectfully on the +threshold. +</p> + +<p> +“Maître Bilot,” said he, “fetch a glass for yourself from the +buffet there, and come and drink a bumper of this capital wine to my +health.” +</p> + +<p> +This command, for such it was in reality, was instantly obeyed, and after +emptying his glass at a single draught, the well-pleased landlord stood, with +one hand resting on the table and his eyes fixed on the duke, waiting to see, +what was wanted of him. +</p> + +<p> +“Have you many strangers in your house now?” asked Vallombreuse, +“and who and what are they?” Bilot was about to reply, but the +young duke interrupted him, and continued, “But what’s the use of +beating about the bush with such a wily old miscreant as you are, Maître Bilot? +Who is the lady that has the room with a window, the third one from the corner, +looking into my garden? Answer to the point, and you shall have a gold piece +for every syllable.” +</p> + +<p> +“Under those conditions,” said Bilot, with a broad grin, “one +must be very virtuous indeed to make use of the laconic style so highly +esteemed by the ancients. However, as I am devoted to your lordship, I will +answer in a single word—Isabelle.” +</p> + +<p> +“Isabelle! a charming and romantic name. But do not confine yourself to +such Lacedaemonian brevity, Maître Bilot; be prolix! and relate to me, +minutely, everything that you know about the lovely Isabelle.” +</p> + +<p> +“I am proud and happy to obey your lordship’s commands,” the +worthy landlord answered, with a low bow; “my cellar, my kitchen, my +tongue and myself are all at your lordship’s disposition. Isabelle is an +actress, belonging to the celebrated troupe of Seignior Hérode, stopping at +present at the <i>Armes de France</i>.” +</p> + +<p> +“An actress!” exclaimed the young duke, with an air of +disappointment. “I should have taken her for a lady of rank, from her +quiet, dignified mien, or at least a well-bred <i>bourgeoise</i>, rather than a +member of a band of strolling players.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, your lordship is right; any one might think so, for her manners and +appearance are very lady-like, and she has an untarnished reputation, despite +the difficulties of her position. No one understands better how to keep all the +gallants that hover about her at a respectful distance; she treats these +would-be suitors for her favour with a cold, reserved, yet perfect politeness +that there is no getting over.” +</p> + +<p> +“What you say pleases me,” interrupted Vallombreuse, “for +there is nothing I so thoroughly despise as a fortress that is ready to +capitulate before the first assault has been made.” +</p> + +<p> +“It would need more than one to conquer this fair citadel, my lord, +though you are a bold and successful captain, not used to encountering any +serious resistance, and sweeping everything before you; and, moreover, it is +guarded by the vigilant sentinel of a pure and devoted love.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh ho! she has a lover then, this modest Isabelle!” cried the +young duke, in a tone at once triumphant and annoyed, for though on the one +side he had no faith in the steadfast virtue of any woman, on the other he was +vexed to learn that he had a successful rival. +</p> + +<p> +“I said love, not lover,” continued the landlord with respectful +persistency, “which is by no means the same thing. Your lordship is too +well versed in such matters not to appreciate the difference. A woman that has +one lover may have two, as the old song says; but a woman who loves, with a +pure love, and has that love returned in every sense, it is impossible, or at +least very difficult, to win away from it. She possesses already everything +that you, my lord, or any one, could offer for her acceptance.” +</p> + +<p> +“You talk as if you had been studying the subject of love +diligently—and Petrarch’s sonnets as well; but notwithstanding all +that, Maître Bilot, I don’t believe you thoroughly understand anything +outside of your own wines and sauces, which, I am bound to admit, are always +excellent. And pray, who is the favoured object of this Platonic +attachment?” +</p> + +<p> +“One of the members of the troupe,” Bilot replied, “and it is +not to be wondered at, for he’s a handsome young fellow, and very +different from the rest of them; far superior, more like a gentleman than an +actor; and I shrewdly suspect he is one,” added the landlord, with a +knowing look. +</p> + +<p> +“Well, now you must be happy!” said the Chevalier de Vidalinc to +his friend. “Here are unexpected obstacles in plenty, and a perfect +none-such of a prize. A virtuous actress is a rare phenomenon, not to be found +every day in the week. You are in luck!” +</p> + +<p> +“Are you sure,” continued the young duke, still addressing the +landlord, and without paying any attention to the last remark, “that this +chaste Isabelle does not accord any privileges secretly to that conceited young +jackanapes? I despise the fellow thoroughly, and detest him as well.” +</p> + +<p> +“Your lordship does not know her,” answered Maître Bilot, “or +I should not need to declare, as I do, that she is as spotless as the ermine. +She would rather die than suffer a stain upon her purity. It is impossible to +see much of her without perceiving that; it shines out in everything that she +says and does.” +</p> + +<p> +Hereupon a long discussion followed as to the best manner of conducting the +attack upon this fair citadel, which the young nobleman became more and more +determined to conquer, as new difficulties were suggested. The worthy landlord, +who was a shrewd fellow and had made a just estimate of Isabelle’s +character, finished by advising his noble interlocutor to turn his attention to +Serafina, “who was very charming, and not less beautiful than Isabelle, +and who would be greatly pleased and flattered by his lordship’s +notice.” This, because he felt sure that the duke would not succeed with +Isabelle, in spite of his exalted rank, handsome person, and immense wealth, +and he wished to spare him an inevitable disappointment. +</p> + +<p> +“It is Isabelle that I admire, and will have,” said Vallombreuse, +in a dry tone that put an end to the discussion. “Isabelle, and no other, +Maître Bilot.” +</p> + +<p> +Then plunging his hand into his pocket, he drew forth a goodly number of gold +pieces, and throwing them down carelessly on the table, said, “Pay +yourself for the bottle of wine out of this, and keep the balance.” +</p> + +<p> +The landlord gathered up the <i>louis</i> with a deprecating air, and dropped +them one by one into his purse. The two gentlemen rose, without another word, +put on their broad, plumed hats, threw their cloaks on their shoulders, and +quitted the hotel. Vallombreuse took several turns up and down the narrow alley +between the <i>Armes de France</i> and his own garden wall, looking up +searchingly at Isabelle’s window every time he passed under it; but it +was all for naught. Isabelle, now on her guard, did not approach the window +again; the curtain was drawn closely over it, and not a sign visible from +without that the room was occupied. Tired at last of this dull work, the duke +slowly withdrew to his own mansion, feeling highly indignant that this +inappreciative little actress should presume to slight the attentions of a +great and powerful noble like himself; but he found some comfort in the thought +that when she came to see and know him she could not long hold out against his +numerous attractions. As to his rival—if the fellow ventured to interfere +with him too much, he would quietly suppress him, by means of certain stout +ruffians—professional cut-throats—he had in his employ, to do all +that sort of work for him; his own dignity not allowing him to come into +personal contact with such cattle as actors. Though Vallombreuse had not seen +anything of Isabelle at her window, he himself had been closely watched, by +jealous eyes, from a neighbouring casement that commanded the same view. They +belonged to de Sigognac, who was greatly annoyed and incensed by the manœuvres +of this mysterious personage under Isabelle’s window. A dozen times he +was on the point of rushing down, sword in hand, to attack and drive away the +impertinent unknown; but he controlled himself by a strong effort; for there +was after all nothing in the mere fact of a man’s promenading back and +forth in a deserted alley to justify him in such an onslaught, and he would +only bring down ridicule on himself; besides, the name of Isabelle might be +dragged in—sweet Isabelle, who was all unconscious of the ardent glances +directed at her window from below, as well as of the burning indignation, +because of them, of her own true lover close at hand. But he promised himself +to keep a watchful eye for the future upon this young gallant, and studied his +features carefully, every time his face was raised towards Isabelle’s +window, so that he should be sure to recognise him when he saw him again. +</p> + +<p> +Hérode had selected for their first representation in Poitiers a new play, +which all the comedians were very much occupied in learning and rehearsing, to +be followed by the Rodomontades of Captain Fracasse, in which de Sigognac was +to make his real debut before a real public having only acted as yet to an +audience of calves, horned cattle, and peasants in Bellombre’s barn. He +was studying diligently under the direction of Blazius, who was more devoted to +him than ever, and who had proposed something which was a most welcome +suggestion to the sensitive young baron. This was for him to wear what is +called a half-mask, which covers only the forehead and nose, but if arranged +with skill alters entirely the wearer’s appearance—so that his +nearest friend would not recognise him—without interfering materially +with his comfort. This idea de Sigognac hailed with delight, for it insured his +preserving his incognito; the light pasteboard screen seemed to him like the +closed visor of a helmet, behind which he need not shrink from facing the +enemy—that is to stay the gazing crowd on the other side of the +foot-lights. With it he would take merely the part of the unknown, concealed +intelligence that directs the movements of the marionette, and the voice that +makes it speak; only he should be within it, instead of behind the scenes +pulling the strings—his dignity would have nothing to suffer in playing +the game in that manner, and for this relief from a dreaded ordeal he was +unspeakably thankful. Blazius, who never could take too much pains in the +service of his dear baron, himself modelled and fashioned the little mask, very +deftly, so as to make his stage physiognomy as unlike his real, every-day +countenance as possible. A prominent nose, very red at the point, bushy, +high-arched eyebrows, and an immensely heavy mustache drooping over his mouth, +completely disguised the well-cut, regular features of the handsome young +nobleman, and although in reality it only concealed the forehead and nose, yet +it transfigured the whole face. +</p> + +<p> +There was to be a dress rehearsal the evening before the first representation, +so that they might judge of the general effect in their improvised theatre, and +test its capabilities; and as the actresses could not very well go through the +streets in full costume, they were to finish their toilets in the green-room, +while the actor themselves ready for the stage in the small dressing-closets +set aside for that purpose. All the gentlemen in Poitiers, young and old, were +wild to penetrate into this temple, or rather sacristy, of Thalia, where the +priestesses of that widely worshipped muse adorned themselves to celebrate her +mysterious rites, and a great number of them had succeeded in gaining +admittance. They crowded round the actresses, offering advice as to the placing +of a flower or a jewel, handing the powder-box or the rouge-pot, presenting the +little hand-mirror, taking upon themselves all such small offices with the +greatest “<i>empressement</i>,” and vying with each other in their +gallant attendance upon the fair objects of their admiration; the younger and +more timid among them holding a little aloof and sitting on the large chests +scattered about, swinging their feet and twisting their mustaches, while they +watched the proceedings of their bolder companions with envious eyes. Each +actress had her own circle of admiring cavaliers about her, paying her +high-flown compliments in the exaggerated language of the day, and doing their +best to make themselves agreeable in every way they could think of. Zerbine +laughed at them all, and made fun of them unmercifully, turning everything they +said into ridicule; yet so coquettishly that they thought her bewitching, in +spite of her sharp tongue, which was like a two-edged sword. Serafina, whose +vanity was overweening, delighted in the fulsome homage paid to her charms, and +smiled encouragingly upon her throng of admirers, but Isabelle, who was +intensely annoyed at the whole thing, did not pay the slightest attention to +them, nor even once raise her eyes to look at them; being apparently absorbed +in the duties of her toilet, which she accomplished as quietly and modestly as +possible—having left only the finishing touches to be given in that +public place. +</p> + +<p> +The Duke of Vallombreuse was careful, of course, not to miss this excellent +opportunity, of which he had been informed by Maître Bilot, to see Isabelle +again, and entering the green-room in good season, followed by his friend +Vidalinc, marched straight up to her toilet-table. He was enchanted to find +that, on this close inspection, she was even more beautiful than he had +supposed, and in his enthusiastic delight at this discovery could scarcely +refrain from seizing her in his arms and declaring his passion there and then; +only the presence of the crowd of lookers-on saved Isabelle from what would +have been a most trying and painful scene. +</p> + +<p> +The young duke was superbly dressed. He had spared no pains, for he wanted to +dazzle Isabelle, and he certainly did look splendidly handsome. He wore a +magnificent costume of rich white satin, slashed and trimmed with crimson, with +many knots of ribbon about it fastened with diamond clasps, with broad ruffles +of exquisitely fine lace at throat and wrists, with a wide belt of cloth of +silver supporting his sword, and with perfumed gloves on the hands that held +his white felt hat, with its long crimson feather. His wavy black hair fell +around the perfect oval of his face, enhancing its smooth whiteness; a delicate +mustache shaded, not concealed, his full red lips; his splendid, great black +eyes flashed through their thick, silky fringes, and his neck, white and round +as a marble column, rose from amid its surrounding of soft, priceless lace, +proudly supporting his haughty, handsome head. Yet with all this perfection of +outline and colouring, his appearance was not entirely pleasing; a repelling +haughtiness shone out through the perfectly modelled features, and it was but +too evident that the joys and sorrows of his fellow mortals would awaken no +sympathy in the owner of that surpassingly handsome face and form. He believed +that he was not made of common clay like other men, but was a being of a higher +order, who condescended to mingle with his inferiors—a piece of fine +porcelain amid homely vessels of coarser earthenware. +</p> + +<p> +Vallombreuse stationed himself silently close beside the mirror on +Isabelle’s dressing-table, leaning one elbow on its frame all the other +gallants respectfully making way for him—just where she could not +possibly help seeing him whenever she looked in the glass; a skilful manœuvre, +which would surely have succeeded with any other than this modest young girl. +He wished to produce an impression, before addressing a word to her, by his +personal beauty, his lordly mien, and his magnificence of apparel. Isabelle, +who had instantly recognised the audacious gallant of the garden, and who was +displeased by the imperious ardour of his gaze, redoubled her reserve of +manner, and did not lift her eyes to the mirror in front of her at all; she did +not even seem to be aware that one of the handsomest young noblemen in all +France was standing there before her, trying to win a glance from her lovely +eyes—but then, she was a singular girl, this sweet Isabelle! At length, +exasperated by her utter indifference, Vallombreuse suddenly took the +initiative, and said to her, “Mademoiselle, you take the part of Sylvia +in this new play, do you not?” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, sir,” Isabelle answered curtly, without looking at +him—not able to evade this direct question. +</p> + +<p> +“Then never will a part have been so admirably played,” continued +the duke. “If it is poor your acting will make it excellent, if it is +fine you will make it peerless. Ah! happy indeed the poet whose verses are +intrusted to those lovely lips of yours.” +</p> + +<p> +These vague compliments were only such as admiring gallants were in the habit +of lavishing upon pretty actresses, and Isabelle could not with any show of +reason resent it openly, but she acknowledged it only by a very slight bend of +the head, and still without looking up. At this moment de Sigognac entered the +green-room; he was masked and in full costume, just buckling around his waist +the belt of the big sword he had inherited from Matamore, with the cobweb +dangling from the scabbard. He also marched straight up to Isabelle, and was +received with a radiant smile. +</p> + +<p> +“You are capitally gotten up,” she said to him in a low, tone, so +low that he had to bend down nearer her to hear, “and I am sure that no +fierce Spanish captain ever had a more superbly arrogant air than you.” +</p> + +<p> +The Duke of Vallombreuse drew himself up to his full height, and looked this +unwelcome new-comer over from head to foot, with an air of the coolest, most +haughty disdain. “This must be the contemptible scoundrel they say +she’s in love with,” he said to himself, swelling with indignation +and spite—filled with amazement too—for he could not conceive of a +woman’s hesitating for an instant between the magnificent young Duke of +Vallombreuse and this ridiculous play-actor. After the first rapid glance he +made as if he did not perceive de Sigognac at all, no more than if he had been +a piece of furniture standing there; for him Captain Fracasse was not a +<i>man</i>, but a <i>thing</i>, and he continued to gaze fixedly at poor +Isabelle—his eyes fairly blazing with passion—exactly as though no +one was near. She, confused at last, and alarmed, blushed painfully, in spite +of all her efforts to appear calm and unmoved, and hastened to finish what +little remained to be done, so that she might make her escape, for she could +see de Sigognac’s hand close spasmodically on the handle of his sword, +and, realizing how he must be feeling, feared an outbreak on his part. With +trembling fingers she adjusted a little black “<i>mouche</i>” near +the corner of her pretty mouth, and pushed back her chair preparatory to rising +from it—having a legitimate cause for haste, as the tyrant had already +more than once roared out from the stage door, “Mesdemoiselles, are you +ready?” +</p> + +<p> +“Permit me, mademoiselle,” said the duke starting forward, +“you have forgotten to put on an ‘<i>assassine</i>,’” +and touching the tip of his forefinger to his lips he plunged it into the box +of patches standing open on the dressing-table, and brought one out on it. +“Permit me to put it on for you—here, just above your snowy bosom; +it will enhance its exquisite whiteness.” +</p> + +<p> +The action followed so quickly upon the words that Isabelle, terrified at this +cruel effrontery, had scarcely time to start to one side, and so escape his +profane touch; but the duke was not one to be easily balked in anything he +particularly desired to do, and pressing nearer he again extended his hand +towards Isabelle’s white neck, and had almost succeeded in accomplishing +his object, when his arm was seized from behind, and held firmly in a grasp of +iron. +</p> + +<p> +Furiously angry, he turned his head to see who had dared to lay hands upon his +sacred person, and perceived that it was the odious Captain Fracasse. +</p> + +<p> +“My lord duke,” said he calmly, still holding his wrist firmly, +“Mademoiselle is in need of no assistance from you, or any one else, in +this matter.” Then his grasp relaxed and he let go of the duke’s +arm. +</p> + +<p> +Vallombreuse, who looked positively hideous at that moment, his face pale to +ghastliness and disfigured by the rage he felt, grasped the hilt of his sword +with the hand released by de Sigognac, and drew it partly out of its scabbard, +as if he meant to attack him, his eyes flashing fire and every feature working +in its frenzy—the baron meanwhile standing perfectly motionless, quietly +awaiting the onset. +</p> + +<p> +But ere he had touched him the duke stopped short; a sudden thought had +extinguished his blazing fury like a douche of cold water; his self-control +returned, his face resumed its wonted expression, the colour came to his lips, +and his eyes showed the most icy disdain, the most supreme contempt that it +could be possible for one human being to manifest for another. He had +remembered just in time that he must not so greatly demean himself as to cross +swords with a person of no birth, and an actor besides; all his pride revolted +at the bare idea of such a thing. An insult coming from a creature so low in +the social scale could not reach him. Does a gentleman declare war upon the mud +that bespatters him? However, it was not in his character to leave an offence +unpunished, no matter whence it proceeded, and stepping nearer to de Sigognac +he said, “You impertinent scoundrel, I will have every bone in your body +broken for you with cudgels, by my lackeys.” +</p> + +<p> +“You’d better take care what you do, my lord,” answered the +baron, in the most tranquil tone and with the most careless air imaginable, +“you’d much better take care what you do! My bones are not so +easily broken, but cudgels may be. I do not put up with blows anywhere but on +the stage.” +</p> + +<p> +“However insolent you may choose to be, you graceless rascal, you cannot +provoke me to do you so much honour as to attack you myself; that is too high +an ambition for such as you to realize,” said Vallombreuse, scornfully. +</p> + +<p> +“We will see about that, my lord duke,” de Sigognac replied; +“it may happen that I, having less pride than yourself, will fight you, +and conquer you, with my own hands.” +</p> + +<p> +“I do not dispute with a masker,” said the duke shortly, taking +Vidalinc’s arm as if to depart. +</p> + +<p> +“I will show you my face, duke, at a more fitting time and place,” +de Sigognac continued composedly, “and I think it will be still more +distasteful to you than my false nose. But enough for the present. I hear the +bell that summons me, and if I wait any longer here with you I shall miss my +entry at the proper moment.” +</p> + +<p> +He turned on his heel and leisurely walked off, with admirable nonchalance, +leaving the haughty duke very much disconcerted, and at a disadvantage, as +indeed de Sigognac had cleverly managed that he should be throughout the brief +interview. +</p> + +<p> +The comedians were charmed with his courage and coolness, but, knowing his real +rank, were not so much astonished as the other spectators of this extraordinary +scene, who were both shocked and amazed at such temerity. +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle was so terrified and excited by this fierce altercation that a deathly +pallor had overspread her troubled face, and Zerbine, who had flown to her +assistance, had to fetch some of her own rouge and bestow it plentifully upon +the colourless lips and cheeks before she could obey the tyrant’s +impatient call, again resounding through the green-room. +</p> + +<p> +When she tried to rise her trembling knees had nearly given way under her, and +but for the <i>soubrette’s</i> kind support she must have fallen to the +floor. To have been the cause, though innocently, of a quarrel like this was a +terrible blow to poor Isabelle sweet, pure, modest child that she was—for +she knew that it is a dreadful thing for any woman to have her name mixed up in +such an affair, and shrank from the publicity that could not fail to be given +to it; besides, she loved de Sigognac with fervour and devotion, though she had +never acknowledged it to him, and the thought of the danger to which he was +exposed, of a secret attack by the duke’s hired ruffians, or even of a +duel with his lordship himself, drove her well-nigh frantic with grief and +terror. +</p> + +<p> +In spite of this untoward incident, the rehearsal went on, and very smoothly; +the theatre was found to be all that they could desire, and everybody acted +with much spirit. Even poor, trembling Isabelle did herself credit, though her +heart was heavy within her; but for de Sigognac’s dear sake, whose +anxious glances she strove to meet with a reassuring smile, she succeeded in +controlling her emotion, and felt inspired to do her very best. As to Captain +Fracasse, excited by the quarrel, he acted superbly. Zerbine surpassed herself. +Shouts of laughter and storms of clapping followed her animated words and +gestures. From one corner, near the orchestra, came such vigorous bursts of +applause, leading all the rest and lasting longer than any, that at last +Zerbine’s attention was attracted and her curiosity excited. +</p> + +<p> +Approaching the foot-lights, in such a way as to make it appear part of her +usual by-play, she peered over them and caught sight of her marquis, beaming +with smiles and flushed from his violent efforts in her behalf. +</p> + +<p> +“The marquis is here,” she managed to whisper to Blazius, who was +playing Pandolphe; “just look at him! how delighted he is, and how he +applauds me—till he is actually red in the face, the dear man! So he +admires my acting, does he? Well, he shall have a spicy specimen of it, +then.” +</p> + +<p> +Zerbine kept her word, and, from that on to the end of the piece, played with +redoubled spirit. She was never so sparkling, so bewitchingly coquettish, so +charmingly mischievous before, and the delighted marquis was more fascinated +than ever. The new play, entitled “Lygdamon et Lydias,” and written +by a certain Georges de Scudéry (a gentleman who, after having served with +honour in the French Guards, quitted the sword for the pen, which he wielded +with equal success), was next rehearsed, and highly approved by +all—without a single dissenting voice. Leander, who played the leading +part of Lygdamon, was really admirable in it, and entertained high hopes of the +effect he should produce upon the fair ladies of Poitiers and its environs. +</p> + +<p> +But we will leave our comedians now, and follow the Duke of Vallombreuse and +his devoted friend Vidalinc. +</p> + +<p> +Quite beside himself with rage, the young duke, after the scene in the +green-room in which he had played so unsatisfactory a part to himself, returned +to his own home and there raved to Vidalinc about his revenge, threatening the +insolent captain with all manner of punishments, and going on like a madman. +His friend tried in vain to soothe him. +</p> + +<p> +He rushed wildly around the room, wringing his hands, kicking the furniture +about right and left, upsetting tables and arm-chairs, and finally, seizing a +large Japanese vase, very curious and costly, threw it violently on the floor, +where it broke into a thousand pieces. +</p> + +<p> +“Oh!” he shrieked, “if I could only smash that abominable +blackguard like this vase, trample him under foot as I do this debris, and then +have the remains of him swept up and thrown out into the dust-heap, where he +belongs. A miserable scoundrel, that dares to interpose between me, the Duke of +Vallombreuse, and the object of my desires! If he were only a gentleman I would +fight him, on foot or on horseback, with swords, daggers, pistols, anything in +the shape of a weapon, until I had him down, with my foot on his breast, and +could spit into the face of his corpse.” +</p> + +<p> +“Perhaps he is one,” said Vidalinc; “his audacious defiance +looks like it. You remember what Maître Bilot told you about Isabelle’s +favoured lover? This must be the one, judging by his jealousy of you, and the +agitation of the girl.” +</p> + +<p> +“Do you really mean what you say?” cried Vallombreuse, +contemptuously. “What! a man of birth and condition mingle voluntarily +and on terms of equality with these low buffoons of actors, paint his nose red, +and strut about the stage, receiving cuffs and kicks from everybody? Oh no, +Vidalinc, the thing is impossible.” +</p> + +<p> +“But just remember,” persisted the chevalier, “that mighty +Jove himself resorted to the expedient of adopting the shapes of various +beasts, as well as birds, in his terrestrial love affairs, which was surely +much more derogatory to the majesty of the king of the gods than to play in a +comedy is to the dignity of a gentleman.” +</p> + +<p> +“Never mind,” said the duke, as he rang a small hand bell sharply; +“be he what he may, I intend first to have the scamp well punished in his +character of play-actor; even though I should be obliged to chastise the +gentleman afterward, if there prove to be one hidden behind that ridiculous +mask—which idea I cannot credit.” +</p> + +<p> +“If there be one! There’s no doubt of it, I tell you,” +rejoined his friend, with an air of conviction. “The more I think of it, +the more positive I am of it. Why, his eyes shone like stars under his +overhanging false eye-brows, and in spite of his absurd pasteboard nose he had +a grand, majestic air about him that was very imposing, and would be utterly +impossible to a low-born man.” +</p> + +<p> +“Well, so much the better,” said Vallombreuse; “for if you +are right, I can make his punishment twofold.” +</p> + +<p> +Meantime a servant, in rich livery, had entered, and after bowing low stood as +motionless as a statue, with one hand on the knob of the door, awaiting his +master’s orders; which were presently given, as follows: “Go and +call up Basque, Azolan, Mérindol, and Labriche, if they have gone to bed; tell +them to arm themselves with stout cudgels and go down to the tennis-court, find +a dark corner near by and wait there, until the players come out, for a certain +Captain Fracasse. They are to fall upon him and beat him until they leave him +for dead upon the pavement, but to be careful not to kill him outright—it +might be thought that I was afraid of him if they did, you know,” in an +aside to Vidalinc. +</p> + +<p> +“I will be responsible for the consequences; and with every blow they are +to cry, ‘This is from the Duke of Vallombreuse,’ so that he may +understand plainly what it means.” +</p> + +<p> +This order, though of so savage and fierce a nature, did not seem to surprise +the lackey, who, as he retired, assured his lordship, with an unmoved +countenance and another low bow, that his commands should be immediately +obeyed. +</p> + +<p> +“I am sorry,” said Vidalinc, after the servant had closed the door +behind him, “that you mean to treat this man so roughly, for after all he +showed a spirit superior to his position, and becoming a gentleman. Suppose you +let me go and pick a quarrel with him, and kill him for you in a duel. All +blood is red when it is shed, the lowly as well as the lofty, though they do +pretend that the blood of the nobles is blue. I come of a good and ancient +family, if not so high in rank as yours, and I have no fear of belittling +myself in this affair. Only say the word, and I will go this instant, for this +histrionic captain is, it seems to me, more worthy of the sword of a gentleman +than the cudgels of your hired ruffians.” +</p> + +<p> +“I thank you heartily for this offer,” answered the duke, +“which proves your faithful devotion to me and my interests, but I cannot +accept it. That low scoundrel has dared to lay hands upon me, and he must +expiate his crime in the most ignominious way. Should he prove to be a +gentleman, he will be able to find redress. I never fail to respond, as you +know, when there is question of settling a matter by the sword.” +</p> + +<p> +“As you please, my lord duke,” said Vidalinc, stretching out his +legs lazily and putting his feet on the fender, with the air of a man who can +do no more, but must stand aside and let things take their own course. +“By the way, do you know that that Serafina is charming? I paid her +several compliments, which were very graciously received; and more than that, +she has promised to allow me to call upon her, and appointed the time. She is a +very amiable as well as beautiful young woman. Maître Bilot was perfectly +correct in his statements to us.” +</p> + +<p> +After which the two gentlemen awaited, in almost unbroken silence, the return +of the <i>four</i> ruffians who had gone forth to chastise de Sigognac. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap09"></a>CHAPTER IX.<br/> +A MÊLÉE AND A DUEL</h2> + +<p> +The rehearsal was over, and the comedians were preparing to return to their +hotel; de Sigognac, expecting some sort of an assault on his way through the +deserted streets, did not lay aside Matamore’s big sword with the rest of +his costume. It was an excellent Spanish blade, very long, and with a large +basket hilt, which made a perfect protection for the hand—altogether a +weapon which, wielded by a brave man, was by no means to be despised, and which +could give, as well as parry, good hard thrusts. Though scarcely able to +inflict a mortal wound, as the point and edge had been blunted, according to +the usual custom of theatrical sword owners, it would be, however, all that was +requisite to defend its wearer against the cudgels of the ruffians that the +Duke of Vallombreuse had despatched to administer his promised punishment. +Hérode, who also anticipated an attack upon de Sigognac, and was not one to +desert a friend when danger threatened, took the precaution to arm himself with +the big heavy club that was used to give the signal—three loud +raps—for the rising of the curtain, which made a very formidable weapon, +and would do good service in his strong hands. +</p> + +<p> +“Captain,” said he to the baron as they quitted the tennis-court, +“we will let the women go on a little way in advance of us, under the +escort of Blazius and Leander, one of whom is too old, the other too cowardly, +to be of any service to us in case of need. And we don’t want to have +their fair charges terrified, and deafening us with their shrieks. Scapin shall +accompany us, for he knows a clever trick or two for tripping a man up, that I +have seen him perform admirably in several wrestling bouts. He will lay one or +two of our assailants flat on their backs for us before they can turn round. In +any event here is my good club, to supplement your good sword.” +</p> + +<p> +“Thanks, my brave friend Hérode,” answered de Sigognac, “your +kind offer is not one to be refused; but let us take our precautions not to be +surprised, though we are in force. We will march along in single file, through +the very middle of the street, so that these rogues, lurking in dark corners, +will have to emerge from their hiding places to come out to us, and we shall be +able to see them before they can strike us. I will draw my sword, you brandish +your club, and Scapin must cut a pigeon wing, so as to make sure that his legs +are supple and in good working order. Now, forward march!” +</p> + +<p> +He put himself at the head of the little column, and advanced cautiously into +the narrow street that led from the tennis-court to the hotel of the <i>Armes +de France</i>, which was very crooked, badly paved, devoid of lamps, and +capitally well calculated for an ambuscade. The overhanging gable-ends on +either side of the way made the darkness in the street below them still more +dense—a most favourable circumstance for the ruffians lying in wait +there. Not a single ray of light streamed forth from the shut-up house whose +inmates were presumably all sleeping soundly in their comfortable beds, and +there was no moon that night. Basque, Azolan, Labriche and Mérindol had been +waiting more than half an hour for Captain Fracasse in this street, which they +knew he was obliged to pass through in returning to his hotel. They had +disposed themselves in pairs on opposite sides of the way, so that when he was +between them their clubs could all play upon him together, like the hammers of +the Cyclops on their great anvil. The passing of the group of women, escorted +by Blazius and Leander, none of whom perceived them, had warned them of the +approach of their victim, and they stood awaiting his appearance, firmly +grasping their cudgels in readiness to pounce upon him; little dreaming of the +reception in store for them—for ordinarily, indeed one may say +invariably, the poets, actors, <i>bourgeois</i>, and such-like, whom the nobles +condescended to have cudgeled by their hired ruffians, employed expressly for +that purpose, took their chastisement meekly, and without attempting to make +any resistance. Despite the extreme darkness of the night, the baron, with his +penetrating eyes, made out the forms of the four villains lying in wait for +him, at some distance, and before he came up with them stopped and made as if +he meant to turn back—which ruse deceived them completely—and +fearing that their prey was about to escape them, they rushed impetuously forth +from their hiding places towards him. Azolan was the first, closely followed by +the others, and all crying at the tops of their voices, “Kill! Kill! this +for Captain Fracasse, from the Duke of Vallombreuse.” Meantime de +Sigognac had wound his large cloak several times round his left arm for a +shield, and receiving upon it the first blow from Azolan’s cudgel, +returned it with such a violent lunge, full in his antagonist’s breast, +that the miserable fellow went over backward, with great force, right into the +gutter running down the middle of the street, with his head in the mud and his +heels in the air. If the point of the sword had not been blunted, it would +infallibly have gone through his body, and come out between his +shoulder-blades, leaving a dead man, instead of only a stunned one, on the +ground. Basque, in spite of his comrade’s disaster, advanced to the +charge bravely, but a furious blow on his head, with the flat of the blade, +sent him down like a shot, and made him see scores of stars, though there was +not one visible in the sky that night. The tyrant’s club encountering +Mérindol’s cudgel broke it short off, and the latter finding himself +disarmed, took to his heels; not however without receiving a tremendous blow on +the shoulder before he could get out of Hérode’s reach. Scapin, for his +part, had seized Labriche suddenly round the waist from behind, pinning down +his arms so that he could not use his club at all, and raising him from the +ground quickly, with one dexterous movement tripped him up, and sent him +rolling on the pavement ten paces off, so violently that he was knocked +senseless—the back of his neck coming in contact with a projecting +stone—and lay apparently lifeless where he fell. +</p> + +<p> +So the way was cleared, and the victory in this fierce encounter was honourably +gained by our hero and his two companions over the four sturdy ruffians, who +had never been defeated before. They were in a sorry plight—Azolan and +Basque creeping stealthily away, on their hands and knees, trying under cover +of the darkness to put themselves beyond the reach of further danger; Labriche +lying motionless, like a drunken man, across the gutter, and Mérindol, less +badly hurt, flying towards home as fast as his legs could carry him. As he drew +near the house, however, he slackened his pace, for he dreaded the duke’s +anger more than Hérode’s club, and almost forgot, for the moment, the +terrible agony from his dislocated shoulder, from which the arm hung down +helpless and inert. Scarcely had he entered the outer door ere he was summoned +to the presence of the duke, who was all impatient to learn the details of the +tremendous thrashing that, he took it for granted, they had given to Captain +Fracasse. When Mérindol was ushered in, frightened and embarrassed, trembling +in every limb, not knowing what to say or do, and suffering fearfully from his +injured shoulder, he paused at the threshold, and stood speechless and +motionless, waiting breathlessly for a word or gesture of encouragement from +the duke, who glared at him in silence. +</p> + +<p> +“Well,” at length said the Chevalier de Vidalinc to the discomfited +Mérindol, seeing that Vallombreuse only stared at him savagely and did not seem +inclined to speak, “what news do you bring us? Bad, I am sure, for you +have by no means a triumphant air—very much the reverse, indeed, I should +say.” +</p> + +<p> +“My lord, the duke, of course cannot doubt our zeal in striving to +execute his orders, to the best of our ability,” said Mérindol, +cringingly, “but this time we have had very bad luck.” +</p> + +<p> +“What do you mean by that?” asked the duke sharply, with an angry +frown and flashing eyes, before which the stout ruffian quailed. “There +were four of you! do you mean to tell me that, among you, you could not succeed +in thrashing this miserable play-actor?” +</p> + +<p> +“That miserable play-actor, my lord,” Mérindol replied, plucking up +a little courage, “far exceeds in vigour and bravery the great Hercules +they tell us of. He fell upon us with such fury that in one instant he had +knocked Azolan and Basque down into the gutter. They fell under his blows like +pasteboard puppets—yet they are both strong men, and used to hard knocks. +Labriche was tripped up and cleverly thrown by another actor, and fell with +such force that he was completely stunned; the back of his head has found out +that the stones of Poitiers pavements are harder than it is, poor fellow! As +for me, my thick club was broken short off by an immense stick in the hands of +that giant they call Hérode, and my shoulder so badly hurt that I +sha’n’t have the use of my arm here for a fortnight.” +</p> + +<p> +“You are no better than so many calves, you pitiful, cowardly +knaves!” cried the Duke of Vallombreuse, in a perfect frenzy of rage. +“Why, any old woman could put you to rout with her distaff, and not half +try. I made a horrid mistake when I rescued you from the galleys and the +gallows, and took you into my service, believing that you were brave rascals, +and not afraid of anything or anybody on the face of the globe. And now, answer +me this: When you found that clubs would not do, why didn’t you whip out +your swords and have at him?” +</p> + +<p> +“My lord had given us orders for a beating, not an assassination, and we +would not have dared to go beyond his commands.” +</p> + +<p> +“Behold,” cried Vidalinc, laughing contemptuously, “behold a +faithful, exact and conscientious scoundrel whose obedience does not deviate so +much as a hair’s breadth from his lord’s commands. How delightful +and refreshing to find such purity and fidelity, combined with such rare +courage, in the character of a professional cut-throat! But now, Vallombreuse, +what do you think of all this? This chase of yours opens well, and +romantically, in a manner that must be immensely pleasing to you, since you +find the pursuit agreeable in proportion to its difficulty, and the obstacles +in the way constitute its greatest charms for you. I ought to congratulate you, +it seems to me. This Isabelle, for an actress, is not easy of access; she +dwells in a fortress, without drawbridge or other means of entrance, and +guarded, as we read of in the history of ancient chivalry, by dragons breathing +out flames of fire and smoke. But here comes our routed army.” +</p> + +<p> +Azolan, Basque, and Labriche, who had recovered from his swoon, now presented +themselves reluctantly at the door, and stood extending their hands +supplicatingly towards their master. They were a miserable-looking set of +wretches enough—very pale, fairly livid indeed, haggard, dirty and +blood-stained; for although they had only contused wounds, the force of the +blows had set the blood flowing from their noses, and great red stains +disfigured their hideous countenances. +</p> + +<p> +“Get to your kennel, ye hounds!” cried the duke, in a terrible +voice, being moved only to anger by the sight of this forlorn group of +supplicants. “I’m sure I don’t know why I have not ordered +you all soundly thrashed for your imbecility and cowardice. I shall send you my +surgeon to examine your wounds, and see whether the thumps you make such a +babyish outcry about really were as violent and overpowering as you represent. +If they were not, I will have you skinned alive, every mother’s son of +you, like the eels at Melun; and now, begone! out of my sight, quick, you vile +<i>canaille!</i>” The discomfited ruffians turned and fled, thankful to +make their escape, and forgetful for the moment of their painful wounds and +bruises; such abject terror did the young duke’s anger inspire in the +breasts of those hardened villains. When the poor devils had disappeared, +Vallombreuse threw himself down on a heap of cushions, piled up on a low, broad +divan beside the fire, and fell into a revery that Vidalinc was careful not to +break in upon. They evidently were not pleasant thoughts that occupied him; +dark, tempestuous ones rather, judging by the expression of his handsome face, +as he lay back idly among the soft pillows, looking very picturesque in the +rich showy costume he still wore. He did not remain there long. Only a short +time had elapsed when he suddenly started up, with a smothered imprecation, and +bidding his friend an abrupt good-night, retired to his own chamber, without +touching the dainty little supper that had just been brought in. Vidalinc sat +down and enjoyed it by himself, with perfect good humour, thinking meanwhile of +Serafina’s remarkable beauty and amiability, with which he was highly +charmed, and not neglecting to drink her health in the duke’s choice wine +ere he quitted the table, and, following his example, retired to his own room, +where he slept soundly, dreaming of Serafina, until morning; while +Vallombreuse, less fortunate, and still haunted by disturbing thoughts, tossed +restlessly, and turned from side to side, courting sleep in vain, under the +rich silken hangings drawn round his luxurious bed. +</p> + +<p> +When de Sigognac, the tyrant and Scapin reached the <i>Armes de France</i>, +after having overcome the serious obstacles in their way, they found the others +in a terrible state of alarm about them. In the stillness of the night they had +distinctly heard the loud cries of the duke’s ruffians, and the noise of +the fierce combat, and feared that their poor friends were being murdered. +Isabelle, nearly frantic in her terror lest her lover should be overpowered and +slain, tried to rush back to him, never remembering that she would be more of a +hindrance than a help; but at the first step she had again almost fainted away, +and would have fallen upon the rough pavement but for Blazius and Zerbine, who, +each taking an arm, supported her between them the rest of the way to the hotel +When they reached it at last, she refused to go to her own room, but waited +with the others at the outer door for news of their comrades, fearing the +worst, yet prayerfully striving to hope for the best. At sight of de +Sigognac—who, alarmed at her extreme pallor, hastened anxiously to her +side—she impetuously raised her arms to heaven, as a low cry of +thanksgiving escaped her lips, and letting them fall around his neck, for one +moment hid her streaming eyes against his shoulder; but quickly regaining her +self-control, she withdrew herself gently from the detaining arm that had +fondly encircled her slender, yielding form, and stepping back from him a +little, resumed with a strong effort her usual reserve and quiet dignity. +</p> + +<p> +“And you are not wounded or hurt?” she asked, in her sweetest +tones, her face glowing with happiness as she caught his reassuring gesture; he +could not speak yet for emotion. The clasp of her arms round his neck had been +like a glimpse of heaven to him a moment of divine ecstasy. “Ah! if he +could only snatch her to his breast and hold her there forever,” he was +thinking, “close to the heart that beat for her alone,” as she +continued: “If the slightest harm had befallen you, because of me, I +should have died of grief. But, oh! how imprudent you were, to defy that +handsome, wicked duke, who has the assurance and the pride of Lucifer himself, +for the sake of a poor, insignificant girl like me. You were not reasonable, de +Sigognac! Now that you are a comedian, like the rest of us, you must learn to +put up with certain impertinences and annoyances, without attempting to resent +them.” +</p> + +<p> +“I never will,” said de Sigognac, finding his voice at last, +“I swear it, I never will permit an affront to be offered to the adorable +Isabelle in my presence even when I have on my player’s mask.” +</p> + +<p> +“Well spoken, captain,” cried Hérode, “well spoken, and +bravely. I would not like to be the man to incur your wrath. By the powers +above! what a fierce reception you gave those rascals yonder. It was lucky for +them that poor Matamore’s sword had no edge. If it had been sharp and +pointed, you would have cleft them from head to heels, clean in two, as the +ancient knight-errants did the Saracens, and wicked enchanters.” +</p> + +<p> +“Your club did as much execution as my sword, Hérode, and your conscience +need not reproach you, for they were not innocents that you slaughtered this +time.” +</p> + +<p> +“No, indeed!” the tyrant rejoined, with a mighty laugh, “the +flower of the galleys these—the cream of gallows-birds.” +</p> + +<p> +“Such jobs would scarcely be undertaken by any other class of fellows you +know,” de Sigognac said; “but we must not neglect to make +Scapin’s valiant deeds known, and praise them as they deserve. He fought +and conquered without the aid of any other arms than those that nature gave +him.” +</p> + +<p> +Scapin, who was a natural buffoon, acknowledged this encomium with a very low +obeisance—his eyes cast down, his hand on his heart—and with such +an irresistibly comical affectation of modesty and embarrassment that they all +burst into a hearty laugh, which did them much good after the intense +excitement and alarm. +</p> + +<p> +After this, as it was late, the comedians bade each other good-night, and +retired to their respective rooms; excepting de Sigognac, who remained for a +while in the court, walking slowly back and forth, cogitating deeply. The actor +was avenged, but the gentleman was not. Must he then throw aside the mask that +concealed his identity, proclaim his real name, make a commotion, and run the +risk of drawing down upon his comrades the anger of a powerful nobleman? +Prudence said no, but honour said yes. The baron could not resist its imperious +voice, and the moment that he decided to obey it he directed his steps towards +Zerbine’s room. +</p> + +<p> +He knocked gently at the door, which was opened cautiously, a very little way +at first, by a servant, who instantly admitted the unexpected guest when he saw +who it was. +</p> + +<p> +The large room was brilliantly lighted, with many rose-coloured wax candles in +two handsome candelabra on a table covered with fine damask, on which smoked a +dainty supper. Game and various other delicacies were there, most temptingly +served. One crystal decanter, with sprigs of gold scattered over its shining +surface, was filled with wine rivalling the ruby in depth and brilliancy of +hue, while that in the other was clear and yellow as a topaz. Only two places +had been laid on this festive board, and opposite Zerbine sat the Marquis de +Bruyères, of whom de Sigognac was in search. The <i>soubrette</i> welcomed him +warmly, with a graceful mingling of the actress’s familiarity with her +comrade with her respect for the gentleman. +</p> + +<p> +“It is very charming of you to come and join us here, in our cosy little +nest,” said the marquis to de Sigognac, with much cordiality, “and +we are right glad to welcome you. Jacques, lay a place for this +gentleman—you will sup with us?” +</p> + +<p> +“I will accept your kind invitation,” de Sigognac replied; +“but not for the sake of the supper. I do not wish to interfere with your +enjoyment, and nothing is so disagreeable for those at table as a looker-on who +is not eating with them.” +</p> + +<p> +The baron accordingly sat down in the arm-chair rolled up for him by the +servant, beside Zerbine and opposite the marquis, who helped him to some of the +partridge he had been carving, and filled his wine-glass for him; all without +asking any questions as to what brought him there, or even hinting at it. But +he felt sure that it must be something of importance that had caused the +usually reserved and retiring young nobleman to take such a step as this. +</p> + +<p> +“Do you like this red wine best or the other?” asked the marquis. +“As for me, I drink some of both, so that there may be no jealous feeling +between them.” +</p> + +<p> +“I prefer the red wine, thank you,” de Sigognac said, with a smile, +“and will add a little water to it. I am very temperate by nature and +habit, and mingle a certain devotion to the nymphs with my worship at the +shrine of Bacchus, as the ancients had it. But it was not for feasting and +drinking that I was guilty of the indiscretion of intruding upon you at this +unseemly hour. Marquis, I have come to ask of you a service that one gentleman +never refuses to another. Mlle. Zerbine has probably related to you something +of what took place in the green-room this evening. The Duke of Vallombreuse +made an attempt to lay hands upon Isabelle, under pretext of placing an +<i>mouche</i> for her, and was guilty of an insolent, outrageous, and brutal +action, unworthy of a gentleman, which was not justified by any coquetry or +advances on the part of that young girl, who is as pure as she is modest and +for whom I feel the highest respect and esteem.” +</p> + +<p> +“And she deserves it,” said Zerbine heartily, “every word you +say of her, as I, who know her thoroughly, can testify. I could not say +anything but good of her, even if I would.” +</p> + +<p> +“I seized the duke’s arm, and stopped him before he had succeeded +in what he meant to do,” continued de Sigognac, after a grateful glance +at the <i>soubrette;</i> “he was furiously angry, and assailed me with +threats and invectives, to which I replied with a mocking <i>sang-froid</i>, +from behind my stage mask. He declared he would have me thrashed by his +lackeys, and in effect, as I was coming back to this house, a little while ago, +four ruffians fell upon me in the dark, narrow street. A couple of blows with +the flat of my sword did for two of the rascals, while Hérode and Scapin put +the other two hors-de-combat in fine style. Although the duke imagined that +only a poor actor was concerned, yet as there is also a gentleman in that +actor’s skin, such an outrage cannot be committed with impunity. +<i>You</i> know me, marquis, though up to the present moment you have kindly +and delicately respected my incognito, for which I thank you. You know who and +what my ancestors were, and can certify that the family of de Sigognac has been +noble for more than a thousand years, and that not one who has borne the name +has ever had a blot on his scutcheon.” +</p> + +<p> +“Baron de Sigognac,” said the marquis, addressing him for the first +time by his own name, “I will bear witness, upon my honour, before +whomsoever you may choose to name, to the antiquity and nobility of your +family. Palamède de Sigognac distinguished himself by wonderful deeds of valour +in the first crusade, to which he led a hundred lances, equipped, and +transported thither, at his own expense. That was at an epoch when the +ancestors of some of the proudest nobles of France to-day were not even +squires. He and Hugues de Bruyères, my own ancestor, were warm friends, and +slept in the same tent as brothers in arms.” +</p> + +<p> +At these glorious reminiscences de Sigognac raised his head proudly, and held +it high; he felt the pure blood of his ancestors throbbing in his veins, and +his heart beat tumultuously. Zerbine, who was watching him, was surprised at +the strange inward beauty—if the expression may be allowed—that +seemed to shine through the young baron’s ordinarily sad countenance, and +illuminate it. “These nobles,” she said to herself, “are +certainly a race by themselves; they look as if they had sprung from the side +of Jupiter, not been born into the world like ordinary mortals. At the least +word their pride is up in arms, and transforms them, as it does the Baron de +Sigognac now. If he should make love to me, with eyes like those, I simply +could not resist him; I should have to throw over my marquis. Why, he fairly +glows with heroism; he is god-like.” +</p> + +<p> +Meantime de Sigognac, in blissful ignorance of this ardent admiration, which +would have been so distasteful to him, was saying to the marquis, “Such +being your opinion of my family, you will not, I fancy, object to carry a +challenge from me to the Duke of Vallombreuse.” +</p> + +<p> +“Assuredly I will do it for you,” answered the marquis, in a grave, +measured way, widely different from his habitual good-natured, easy +carelessness of manner and speech; “and, moreover, I offer my own +services as your second. To-morrow morning I will present myself at the +duke’s house in your behalf; there is one thing to be said in his +favour—that although he may be, in fact is, very insolent, he is no +coward, and he will no longer intrench himself behind his dignity when he is +made acquainted with your real rank. But enough of this subject for the +present; I will see you to-morrow morning in good season, and we will not weary +poor Zerbine any longer with our man’s talk of affairs of honour. I can +plainly see that she is doing her best to suppress a yawn, and we would a great +deal rather that a smile should part her pretty red lips, and disclose to us +the rows of pearls within. Come, Zerbine, fill the Baron de Sigognac’s +glass, and let us be merry again.” +</p> + +<p> +The <i>soubrette</i> obeyed, and with as much grace and dexterity as if she had +been Hebe in person; everything that she attempted to do she did well, this +clever little actress. +</p> + +<p> +The conversation became animated, and did not touch upon any other grave +subject, but was mainly about Zerbine’s own acting—the marquis +overwhelming her with compliments upon it, in which de Sigognac could +truthfully and sincerely join him, for the <i>soubrette</i> had really shown +incomparable spirit, grace, and talent. They also talked of the productions of +M. de Scudéry—who was one of the most brilliant writers of the +day—which the marquis declared that he considered perfect, but slightly +soporific; adding that he, for his part, decidedly preferred the Rodomontades +of Captain Fracasse to Lygdamon et Lydias—he was a gentleman of taste, +the marquis! +</p> + +<p> +As soon as he could do so without an actual breach of politeness, de Sigognac +took his leave, and retiring to his own chamber locked himself in; then took an +ancient sword out of the woollen case in which he kept it to preserve it from +rust—his father’s sword—which he had brought with him from +home, as a faithful friend and ally. He drew it slowly out of the scabbard, +kissing the hilt with fervent affection and respect as he did so, for to him it +was sacred. It was a handsome weapon, richly, but not too profusely, +ornamented—a sword for service, not for show; its blade of bluish steel, +upon which a few delicate lines of gold were traced, bore the well-known mark +of one of the most celebrated armourers of Toledo. The young baron examined the +edge critically, drawing his fingers lightly over it, and then, resting the +point against the door, bent it nearly double to test its elasticity. The noble +blade stood the trial right valiantly, and there was no fear of its betraying +its master in the hour of need. Delighted to have it in his hand again, and +excited by the thought of what was in store for it and himself, de Sigognac +began to fence vigorously against the wall, and to practise the various thrusts +and passes that his faithful old Pierre, who was a famous swordsman, had taught +him at Castle Misery. They had been in the habit of spending hours every day in +these lessons, glad of some active occupation, and the exercise had developed +the young baron’s frame, strengthened his muscles, and greatly augmented +his natural suppleness and agility. He was passionately fond of and had +thoroughly studied the noble art of fencing, and, while he believed himself to +be still only a scholar, had long been a master in it—a proficient, such +as is rarely to be found, even in the great cities. A better instructor than +old Pierre he could not have had—not in Paris itself—and buried +though he had been in the depths of the country, entirely isolated, and +deprived of all the usual advantages enjoyed by young men of his rank, he yet +had become, though perfectly unconscious of it, a match for the most celebrated +swordsmen in France—that is to say, in the world—able to measure +blades with the best of them. He may not have had all the elegant finish, and +the many little airs and graces affected by the young sprigs of nobility and +polished men of fashion in their sword-play, but skilful indeed must be the +blade that could penetrate within the narrow circle of flashing steel in which +he intrenched himself. Finding, after a long combat with an imaginary foe, that +his hand had not lost its cunning, and satisfied at length both with himself +and with his sword, which he placed near his bedside, de Sigognac was soon +sleeping soundly, and as quietly as if he had never even dreamed of sending a +challenge to that lofty and puissant nobleman, the Duke of Vallombreuse. +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle meanwhile could not close her eyes, because of her anxiety about the +young baron. She knew that he would not allow the matter to rest where it was, +and she dreaded inexpressibly the consequences of a quarrel with the duke; but +the idea of endeavouring to prevent a duel never even occurred to her. In those +days affairs of honour were regarded as sacred things, that women did not dream +of interfering with, or rendering more trying to their near and dear ones by +tears and lamentations, in anticipation of the danger to be incurred by them. +</p> + +<p> +At nine o’clock the next morning, the Marquis de Bruyères was astir, and +went to look up de Sigognac, whom he found in his own room, in order to +regulate with him the conditions of the duel. The baron asked him to take with +him, in case of incredulity, or refusal of his challenge, on the duke’s +part, the old deeds and ancient parchments, to which large seals were +suspended, the commissions of various sorts with royal signatures in faded ink, +the genealogical tree of the de Sigognacs, and in fact all his credentials, +which he had brought away from the château with him as his most precious +treasures; for they were indisputable witnesses to the nobility and antiquity +of his house. These valuable documents, with their strange old Gothic +characters, scarcely decipherable save by experts, were carefully wrapped up in +a piece of faded crimson silk, which looked as if it might have been part of +the very banner borne by Palamède de Sigognac at the head of his hundred +followers in the first crusade. +</p> + +<p> +“I do not believe,” said the marquis, “that these credentials +will be necessary; my word should be sufficient; it has never yet been doubted. +However, as it is possible that this hot-headed young duke may persist in +recognising only Captain Fracasse in your person, I will let my servant +accompany me and carry them for me to his house, in case I should deem it best +to produce them.” +</p> + +<p> +“You must do whatever you think proper and right,” de Sigognac +answered; “I have implicit confidence in your judgment, and leave my +honour in your hands, without a condition or reservation.” +</p> + +<p> +“It will be safe with me, I do solemnly assure you,” said the +Marquis de Bruyères earnestly, “and we will have satisfaction yet from +this proud young nobleman, whose excessive insolence and outrageously imperious +ways are more than a little offensive to me, as well as to many others. He is +no better than the rest of us, whose blood is as ancient and noble as his own, +nor does his ducal coronet entitle him to the superiority he arrogates to +himself so disagreeably. But we won’t talk any more about it—we +must act now. Words are feminine, but actions are masculine, and offended +honour can only be appeased with blood, as the old saying has it.” +</p> + +<p> +Whereupon the marquis called his servant, consigned the precious packet, with +an admonition, to his care, and followed by him set off on his mission of +defiance. The duke, who had passed a restless, wakeful night, and only fallen +asleep towards morning, was not yet up when the Marquis de Bruyères, upon +reaching his house, told the servant who admitted him to announce him +immediately to his master. The valet was aghast at the enormity of this demand, +which was expressed in rather a peremptory tone. What! disturb the duke! before +he had called for him! it would be as much as his life was worth to do it; he +would as soon venture unarmed into the cage of a furious lion, or the den of a +royal tiger. The duke was always more or less surly and ill-tempered on first +waking in the morning, even when he had gone to bed in a good humour, as his +servants knew to their cost. +</p> + +<p> +“Your lordship had much better wait a little while, or call again later +in the day,” said the valet persuasively, in answer to the marquis. +“My lord, the duke, has not summoned me yet, and I would not +dare—” +</p> + +<p> +“Go this instant to your master and announce the Marquis de +Bruyères,” interrupted that gentleman, in loud, angry tones, “or I +will force the door and admit myself to his presence. I <i>must</i> speak to +him, and that at once, on important business, in which your master’s +honour is involved.” +</p> + +<p> +“Ah! that makes a difference,” said the servant, promptly, +“why didn’t your lordship mention it in the first place? I will go +and tell my lord, the duke, forthwith; he went to bed in such a furious, +blood-thirsty mood last night that I am sure he will be enchanted at the +prospect of a duel this morning—delighted to have a pretext for +fighting.” +</p> + +<p> +And the man went off with a resolute air, after respectfully begging the +marquis to be good enough to wait a few minutes. At the noise he made in +opening the door of his master’s bedroom, though he endeavoured to do it +as softly as possible, Vallombreuse, who was only dozing, started up in bed, +broad awake, and looked round fiercely for something to throw at his head. +</p> + +<p> +“What the devil do you mean by this?” he cried savagely. +“Haven’t I ordered you never to come in here until I called for +you? You shall have a hundred lashes for this, you scoundrel, I promise you; +and you needn’t whine and beg for mercy either, for you’ll get none +from me. I’d like to know how I am to go to sleep again now?” +</p> + +<p> +“My lord may have his faithful servant lashed to death, if it so please +his lordship,” answered the valet, with abject respect, “but though +I have dared to transgress my lord’s orders, it is not without a good +reason. His lordship, the Marquis de Bruyères, is below, asking to speak with +my lord, the duke, on important business, relating to an affair of honour, and +I know that my lord never denies himself to any gentleman on such occasions, +but always receives visits of that sort, at any time of day or night.” +</p> + +<p> +“The Marquis de Bruyères!” said the duke, surprised, “have I +any quarrel with him? I don’t recollect a difference between us ever; and +besides, it’s an age since I’ve seen him. Perhaps he imagines that +I want to steal his dear Zerbine’s heart away from him; lovers are always +fancying that everybody else is enamoured of their own particular favourites. +Here, Picard, give me my dressing-gown, and draw those curtains round the bed, +so as to hide its disorder; make haste about it, do you hear? we must not keep +the worthy marquis waiting another minute.” +</p> + +<p> +Picard bustled about, and brought to his master a magnificent +dressing-gown-made, after the Venetian fashion, of rich stuff, with arabesques +of black velvet on a gold ground—which he slipped on, and tied round the +waist with a superb cord and tassels; then, seating himself in an easychair, +told Picard to admit his early visitor. +</p> + +<p> +“Good morning, my dear marquis,” said the young duke smilingly, +half rising to salute his guest as he entered. “I am very glad to see +you, whatever your errand may be. Picard, a chair for his lordship! Excuse me, +I pray you, for receiving you so unceremoniously here in my bedroom, which is +still in disorder, and do not look upon it as a lack of civility, but rather as +a mark of my regard for you. Picard said that you wished to see me +immediately.” +</p> + +<p> +“I must beg you to pardon <i>me</i>, my dear duke,” the marquis +hastened to reply, “for insisting so strenuously upon disturbing your +repose, and cutting short perhaps some delicious dream; but I am charged to see +you upon a mission, which, among gentlemen, will not brook delay.” +</p> + +<p> +“You excite my curiosity to the highest degree,” said Vallombreuse, +“and I cannot even imagine what this urgent business may be about.” +</p> + +<p> +“I suppose it is not unlikely, my lord,” rejoined the marquis, +“that you have forgotten certain occurrences that took place last +evening. Such trifling matters are not apt to make a very deep impression, so +with your permission I will recall them to your mind. In the so-called +green-room, down at the tennis-court, you deigned to honour with your +particular notice a young person, Isabelle by name, and with a playfulness that +I, for my part, do not consider criminal, you endeavoured to place an +<i>assassine</i> for her, just above her white bosom, complimenting her upon +its fairness as you did so. This proceeding, which I do not criticise, greatly +shocked and incensed a certain actor standing by, called Captain Fracasse, who +rushed forward and seized your arm.” +</p> + +<p> +“Marquis, you are the most faithful and conscientious of +historiographers,” interrupted Vallombreuse. “That is all true, +every word of it, and to finish the narrative I will add that I promised the +rascal, who was as insolent as a noble, a sound thrashing at the hands of my +lackeys; the most appropriate chastisement I could think of, for a low fellow +of that sort.” +</p> + +<p> +“No one can blame you for that, my dear duke, for there is certainly no +very great harm in having a play-actor—or writer either, for that +matter—thoroughly thrashed, if he has had the presumption to +offend,” said the marquis, with a contemptuous shrug; “such cattle +are not worth the value of the sticks broken over their backs. But this is a +different case altogether. Under the mask of Captain Fracasse—who, by the +way, routed your ruffians in superb style—is the Baron de Sigognac; a +nobleman of the old school, the head of one of the best families we have in +Gascony; one that has been above reproach for many centuries.” +</p> + +<p> +“What the devil is he doing in this troupe of strolling players, +pray?” asked the Duke of Vallombreuse, with some heat, toying nervously +with the cord and tassels of his dressing-gown as he spoke. “Could I be +expected to divine that there was a de Sigognac hidden under that grotesque +costume, and behind that absurd false nose?” +</p> + +<p> +“As to your first question,” the marquis replied, “I can +answer it in one word—Isabelle. Between ourselves, I believe that the +young baron is desperately in love with her. Indeed, he makes no secret of that +fact; and, not having been able to induce her to remain with him in his +château, he has joined the troupe of which she is a member, in order to pursue +his love affair. You certainly ought not to find this gallant proceeding in bad +taste, since you also admire the fair object of his pursuit.” +</p> + +<p> +“No; I admit all that you say. But you, in your turn, must acknowledge +that I could not be cognisant of this extraordinary romance by inspiration, and +that the action of Captain Fracasse was impertinent.” +</p> + +<p> +“Impertinent for an actor, I grant you,” said the marquis, +“but perfectly natural, indeed inevitable, for a gentleman, resenting +unauthorized attentions to his mistress, and angry at an affront offered to +her. Now Captain Fracasse throws aside his mask, and as Baron de Sigognac sends +you by me his challenge to fight a duel, and demands redress in that way for +the insult you have offered him.” +</p> + +<p> +“But who is to guarantee me that this pretended Baron de Sigognac, who +actually appears on the stage before the public with a company of low buffoons +as one of themselves, is not a vulgar, intriguing rascal, usurping an +honourable name, in the hope of obtaining the honour of crossing swords with +the Duke of Vallombreuse?” +</p> + +<p> +“Duke,” said the Marquis de Bruyères, with much dignity, and some +severity of tone, “<i>I</i> would not serve as second to any man who was +not of noble birth, and of honourable character. I know the Baron de Sigognac +well. His château is only a few leagues from my estate. <i>I</i> will be his +guarantee. Besides, if you still persist in entertaining any doubts with regard +to his real rank, I have here with me all the proofs necessary to convince you +of his right to the ancient and distinguished name of Sigognac. Will you permit +me to call in my servant, who is waiting in the antechamber? He will give you +all those documents, for which I am personally responsible.” +</p> + +<p> +“There is no need,” Vallombreuse replied courteously; “your +word is sufficient. I accept his challenge. My friend, the Chevalier de +Vidalinc, who is my guest at present, will be my second; will you be good +enough to consult with him as to the necessary arrangements? I will agree to +anything you may propose—fight him when and where you please, and with +any weapons he likes best; though I will confess that I should like to see +whether the Baron de Sigognac can defend himself against a gentleman’s +sword as successfully as Captain Fracasse did against my lackeys’ +cudgels. The charming Isabelle shall crown the conqueror in this tournament, as +the fair ladies crowned the victorious knights in the grand old days of +chivalry. But now allow me to retire and finish my toilet. The Chevalier de +Vidalinc will be with you directly. I kiss your hand, valiant marquis, as our +Spanish neighbours say.” +</p> + +<p> +With these courteous words the Duke of Vallombreuse bowed with studied +deference and politeness to his noble guest, and lifting the heavy +<i>portière</i> of tapestry that hung over the door opening into his +dressing-room, passed through it and vanished. But a very few moments had +elapsed when the Chevalier de Vidalinc joined the marquis, and they lost no +time in coming to an understanding as to the conditions of the duel. As a +matter of course, they selected swords—the gentleman’s natural +weapon—and the meeting was fixed for the following morning, early; as de +Sigognac, with his wonted consideration for his humble comrades, did not wish +to fight that same day, and run the risk of interfering with the programme +Hérode had announced for the evening, in case of his being killed or wounded. +The rendezvous was at a certain spot in a field outside the walls of the town, +which was level, smooth, well sheltered from observation, and advantageous in +every way—being the favourite place of resort for such hostile meetings +among the duellists of Poitiers. +</p> + +<p> +The Marquis de Bruyères returned straightway to the <i>Armes de France</i>, and +rendered an account of the success of his mission to de Sigognac; who thanked +him warmly for his services, and felt greatly relieved, now that he was assured +of having the opportunity to resent, as a gentleman should do, the affront +offered to his adored Isabelle. +</p> + +<p> +The representation was to begin very early that evening, and all day the town +crier went about through the streets, beating his drum lustily, and, whenever +he had gathered a curious crowd around him, stopping and announcing the +“great attractions—offered for that evening by Hérode’s +celebrated troupe.” Immense placards were posted upon the walls of the +tennis-court and at the entrance of the <i>Armes de France</i>, also +announcing, in huge, bright-coloured capitals, which reflected great credit on +Scapin, who was the calligraphist of the troupe, the new play of +“Lygdamon et Lydias,” and the Rodomontades of Captain Fracasse. +Long before the hour designated an eager crowd had assembled in the street in +front of the theatre, and when the doors were opened poured in, like a torrent +that has burst its bounds, and threatened to sweep everything before them. +Order was quickly restored, however, within, and “the nobility and gentry +of Poitiers” soon began to arrive in rapid succession. Titled dames, in +their sedan chairs, carried by liveried servants, alighted amid much bowing and +flourishing of attendant gallants. Gentlemen from the environs came riding in, +followed by mounted grooms who led away their masters’ horses or mules. +Grand, clumsy old carriages, vast and roomy, with much tarnished gildings and +many faded decorations about them, and with coats-of-arms emblazoned on their +panels, rolled slowly up, and out of them, as out of Noah’s ark, issued +all sorts of odd-looking pairs, and curious specimens of provincial grandeur; +most of them resplendent in the strange fashions of a bygone day, yet +apparently well satisfied with the elegance of their appearance. The house was +literally packed, until there was not room left for another human being, be he +never so slender. On each side of the stage was a row of arm-chairs, intended +for distinguished spectators, according to the custom of the times, and there +sat the young Duke of Vallombreuse, looking exceedingly handsome, in a very +becoming suit of black velvet, elaborately trimmed with jet, and with a great +deal of exquisite lace about it. Beside him was his faithful friend, the +Chevalier de Vidalinc, who wore a superb costume of dark green satin, richly +ornamented with gold. As to the Marquis de Bruyères, he had not claimed his +seat among the notables, but was snugly ensconced in his usual place—a +retired corner near the orchestra—whence he could applaud his charming +Zerbine to his heart’s content, without making himself too conspicuous. +In the boxes were the fine ladies, in full dress, settling themselves to their +satisfaction with much rustling of silks, fluttering of fans, whispering and +laughing. Although their finery was rather old-fashioned, the general effect +was exceedingly brilliant, and the display of magnificent jewels—family +heirlooms—was fairly dazzling. Such flashing of superb diamonds on white +bosoms and in dark tresses; such strings of large, lustrous pearls round fair +necks, and twined amid sunny curls; such rubies and sapphires, with their +radiant surroundings of brilliants; such thick, heavy chains of virgin gold, of +curious and beautiful workmanship; such priceless laces, yellow with age, of +just that much-desired tint which is creamy at night; such superb old brocades, +stiff and rich enough to stand alone; and best of all, such sweet, sparkling, +young faces, as were to be seen here and there in this aristocratic circle. A +few of the ladies, not wishing to be known had kept on their little black +velvet masks, though they did not prevent their being recognised, spoken of by +name, and commented on with great freedom by the plebeian crowd in the pit. One +lady, however, who was very carefully masked, and attended only by a maid, +baffled the curiosity of all observers. She sat a little back in her box, so +that the full blaze of light should not fall upon her, and a large black lace +veil, which was loosely fastened under her chin, covered her head so +effectually that it was impossible to make out even the colour of her hair. Her +dress was rich and elegant in the extreme, but sombre in hue, and in her hand +she held a handsome fan made of black feathers, with a tiny looking-glass in +the centre. A great many curious glances were directed at her, which manifestly +made her uneasy, and she shrank still farther back in her box to avoid them; +but the orchestra soon struck up a merry tune, and attracted all eyes and +thoughts to the curtain, which was about to rise, so that the mysterious fair +one was left to her enjoyment of the animated scene in peace. They began with +“Lygdamon et Lydias,” in which Leander, who played the principal +part, and wore a most becoming new costume, was quite overwhelmingly handsome. +His appearance was greeted by a murmur of admiration and a great whispering +among the ladies, while one unsophisticated young creature, just emancipated +from her convent-school, exclaimed rapturously, aloud, “Oh! how charming +he is!” for which shocking indiscretion she received a severe reprimand +from her horrified mama, that made her retire into the darkest corner of the +box, covered with blushes and confusion. Yet the poor girl had only innocently +given expression to the secret thought of every woman in the audience, her own +dignified mother included; for, really, Leander was delightfully, irresistibly +handsome as Lygdamon—a perfect Apollo, in the eyes of those provincial +dames. But by far the most agitated of them all was the masked beauty; whose +heaving bosom, trembling hand—betrayed by the fan it held—and eager +attitude—leaning breathlessly forward and intently watching +Leander’s every movement—would inevitably have borne witness to her +great and absorbing interest in him, if anybody had been observing her to mark +her emotion; but fortunately for her all eyes were turned upon the stage, so +she had time to recover her composure. Leander was surpassing himself in his +acting that night, yet even then he did not neglect to gaze searchingly round +the circle of his fair admirers, trying to select the titled dames, and decide +which one among them he should favour with his most languishing glances. As he +scrutinized one after another, his eyes finally reached the masked lady, and at +once his curiosity was on the <i>qui vive</i>—here was assuredly +something promising at last; he was convinced that the richly dressed, graceful +<i>incognita</i> was a victim to his own irresistible charms, and he directed a +long, eloquent, passionate look full at her, to indicate that she was +understood. To his delight—his rapturous, ecstatic delight—she +answered his appealing glance by a very slight bend of the head, which was full +of significance, as if she would thank him for his penetration. Being thus +happily brought <i>en rapport</i>, frequent glances were exchanged throughout +the play, and even little signals also, between the hero on the stage and the +lady in her box. +</p> + +<p> +Leander was an adept in that sort of thing, and could so modulate his voice and +use his really fine eyes in making an impassioned declaration of love to the +heroine of the play, that the fair object of his admiration in the audience +would believe that it was addressed exclusively to herself. Inspired by this +new flame, he acted with so much spirit and animation that he was rewarded with +round after round of applause; which he had the art to make the masked lady +understand he valued less than the faintest mark of approbation and favour from +her. +</p> + +<p> +After “Lygdamon et Lydias” came the Rodomontades of Captain +Fracasse, which met with its accustomed success. Isabelle was rendered very +uneasy by the close proximity of the Duke of Vallombreuse, dreading some act of +insolence on his part; but her fears were needless, for he studiously refrained +from annoying her in any way—even by staring at her too fixedly. He was +moderate in his applause, and quietly attentive, as he sat in a careless +attitude in his arm-chair on the stage throughout the piece. His lip curled +scornfully sometimes when Captain Fracasse was receiving the shower of blows +and abuse that fell to his share, and his whole countenance was expressive of +the most lofty disdain, but that was all; for though violent and impetuous by +nature, the young duke was too much of a gentleman—once his first fury +passed—to transgress the rules of courtesy in any way; and more +especially towards an adversary with whom he was to fight on the +morrow—until then hostilities were suspended, and he religiously observed +the truce. +</p> + +<p> +The masked lady quietly withdrew a little before the end of the second piece, +in order to avoid mingling with the crowd, and also to be able to regain her +chair, which awaited her close at hand, unobserved; her disappearance mightily +disturbed Leander, who was furtively watching the movements of the mysterious +unknown. The moment he was free, almost before the curtain had fallen, he threw +a large cloak around him to conceal his theatrical costume, and rushed towards +the outer door in pursuit of her. The slender thread that bound them together +would be broken past mending he feared if he did not find her, and it would be +too horrible to lose sight of this radiant creature—as he styled her to +himself—before he had been able to profit by the pronounced marks of +favour she had bestowed upon him so lavishly during the evening. But when he +reached the street, all out of breath from his frantic efforts in dashing +through the crowd, and bustling people right and left regardless of everything +but the object he had in view, there was nothing to be seen of her; she had +vanished, and left not a trace behind. Leander reproached himself bitterly with +his own folly in not having endeavoured to exchange a few words with his lost +divinity in the brief interval between the two plays, and called himself every +hard name he could think of; as we are all apt to do in moments of vexation. +</p> + +<p> +But while he still stood gazing disconsolately in the direction that she must +have taken, a little page, dressed in a dark brown livery, and with his cap +pulled down over his eyes, suddenly appeared beside him, and accosted him +politely in a high childish treble, which he vainly strove to render more +manly. “Are you M. Leander? the one who played Lygdamon a while +ago?” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, I am,” answered Leander, amused at the pretentious airs of +his small interlocutor, “and pray what can I do for you, my little +man?” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! nothing for me, thank you,” said the page, with a significant +smile, “only I am charged to deliver a message to you—if you are +disposed to hear it—from the lady of the mask.” +</p> + +<p> +“From the lady of the mask!” cried Leander. “Oh I tell me +quickly what it is; I am dying to hear it.” +</p> + +<p> +“Well, here it is, then, word for word,” said the tiny page +jauntily. “If Lygdamon is as brave as he is gallant, he will go at +midnight to the open square in front of the church, where he will find a +carriage awaiting him; he will enter it without question, as without fear, and +go whither it will take him.” +</p> + +<p> +Before the astonished Leander had time to answer, the page had disappeared in +the crowd, leaving him in great perplexity, for if his heart beat high with joy +at the idea of a romantic adventure, his shoulders still reminded him painfully +of the beating he had received in a certain park at dead of night, and he +remembered with a groan how he had been lured on to his own undoing. Was this +another snare spread for him by some envious wretch who begrudged him his +brilliant success that evening, and was jealous of the marked favour he had +found in the eyes of the fair ladies of Poitiers? Should he encounter some +furious husband at the rendezvous, sword in hand, ready to fall upon him and +run him through the body? These thoughts chilled his ardour, and had nearly +caused him to disregard entirely the page’s mysterious message. Yet, if +he did not profit by this tempting opportunity, which looked so promising, he +might make a terrible mistake; and, if he failed to go, would not the lady of +the mask suspect him of cowardice, and be justified in so doing? This thought +was insupportable to the gallant Leander, and he decided to venture, though low +be it spoken—in fear and trembling. He hastened back to the hotel, +scarcely touched the substantial supper provided for the comedians—his +appetite lost in his intense excitement—and retiring to his own chamber +made an elaborate toilet; curling and perfuming his hair and mustache, and +sparing no pains to make himself acceptable to the lovely lady of the mask. He +armed himself with a dagger and a sword, though he did not know how to use +either; but he thought that the mere sight of them might inspire awe. +</p> + +<p> +When he was all ready at last, he drew his broad felt hat well down over his +eyes, threw the corner of his cloak over his shoulder, in Spanish fashion, so +as to conceal the lower part of his face, and crept stealthily out of the +hotel—for once being lucky enough to escape the observation of his wily +tormentor, Scapin, who was at that moment snoring his loudest in his own room +at the other end of the house. +</p> + +<p> +The streets had long been empty and deserted, for the good people of the +ancient and respectable town of Poitiers go early to bed. Leander did not meet +a living creature, excepting a few forlorn, homeless cats, prowling about and +bewailing themselves in a melancholy way, that fled before him, and vanished +round dark corners or in shadowy doorways. Our gallant reached the open square +designated by the little page just as the last stroke of twelve was vibrating +in the still night air. It gave him a shudder; a superstitious sensation of +horror took possession of him, and he felt as if he had heard the tolling of +his own funeral bell. For an instant he was on the point of rushing back, and +seeking quiet, safe repose in his comfortable bed at the <i>Armes de +France</i>, but was arrested by the sight of the carriage standing there +waiting for him, with the tiny page himself in attendance, perched on the step +and holding the door open for him. So he was obliged to go on—for few +people in this strange world of ours have the courage to be cowardly before +witnesses—and instinctively acting a part, he advanced with a deliberate +and dignified bearing, that gave no evidence of the inward fear and agitation +that had set his heart beating as if it would burst out of his breast, and sent +strong shivers over him from his head to his feet. Scarcely had he taken his +seat in the carriage when the coachman touched his horses with the whip, and +they were off at a good round pace; while he was in utter darkness, and did not +even know which way they went, as the leathern curtains were carefully drawn +down, so that nothing could be seen from within, or without. The small page +remained at his post on the carriage step, but spoke never a word, and Leander +could not with decency question him, much as he would have liked to do so. He +knew that his surroundings were luxurious, for his exploring fingers told him +that the soft, yielding cushions, upon which he was resting, were covered with +velvet, and his feet sank into a thick, rich rug, while the vague, delicious +perfume, that seemed to surround and caress him, soothed his ruffled feelings, +and filled his mind with rapturous visions of bliss. He tried in vain to divine +who it could be that had sent to fetch him in this delightfully mysterious way, +and became more curious than ever, and also rather uneasy again, when he felt +that the carriage had quitted the paved streets of the town, and was rolling +smoothly and rapidly along over a country road. At last it stopped, the little +page jumped down and flung the door wide open, and Leander, alighting, found +himself confronted by a high, dark wall, which seemed to inclose a park, or +garden; but he did not perceive a wooden door close at hand until his small +companion, pushing back a rusty bolt, proceeded to open it, with considerable +difficulty, and admitted him into what was apparently a thick wood. +</p> + +<p> +“Take hold of my hand,” said the page patronizingly to Leander, +“so that I can guide you; it is too dark for you to be able to make out +the path through this labyrinth of trees.” +</p> + +<p> +Leander obeyed, and both walked cautiously forward, feeling their way as they +wound in and out among the trees, and treading the crackling, dry leaves, +strewn thickly upon the ground, under their feet. Emerging from the wood at +last, they came upon a garden, laid out in the usual style, with rows of box +bordering the angular flower beds, and with yew trees, cut into pyramids, at +regular intervals; which, just perceptible in the darkness, looked like +sentinels posted on their way—a shocking sight for the poor timid actor, +who trembled in every limb. They passed them all, however, unchallenged, and +ascended some stone steps leading up to a terrace, on which stood a small +country house—a sort of pavilion, with a dome, and little turrets at the +corners. The place seemed quite deserted, save for a subdued glimmer of light +from one large window, which the thick crimson silk curtains within could not +entirely conceal. At this reassuring sight Leander dismissed all fear from his +mind, and gave himself up to the most blissful anticipations. He was in a +seventh heaven of delight; his feet seemed to spurn the earth; he would have +flown into the presence of the waiting angel within if he had but known the +way. How he wished, in this moment of glory and triumph, that Scapin, his +mortal enemy and merciless tormentor, could see him. The tiny page stepped on +before him, and after opening a large glass door and showing him into a +spacious apartment, furnished with great luxury and elegance, retired and left +him alone, without a word. The vaulted ceiling—which was the interior of +the dome seen from without—was painted to represent a light blue sky, in +which small rosy clouds were floating, and bewitching little Loves flying about +in all sorts of graceful attitudes, while the walls were hung with beautiful +tapestry. The cabinets, inlaid with exquisite Florentine mosaics and filled +with many rare and curious objects of virtu, the round table covered with a +superb Turkish cloth, the large, luxurious easy-chairs, the vases of priceless +porcelain filled with fragrant flowers, all testified to the wealth and +fastidious taste of their owner. The richly gilded candelabra, of many +branches, holding clusters of wax candles, which shed their soft, mellow light +on all this magnificence, were upheld by sculptured arms and hands in black +marble, to represent a negro’s, issuing from fantastic white marble +sleeves; as if the sable attendants were standing without the room, and had +passed their arms through apertures in the wall. +</p> + +<p> +Leander, dazzled by so much splendour, did not at first perceive that there was +no one awaiting him in this beautiful apartment, but when he had recovered from +his first feeling of astonishment, and realized that he was alone, he proceeded +to take off his cloak and lay it, with his hat and sword, on a chair in one +corner, after which he deliberately rearranged his luxuriant ringlets in front +of a Venetian mirror, and then, assuming his most graceful and telling pose, +began pouring forth in dulcet tones the following monologue: “But where, +oh! where, is the divinity of this Paradise? Here is the temple indeed, but I +see not the goddess. When, oh! when, will she deign to emerge from the cloud +that veils her perfect form, and reveal herself to the adoring eyes, that wait +so impatiently to behold her?” rolling the said organs of vision about in +the most effective manner by way of illustration. +</p> + +<p> +Just at that moment, as if in response to this eloquent appeal, the crimson +silk hanging, which fell in front of a door that Leander had not noticed, was +pushed aside, and the lady he had come to seek stood before him; with the +little black velvet mask still over her face, to the great disappointment and +discomfiture of her expectant suitor. “Can it be possible that she is +ugly?” he thought to himself; “this obstinate clinging to the mask +alarms me.” But his uncertainty was of short duration, for the lady, +advancing to the centre of the room, where Leander stood respectfully awaiting +her pleasure, untied the strings of the mask, took it off, and threw it down on +the table, disclosing a rather pretty face, with tolerably regular features, +large, brilliant, brown eyes, and smiling red lips. Her rich masses of dark +hair were elaborately dressed, with one long curl hanging down upon her neck, +and enhancing its whiteness by contrast; the uncovered shoulders were plump and +shapely, and the full, snowy bosom rose and fell tumultuously under the cloud +of beautifully fine lace that veiled, not concealed, its voluptuous curves. +</p> + +<p> +“Mme. la Marquise de Bruyères!” cried Leander, astonished to the +highest degree, and not a little agitated, as the remembrance of his last, and +first, attempt to meet her, and what he had found in her place, rushed back +upon him; “can it be possible? am I dreaming? or may I dare to believe in +such unhoped-for, transcendent happiness?” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes; you are not mistaken, my dear friend,” said she, “I am +indeed the Marquise de Bruyères, and recognised, I trust, by your heart as well +as your eyes.” +</p> + +<p> +“Ah! but too well,” Leander replied, in thrilling tones. +“Your adored image is cherished there, traced in living lines of light; I +have only to look into that devoted, faithful heart, to see and worship your +beauteous form, endowed with every earthly grace, and radiant with every +heavenly perfection.” +</p> + +<p> +“I thank you,” said the <i>marquise</i>, “for having retained +such a kind and tender remembrance of me; it proves that yours is a noble, +magnanimous soul. You had every reason to think me cruel, ungrateful, +false—when, alas! my poor heart in reality is but too susceptible, and I +was far from being insensible to the passionate admiration you so gracefully +testified for me. Your letter addressed to me did not reach my hands, but +unfortunately fell into those of the marquis—through the heartless +treachery of the faithless maid to whom it was intrusted—and he sent you +the answer which so cruelly deceived you, my poor Leander! Some time after he +showed me that letter, laughing heartily over what he was wicked enough to call +a capital joke; that letter, in every line of which the purest, most +impassioned love shone so brightly, and filled my heart with joy, despite his +ridicule and coarse abuse. It did not produce the effect upon me that he +expected and intended; the sentiment I cherished secretly for you was only +increased and strengthened by its persuasive eloquence, and I resolved to +reward you for all that you had suffered for my sake. Knowing my husband to be +perfectly absorbed in his most recent conquest, and so oblivious of me that +there was no danger of his becoming aware of my absence from the Château de +Bruyères, I have ventured to come to Poitiers; for I have heard you express +fictitious love so admirably, that I long to know whether you can be as +eloquent and convincing when you speak for yourself.” +</p> + +<p> +“Mme. la Marquise,” said Leander, in his sweetest tones, sinking +gracefully on his knees, upon a cushion at the feet of the lady, who had let +herself fall languidly into a low easy-chair, as if exhausted by the extreme +effort that her confession had been to her modesty. “Madame, or rather +most lovely queen and deity, what can mere empty words, counterfeit passion, +imaginary raptures, conceived and written in cold blood by the poets, and +make-believe sighs, breathed out at the feet of an odious actress, all powdered +and painted, whose eyes are wandering absently around the theatre—what +can these be beside the living words that gush out from the soul, the fire that +burns in the veins and arteries, the hyperboles of an exalted passion, to which +the whole universe cannot furnish images brilliant and lofty enough to apply to +its idol, and the aspirations of a wildly loving heart, that would fain break +forth from the breast that contains it, to serve as a footstool for the dear +object of its adoration? You deign to say, celestial <i>marquise</i>, that I +express with some feeling the fictitious love in the pieces I play. Shall I +tell you why it is so? Because I never look at, or even think of, the actress +whom I seem to address—my thoughts soar far above and beyond +her—and I speak to my own perfect ideal; to a being, noble, beautiful, +<i>spirituelle</i> as yourself, Mme. la Marquise! It is you, in fine, +<i>you</i> that I see and love under the name of Silvie, Doralice, Isabelle, or +whatever it may chance to be; they are only your phantoms for me.” +</p> + +<p> +With these words Leander, who was too good an actor to neglect the pantomime +that should accompany such a declaration, bent down over the hand that the +<i>marquise</i> had allowed him to take, and covered it with burning kisses; +which delicate attention was amiably received, and his real love-making seemed +to be as pleasing to her ladyship as even he could have desired. +</p> + +<p> +The eastern sky was all aflame with the radiance of the coming sun when +Leander, well wrapped in his warm cloak, was driven back to Poitiers. As he +lifted a corner of one of the carefully lowered curtains, to see which side of +the town they were approaching, he caught sight of the Marquis de Bruyères and +the Baron de Sigognac, still at some distance, who were walking briskly along +the road towards him, on their way to the spot designated for the duel. +</p> + +<p> +Leander let the curtain drop, so as not to be seen by the marquis, who was +almost grazed by the carriage wheels as they rolled by him, and a satisfied +smile played round his lips; he was revenged—the beating was atoned for +now. +</p> + +<p> +The place selected for the hostile meeting between the Baron de Sigognac and +the Duke of Vallombreuse was sheltered from the cold north wind by a high wall, +which also screened the combatants from the observation of those passing along +the road. The ground was firm, well trodden down, without stones, tufts of +grass, or inequalities of any kind, which might be in the way of the swordsmen, +and offered every facility to men of honour to murder each other after the most +correct and approved fashion. The Duke of Vallombreuse and the Chevalier de +Vidalinc, followed by a surgeon, arrived at the rendezvous only a few seconds +after the others, and the four gentlemen saluted each other with the haughty +courtesy and frigid politeness becoming to well-bred men meeting for such a +purpose. The duke’s countenance was expressive of the most careless +indifference, as he felt perfect confidence in his own courage and skill. The +baron was equally cool and collected, though it was his first duel, and a +little nervousness or agitation would have been natural and excusable. The +Marquis de Bruyères watched him with great satisfaction, auguring good things +for their side from his quiet <i>sang-froid</i>. Vallombreuse immediately threw +off his cloak and hat, and unfastened his <i>pourpoint</i>, in which he was +closely imitated by de Sigognac. The marquis and the chevalier measured the +swords of the combatants, which were found to be of equal length, and then each +second placed his principal in position, and put his sword in his hand. +</p> + +<p> +“Fall to, gentlemen, and fight like men of spirit, as you are,” +said the marquis. +</p> + +<p> +“A needless recommendation that,” chimed in the Chevalier de +Vidalinc; “they go at it like lions—-we shall have a superb +duel.” +</p> + +<p> +The Duke of Vallombreuse, who, in his inmost heart, could not help despising de +Sigognac more than a little, and had imagined that he should find in him but a +weak antagonist, was astonished when he discovered the strength of the +baron’s sword, and could not deny to himself that he wielded a firm and +supple blade, which baffled his own with the greatest ease—that he was, +in fine, a “foeman worthy of his steel.” He became more careful and +attentive; then tried several feints, which were instantly detected. At the +least opening he left, the point of de Sigognac’s sword, rapid as +lightning in its play, darted in upon him, necessitating the exercise of all +his boasted skill to parry it. He ventured an attack, which was so promptly +met, and his weapon so cleverly struck aside, that he was left exposed to his +adversary’s thrust, and but for throwing himself back out of reach, by a +sudden, violent movement, he must have received it full in his breast. From +that instant all was changed for the young duke; he had believed that he would +be able to direct the combat according to his own will and pleasure, but, +instead of that, he was forced to make use of all his skill and address to +defend himself. He had believed that after a few passes he could wound de +Sigognac, wherever he chose, by a thrust which, up to that time, he had always +found successful; but, instead of that, he had hard work to avoid being wounded +himself. Despite his efforts to remain calm and cool, he was rapidly growing +angry; he felt himself becoming nervous and feverish, while the baron, +perfectly at his ease and unmoved, seemed to take a certain pleasure in +irritating him by the irreproachable excellence of his fence. +</p> + +<p> +“Sha’n’t we do something in this way too, while our friends +are occupied?” said the chevalier to the marquis. +</p> + +<p> +“It is very cold this morning. Suppose we fight a little also, if only to +warm ourselves up, and set our blood in motion.” +</p> + +<p> +“With all my heart,” the marquis replied; “we could not do +better.” +</p> + +<p> +The chevalier was superior to the Marquis de Bruyères in the noble art of +fencing, and after a few passes had sent the latter’s sword flying out of +his hand. As no enmity existed between them, they stopped there by mutual +consent, and turned their attention again to de Sigognac and Vallombreuse. The +duke, sore pressed by the close play of the baron, had fallen back several feet +from his original position. He was becoming weary, and beginning to draw +panting breaths. From time to time, as their swords clashed violently together, +bluish sparks flew from them; but the defence was growing perceptibly weaker, +and de Sigognac was steadily forcing the duke to give way before his attack. +When he saw the state of affairs, the Chevalier de Vidalinc turned very pale, +and began to feel really anxious for his friend, who was so evidently getting +the worst of it. +</p> + +<p> +“Why the devil doesn’t he try that wonderful thrust he learned from +Girolamo of Naples?” murmured he. “This confounded Gascon cannot +possibly know anything about that.” +</p> + +<p> +As if inspired by the same thought, the young duke did, at that very moment, +try to put it into execution; but de Sigognac, aware of what he was preparing +to do, not only prevented but anticipated him, and touched and wounded his +adversary in the arm—his sword going clean through it. +</p> + +<p> +The pain was so intense that the duke’s fingers could no longer grasp his +sword, and it fell to the ground. The baron, with the utmost courtesy, +instantly desisted, although he was entitled by the rules of the code to follow +up his blow with another—for the duel does not necessarily come to an end +with the first blood drawn. He turned the point of his sword to the ground, put +his left hand on his hip, and stood silently awaiting his antagonist’s +pleasure. But Vallombreuse could not hold the sword which his second had picked +up and presented to him, after a nod of acquiescence from de Sigognac; and he +turned away to signify that he had had enough. Whereupon, the marquis and the +baron, after bowing politely to the others, set forth quietly to walk back to +the town. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap10"></a>CHAPTER X.<br/> +A MIDNIGHT ADVENTURE</h2> + +<p> +After the surgeon had bandaged his injured arm, and arranged a sling for it, +the Duke of Vallombreuse was put carefully into a chair, which had been sent +for in all haste, to be taken home. His wound was not in the least a dangerous +one, though it would deprive him of the use of his right hand for some time to +come, for the blade had gone quite through the forearm; but, most fortunately, +without severing any important tendons or arteries. He suffered a great deal of +pain from it of course, but still more from his wounded pride; and he felt +furiously and unreasonably angry with everything and everybody about him. It +seemed to be somewhat of a relief to him to swear savagely at his bearers, and +call them all the hardest names he could think of, whenever he felt the +slightest jar, as they carried him slowly towards home, though they were +walking as steadily as men could do, and carefully avoiding every inequality in +the road. When at last he reached his own house, he was not willing to be put +to bed, as the surgeon advised, but lay down upon a lounge instead, where he +was made as comfortable as was possible by his faithful Picard, who was in +despair at seeing the young duke in such a condition; astonished as well, for +nothing of the kind had ever happened before, in all the many duels he had +fought; and the admiring valet had shared his master’s belief that he was +invincible. The Chevalier de Vidalinc sat in a low chair beside his friend, and +gave him from time to time a spoonful of the tonic prescribed by the surgeon, +but refrained from breaking the silence into which he had fallen. Vallombreuse +lay perfectly still for a while; but it was easy to see, in spite of his +affected calmness, that his blood was boiling with suppressed rage. At last he +could restrain himself no longer, and burst out violently: “Oh! Vidalinc, +this is too outrageously aggravating! to think that that contemptible, lean +stork, who has flown forth from his ruined château so as not to die of +starvation in it, should have dared to stick his long bill into me! I have +encountered, and conquered, the best swordsmen in France, and never returned +from the field before with so much as a scratch, or without leaving my +adversary stretched lifeless on the ground, or wounded and bleeding in the arms +of his friends.” +</p> + +<p> +“But you must remember that the most favoured and the bravest of mortals +have their unlucky days, Vallombreuse,” answered the chevalier +sententiously, “and Dame Fortune does not <i>always</i> smile, even upon +her prime favourites. Until now you have never had to complain of her frowns, +for you have been her pampered darling all your life long.” +</p> + +<p> +“Isn’t it too disgraceful,” continued Vallombreuse, growing +more and more heated, “that this ridiculous buffoon—this grotesque +country clown—who takes such abominable drubbings on the stage, and has +never in his life known what it was to associate with gentlemen, should have +managed to get the best of the Duke of Vallombreuse, hitherto by common accord +pronounced invincible? He must be a professional prize-fighter, disguised as a +strolling mountebank.” +</p> + +<p> +“There can be no doubt about his real rank,” said Vidalinc, +“for the Marquis de Bruyères guarantees it; but I must confess that his +unequalled performance to-day filled me with astonishment; it was simply +marvellous. Neither Girolamo nor Paraguante, those two world-renowned +swordsmen, could have surpassed it. I watched him closely, and I tell you that +even they could not have withstood him. It took all your remarkable +skill—which has been so greatly enhanced by the Neapolitan’s +instructions—to avoid being mortally wounded; why your defeat was a +victory in my eyes, in that it was not a more overwhelming one.” +</p> + +<p> +“I don’t know how I am to wait for this wound to heal,” the +duke said, after a short pause, “I am so impatient to provoke him again, +and have the opportunity to revenge myself.” +</p> + +<p> +“That would be a very hazardous proceeding, and one that I should +strongly advise you not to attempt,” Vidalinc replied in an earnest tone. +“Your sword-arm will scarcely be as strong as before for a long time I +fear, and that would seriously diminish your chances of success. This Baron de +Sigognac is a very formidable antagonist, and will be still more so, for you, +now that he knows your tactics; and besides, the confidence in himself which +his first victory naturally gives him would be another thing in his favour. +Honour is satisfied, and the encounter was a serious one for you. Let the +matter rest here, I beseech you!” +</p> + +<p> +Vallombreuse could not help being secretly convinced of the justice of these +remarks, but was not willing to avow it openly, even to his most intimate +friend. He was a sufficiently accomplished swordsman himself to appreciate de +Sigognac’s wonderful prowess, and he knew that it far surpassed his own +much vaunted skill, though it enraged him to have to recognise this humiliating +fact. He was even obliged to acknowledge, in his inmost heart, that he owed his +life to the generous forbearance of his hated enemy; who might have taken it +just as well as not, but had spared him, and been content with giving him only +a flesh wound, just severe enough to put him hors-de-combat, without doing him +any serious injury. This magnanimous conduct, by which a less haughty nature +would have been deeply touched, only served to irritate the young duke’s +pride, and increase his resentment. To think that he, the valiant and puissant +Duke of Vallombreuse, had been conquered, humiliated, wounded! the bare idea +made him frantic. Although he said nothing further to his companion about his +revenge, his mind was filled with fierce projects whereby to obtain it, and he +swore to himself to be even yet with the author of his present +mortification—if not in one way, then in another; for injuries there be +that are far worse than mere physical wounds and hurts. +</p> + +<p> +“I shall cut a sorry figure enough now in the eyes of the fair +Isabelle,” said he at last, with a forced laugh, “with my arm here +run through and rendered useless by the sword of her devoted gallant. Cupid, +weak and disabled, never did find much favour with the Graces, you know. But +oh! how charming and adorable she seems to me, this sweet, disdainful Isabelle! +I am actually almost grateful to her for resisting me so; for, if she had +yielded, I should have been tired of her by this time, I fancy. Her nature +certainly cannot be a base, ordinary one, or she would never have refused thus +the advances of a wealthy and powerful nobleman, who is ready to lavish upon +her everything that heart could desire, and whose own personal attractions are +not to be despised; if the universal verdict of the fair sex of all ranks can +be relied upon. There is a certain respect and esteem mingled with my +passionate admiration for her, that I have never felt before for any woman, and +it is very sweet to me. But how in the world are we to get rid of this +confounded young sprig of nobility, her self-constituted champion? May the +devil fly away with him!” +</p> + +<p> +“It will not be an easy matter,” the chevalier replied, and +especially now that he is upon his guard. “But even if you did succeed in +getting rid of him, Isabelle’s love for him would still be in your way, +and you ought to know, better than most men, how obstinate a woman can be in +her devoted attachment to a man.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! if I could only kill this miserable baron,” continued +Vallombreuse, not at all impressed by the chevalier’s last remark, +“I could soon win the favour of this virtuous young person, in spite of +all her little prudish airs and graces. Nothing is so quickly forgotten as a +defunct suitor.” +</p> + +<p> +These were by no means the chevalier’s sentiments, but he refrained from +pursuing the subject then, wishing to soothe, rather than irritate, his +suffering friend. +</p> + +<p> +“You must first get well as fast as you can,” he said, “and +it will be time enough then for us to discuss the matter. All this talking +wearies you, and does you no good. Try to get a little nap now, and not excite +yourself so. The surgeon will tax me with imprudence, and call me a bad nurse, +I’m afraid, if I don’t manage to keep you more quiet—mentally +as well as physically.” +</p> + +<p> +His patient, yielding with rather an ill grace to this sensible advice, sank +back wearily upon his pillows, closed his eyes, and soon fell +asleep—where we will leave him, enjoying his much needed repose. +</p> + +<p> +Meantime the Marquis de Bruyères and de Sigognac had quietly returned to their +hotel, where, like well-bred gentlemen, they did not breathe even a hint of +what had taken place. But walls have ears they say, and eyes as well it would +appear, for they certainly see as much as they ever hear. In the neighbourhood +of the apparently solitary, deserted spot where the duel had taken place, more +than one inquisitive, hidden observer had closely watched the progress of the +combat, and had not lost a moment after it was over in spreading the news of +it; so that by breakfast-time all Poitiers was in a flutter of excitement over +the intelligence that the Duke of Vallombreuse had been wounded in a duel with +an unknown adversary, and was exhausting itself in vain conjectures as to who +the valiant stranger could possibly be. No one thought of de Sigognac, who had +led the most retired life imaginable ever since his arrival; remaining quietly +at the hotel all day, and showing only his stage mask, not his own face, at the +theatre in the evening. +</p> + +<p> +Several gentlemen of his acquaintance sent to inquire ceremoniously after the +Duke of Vallombreuse, giving their messengers instructions to endeavour to get +some information from his servants about the mysterious duel, but they were as +taciturn as the mutes of a seraglio, for the very excellent and sufficient +reason that they knew nothing what ever about it. The young duke, by his great +wealth, his overweening pride, his uncommon good looks, and his triumphant +success among fair ladies everywhere, habitually excited much secret jealousy +and hatred among his associates, which not one of them dared to manifest +openly—but they were mightily pleased by his present discomfiture. +</p> + +<p> +It was the first check he had ever experienced, and all those who had been hurt +or offended by his arrogance—and they were legion—now rejoiced in +his mortification. They could not say enough in praise of his successful +antagonist, though they had never seen him, nor had any idea as to what manner +of man he might be. The ladies, who nearly all had some cause of complaint +against the haughty young noble man, as he was wont to boast loudly of his +triumphs, and basely betray the favours that had been accorded to him in +secret, were full of enthusiastic and tender admiration for this victorious +champion of a woman’s virtue, who, they felt, had unconsciously avenged +for them many scornful slights, and they would have gladly crowned him with +laurel and myrtle, and rewarded him with their sweetest smiles and most +distinguished favour. +</p> + +<p> +However, as nothing on this terraqueous and sublunary globe can long remain a +secret, it soon transpired through Maître Bilot, who had it direct from +Jacques, the valet of the Marquis de Bruyères, who had been present during the +momentous interview between his master and the Baron de Sigognac, that the +duke’s brave antagonist was no other than the redoubtable Captain +Fracasse; or rather, a young nobleman in disguise, who for the sake of a love +affair had become a member of Hérode’s troupe of travelling comedians. As +to his real name, Jacques had unfortunately forgotten it, further than that it +ended in “<i>gnac</i>,” as is not uncommon in Gascony, but on the +point of his rank he was positive. This delightfully romantic and +“ower-true tale” was received with acclamations by the good folk of +Poitiers. They were fairly overflowing with admiration for and interest in the +valiant gentleman who wielded such a powerful blade, and the devoted lover who +had left everything to follow his mistress, and when Captain Fracasse appeared +upon the stage that evening, the prolonged and enthusiastic applause that +greeted him, and was renewed over and over again before he was allowed to speak +a single word, bore witness unmistakably to the favour with which he was +regarded; while the ladies rose in their boxes and waved their handkerchiefs, +even the grandest and most dignified among them, and brought the palms of their +gloved hands daintily together in his honour. It was a real ovation, and best +of all a spontaneous one. Isabelle also received a perfect storm of applause, +which alarmed and had nearly overcome the retiring young actress, who blushed +crimson in her embarrassment, as she made a modest curtsey in acknowledgment of +the compliment. +</p> + +<p> +Hérode was overjoyed, and his face shone like the full moon as he rubbed his +hands together and grinned broadly in his exuberant delight; for the receipts +were immense, and the cash-box was full to bursting. Everybody had rushed to +the theatre to see and applaud the now famous Captain Fracasse—the +capital actor and high-spirited gentleman—who feared neither cudgels nor +swords; and had not shrunk from encountering the dreaded Duke of Vallombreuse, +the terror of all the country round, in mortal combat, as the champion of +offended beauty. Blazius, however, did not share the tyrant’s raptures, +but on the contrary foreboded no good from all this, for he feared, and not +without reason, the vindictive character of the Duke of Vallombreuse, and was +apprehensive that he would find some means of revenging himself for his defeat +at de Sigognac’s hands that would be detrimental to the troupe. +“Earthen vessels,” said he, “should be very careful how they +get in the way of metal ones, lest, if they rashly encounter them, they be +ignominiously smashed in the shock.” But Hérode, relying upon the support +and countenance of the Baron de Sigognac and the Marquis de Bruyères, laughed +at his fears, and called him faint-heart, a coward, and a croaker. +</p> + +<p> +When the comedians returned to their hotel, after the play was over, de +Sigognac accompanied Isabelle to the door of her room, and, contrary to her +usual custom, the young actress invited him to enter it with her. When they +found themselves quite alone, and safe from all curious eyes, Isabelle turned +to de Sigognac, took his hand in both of hers, and pressing it warmly said to +him in a voice trembling with emotion, +</p> + +<p> +“Promise me never to run such a fearful risk for my sake again, de +Sigognac; promise me! Swear it, if you really do love me as you say.” +</p> + +<p> +“That is a thing I cannot do,” the baron replied, “even to +please you, sweet Isabelle! If ever any insolent fellow dares to show a want of +proper respect for you, I shall surely chastise him for it, as I ought, be he +what he may—duke, or even prince.” +</p> + +<p> +“But remember, de Sigognac, that I am nothing but an actress, inevitably +exposed to affronts from the men that haunt the <i>coulisses</i>. It is the +generally received opinion, which alas! is but too well justified by the usual +ways of the members of my profession, that an actress is no better than she +should be; in fine, not a proper character nor worthy of respect. From the +moment that a woman steps upon the stage she becomes public property, and even +if she be really pure and virtuous it is universally believed that she only +affects it for a purpose. These things are hard and bitter, but they must be +borne, since it is impossible to change them. In future trust to me, I pray +you, to repel those who would force their unwelcome attentions upon me in the +green-room, or endeavour to make their way into my dressing-room. A sharp rap +over the knuckles with a corset board from me will be quite as efficacious as +for you to draw your sword in my behalf.” +</p> + +<p> +“But I am not convinced,” said de Sigognac, with a smile; “I +must still believe, sweet Isabelle, that the sword of a chivalrous ally would +be your best weapon of defence, and I beg you not to deprive me of the precious +privilege of being your devoted knight and champion.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle was still holding de Sigognac’s hand, and she now raised her +lovely eyes, full of mute supplication, to meet his adoring gaze, hoping yet to +draw from him, the much desired promise. But the baron was incorrigible; where +honour was concerned he was as firm and unyielding as a Spanish hidalgo, and he +would have braved a thousand deaths rather than have allowed an affront to the +lady of his love to pass unpunished; he wished that the same deference and +respect should be accorded to Isabelle upon the stage, as to a duchess in her +drawing-room. +</p> + +<p> +“Come, de Sigognac, be reasonable,” pleaded the young actress, +“and promise me not to expose yourself to such danger again for so +frivolous a cause. Oh! what anxiety and anguish I endured as I awaited your +return this morning. I knew that you had gone out to fight with that dreadful +duke, who is held in such universal terror here; Zerbine told me all about it. +Cruel that you are to torture my poor heart so! That is always the way with +men; they never stop to think of what we poor, loving women must suffer when +their pride is once aroused! off they go, as fierce as lions, deaf to our sobs +and blind to our tears. Do you know, that if you had been killed I should have +died too?” +</p> + +<p> +The tears that filled Isabelle’s eyes, and the excessive trembling of her +voice, showed that she was in earnest, and that she had not even yet recovered +her usual calmness and composure. More deeply touched than words can express by +her emotion, and the love for himself it bore witness to, de Sigognac, +encircling her slender form with the arm that was free, drew her gently to him, +and softly kissed her fair forehead, whilst he could feel, as he pressed her to +his breast, how she was panting and trembling. He held her thus tenderly +embraced for a blissful few seconds of silent ecstasy, which a less respectful +lover would doubtless have presumed upon; but he would have scorned to take +advantage of the unreserved confidence bestowed upon him in a moment of such +agitation and sorrowful excitement. +</p> + +<p> +“Be comforted, dear Isabelle,” said he at last, tenderly. “I +was not killed you see, nor even hurt; and I actually wounded my adversary, +though he does pass for a tolerably good swordsman hereabouts, I +believe.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, I well know what a strong hand is yours, and what a brave, noble +heart,” Isabelle replied; “and I do not scruple to acknowledge that +I love you for it with all my heart; feeling sure that you will respect my +frank avowal, and not endeavour to take advantage of it. When I first saw you, +de Sigognac, dispirited and desolate, in that dreary, half-ruined château, +where your youth was passing in sadness and solitude, I felt a tender interest +in you suddenly spring into being in my heart; had you been happy and +prosperous I should have been afraid of you, and have shrunk timidly from your +notice. When we walked together in that neglected garden, where you held aside +the brambles so carefully for me to pass unscathed, you gathered and presented +to me a little wild rose—the only thing you had to give me. As I raised +it to my lips, before putting it in my bosom, and kissed it furtively under +pretence of inhaling its fragrance, I could not keep back a tear that dropped +upon it, and secretly and in silence I gave you my heart in exchange for +it.” +</p> + +<p> +As these entrancing words fell upon his ear, de Sigognac impulsively tried to +kiss the sweet lips so temptingly near his own, but Isabelle withdrew herself +gently from his embrace; not with any show of excessive prudery, but with a +modest timidity that no really gallant lover would endeavour to overcome by +force. +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, I love you, de Sigognac,” she continued, in a voice that was +heavenly sweet, “and with all my heart, but not as other women love; your +glory is my aim, not my own pleasure. I am perfectly willing to be looked upon +as your mistress; it is the only thing that would account satisfactorily to the +world at large for your presence in this troupe of strolling players. And why +should I care for slanderous reports, so long as I keep my own self-esteem, and +know myself to be virtuous and true? If there were really a stain upon my +purity it would kill me; I could not survive it. It is the princely blood in my +veins doubtless that gives rise to such pride in me; very ridiculous, perhaps, +in an actress, but such is my nature.” +</p> + +<p> +This enchanting avowal, which would not have taught anything new to a more +conceited or bolder suitor, but was a wonderful revelation to de Sigognac, who +had scarcely dared to hope that his passionate, devoted love might some day be +returned, filled him with such rapturous, overwhelming delight, that he was +almost beside himself. A burning flush overspread his usually pale face; he +seemed to see flames before his eyes; there was a strange ringing in his ears, +and his heart throbbed so violently that he felt half suffocated. Losing +control of himself in this moment of ecstasy, so intense that it was not +unmixed with pain, he suddenly seized Isabelle passionately in his arms, +strained her trembling form convulsively to his heaving breast, and covered her +face and neck with burning kisses. She did not even try to struggle against +this fierce embrace, but, throwing her head back, looked fixedly at him, with +eyes full of sorrow and reproach. From those lovely eyes, clear and pure as an +angel’s, great tears welled forth and rolled down over her blanched +cheeks, and a suppressed sob shook her quivering frame as a sudden faintness +seemed to come over her. The young baron, distracted at the sight of her grief, +and full of keen self-reproach, put her gently down into a low, easy-chair +standing near, and kneeling before her, took in both his own the hands that she +abandoned to him, and passionately implored her pardon; pleading that a +momentary madness had taken possession of him, that he repented of it bitterly, +and was ready to atone for his offence by the most perfect submission to her +wishes. +</p> + +<p> +“You have hurt me sadly, my friend!” said Isabelle at last, with a +deep-drawn sigh. “I had such perfect confidence in your delicacy and +respect. The frank, unreserved avowal of my love for you ought to have been +enough, and have shown you clearly, by its very openness, that I trusted you +entirely. I believed that you would understand me and let me love you in my own +way, without troubling my tenderness for you by vulgar transports. Now, you +have robbed me of my feeling of security. I do not doubt your words, but I +shall no longer dare to yield to the impulses of my own heart. And yet it was +so sweet to me to be with you, to watch you, to listen to your dear voice, and +to follow the course of your thoughts as I saw them written in your eyes. I +wished to share your troubles and anxieties, de Sigognac, leaving your +pleasures to others. I said to myself, among all these coarse, dissolute, +presuming men that hover about us, there is one who is different—one who +believes in purity, and knows how to respect it in the woman he honours with +his love. I dared to indulge in a sweet dream—even I, Isabelle the +actress, pursued as I am constantly by a gallantry that is odious to me—I +dared to indulge in the too sweet dream of enjoying with you a pure mutual +love. I only asked to be your faithful companion, to cheer and comfort you in +your struggles with an adverse fate until you had reached the beginning of +happiness and prosperity, and then to retire into obscurity again, when you had +plenty of new friends and followers, and no longer needed me. You see that I +was not very exacting.” +</p> + +<p> +“Isabelle, my adored Isabelle,” cried de Sigognac, “every +word that you speak makes me reproach myself more and more keenly for my fault, +and the pain I have given you. Rest assured, my own darling, that you have +nothing further to fear from me. I am not worthy to kiss the traces of your +footprints in the dust; but yet, I pray you, listen to me! Perhaps you do not +fully understand all my thoughts and intentions, and will forgive me when you +do. I have nothing but my name, which is as pure and spotless as your sweet +self, and I offer it to you, my own beloved Isabelle, if you will deign to +accept it.” +</p> + +<p> +He was still kneeling at her feet, and at these ardently spoken words she +leaned towards him, took his upraised face between her hands with a quick, +passionate movement, and kissed him fervently on the lips; then she sprang to +her feet and began, hurriedly and excitedly, pacing back and forth in the +chamber. +</p> + +<p> +“You will be my wife, Isabelle?” cried de Sigognac in agitated +tones, thrilling in every nerve from the sweet contact of her pure, lovely +mouth—fresh as a flower, ardent as a flame. +</p> + +<p> +“Never, never,” answered Isabelle, with a clear ring of rapture in +her voice. “I will show myself worthy of such an honour by refusing it. I +did mistake you for a moment, my dearest friend; I did mistake you; forgive me. +Oh! how happy you have made me; what celestial joy fills my soul! You do +respect and esteem me, then, to the utmost? Ah! de Sigognac, you would really +lead me, as your wife, into the hall where all the portraits of your honoured +ancestors would look down upon us? and into the chapel, where your dead mother +lies at rest? I could meet fearlessly, my beloved, the searching gaze of the +dead, from whom nothing is hidden; the crown of purity would not be wanting on +my brow.” +</p> + +<p> +“But what!” exclaimed the young baron, “you say that you love +me, Isabelle, with all that true, faithful heart of yours, yet you will not +accept me! either as lover or husband?” +</p> + +<p> +“You have offered me your name, de Sigognac, your noble, honoured name, +and that is enough for me. I give it back to you now, after having cherished it +for one moment in my inmost heart. For one instant I was your wife, and I will +never, never be another’s. While my lips were on yours I was saying yes +to myself, and oh! I did not deserve such happiness. For you, my beloved, it +would be a sad mistake to burden yourself with a poor little actress like me, +who would always be taunted with her theatrical career, however pure and +honourable it may have been. The cold, disdainful mien with which great ladies +would be sure to regard me would cause you keen suffering, and you could not +challenge <i>them</i>, you know, my own brave champion! You are the last of a +noble race, de Sigognac, and it is your duty to build up your fallen house. +When, by a tender glance, I induced you to quit your desolate home and follow +me, you doubtless dreamed of a love affair of the usual sort, which was but +natural; but I, looking into the future, thought of far other things. I saw you +returning, in rich attire, from the court of your gracious sovereign, who had +reinstated you in your rights, and given you an honourable office, suitable to +your exalted rank. The château had resumed its ancient splendour. In fancy I +tore the clinging ivy from its crumbling walls, put the fallen stones back in +their places, restored the dilapidated roof and shattered window-panes, +regilded the three storks on your escutcheon over the great entrance door, and +in the grand old portico; then, having installed you in the renovated home of +your honoured ancestors, I retired into obscurity, stifling a sigh as I bade +you adieu, though sincerely rejoicing in your well merited good fortune.” +</p> + +<p> +“And your dream shall be accomplished, my noble Isabelle; I feel sure of +it—but not altogether as you relate it to me; such an ending would be too +sad and grievous. You shall be the first, you, my own darling, with this dear +hand clasped in mine, as now, to cross the threshold of that blessed abode, +whence ruin and desolation shall have disappeared, and have been replaced by +prosperity and happiness.” +</p> + +<p> +“No, no, de Sigognac, it will be some great, and noble, and beautiful +heiress, worthy of you in every way, who will accompany you then; one that you +can present with just pride to all your friends, and of whom none can say, with +a malicious smile, I hissed or applauded her at such a time and place.” +</p> + +<p> +“It is downright cruelty on your part to show your self so adorable, so +worthy of all love and admiration, my sweet Isabelle, and at the same time to +deprive me of every hope,” said de Sigognac, ruefully; “to give one +glimpse of heaven and then shut me out again; nothing could be more cruel. But +I will not despair; I shall make you yield to me yet.” +</p> + +<p> +“Do not try, I beseech you,” continued Isabelle, with gentle +firmness, “for I never shall; I should despise myself if I did. Strive to +be content, de Sigognac, with the purest, truest, most devoted love that ever +filled a woman’s heart, and do not ask for more. Is it such an +unsatisfactory thing to you,” she added, with a bright smile, “to +be adored by a girl that several men have had the bad taste to declare +charming? Why, even the Duke of Vallombreuse himself professes that he would be +proud of it.” +</p> + +<p> +“But to give yourself to me so absolutely, and to refuse yourself to me +as absolutely! to mingle such sweet and bitter drops in the same +cup—honey and wormwood—and present it to my lips! only you, +Isabelle, could be capable of such strange contradictions.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, I <i>am</i> an odd girl,” she replied, “and therein I +resemble my poor mother; but such as I am you must put up with me. If you +should persist in persecuting me, I know well how I could elude and escape you, +and where I could hide myself from you so that you would never be able to find +me. But there will be no need of that, we will not talk of it; our compact is +made. Let it be as I say, de Sigognac, and let us be happy together while we +may. It grows late now, and you must go to your own room; will you take with +you these verses, of a part that does not suit me at all, and remodel them for +me? they belong to a piece that we are to play very soon. Let me be your +faithful little friend, de Sigognac, and you shall be my great, and +well-beloved poet.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle, as she spoke, drew forth from a bureau a roll of manuscript, tied +with a rose-coloured ribbon, which she gave to the baron with a radiant smile. +</p> + +<p> +“Now kiss me, and go,” she said, holding up her cheek for his +caress. “You are going to work for me, and this is your reward. +Good-night, my beloved, good-night.” +</p> + +<p> +It was long after he had regained the quiet of his own room ere de Sigognac +could compose himself sufficiently to set about the light task imposed upon him +by Isabelle. He was at once enchanted and cast down; radiant with joy, and +filled with sorrow; in a seventh heaven of ecstasy, and in the depths of +despair. He laughed and he wept alternately, swayed by the most tumultuous and +contradictory emotions. The intense happiness of at last knowing himself +beloved by his adored Isabelle made him exultant and joyful, while the terrible +thought that she never would be his made his heart sink within him. Little by +little, however, he grew calmer, as his mind dwelt lovingly upon the picture +Isabelle had drawn of the Château de Sigognac restored to its ancient +splendour, and as he sat musing he had a wonderful vision of it—so +glowing and vivid that it was like reality. He saw before him the facade of the +château, with its large windows shining in the sunlight, and its many +weather-cocks, all freshly gilded, glistening against the bright blue sky, +whilst the columns of smoke rising from every chimney, so long cold and unused, +told of plenty and prosperity within, and his good faithful Pierre, in a rich +new suit of livery, stood between Miraut and Beelzebub at the great entrance +door awaiting him. He saw himself, in sumptuous attire, proudly leading his +fair Isabelle by the hand towards the grand old home of his forefathers; his +beautiful Isabelle, dressed like a princess, wearing ornaments bearing a device +which seemed to be that of one of the greatest, most illustrious families of +France, and with a ducal coronet upon her shapely head. But with it all she did +not appear to be proud or haughty—she was just her own sweet, modest +self—and in the hand that was free she carried the little wild rose, +fresh as when it was first plucked, that he had given her, and from time to +time raised and pressed it tenderly to her lips as she inhaled its fragrance; +it seemed more precious to her than all the superb jewels that she wore. As +they approached the château a most stately and majestic old man, whose breast +was covered with orders, and whose face seemed not entirely unfamiliar to de +Sigognac, stepped forth from the portico to meet and welcome them. But what +greatly surprised him was that a remarkably handsome young man, of most proud +and lofty bearing, accompanied the old prince, who closely resembled the Duke +of Vallombreuse, and who smilingly advanced and offered a cordial salutation +and welcome to Isabelle and himself. A great crowd of tenantry stationed near +at hand hailed them with lusty cheers, making many demonstrations of hearty joy +and delight, and his own happiness seemed to be complete. Suddenly the sound of +a horn was heard, and at a little distance he saw the beautiful Yolande de +Foix, radiant and charming as ever, riding slowly by—apparently returning +from the chase. He followed her with his eyes admiringly, but felt no regret as +her figure was lost to view amid the thick gorse bushes bordering the road down +which she was going, and turned with ever increasing love and adoration to the +sweet being at his side. The memory of the fair Yolande, whom he had once +worshipped in a vague, boyish way, faded before the delicious reality of his +passionate love for Isabelle; who satisfied so fully every requirement of his +nature, and had so thoroughly healed the wound made by the scorn and ridicule +of the other, that it seemed to be entirely forgotten then. +</p> + +<p> +It was not easy for de Sigognac to rouse himself after this entrancing vision, +which had been so startlingly real, and fix his attention upon the verses he +had promised to revise and alter for Isabelle, but when at last he had +succeeded, he threw himself into his task with enthusiasm, and wrote far into +the night—inspired by the thought of the sweet lips that had called him +her poet, and that were to pronounce the words he penned; and he was rewarded +for his exertions by Isabelle’s sweetest smile, and warmest praise and +gratitude. +</p> + +<p> +At the theatre the next evening the crowd was even greater than before, and the +crush unprecedented. The reputation of Captain Fracasse, the valiant conqueror +of the Duke of Vallombreuse; increased hourly, and began to assume a chimerical +and fabulous character. If the labours of Hercules had been ascribed to him, +there would have been some credulous ones to believe the tale, and he was +endowed by his admirers with the prowess of a dozen good knights and brave, of +the ancient times of chivalrous deeds. Some of the young noblemen of the place +talked of seeking his acquaintance, and giving a grand banquet in his honour; +more than one fair lady was desperately in love with him, and had serious +thoughts of writing a billet-doux to tell him so. In short, he was the fashion, +and everybody swore by him. As for the hero of a this commotion, he was greatly +annoyed at being thus forcibly dragged forth from the obscurity in which he had +desired to remain, but it was not possible to avoid it, and he could only +submit. For a few moments he did think of bolting, and not making his +appearance again upon the stage in Poitiers; but the remembrance of the +disappointment it would be to the worthy tyrant, who was in an ecstasy of +delight over the riches pouring into the treasury, prevented his carrying out +this design. And, indeed, as he reminded himself, were not these honest +comedians, who had rescued him from his misery and despair, entitled in all +fairness to profit, so far as they could, by this unexpected and overwhelming +favour which he had all unwittingly gained? So, resigning himself as +philosophically as he could to his fate, he buckled his sword-belt, draped his +cloak over his shoulder, put on his mask and calmly awaited his call to the +stage. +</p> + +<p> +As the receipts were so large, Hérode, like a generous manager, had doubled the +usual number of lights, so that the theatre was almost as radiant as if a flood +of sunshine had been poured into it. The fair portion of the audience, hoping +to attract the attention of the valiant Captain Fracasse, had arrayed +themselves in all their splendour; not a diamond was left in its casket; they +sparkled and flashed, every one, on necks and arms more or less white and +round, and on heads more or less shapely, but all filled with an ardent desire +to please the hero of the hour; so the scene was a brilliant one in every way. +Only one box yet remained unoccupied, the best situated and most conspicuous in +the whole house; every eye was turned upon it, and much wonder expressed at the +apathy manifested by those who had secured it, for all the rest of the +spectators had been long settled in their places. At length, just as the +curtain was rising, a young lady entered and took her seat in the much observed +box, accompanied by a gentleman of venerable and patriarchal appearance; +apparently an indulgent old uncle, a slave to the caprices of his pretty niece, +who had renounced his comfortable after-dinner nap by the fire, in order to +obey her behest and escort her to the theatre. She, slender and erect as Diana, +was very richly and elegantly dressed, in that peculiar and exquisite shade of +delicate sea green which can be worn only by the purest blondes, and which +seemed to enhance the dazzling whiteness of her uncovered shoulders, and the +rounded, slender neck, diaphanous as alabaster, that proudly sustained her +small, exquisitely poised head. Her hair, clustering in sunny ringlets round +her brow, was like living gold, it made a glory round her head, and the whole +audience was enraptured with her beauty, though an envious mask concealed so +much of it; all, indeed, save the snow-white forehead, the round dimpled chin, +the ripe red lips, whose tint was rendered yet more vivid by the contrast with +the black velvet that shaded them, the perfect oval of the face, and a dainty +little ear, pink as a sea-shell—a combination of charms worthy of a +goddess, and which made every one impatient to see the radiant, beauteous +whole. They were soon gratified; for the young deity, either incommoded by the +heat, or else wishing to show a queenly generosity to the gazing throng, took +off the odious mask, and disclosed to view a pair of brilliant eyes, dark and +blue as lapis lazuli, shaded with rich golden fringes, a piquant, perfectly cut +little nose, half Grecian, half aquiline, and cheeks tinged with a delicate +flush that would have put a rose-leaf to shame. In fine, it was Yolande de +Foix, more radiantly beautiful than ever, who, leaning forward in a negligent, +graceful pose, looked nonchalantly about the house, not in the least +discomposed by the many eyes fixed boldly and admiringly upon her. A loud burst +of applause, that greeted the first appearance of the favourite actor, drew +attention from her for a moment, as de Sigognac stalked forward upon the stage +in the character of Captain Fracasse. As he paused, to wait until his admirers +would allow him to begin his first tirade, he looked negligently round the +eager audience, and when his eyes fell upon Yolande de Foix, sitting tranquil +and radiant in her box, calmly surveying him with her glorious eyes, he +suddenly turned dizzy and faint; the lights appeared first to blaze like suns, +and then sink into darkness; the heads of the spectators seemed sinking into a +dense fog; a cold perspiration started out on him from head to foot; he +trembled violently, and felt as if his legs were giving way under him; +composure, memory, courage, all seemed to have failed him, as utterly as if he +had been struck by lightning. +</p> + +<p> +Oh, shame! oh, rage! oh, too cruel stroke of fate! for him, a de Sigognac, to +be seen by her—the haughty beauty that he used to worship from +afar—in this grotesque array, filling so unworthy, so ridiculous a part, +for the amusement of the gaping multitude! and he could not hide himself, he +could not sink into the earth, away from her contemptuous, mocking gaze. He +felt that he could not, would not bear it, and for a moment was upon the point +of flying; but there seemed to be leaden soles to his shoes, which he could by +no means raise from the ground. He was powerless to move hand or foot, and +stood there in a sort of stupefaction; to the great astonishment of Scapin, +who, thinking that he must have forgotten his part, whispered to him the +opening phrases of his tirade. The public thought that their favourite actor +desired another round of applause, and broke out afresh, clapping, stamping, +crying bravo, making a tremendous racket, which little respite gave poor de +Sigognac time to collect his scattered senses, and, with a mighty effort, he +broke the spell that had bound him, and threw himself into his part with such +desperation that his acting was more extravagant and telling than ever. It +fairly brought down the house. The haughty Yolande herself could not forbear to +smile, and her old uncle, thoroughly aroused, laughed heartily, and applauded +with all his might. No one but Isabelle had the slightest idea of the reason of +Captain Fracasse’s unwonted fury—but she saw at once who was +looking on, and knowing how sensitive he was, realized the effect it must +infallibly produce upon him. She furtively watched the proud beauty as she +modestly played her own part, and thought, not without a keen pang through her +faithful, loving heart, that here would be a worthy mate for the Baron de +Sigognac, when he had succeeded in re-establishing the lost splendour of his +house. As to the poor young nobleman, he resolved not to glance once again at +Yolande, lest he should be seized by a sudden transport of rage and do +something utterly rash and disgraceful, but kept his eyes fixed, whenever he +could, upon his sweet, lovely Isabelle. The sight of her dear face was balm to +his wounded spirit—her love, of which he was now so blissfully sure, +consoled him for the openly manifested scorn of the other, and from her he drew +strength to go on bravely with his detested part. +</p> + +<p> +It was over at last—the piece was finished—and when de Sigognac +tore off his mask, like a man who is suffocating, his companions were alarmed +at his altered looks. He was fairly livid, and let himself fall upon a bench +standing near like a lifeless body. Seeing that he was very faint, Blazius +hastened to fetch some wine—his sovereign remedy for every ill—but +de Sigognac rejected it, and signed that he wanted water instead. +</p> + +<p> +“A great mistake,” said the pedant, shaking his head +disapprovingly, “a sad mistake—water is only fit for frogs, and +fish, and such-like cold-blooded creatures—it does not do for human +beings at all. Every water-bottle should be labelled, ’For external use +only.’ Why, I should die instantly if so much as a drop of the vile stuff +found its way down my throat. Take my advice, Captain Fracasse, and let it +alone. Here, have some of this good strong wine; it will set you right in a +jiffy.” +</p> + +<p> +But de Sigognac would not be persuaded, and persisted in motioning for water. +When it was brought, cool and fresh, he eagerly swallowed a large draught of +the despised liquid, and found himself almost immediately revived by +it—his face resuming a more natural hue, and the light returning to his +eyes. When he was able to sit up and look about him again, Hérode approached, +in his turn, and said, “You played admirably this evening, and with +wonderful spirit, Captain Fracasse, but it does not do to take too much out of +yourself in this way—such violent exertions would quickly do for you. The +comedian’s art consists in sparing himself as much as possible, whilst +producing striking effects; he should be calm amidst all his simulated fury, +and cool in his apparently most burning rage. Never did actor play this part as +superbly as you have done to-night—<i>that</i> I am bound to +acknowledge—but this is too dear a price to pay for it.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, wasn’t I absurd in it?” answered the baron bitterly. +“I felt myself supremely ridiculous throughout—but especially when +my head went through the guitar with which Leander was belabouring me.” +</p> + +<p> +“You certainly did put on the most comically furious airs +imaginable,” the tyrant replied, “and the whole audience was +convulsed with laughter. Even Mlle. Yolande de Foix, that very great, and +proud, and noble lady, condescended to smile. I saw her myself.” +</p> + +<p> +“It was a great honour for me assuredly,” cried de Sigognac, with +flaming cheeks, “to have been able to divert so great a lady.” +</p> + +<p> +“Pardon me, my lord,” said the tyrant, who perceived the painful +flush that covered the baron’s face, “I should have remembered that +the success which is so prized by us poor comedians, actors by profession, +cannot but be a matter of indifference to one of your lordship’s +rank.” +</p> + +<p> +“You have not offended me, my good Hérode,” de Sigognac hastened to +reply, holding out his hand to the honest tyrant with a genial smile, +“whatever is worth doing is worth doing well. But I could not help +remembering that I had dreamed of and hoped for very different triumphs from +this.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle, who meantime had been dressing for the other piece, passed near de +Sigognac just then, and gave him such an angelic look—so full of +tenderness, sympathy, and passionate love—that he quite forgot the +haughty Yolande, and felt really happy again. It was a divine balm, that healed +his wounded pride—for the moment at least; but such wounds are all too +apt to open and bleed again and again. +</p> + +<p> +The Marquis de Bruyères was at his post as usual, and though very much occupied +in applauding Zerbine, yet found time to go and pay his respects to Mlle. +Yolande de Foix. He related to her, without mentioning the baron’s name, +the affair of the duel between Captain Fracasse and the Duke of Vallombreuse +saying that he ought to be able to give all the details of that famous +encounter better than anybody else, since he had been present as one of the +seconds. +</p> + +<p> +“You need not be so mysterious about it,” answered Yolande, +“for it is not difficult to divine that your Captain Fracasse is no other +than the Baron de Sigognac. Didn’t I myself see him leaving his old +owl-haunted towers in company with this little <i>Bohémienne</i>, who plays her +part of ingenuous young girl with such a precious affectation of +modesty?” she added, with a forced laugh. “And wasn’t he at +your château with these very players? Judging from his usual stupid, silly air, +I would not have believed him capable of making such a clever mountebank, and +such a faithful gallant.” +</p> + +<p> +As he conversed with Yolande, the marquis was looking about the house, of which +he had a much better view than from his own place near the stage, and his +attention was caught and fixed by the masked lady, whom he had not seen before, +as his back was always turned to her box. Although her head and figure were +much enveloped and disguised in a profusion of black laces, the attitude and +general contour of this mysterious beauty seemed strangely familiar to him, and +there was something about her that reminded him forcibly of the +<i>marquise</i>, his own wife. “Bah!” said he to himself, +“how foolish I am; she must be all safe at the Château de Bruyères, where +I left her.” But at that very moment he caught sight of a diamond +ring—a large solitaire, peculiarly set—sparkling on her finger, +which was precisely like one that the Marquise de Bruyères always wore. +</p> + +<p> +A little troubled by this strange coincidence, he took leave abruptly of the +fair Yolande and her devoted old uncle, and hastened to the masked lady’s +box. But, prompt as his movements had been, he was too late—the nest was +empty—the bird had flown. The lady, whoever she might be, had vanished, +and the suspicious husband was left in considerable vexation and perplexity. +“Could it be possible,” he murmured, as his doubts became almost +certainty, “that she was sufficiently infatuated to fall in love with +that miserable Leander, and follow him here? Fortunately I had the rascal +thoroughly thrashed, so I am even with him, how ever it may be.” This +thought restored his ruffled serenity, and he made his way as fast as he could +to the green-room, to rejoin the <i>soubrette</i>, who had been impatiently +expecting him, and did not hesitate to rate him soundly for his unwonted delay. +</p> + +<p> +When all was over, and Leander—who had been feeling excessively anxious +about the sudden disappearance of his <i>marquise</i>—was free, he +immediately repaired to the open square where he had been first bidden to meet +the carriage sent to fetch him, and where he had found it awaiting him nightly +ever since. The little page, who was there alone, put a letter and a small +package into his hand, without a word, and then running swiftly away, before +Leander had time to question him, vanished in the darkness. The note, which was +signed simply <i>Marie</i>, was from the <i>marquise</i>, who said that she +feared her husband’s suspicions had been excited, and that it would no +longer be safe for them to meet just then, bade him an affectionate farewell +until it might be their good fortune to see each other again, expressed much +regret at this unlucky <i>contretemps</i>, and begged him to accept the gold +chain she sent therewith as a little souvenir, to remind him of the many happy +hours they had spent together. Leander was at first very much vexed and +disappointed, but was somewhat reconciled and consoled when he felt the weight +of his golden treasure, and saw its length and thickness; and, on the whole, +was rather glad to come off with such flying colours from an adventure that +might have brought down a yet more severe punishment than that he had already +received upon his devoted head. +</p> + +<p> +When Isabelle regained her own room she found a very rich and elegant casket +awaiting her there, which had been placed conspicuously on the dressing-table, +where it could not fail to meet her eye the moment she entered the chamber. A +folded paper was lying under one corner of the casket, which must have +contained some very precious gems, for it was a real marvel of beauty itself. +The paper was not sealed, and bore only these two words, evidently written by a +weak and trembling hand, “For Isabelle.” A bright flush of +indignation overspread her sweet face when she perceived it, and without even +yielding to her feminine curiosity so far as to open the richly carved and +inlaid casket for a peep at its contents, she called for Maître Bilot, and +ordered him peremptorily to take it immediately out of her room, and give it +back to whomsoever owned it, for she would not suffer it to remain where it was +another minute. The landlord affected astonishment, and swore by all he held +sacred that he did not know who had put the casket there, nor whose it was; +though it must be confessed that he had his suspicions, and felt very sure that +they were correct. In truth, the obnoxious jewel-case had been secretly placed +upon Isabelle’s table by old Mme. Léonarde, to whom the Duke of +Vallombreuse had had recourse, in the hope that she might be able to aid him, +and in the full belief, shared by her, that the superb diamonds which the +beautiful casket contained would accomplish all that he desired with Isabelle. +But his offering only served to rouse her indignation, and she spoke very +severely to Maître Bilot, commanding him to remove it instantly from her sight, +and to be careful not to mention this fresh affront to Captain Fracasse. The +worthy landlord could not help feeling enthusiastic admiration for the conduct +of the young actress, who rejected jewels that would have made a duchess +envious, and as he retired bowed to her as respectfully and profoundly as he +would have done to a queen. After he had withdrawn and she was left alone, +Isabelle, feeling agitated and feverish, opened her window for a breath of +fresh air, and to cool her burning cheeks and brow. She saw a bright light +issuing from a couple of windows in the mansion of the Duke of +Vallombreuse—doubtless in the room where the wounded young nobleman +lay—but the garden and the little alley beneath her seemed absolutely +deserted. In a moment, however, she caught a low whisper from the latter, not +intended for her ears, which said, “She has not gone to bed yet.” +She softly leaned out of her window—the room within was not lighted, so +she could not be seen—and peering anxiously into the darkness thought she +could distinguish two cloaked figures lurking in the alley, and farther away, +near one end of it, a third one, apparently on the watch. They seemed to feel +that they were observed, and all three presently slunk away and vanished, +leaving Isabelle half in doubt as to whether they were the creatures of her +excited imagination, or had been real men prowling there. Tired at last of +watching, without hearing or seeing anything more, she withdrew from the +window, closed and secured it softly, procured a light, saw that the great, +clumsy bolt on her door was property adjusted, and made her preparations for +bed; lying down at last and trying to sleep, for she was very tired, but +haunted by vague fears and doubts that made her anxious and uneasy. She did not +extinguish her light, but placed it near the bed, and strove to reassure +herself and reason away her nameless terror; but all in vain. At every little +noise—the cracking of the furniture or the falling of a cinder in the +fire-place, she started up in fresh alarm, and could not close her eyes. High +up in the wall of one side of her room was a small round window—a +bull’s eye—evidently intended to give light and air to some dark +inner chamber or closet, which looked like a great black eye in the gray wall, +keeping an unwinking watch upon her, and Isabelle found herself again and again +glancing up at it with a shudder. It was crossed by two strong iron bars, +leaving four small apertures, so that there could not possibly be any danger of +intrusion from that quarter, yet she could not avoid feeling nervous about it, +and at times fancied that she could see two gleaming eye-balls in its black +depths. She lay for a long time perfectly motionless gazing at it, like one +under a spell, and at last was paralyzed with horror when a head actually +appeared at one of the four openings—a small, dark head, with wild, +tangled elf-locks hanging about it; next came a long, thin arm with a claw-like +hand, then the shoulder followed, and finally the whole body of a slender, +emaciated little girl wriggled dexterously, though with much difficulty, +through the narrow aperture, and the child dropped down upon the floor as +lightly and noiselessly as a feather, a snow-flake, or a waft of thistle-down. +She had been deceived by Isabelle’s remaining so long perfectly quiet, +and believed her asleep; but when she softly approached the bed, to make sure +that her victim’s slumber had not been disturbed by her own advent, an +expression of extreme surprise was depicted on her face, as she got a full view +of the head lying upon the pillow and the eyes fixed upon her in speechless +terror. “The lady of the necklace!” she exclaimed aloud. +“Yes, the lady of the necklace!” putting one hand, as she spoke, +caressingly upon the string of pearl beads round her little, thin, brown neck. +Isabelle, for her part, though half dead with fright, had recognised the little +girl she had first seen at the Blue Sun inn, and afterwards on the road to the +Château de Bruyères, in company with Agostino, the brigand. She tried to cry +out for help, but the child put her hand quickly and firmly over her mouth. +</p> + +<p> +“Don’t scream,” she said reassuringly, “nothing shall +hurt you. Chiquita promised that she would never kill nor harm the good, sweet +lady, who gave her the pearls that she meant to steal.” +</p> + +<p> +“But what have you come in here for, my poor child?” asked +Isabelle, gradually recovering her composure, but filled with surprise at this +strange intrusion. +</p> + +<p> +“To open the great bolt on your door there that you are so careful to +close every night,” answered Chiquita, in the most matter-of-fact way. +“They chose me for it because I am such a good climber, and as thin and +supple as a snake; there are not many holes that I cannot manage to crawl +through.” +</p> + +<p> +“And why were you to open my door, Chiquita? so that thieves could come +in and steal what few things I have here? There is nothing of value among them, +I assure you.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh, no!” Chiquita replied disdainfully, “it was to let the +men in who were to carry you off.” +</p> + +<p> +“My God! I am lost!” cried poor Isabelle, wringing her hands in +despair. +</p> + +<p> +“Not at all,” said Chiquita, “and you need not be so +frightened. I shall just leave the bolt as it is, and they would not dare to +force the door; it would make too much noise, and they would be caught at it; +they’re not so silly as that, never fear.” +</p> + +<p> +“But I should have shrieked at the top of my voice, and clung to the +bedstead with all my might, if they had tried to take me,” exclaimed +Isabelle excitedly, “so that I would have been heard by the people in the +neighbouring rooms, and I’m sure they would have come to my +rescue.” +</p> + +<p> +“A good gag will stifle any shrieks,” said Chiquita sententiously, +with a lofty contempt for Isabelle’s ignorance that was very amusing, +“and a blanket rolled tightly about the body prevents any movements; that +is an easy matter you see. They would have carried you off without the +slightest difficulty, for the stable boy was bribed, and was to open the back +door for them.” +</p> + +<p> +“Who has laid this wicked plot?” asked the poor, frightened, young +girl, with a trembling voice, horror-stricken at the danger she had escaped. +</p> + +<p> +“The great lord who has given them all such heaps of money; oh! such +quantities of big gold pieces—by the handful,” said Chiquita, her +great dark eyes glittering with a fierce, covetous expression, strange and +horrible to see in one so young. “But all the same, <i>you</i> gave me +the pearls, and he shall not hurt you; he shall not have you if you don’t +want to go. I will tell them that you were awake, and there was a man in the +room, so that I could not get in and open the door for them; they will all go +away quietly enough; you need not be afraid. Now let me have one good look at +you before I go—oh, how sweet and pretty you are—and I love you, +yes, I do, ever so much; almost as much as Agostino. But what is this?” +cried she suddenly, pouncing upon a knife that was lying on the table near the +bed. “Why, you have got the very knife I lost; it was my father’s +knife. Well, you may keep it—it’s a good one.” +</p> + +<p class="poem"> +‘When this viper bites you, make sure<br/> +That you must die, for there’s no cure.’ +</p> + +<p class="noindent"> +“See, this is the way to open it, and then you use it like this: strike +from below upwards—the blade goes in better that way—and it’s +so sharp it will go through anything. Carry it in the bosom of your dress, and +it is always ready; then if anybody bothers you, out with it, and paf! you have +them ripped up in no time,” and the strange, eerie little creature +accompanied her words with appropriate gestures, by way of illustration. This +extraordinary lesson in the art of using a knife, given in the dead of night, +and under such peculiar circumstances, seemed like a nightmare to Isabelle. +</p> + +<p> +“Be sure you hold the knife like this, do you see? tightly clasped in +your fingers—as long as you have it no one can harm you, but you can hurt +them. Now, I must go—adieu, and don’t forget Chiquita.” +</p> + +<p> +So saying, the queer little elf pushed a table up to the wall under the +bull’s eye, mounted it, sprang up and caught hold of the iron bar with +the agility of a monkey, swung herself up in some extraordinary fashion, +wriggled through the small opening and disappeared, chanting in a rude measure, +“Chiquita whisks through key-holes, and dances on the sharp points of +spear-heads and the broken glass on garden walls, without ever hurting herself +one bit—and nobody can catch her.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle, left alone, awaited the break of day with trembling impatience, +unable to sleep after the fright and agitation she had experienced, and +momentarily dreading some fresh cause of alarm; but nothing else happened to +disturb her. When she joined her companions at breakfast, they were all struck +with her extreme pallor, and the distressed expression of her countenance. To +their anxious questions she replied by giving an account of her nocturnal +adventure, and de Sigognac, furious at this fresh outrage, could scarcely be +restrained from going at once to demand, satisfaction for it from the Duke of +Vallombreuse, to whom he did not hesitate to attribute this villainous scheme. +</p> + +<p> +“I think,” said Blazius, when he could make himself heard, +“that we had better pack up, and be off as soon as we can for Paris; the +air is becoming decidedly unwholesome for us in this place.” +</p> + +<p> +After a short discussion all the others agreed with him, and it was decided +that they should take their departure from Poitiers the very next day. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap11"></a>CHAPTER XI.<br/> +THE PONT-NEUF</h2> + +<p> +It would be too long and tedious to follow our comedians, step by step, on +their way up to Paris, the great capital. No adventures worthy of being +recorded here befell them; as they were in good circumstances financially, they +could travel rapidly and comfortably, and were not again subjected to such +hardships and annoyances as they had endured in the earlier stages of their +long journey. At Tours and Orléans they stopped to give a few representations, +which were eminently successful, and very satisfactory to the troupe as well as +the public. No attempt being made to molest them in any way, Blazius after a +time forgot his fears, which had been excited by the vindictive character of +the Duke of Vallombreuse, but Isabelle could not banish from her memory the +wicked plot to abduct her, and many times saw again in her dreams +Chiquita’s wild, weird face, with the long, tangled elf-locks hanging +around it, just as it had appeared to her that dreadful night at the <i>Armes +de France</i>, glaring at her with fierce, wolfish eyes. Then she would start +up, sobbing and trembling, in violent agitation, and it required the most +tender soothing from her companion, Zerbine, whose room she had shared ever +since they quitted Poitiers, to quiet and reassure her. The <i>soubrette</i>, +thoroughly enamoured of Isabelle as of old, was devoted to her, and took great +delight in watching over and ministering to her; an own sister could not have +been kinder or more affectionately considerate. +</p> + +<p> +The only evidence that de Sigognac gave of the anxiety which he secretly felt, +was his always insisting upon occupying the room nearest Isabelle’s, and +he used to lie down in his clothes, with his drawn sword on the bed beside him, +so as to be ready in case of any sudden alarm. By day he generally walked on in +advance of the chariot, taking upon himself the duty of a scout; redoubling his +vigilance wherever there happened to be bushes, thickets, high walls, or +lurking places of any kind, favourable to an ambuscade, near the roadside. If +he perceived from afar a group of travellers approaching, whose appearance +seemed to him in the least suspicious, he would instantly draw his sword and +fall back upon the chariot, around which the tyrant, Scapin, Blazius and +Leander formed an apparently strong guard; though, of the last two mentioned, +one was incapacitated for active service by age, and the other was as timid as +a hare. Some times, varying his tactics like a good general, who thinks of and +provides against every emergency, the baron would constitute himself a rear +guard, and follow the chariot at a little distance, keeping watch over the road +behind them. But all his precautions were needless, for no attack was made upon +the travellers, or any attempt to interfere with them, and they proceeded +tranquilly on their way, “without let or hindrance.” Although it +was winter, the season was not a rigorous one, and our comedians, well +fortified against the cold by plenty of warm clothing and good nourishing food, +did not mind their exposure to the weather, and found their journey a very +enjoyable affair. To be sure, the sharp, frosty air brought a more brilliant +colour than usual into the cheeks of the fair members of the troupe, but no one +could say that it detracted from their charms; and even when it extended, as it +did sometimes, to their pretty little noses, it could not be found serious +fault with, for everything is becoming to a young and beautiful woman. +</p> + +<p> +At last they drew near to the capital—following the windings of the +Seine, whose waters flow past royal palaces, and many another edifice of +world-wide renown—and at four o’clock of a bright winter afternoon +came in sight of its spires and domes. The smoke rising from its forest of +chimneys hung over it in a semi-transparent cloud, through which the sun shone, +round and red, like a ball of fire. As they entered the city by the Porte Saint +Bernard, a glorious spectacle greeted their wondering eyes. In front of them +Notre Dame stood out in bold relief, with its magnificent flying buttresses, +its two stately towers, massive and majestic, and its slender, graceful spire, +springing from the lofty roof at the point of intersection of the nave and +transepts. Many other lesser towers and spires rose above churches and chapels +that were lost amid the densely crowded houses all about them, but de Sigognac +had eyes only for the grand old cathedral, which overwhelmed him with +astonishment and delight. He would have liked to linger for hours and gaze upon +that splendid triumph of architecture, but he needs must go forward with the +rest, however reluctantly. The wonderful and unceasing whirl and confusion in +the narrow, crowded streets, through which they made their way slowly, and not +without difficulty, perplexed and distracted him, accustomed as he had been all +his life to the vast solitude of the Landes, and the deathly stillness that +reigned almost unbroken in his own desolate old château; it seemed to him as if +a mill-wheel were running round and round in his head, and he could feel +himself staggering like a drunken man. The Pont-Neuf was soon reached, and then +de Sigognac caught a glimpse of the famous equestrian statue in bronze of the +great and good king, Henri IV, which stands on its lofty pedestal and seems to +be keeping guard over the splendid bridge, with its ever-rolling stream of +foot-passengers, horsemen, and vehicles of every kind and description, from the +superb court carriage to the huckster’s hand-cart; but in a moment it was +lost to view, as the chariot turned into the then newly opened Rue Dauphine. In +this street was a fine big hotel, frequently patronized by ambassadors from +foreign lands, with numerous retinues; for it was so vast that it could always +furnish accommodations for large parties arriving unexpectedly. As the +prosperous state of their finances admitted of their indulging in such luxury, +Hérode had fixed upon this house as their place of abode in Paris; because it +would give a certain prestige to his troupe to be lodged there, and show +conclusively that they were not mere needy, vagabond players, gaining a +precarious livelihood in their wanderings through the provinces, but a company +of comedians of good standing, whose talents brought them in a handsome +revenue. +</p> + +<p> +Upon their arrival at this imposing hostelry, they were first shown into an +immense kitchen, which presented an animated, busy scene—a whole army of +cooks bustling about the great roaring fire, and around the various tables, +where all sorts of culinary rites were in active progress; while the mingling +of savoury odours that pervaded the whole place so tickled the olfactory organs +of Blazius, Hérode, and Scapin, the gourmands of the troupe, that their mouths +expanded into the broadest of grins, as they edged as near as possible to the +numerous saucepans, etc., from which they issued. In a few moments a servant +came to conduct them to the rooms that had been prepared for them, and just as +they turned away from the blazing fire, round which they had gathered, to +follow him, a traveller entered and approached it, whose face seemed strangely +familiar to de Sigognac. He was a tall, powerful man, wearing large spurs, +which rang against the stone floor at every step, and the great spots of +mud—some of them not yet dry—with which he was bespattered from +head to foot, showed that he must have been riding far and fast. He was a +fierce-looking fellow, with an insolent, devil-may-care, arrogant sort of +expression, and bold, swaggering gait, yet he started at sight of the young +baron, and plainly shrunk from his eye; hastening on to the fire and bending +over it, with his back turned to de Sigognac, under pretence of warming his +hands. In vain did our hero try to recall when and where he had seen the man +before, but he was positive that he had come in contact with him somewhere, and +that recently; and he was conscious of a vague feeling of uneasiness with +regard to him, that he could not account for. However, there was nothing for +him to do but follow his companions, and they all went to their respective +chambers, there to make themselves presentable for the meal to which they were +shortly summoned, and which they thoroughly enjoyed, as only hungry travellers +can. The fare was excellent, the wine capital, the dining-room well lighted, +warm, and comfortable, and all were in high spirits; congratulating each other +upon having happily reached the end of their long journey at last, and drinking +to their own future success in this great city of Paris. They indulged in the +flattering hope of producing a sensation here as well as at Poitiers, and even +dared to dream of being commanded to appear before the court, and of being +rewarded royally for their exertions to please. Only de Sigognac was silent and +preoccupied, and Isabelle, whose thoughts were all of him, cast anxious glances +at him, and wished that she could charm away his melancholy. He was seated at +the other end of the table, and still puzzling over the face that he had seen +in the kitchen, but he soon looked towards her, and caught her lovely eyes +fixed upon him, with such an adorable expression of chaste love and angelic +tenderness in their shadowy depths, that all thoughts save of her were at once +banished from his mind. The warmth of the room had flushed her cheeks a little, +her eyes shone like stars, and she looked wonderfully beautiful; the young Duke +of Vallombreuse would have been more madly enamoured of her than ever if he +could have seen her then. As for de Sigognac, he gazed at her with unfeigned +delight, his dark, expressive eyes eloquent of adoring love and deep reverence. +A new sentiment mingled with his passion now—ever since she had opened +her heart to him, and let him see all its heavenly purity and +goodness—which elevated, ennobled, and intensified it. He knew now the +true, lofty beauty of her soul, that it was akin to the angels, and but for the +keen, ever-increasing grief he suffered because of her firm refusal to give +herself wholly to him, his happiness, in possessing her faithful, devoted love, +would have been too perfect for this life of trials and sorrow. +</p> + +<p> +When supper was over, de Sigognac accompanied Isabelle to the threshhold of her +own room, and said ere he left her, “Be sure to fasten your door +securely, my sweet Isabelle, for there are so many people about in a great +hotel like this that one cannot be too careful.” +</p> + +<p> +“You need have no fears for me here, my dear baron,” she replied; +“only look at this lock, and you will be convinced of that. Why it is +strong enough for a prison door, and the key turns thrice in it. And here is a +great thick bolt besides—actually as long as my arm. The window is +securely barred, and there is no dreadful bull’s eye, or opening of any +kind in the wall, to make me afraid. Travellers so often have articles of value +with them that I suppose it is necessary for them to have such protections +against thieves. Make yourself easy about me, de Sigognac! never was the +enchanted princess of a fairy tale, shut up in her strong tower guarded by +dragons, in greater security than am I in this fortress of mine.” +</p> + +<p> +“But sometimes it chances that the magic charms and spells, represented +by these bolts and bars, are insufficient, my beloved Isabelle, and the enemy +manages to force his way in, despite them all—and the mystic signs, +phylacteries, and abracadabras into the bargain.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes; but that is when the princess within secretly favours his +efforts,” said Isabelle, with a mischievous smile, “and in some +mysterious way constitutes herself his accomplice; being tired of her +seclusion, perhaps, or else in love with the bold intruder—neither of +which is my case you know, de Sigognac! Surely if I’m not afraid—I, +who am more timid than the trembling doe when she hears the dread sound of the +hunter’s horn and the baying of the hounds you should not fear—you, +who are brave as Alexander the Great himself. Sleep in peace to-night, my +friend, I pray you, and sleep soundly—not with one eye open, as you have +done so often of late for my sake; and now, good night.” +</p> + +<p> +She held out to him a pretty little hand, white and soft enough to have +belonged to a veritable princess, which he kissed as reverently as if it had +been a queen’s; then waited to hear her turn the big, clumsy, iron key +three times in the lock—no easy task for her delicate fingers—and +push home the heavy bolt. Breathing a fervent blessing upon her, he turned away +reluctantly towards his own door. As he paused an instant before it he saw a +shadow moving, turned round quickly, and caught sight of the very man he had +been thinking of, and puzzling over, so much that evening—whose approach +he had not heard at all—passing stealthily along the corridor, presumably +on his way to his own room. Not an extraordinary circumstance, that; but the +baron’s suspicions were instantly aroused, and under pretext of trying to +introduce his key into the lock, he furtively watched him the whole length of +the passage, until a turn in it hid him from view, as he gained an unfrequented +part of the house; a moment later, the sound of a door being softly opened and +closed announced that he had probably reached his own chamber, and then all was +still again. +</p> + +<p> +“Now what does this mean?” said de Sigognac to himself, and haunted +by a vague feeling of anxiety and uneasiness, he could not even bring himself +to lie down upon his bed and rest his weary frame; so, after pacing restlessly +about the room for a while, he concluded to occupy himself in writing a letter +to his good old Pierre; he had promised to apprise him of his arrival in Paris. +He was careful that the handwriting should be very large, clear, and distinct, +for the faithful old servant was not much of a scholar, and addressed him as +follows: +</p> + +<p class="p2"> +M<small>Y GOOD</small> P<small>IERRE</small>:—Here I am at last, actually +in Paris, the great capital, where, according to general belief, I am to fall +in with some sort of good fortune or other, that will enable me to re-establish +the ancient prosperity of my house—though in truth I cannot see where I +am to look for it. However, some happy chance may bring me into relations with +the court, and if I could only get to speak to the king—the great +dispenser of all favours—the important and famous services rendered by my +ancestors to his royal predecessors would surely incline him to listen to me +with indulgence and interest. His gracious majesty could not, it seems to me, +suffer a noble family, that had devoted all their possessions to the service of +king and country, in many wars, to die out so miserably, if once he knew of it. +Meantime, for want of other employment, I have taken to acting, and have made a +little money thereby—part of which I shall send to you, as soon as I can +find a good opportunity. It would have been better perhaps if I had enlisted as +a soldier; but I could not give up my liberty, and however poverty-stricken a +man may be, his pride revolts at the idea of putting himself under the orders +of those whom his noble ancestors used to command. The only adventure worth +relating that has befallen me since I left you was a duel that I fought at +Poitiers, with a certain young duke, who is held to be invincible; but, thanks +to your good instructions, I was able to get the better of him easily. I ran +him through the right arm, and could just as well have run him through the +body, and left him dead upon the field, for his defence was weak and +insufficient—by no means equal to his attack, which was daring and +brilliant, though very reckless—and several times he was entirely at my +mercy, as he grew heated and angry. He has not been so thoroughly trained to +preserve his <i>sang-froid</i>, whatever may happen, as I, and I now +appreciate, for the first time, your wonderful patience and perseverance in +making me a master of the noble art of fencing, and how valuable my proficiency +in it will be to me. Your scholar does you honour, my brave Pierre, and I won +great praise and applause for my really too easy victory. In spite of the +constant novelty and excitement of my new way of life, my thoughts often return +to dwell upon my poor old château, crumbling gradually into ruin over the tombs +of my ancestors. From afar it does not seem so desolate and forlorn, and there +are times when I fancy myself there once more, gazing up at the venerable +family portraits, wandering through the deserted rooms, and I find a sort of +melancholy pleasure in it. How I wish that I could look into your honest, +sunburnt face, lighted up with the glad smile that always greeted me—and +I am not ashamed to confess that I long to hear Beelzebub’s contented +purring, Miraut’s joyful bark, and the loud whinnying of my poor old +Bayard, who never failed to recognise my step. Are they all still +alive—the good, faithful, affectionate creatures—and do they seem +to remember me? Have you been able to keep yourself and them from starvation +thus far? Try to hold out until my return, my good Pierre, so as to share my +fate—be it bright or dark, happy or sad—that we may finish our days +together in the place where we have suffered so much, yet which is so dear to +us all. If I am to be the last of the de Sigognacs, I can only say, the will of +God be done. There is still a vacant place left for me in the vault where my +forefathers lie. +</p> + +<p class="right"> +“B<small>ARON DE</small> S<small>IGOGNAC</small>.” +</p> + +<p> +The baron sealed this letter with the ring bearing his family arms, which was +the only jewel remaining in his possession; directed it, and put it into his +portfolio, to wait until he should find an opportunity to forward it to +Gascony. Although by this time it was very late, he could still hear the vague +roar of the great city, which, like the sound of the ocean, never entirely +ceases, and was so strange and novel to him, in contrast with the profound +silence of the country that he had been accustomed to all his life long. As he +sat listening to it, he thought he heard cautious footsteps in the corridor, +and extinguishing his light, softly opened his door just a very little way, +scarcely more than a crack—and caught a glimpse of a man, enveloped in a +large cloak, stealing along slowly in the direction the other one had taken. He +listened breathlessly until he heard him reach, and quietly enter, apparently +the same door. A few minutes later, while he was still on the lookout, another +one came creeping stealthily by, making futile efforts to stifle the noise of +his creaking boots. His suspicions now thoroughly aroused, de Sigognac +continued his watch, and in about half an hour came yet another—a fierce, +villainous looking fellow, and fully armed, as every one of his predecessors +had been also. This strange proceeding seemed very extraordinary and menacing +to the baron, and the number of the men—four—brought to his mind +the night attack upon him in the streets of Poitiers, after his quarrel with +the Duke of Vallombreuse. This recollection was like a ray of light, and it +instantly flashed upon him that the man he had seen in the kitchen was no other +than one of those precious rascals, who had been routed so +ignominiously—and these, without doubt, were his comrades. But how came +they there? in the very house with him—not by chance surely. They must +have followed him up to Paris, stage by stage, in disguise, or else keeping +studiously out of his sight, Evidently the young duke’s animosity was +still active, as well as his passion, and he had not renounced his designs upon +either Isabelle or himself. Our hero was very brave by nature, and did not feel +the least anxiety about his own safety trusting to his good sword to defend +himself against his enemies—but he was very uneasy in regard to his sweet +Isabelle, and dreaded inexpressibly what might be attempted to gain possession +of her. Not knowing which one of them the four desperadoes had in view now, he +determined not to relax his vigilance an instant, and to take such precautions +as he felt pretty sure would circumvent their plans, whatever they might be. He +lighted all the candles there were in his room—a goodly number—and +opened his door, so that they threw a flood of light on that of +Isabelle’s chamber, which was exactly opposite his own. Next he drew his +sword, laid it, with his dagger, on a table he had drawn out in front of the +door, and then sat down beside it, facing the corridor, to watch. He waited +some time without hearing or seeing anything. Two o’clock had rung out +from a neighbouring church tower when a slight rustling caught his listening +ear, and presently one of the four rascals—the very man he had first +seen—emerged from the shadow into the bright light streaming out into the +passage from his open door. The baron had sprung to his feet at the first +sound, and stood erect on the threshold, sword in hand, with such a lofty, +heroic, and triumphant air, that Mérindol—for it was he—passed +quickly by, without offering to molest him, with a most deprecating, +crestfallen expression; a laughable contrast to his habitual fierce insolence. +His three doughty comrades followed in quick succession—but not one of +them dared to attack de Sigognac, and they slunk out of sight as rapidly as +possible. He saluted each one with a mocking gesture as he passed, and stood +tranquilly watching them as long as he could see them. In a few minutes he had +the satisfaction of hearing the stamping of horses’ feet in the +court-yard below, then the opening of the outer door to let them pass out into +the street, and finally a great clattering of hoofs as they galloped off down +the Rue Dauphine. +</p> + +<p> +At breakfast the next morning the tyrant said to de Sigognac, “Captain, +doesn’t your curiosity prompt you to go out and look about you a little +in this great city—one of the finest in the world, and of such high +renown in history? If it is agreeable to you I will be your guide and pilot, +for I have been familiar from my youth up with the rocks and reefs, the straits +and shallows, the scyllas and charybdises of this seething ocean, which are +often so dangerous—sometimes so fatal—to strangers, and more +especially to inexperienced country people. I will be your Palinurus—but +I promise you that I shall not allow myself to be caught napping, and so fall +overboard, like him that Virgil tells us about. We are admirably located here +for sight-seeing; the Pont-Neuf, which is close at hand, you know, is to Paris +what the Sacra Via was to ancient Rome—the great resort and rallying +place of high and low, great and small, noble men, gentlemen, <i>bourgeois</i>, +working men, rogues and vagabonds. Men of every rank and profession under the +sun are to be found gathered together at this general rendezvous.” +</p> + +<p> +“Your kind proposition pleases me greatly, my good Hérode,” de +Sigognac replied, “and I accept it with thanks; but be sure to tell +Scapin that he must remain here, and keep a sharp watch over all who come and +go; and, above all, that he must not let any one gain access to Isabelle. The +Duke of Vallombreuse has not given up his designs against her and me—I +feel very anxious about her safety,” and therewith he recounted the +occurrences of the preceding night. +</p> + +<p> +“I don’t believe they would dare to attempt anything in broad +daylight,” said the tyrant; “still it is best to err on the safe +side, and we will leave Scapin, Blazius and Leander to keep guard over Isabelle +while we are out. And, by the way, I will take my sword with me, too, so that I +can be of some assistance in case they should find an opportunity to fall upon +you in the streets.” +</p> + +<p> +After having made every arrangement for Isabelle’s safety, de Sigognac +and his companion sallied forth into the Rue Dauphine, and turned towards the +Pont-Neuf. It was quickly reached, and when they had taken a few steps upon it +a magnificent view suddenly burst upon them, which held the young baron +enthralled. In the immediate foreground, on the bridge itself, which was not +encumbered with a double row of houses, like the Pont au Change and the Pont +Saint Michel, was the fine equestrian statue of that great and good king, Henri +IV, rivalling in its calm majesty the famous one of Marcus Aurelius, on the +Capitoline Hill at Rome. A high railing, richly gilded, protected its pedestal +from injury by mischievous street arabs, and the deep, strong tints of the +bronze horse and rider stood out vigorously against the appropriate background +formed by the distant hill-sides beyond the Pont Rouge. On the left bank of the +river the spire of the venerable old church of Saint Germain des Pres pointed +upwards from amid the houses that completely hemmed it in, and the lofty roof +of the unfinished Hôtel de Nevers towered conspicuously above all its +surroundings. A little farther on was the only tower still standing of the +famous, and infamous, Hôtel de Nesle, its base bathed by the river, and though +it was in a ruinous condition it still lifted itself up proudly above the +adjacent buildings. Beyond it lay the marshy Grenouillere, and in the blue, +hazy distance could be distinguished the three crosses on the heights of +Calvary, or Mont-Valérien. The palace of the Louvre occupied the other bank +right royally, lighted up by the brilliant winter sunshine, which brought out +finely all the marvellous details of its rich and elaborate ornamentation. The +long gallery connecting it with the Tuileries, which enabled the monarch to +pass freely from his city palace to his country house, especially challenged +their admiration; with its magnificent sculptures, its historical bas-reliefs +and ornamented cornices, its fretted stonework, fine columns and pilasters, it +rivalled the renowned triumphs of the best Greek and Roman architects. Beyond +the gardens of the Tuileries, where the city ended, stood the Porte de la +Conférence, and along the river bank, outside of it, were the trees of +Cours-la-Reine, the favourite promenade of the fashionable world, which was +thronged of an afternoon with gay and luxurious equipages. The two banks, which +we have thus hastily sketched, framed in the most animated scene imaginable; +the river being covered with boats of all sorts and descriptions, coming and +going, crossing and recrossing, while at the quay, beside the Louvre, lay the +royal barges, rich with carving and gilding, and gay with bright-coloured +awnings, and near at hand rose the historic towers of Saint Germain +l’Auxerrois. +</p> + +<p> +After gazing silently for a long time at this splendid view, de Sigognac turned +away reluctantly at his companion’s instance, and joined the little crowd +already gathered round the “Samaritan,” waiting to see the bronze +figure surmounting the odd little hydraulic edifice strike the hour with his +hammer on the bell of the clock. Meanwhile they examined the gilt bronze statue +of Christ, standing beside the Samaritan, who was leaning on the curb of the +well, the astronomic dial with its zodiac, the grotesque stone mask pouring out +the water drawn up from the river below, the stout figure of Hercules +supporting the whole thing, and the hollow statue, perched on the topmost +pinnacle, that served as a weathercock, like the Fortune on the Dogana at +Venice and the Giralda at Seville. As the hands on the clock-face at last +pointed to ten and twelve respectively, the little chime of bells struck up a +merry tune, while the bronze man with the hammer raised his ponderous arm and +deliberately struck ten mighty blows, to the great delight of the spectators. +This curious and ingenious piece of mechanism, which had been cunningly devised +by one Lintlaer, a Fleming, highly amused and interested de Sigognac, to whom +everything of the kind was absolutely new and surprising. +</p> + +<p> +“Now,” said Hérode, “we will glance at the view from the +other side of the bridge, though it is not so magnificent as the one you have +already seen, and is very much shut in by the buildings on the Pont au Change +yonder. However, there is the tower of Saint Jacques, the spire of Saint +Méderic, and others too numerous to mention; and that is the Sainte +Chapelle—a marvel of beauty, so celebrated, you know, for its treasures +and relics. All the houses in that direction are new and handsome, as you see; +when I was a boy I used to play at hop-scotch where they now stand. Thanks to +the munificence of our kings, Paris is being constantly improved and +beautified, to the great admiration and delight of everybody; more especially +of foreigners, who take home wondrous tales of its splendour.” +</p> + +<p> +“But what astonishes me,” said de Sigognac, “more even than +the grandeur and sumptuousness of the buildings, both public and private, is +the infinite number of people swarming everywhere—in the streets and open +squares, and on the bridges—like ants when one has broken into an ant +hill; they are all rushing distractedly about, up and down, back and forth, as +if life and death depended upon their speed. How strange it is to think that +every individual in this immense crowd must be lodged and fed—and what a +prodigious amount of food and wine it must take to satisfy them all.” +</p> + +<p> +And indeed, it was not surprising that the great numbers of people, moving in +every direction, should strike one unaccustomed to the crowded thoroughfares of +large cities as extraordinary. On the Pont-Neuf an unceasing stream of vehicles +rolled in each direction—fine carriages, richly decorated and gilded, +drawn by two or four prancing horses, with lackeys in brilliant liveries +clinging on behind, and stately coachmen on the box; less pretentious carriages +with more quiet steeds and fewer servants; heavy carts laden with stone, wood, +or wine-barrels, whose drivers swore loudly at the detentions they were +frequently obliged to submit to, and which were unavoidable in such a crush of +vehicles; and among them all, gentlemen on horseback, threading their way +carefully in and out among the press of carts and carriages, and endeavouring +to avoid coming in contact with their muddy wheels—not always +successfully; while here and there a sedan chair crept slowly along, keeping +upon the edge of the stream, so as not to be crushed; and the narrow, raised +walk on either side was thronged with pedestrians. Presently a drove of cattle +made its appearance on the bridge, and then the uproar and confusion became +terrible indeed; horses, as well as foot-passengers, were frightened, and tried +to run away from danger, requiring all the strength of their drivers to +restrain them. Soon after that excitement was over a detachment of soldiers +came marching along, with drums beating and colours flying, and everybody had +to make way for the valiant sons of Mars, no matter at what inconvenience to +themselves. And so it went on, one thing after another—a constant scene +of bustle, hurry, and commotion. As de Sigognac and the tyrant strolled slowly +along they were beset by beggars, more or less impudent and pertinacious, and +by all sorts of odd characters, plying various extraordinary vocations for the +amusement of the passers-by, for which they seemed to be liberally enough +remunerated. Here was an improvisatore, singing, not unmelodiously, his rather +clever verses; there a blind man, led by a stout, jolly-looking old woman, who +recited his dolorous history in a whining voice, and appealed to the charity of +the ever-changing multitude; farther on a charlatan, loudly claiming to be able +to cure “all the ills that flesh is heir to” by his magical +compound—and finding plenty of dupes; and next to him a man with a +monkey, whose funny tricks caused much merriment. Suddenly a great tumult arose +near the other end of the bridge, and in a moment a compact crowd had gathered +around four men, who, with loud cries and imprecations, were fighting with +swords—apparently with great fury, though in reality it was only a mock +combat, probably intended to give a good chance to the thieves and pickpockets +in the throng, with whom they were in league; such tactics being very common, +as well as successful. By Hérode’s advice, de Sigognac refrained from +mingling with the crowd immediately around the combatants, so he could not get +a very good view of them; but he was almost sure that they were the very men he +had met first in the streets of Poitiers, to their great discomfiture, and had +seen again the previous night at the hotel in the Rue Dauphine, where they +certainly had gained no advantage to make up for their former defeat. He +communicated his suspicions to the tyrant, but the rascals had already slipped +away, and it would have been as useless to attempt to find them in the throng +as to look for a needle in a haystack. +</p> + +<p> +“It certainly is possible,” said Hérode, thoughtfully, “that +this quarrel was gotten up with a view to involving you in it, by some means or +other, for we are undoubtedly followed and watched by the emissaries of the +Duke of Vallombreuse. One of the scoundrels might have made believe that you +were in the way, or that you had struck him, and falling upon you suddenly, +before you had time to draw your sword, have given you a thrust that would have +done for you; and if he failed to wound you mortally; the others could have +pretended to come to their comrade’s aid, and have completed the +job—nothing would have been easier. Then they would have separated, and +slipped away through the crowd, before any one could interfere with them, or +else have stood their ground, and declared unanimously that they had been +obliged to attack you in self defence. It is next to impossible in such cases +to prove that the act was premeditated, and there is no redress for the unhappy +victim of such a conspiracy.” +</p> + +<p> +“But I am loath to believe,” said the brave, generous young baron, +“that any gentleman could be capable of such an utterly base and unworthy +act as this—what, send a set of hired ruffians to foully assassinate his +rival! If he is not satisfied with the result of our first encounter, I am +willing and ready to cross swords with him again and again, until one or the +other of us is slain. That is the way that such matters are arranged among men +of honour, my good Hérode!” +</p> + +<p> +“Doubtless,” replied the tyrant, dryly, “but the duke well +knows—despite his cursed pride—that the result of another meeting +with you could not but be disastrous to himself. He has tried the strength of +your blade, and learned by bitter experience that its point is sharp. You may +be sure that he hates you like the very devil, and will not scruple to make use +of any means whatever to revenge himself for his defeat at your hands.” +</p> + +<p> +“Well, if he does not care to try my sword again, we could fight on +horseback with pistols. He could not accuse me of having any advantage of him +there.” +</p> + +<p> +Talking thus the two had reached the Quai de l’Ecole, and there a +carriage just missed running over de Sigognac, though he did his best to get +out of its way. As it was, only his extremely slender figure saved him from +being crushed between it and the wall, so close did it come to +him—notwithstanding the fact that there was plenty of room on the other +side, and that the coachman could easily have avoided the foot passenger he +actually seemed to pursue. The windows of the carriage were all closed, and the +curtains drawn down, so that it was impossible to tell whether it had any +inmates or not—but if de Sigognac could have peeped within he would have +seen, reclining languidly upon the luxurious cushions, a handsome young +nobleman, richly dressed, whose right arm was supported by a black silk scarf, +arranged as a sling. In spite of the warm red glow from the crimson silk +curtains, he was very pale, and, though so remarkably handsome, his face wore +such an expression of hatred and cruelty, that he would have inspired dislike, +rather than admiration—as he sat there with a fierce frown contracting +his brow, and savagely gnawing his under lip with his gleaming white teeth. In +fine, the occupant of the carriage that had so nearly run over the Baron de +Sigognac was no other than the young Duke of Vallombreuse. +</p> + +<p> +“Another failure!” said he to himself, with an oath, as he rolled +along up the broad quay past the Tuileries. “And yet I promised that +stupid rascal of a coachman of mine twenty-five <i>louis</i> if he could be +adroit enough to run afoul of that confounded de Sigognac—who is the bane +of my life—and drive over him, as if by accident. Decidedly the star of +my destiny is not in the ascendant—this miserable little rustic lordling +gets the better of me in everything. Isabelle, sweet Isabelle, adores +<i>him</i>, and detests me—he has beaten my lackeys, and dared to wound +<i>me</i>. But there shall be an end of this sort of thing, and that +speedily—even though he be invulnerable, and bear a charmed life, he must +and shall be put out of my way—I swear it! though I should be forced to +risk my name and my title to compass it.” +</p> + +<p> +“Humph!” said Hérode, drawing a long breath; “why those +brutes must be of the same breed as the famous horses of that Diomedes, King of +Thrace, we read of, that pursued men to tear them asunder, and fed upon their +flesh. But at least you are not hurt, my lord, I trust! That coachman saw you +perfectly well, and I would be willing to wager all I possess in the world that +he purposely tried to run over you—he deliberately turned his horses +towards you—I am sure of it, for I saw the whole thing. Did you observe +whether there was a coat of arms on the panel? As you are a nobleman yourself I +suppose you must be familiar with the devices of the leading families in +France.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, I am of course,” answered de Sigognac, “but I was too +much occupied in getting out of the way of the swift rolling carriage to notice +whether there was anything of that kind on it or not.” +</p> + +<p> +“That’s a pity,” rejoined the tyrant regretfully, “for +if we only knew that, we should have a clew that might lead to our discovering +the truth about this most suspicious affair. It is only too evident that some +one is trying to put you out of the way, <i>quibuscumque viis</i>, as the +pedant would say. Although we unfortunately have no proof of it, I am very much +inclined to think that this same carriage belongs to his lordship, the Duke of +Vallombreuse, who wished to indulge himself in the pleasure of driving over the +body of his enemy in his chariot, in true classical and imperial style.” +</p> + +<p> +“What extraordinary idea have you got into your head now, Sir +Hérode?” said de Sigognac, rather indignantly. “Come, that would be +too infamous and villainous a proceeding for any gentleman to be guilty of, and +you must remember that after all the Duke of Vallombreuse is one, and that he +belongs to a very high and noble family. Besides, did not we leave him in +Poitiers, laid up with his wound? How then could he possibly be in Paris, when +we have only just arrived here ourselves?” +</p> + +<p> +“But didn’t we stop several days at Tours? and again at Orléans? +And even if his wound were not entirely healed he could easily travel in his +luxurious carriage, by easy stages, from Poitiers to Paris. His hurt was not of +a dangerous character, you know, and he is young and vigorous. You must be on +your guard, my dear captain, unceasingly; never relax your vigilance for one +moment, for I tell you there are those about who seek your life. You once out +of the way, Isabelle would, be in the duke’s power—for what could +we, poor players, do against such a great and powerful nobleman? Even if +Vallombreuse himself be not in Paris—though I am almost positive that he +is—his emissaries are, as you know, and but for your own courage and +watchfulness you would have been assassinated in your bed by them last +night.” +</p> + +<p> +This de Sigognac could not dispute, and he only nodded in token of assent, as +he grasped the hilt of his sword, so as to be ready to draw it at the slightest +cause for suspicion or alarm. Meantime they had walked on as far as the Porte +de la Conférence, and now saw ahead of them a great cloud of dust, and through +it the glitter of bayonets. They stepped aside to let the cavalcade pass, and +saw that the soldiers preceded the carriage of the king, who was returning from +Saint Germain to the Louvre. The curtains of the royal vehicle were raised, and +the glasses let down, so that the people could distinctly see their sovereign, +Louis XIII, who, pale as a ghost and dressed all in black, sat as motionless as +an effigy in wax. Long, dark brown hair fell about his mournful, ghastly +countenance, upon which was depicted the same terrible ennui that drove Philip +II of Spain, to seclude himself so much, during the later years of his life, in +the silence and solitude of the dreary Escorial. His eyes were fixed on +vacancy, and seemed utterly lifeless—no desire, no thought, no will lent +them light or expression. A profound disgust for and weariness of everything in +this life had relaxed his lower lip, which fell sullenly, in a morose, pouting +way. His hands, excessively thin and white, lay listlessly upon his knees, like +those of certain Egyptian idols. And yet, for all, there was a truly royal +majesty about this mournful figure, which personified France, and in whose +veins flowed sluggishly the generous blood of Henri IV. +</p> + +<p> +The young baron had always thought of the king as a sort of supernatural being, +exalted above all other men. Glorious and majestic in his person, and +resplendent in sumptuous raiment, enriched with gold and precious stones; and +now he saw only this sad, motionless figure, clad in dismal black, and +apparently unconscious of his surroundings, sunk in a profound reverie that +none would dare to intrude upon. He had dreamed of a gracious, smiling +sovereign, showering good gifts upon his loyal subjects, and here was an +apathetic, inanimate being, who seemed capable of no thought for any one but +himself. He was sadly disappointed, shocked, amazed; and he felt, with a +sinking heart, how hopeless was his own case. For even should he be able to +approach this mournful, listless monarch, what sympathy could be expected from +him? The future looked darker than ever now to this brave young heart. Absorbed +in these sorrowful reflections he walked silently along beside his companion, +who suspected his taciturn mood, and did not intrude upon it, until, as the +hour of noon approached, he suggested that they should turn their steps +homeward, so as to be in time for the mid-day meal. When they reached the hotel +they were relieved to find that nothing particular had happened during their +absence. Isabelle, quietly seated at table with the others when they entered, +received the baron with her usual sweet smile, and held out her little white +hand to him. The comedians asked many questions about his first experiences in +Paris, and inquired mischievously whether he had brought his cloak, his purse, +and his handkerchief home with him, to which de Sigognac joyfully answered in +the affirmative. In this friendly banter he soon forgot his sombre thoughts, +and asked himself whether he had not been the dupe of a hypochondriac fancy, +which could see nothing anywhere but plots and conspiracies. +</p> + +<p> +He had not been alarmed without reason however, for his enemies, vexed but not +discouraged by the failure of their several attempts upon him, had by no means +renounced their determination to make away with him. Mérindol, who was +threatened by the duke with being sent back to the galleys whence he had +rescued him, unless he and his comrades succeeded in disposing of the Baron de +Sigognac, resolved to invoke the assistance of a certain clever rascal of his +acquaintance, who had never been known to fail in any job of that kind which he +undertook. He no longer felt himself capable to cope with the baron, and +moreover now, laboured under the serious disadvantage of being personally known +to him. He went accordingly to look up his friend, Jacquemin Lampourde by name, +who lodged not very far from the Pont-Neuf, and was lucky enough to find him at +home, sleeping off the effects of his last carouse. He awoke him with some +difficulty, and was violently abused for his pains. Then, having quietly waited +until his friend’s first fury was exhausted, he announced that he had +come to consult with him on important business, having an excellent job to +intrust to him, and begging that he would be good enough to listen to what he +had to say. +</p> + +<p> +“I never listen to anybody when I am drunk,” said Jacquemin +Lampourde, majestically, putting his elbow on his knee as he spoke, and resting +his head on his hand—“and besides, I have plenty of money—any +quantity of gold pieces. We plundered a rich English lord last night, who was a +walking cash-box, and I am a gentleman of wealth just at present. However, one +evening at lansquenet may swallow it all up. I can’t resist gambling you +know, and I’m deuced unlucky at it, so I will see you to-night about this +little matter of yours. Meet me at the foot of the bronze statue on the +Pont-Neuf at midnight. I shall be as fresh and bright as a lark by that time, +and ready for anything. You shall give me your instructions then, and we will +agree upon my share of the spoils. It should be something handsome, for I have +the vanity to believe that no one would come and disturb a fellow of my calibre +for any insignificant piece of business. But after all I am weary of playing +the thief and pickpocket—it is beneath me—and I mean to devote all +my energies in future to the noble art of assassination; it is more worthy of +my undisputed prowess. I would rather be a grand, man-slaying lion than any +meaner beast of prey. If this is a question of killing I am your man—but +one thing more, it must be a fellow who will defend himself. Our victims are so +apt to be cowardly, and give in without a struggle—it is no better than +sticking a pig—and that I cannot stand, it disgusts me. A good manly +resistance, the more stubborn the better, gives a pleasant zest to the +task.” +</p> + +<p> +“You may rest easy on that score,” Mirindol replied, with a +malicious smile; “you will find a tough customer to handle, I promise +you.” +</p> + +<p> +“So much the better,” said Lampourde, “for it is a long time +since I have found an adversary worth crossing swords with. But enough of this +for the present. Good-bye to you, and let me finish my nap.” +</p> + +<p> +But he tried in vain to compose himself to sleep again, and, after several +fruitless efforts, gave it up as a bad job; then began to shake a companion, +who had slept soundly on the floor under the table during the preceding +discussion, and when he had succeeded in rousing him, both went off to a +gaming-house, where lansquenet was in active progress. The company was composed +of thieves, cut-throats, professional bullies, ruffians of every sort, lackeys, +and low fellows of various callings, and a few well-to-do, unsophisticated +<i>bourgeois</i>, who had been enticed in there—unfortunate pigeons, +destined to be thoroughly plucked. Lampourde, who played recklessly, had soon +lost all his boasted wealth, and was left with empty pockets. He took his bad +luck with the utmost philosophy. +</p> + +<p> +“Ouf!” said he to his companion, when they had gone out into the +street, and the cool, night air blew refreshingly upon his heated face, +“here am I rid of my money, and a free man again. It is strange that it +should always make such a brute of me. It surprises me no longer that rich men +should invariably be such stupid fools. Now, that I haven’t a penny left, +I feel as gay as a lark—ready for anything. Brilliant ideas buzz about my +brain, like bees around the hive. Lampourde’s himself again. But +there’s the Samaritan striking twelve, and a friend of mine must be +waiting for me down by the bronze Henri IV, so goodnight.” +</p> + +<p> +He quitted his companion and walked quickly to the rendezvous, where he found +Mérindol, diligently studying his own shadow in the moonlight; and the two +ruffians, after looking carefully about them to make sure that there was no one +within ear-shot, held a long consultation, in very low tones. What they said we +do not know; but, when Lampourde quitted the agent of the Duke of Vallombreuse, +he joyously jingled the handful of gold pieces in his pocket, with an imprudent +audacity that showed conclusively how much he was respected by the thieves and +cut throats who haunted the Pont-Neuf. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap12"></a>CHAPTER XII.<br/> +THE CROWNED RADISH</h2> + +<p> +Jacquemin Lampourde, after parting company with Mérindol, seemed in great +uncertainty as to which way he should go, and had not yet decided when he +reached the end of the Pont-Neuf. He was like the donkey between two bundles of +hay; or, if that comparison be not pleasing, like a piece of iron between two +magnets of equal power. On the one side was lansquenet, with the fascinating +excitement of rapidly winning and losing the broad gold pieces that he loved; +and on the other the tavern, with its tempting array of bottles; for he was a +drunkard as well as a gambler, this same notorious Jacquemin Lampourde. He +stood stock still for a while, debating this knotty point with himself, quite +unable to come to a decision, and growing very much vexed at his own +hesitation, when suddenly a brilliant idea occurred to him, and, plunging his +hand into his well-filled pocket, he drew forth a gold piece, which he tossed +into the air, crying, “Head for the tavern, tail for lansquenet.” +The coin rang upon the pavement as it fell, and he kneeled down to see what +fate had decided for him; head was up. “Very well,” said he, +philosophically, as he picked up the piece of money, carefully wiped off the +mud, and put it back in his pocket, “I’ll go and get drunk.” +Then, with long strides, he made off to his favourite tavern, which had the +advantage of being in the immediate vicinity of his own lodgings, so that with +a few zigzags he was at home, after he had filled himself with wine from the +soles of his boots to the apple in his throat. It was not an inviting-looking +place, this same tavern, with the odd device of an enormous radish, bearing a +golden crown—now rather tarnished—which had served as its sign for +many generations of wine-drinkers. The heavy wooden shutters were all closed +when Lampourde reached it; but by the bright light streaming through their +crevices, and the sounds of song and revelry that reached his ear, he knew that +there must be a numerous company within. Knocking on the door in a peculiar way +with the handle of his sword, he made himself known as an <i>habitué</i> of the +house, and was promptly admitted—the door being carefully made fast again +the moment he had entered. The large, low room into which he made his way was +filled with the smoke from many pipes, and redolent with the fumes of wine. A +cheerful wood fire was blazing on the hearth, lighting up the array of bottles +in the bar, which was placed near it, where the master of the establishment sat +enthroned, keeping a watchful eye on the noisy crowd gathered round the many +small tables with which the room abounded, drinking, smoking, playing at +various games, and singing ribald songs. Lampourde paid no attention to the +uproarious throng, further than to look about and make sure that none of his +own particular friends and associates were among them. He found an unoccupied +table, to which a servant quickly brought a bottle of fine old Canary wine, +very choice and rare, which was reserved for a few privileged and appreciative +customers, who could afford to indulge in such luxuries. Although he was quite +by himself, two glasses were placed before him, as his dislike of drinking +alone was well known, and at any moment a comrade might come in and join him. +Meantime he slowly filled his glass, raised it to the level of his eyes, and +looked long and lovingly through the beautiful, clear topaz of the generous +wine. Having thus satisfied the sense of sight, he passed to that of smell, and +held the glass under his nostrils, where he could enjoy the delicious aroma +arising from it, giving the wine a rotary motion as he did so, in a very +artistic manner; then, putting the glass to his lips, he let a few drops +trickle slowly down over his tongue to his palate, lengthening out the +enjoyment as much as possible, and approving smack of relish as he at last +swallowed the smooth nectar. Thus Maître Jacquemin Lampourde managed to gratify +three of the five senses man is blessed with by means of a single glass of +wine. He pretended that the other two might also have a share of the +enjoyment—that of touch by the highly polished surface and swelling +curves of the wine-glass, and that of hearing by the merry ringing when two +glasses are clinked together, or by the musical sounds to be brought forth from +a glass by drawing the moistened finger round and round the edge of it. But +these are fantastic and paradoxical ideas, which only serve to show the vicious +refinement of this fastidious ruffian. He had been but a few minutes alone when +an odd-looking, shabbily dressed individual came in, who rejoiced in a +remarkably pale face, which looked as if it had been chalked, and a nose as red +and fiery as a live coal; the idea of how many casks of wine and bottles of +brandy must have been imbibed to bring it to such an intensity of erubescence +would be enough to terrify the ordinary drinker. This singular countenance was +like a cheese, with a bright, red cherry stuck in the middle of it; and to +finish the portrait it would only be necessary to add two apple seeds, placed a +little obliquely, for the eyes, and a wide gash for a mouth. Such was +Malartic—the intimate friend, the Pylades, the Euryalus, the “fidus +Achates” of Jacquemin Lampourde; who certainly was not handsome—but +his mental and moral qualities made up for his little physical disadvantages. +Next to Lampourde—for whom he professed the most exalted admiration and +respect—he was accounted the most skillful swordsman in Paris; he was +always lucky at cards, and could drink to any extent without becoming +intoxicated. For the rest, he was a man of great delicacy and honour, in his +way—ready to run any risk to help or support a friend, and capable of +enduring any amount of torture rather than betray his comrades—so that he +enjoyed the universal and unbounded esteem of his circle. +</p> + +<p> +Malartic went straight to Lampourde’s table, sat down opposite to him, +silently seized the glass the other had promptly filled, and drained it at a +single draught; evidently his method differed from his friend’s, but that +it was equally efficacious his nose bore indisputable witness. The two men +drank steadily and in silence until they had emptied their third bottle, and +then called for pipes. When they had puffed away for a while, and enveloped +themselves in a dense cloud of smoke, they fell into conversation, deploring +the bad times since the king, his court and followers, had all gone to Saint +Germain, and comparing notes as to their own individual doings since their last +meeting. Thus far they had paid no attention whatever to the company round +them, but now such a loud discussion arose over the conditions of a bet between +two men about some feat that one of them declared he could perform and the +other pronounced impossible, that they both looked round to see what it was all +about. A man of lithe, vigorous frame, with a complexion dark as a +Moor’s, jet-black hair and flashing eyes, was drawing out of his red +girdle a large, dangerous looking knife, which, when opened, was nearly as long +as a sword, and called in Valencia, where it was made, a <i>navaja</i>. He +carefully examined and tested the edge and point of this formidable weapon, +with which he seemed satisfied, said to the man he had been disputing with, +“I am ready!” then turned and called, “Chiquita! +Chiquita!” +</p> + +<p> +At the sound of her name a little girl, who had been sleeping, rolled up in a +cloak, on the floor in a dark corner, rose and came towards Agostino—for +it was he of course—and, fixing her large dark eyes upon his face +earnestly, said, “Master, what do you want me to do? I am ready to obey +you here as everywhere else, because you are so brave, and have so many red +marks on your <i>navaja</i>.” +</p> + +<p> +Chiquita said this rapidly, in a patois which was as unintelligible to the +Frenchmen around her as German, Hebrew or Chinese. Agostino took her by the +hand and placed her with her back against the door, telling her to keep +perfectly still, and the child, accustomed to that sort of thing, showed +neither alarm nor surprise, but stood quietly, looking straight before her with +perfect serenity, while Agostino, at the other end of the room, standing with +one foot advanced, balanced the dread <i>navaja</i> in his hand. Suddenly with +a quick jerking movement he sent it flying through the air, and it struck into +the wooden door, just over Chiquita’s head. As it darted by, like a flash +of lightning, the spectators had involuntarily closed their eyes for a second, +but the fragile child’s long dark eyelashes did not even quiver. The +brigand’s wonderful skill elicited a loud burst of admiration and +applause from an audience not easily surprised or pleased, in which even the +man who had lost his wager joined enthusiastically. Agostino went and drew out +the knife, which was still vibrating, and returning to his place this time sent +it in between Chiquita’s arm—which was hanging down by her +side—and her body; if it had deviated a hair’s breadth it must have +wounded her. At this everybody cried “Enough!” but Agostino +insisted upon aiming at the other side as well, so as to prove to them that +there was no chance about it; that it was purely a matter of skill. Again the +terrible <i>navaja</i> flew through the air, and went straight to the mark, and +Chiquita, very much delighted at the applause that followed, looked about her +proudly, glorying in Agostino’s triumph. She still wore Isabelle’s +pearl beads round her slender brown neck; in other respects was much better +dressed than when we first saw her, and even had shoes on her tiny feet; they +seemed to worry and annoy her very much, it is true, but she found them a +necessary nuisance on the cold Paris pavements, and so had to submit to wearing +them with as good a grace as she could muster. When Agostino gave her leave to +quit her position she quietly returned to her corner, rolled herself up anew in +the large cloak, and fell sound asleep again, while he, after pocketing the +five <i>pistoles</i> he had won, sat down to finish his measure of cheap wine; +which he did very slowly, intending to remain where he was as long as possible; +he had no lodging place yet in Paris, having arrived that very evening, and +this warm room was far more comfortable than a refuge in some convent porch, or +under the arch of a bridge perhaps, where he had feared that he and Chiquita +might have to lie shivering all night long. +</p> + +<p> +Quiet being restored, comparatively speaking, Lampourde and Malartic resumed +their interrupted conversation, and after a few remarks upon the strange +performance they had just witnessed—in which Lampourde especially praised +Agostino’s marvellous skill, and Malartic warmly commended +Chiquita’s wonderful courage and <i>sang-froid</i>—the former +confided to his friend that he had a piece of work in prospect, in which he +would need some assistance, and desired to have his opinion as to which of +their comrades would be best suited for his purpose. He told him that, in the +first place, he was commissioned to despatch a certain Captain Fracasse, an +actor, who had dared to interfere with the love affair of a very great lord. In +this, of course, he would not require any aid; but he had also to make +arrangements for the abduction of the lady, a very beautiful young actress, who +was beloved by both the nobleman and the comedian, and who would be zealously +defended by the members of the dramatic company to which she belonged; so that +he should be obliged to resort to some stratagem, and would probably need the +help of several hands to carry it out—adding that they were sure of being +well paid, for the young lord was as generous and open handed as he was wealthy +and determined. Thereupon they fell to discussing the respective merits of +their numerous friends and acquaintances—gentlemen of the same stamp as +themselves—and having decided upon four, and determined to keep an eye +upon Agostino, who seemed a clever rascal and might be of use, they called for +another bottle of wine. When that was finished Jacquemin Lampourde was +indisputably drunk, and having loyally kept his word, retired, somewhat +unsteadily, to his own quarters in a high state of maudlin satisfaction, +accompanied by his friend Malartic, whom he had invited to spend the night with +him. By this time—it was nearly four o’clock in the +morning—the Crowned Radish was almost deserted, and the master of the +establishment, seeing that there was no prospect of further custom, told his +servants to rouse up and turn out all the sleepers—Agostino and Chiquita +among the rest—and his orders were promptly executed. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap13"></a>CHAPTER XIII.<br/> +A DOUBLE ATTACK</h2> + +<p> +The Duke of Vallombreuse was not a man to neglect his love affairs, any more +than his enemies. If he hated de Sigognac mortally, he felt for Isabelle that +furious passion which the unattainable is apt to excite in a haughty and +violent nature like his, that has never met with resistance. To get possession +of the young actress had become the ruling thought of his life. Spoiled by the +easy victories he had always gained heretofore, in his career of gallantry, his +failure in this instance was utterly incomprehensible to him, as well as +astonishing and maddening. He could not understand it. Oftentimes in the midst +of a conversation, at the theatre, at church, at the court, anywhere and +everywhere, the thought of it would suddenly rush into his mind, sweeping +everything before it, overwhelming him afresh with wonder and amazement. And +indeed it could not be easy for a man who did not believe that such an anomaly +as a truly virtuous woman ever existed—much less a virtuous +actress—to understand Isabelle’s firm resistance to the suit of +such a rich and handsome young nobleman as himself. He sometimes wondered +whether it could be that after all she was only playing a part, and holding +back for a while so as to obtain more from him in the end—tactics that he +knew were not unusual—but the indignant, peremptory way in which she had +rejected the casket of jewels proved conclusively that no such base motives +actuated Isabelle. All his letters she had returned unopened. All his advances +she had persistently repulsed; and he was at his wit’s end to know what +to do next. Finally he concluded to send for old Mme. Léonarde to come and talk +the matter over with him; he had kept up secret relations with her, as it is +always well to have a spy in the enemy’s camp. The duke received her, +when she came in obedience to his summons, in his own particular and favoured +room, to which she was conducted by a private staircase. It was a most dainty +and luxurious apartment, fitted up with exquisite taste, and hung round with +portraits of beautiful women—admirably painted by Simon Vouet, a +celebrated master of that day—representing different mythological +characters, and set in richly carved oval frames. These were all likenesses of +the young duke’s various mistresses, each one displaying her own peculiar +charms to the greatest possible advantage, and having consented to sit for her +portrait—in a costume and character chosen by the duke—as a special +favour, without the most remote idea that it was to form part of a gallery. +</p> + +<p> +When the duenna had entered and made her best curtsey, the duke condescendingly +signed to her to be seated, and immediately began to question her eagerly about +Isabelle—as to whether there were any signs yet of her yielding to his +suit, and also how matters were progressing between her and the detested +Captain Fracasse. Although the crafty old woman endeavoured to put the best +face upon everything, and was very diplomatic in her answers to these searching +questions, the information that she had to give was excessively displeasing to +the imperious young nobleman, who had much ado to control his temper +sufficiently to continue the conversation. Before he let her go he begged her +to suggest some plan by which he could hope to soften the obdurate +beauty—appealing to her great experience in such intrigues, and offering +to give her any reward she chose to claim if she would but help him to succeed. +She had nothing better to propose, however, than secretly administering a +strong narcotic to Isabelle, and concerting some plan to deliver her into his +hands while unconscious from the effects of it; which even the unscrupulous +young duke indignantly rejected. Whereupon, fixing her wicked old eyes +admiringly upon his handsome face, and apparently moved by a sudden +inspiration, she said: “But why does not your lordship conduct this +affair in person? why not begin a regular and assiduous courtship in the good +old style? You are as beautiful as Adonis, my lord duke! You are young, +fascinating, powerful, wealthy, a favourite at court, rich in everything that +is pleasing to the weaker sex; and there is not a woman on earth who could long +hold out against you, if you would condescend, my lord, to plead your own cause +with her.” +</p> + +<p> +“By Jove! the old woman is right,” said Vallombreuse to himself, +glancing complacently at the reflection of his own handsome face and figure in +a full-length mirror opposite to him; “Isabelle may be virtuous and cold, +but she is not blind, and Nature has not been so unkind to me that the sight of +me should inspire her with horror. I can at least hope to produce the same +happy effect as a fine statue or picture, which attracts and charms the eye by +its symmetry, or its beautiful and harmonious colouring. Then, kneeling at her +feet, I can softly whisper some of those persuasive words that no woman can +listen to unmoved—accompanied by such passionately ardent looks that the +ice round her heart will melt under them and vanish quite away. Not one of the +loftiest, haughtiest ladies at the court has ever been able to withstand +them—they have thawed the iciest, most immaculate of them all; and +besides, it surely cannot fail to flatter the pride of this disdainful, +high-spirited little actress to have a real duke actually and openly kneeling +at her feet. Yes, I will take the old woman’s advice, and pay my court to +her so charmingly and perseveringly that I shall conquer at last—she will +not be able to withstand me, my sweet Isabelle. And it will be a miracle indeed +if she has a regret left then for that cursed de Sigognac; who shall no longer +interfere between my love and me—that I swear! She will soon forget him +in my arms.” +</p> + +<p> +Having dismissed old Mme. Léonarde with a handsome gratuity, the duke next +summoned his valet, Picard, and held an important consultation with him, as to +his most becoming costumes, finally deciding upon a very rich but comparatively +plain one, all of black velvet; whose elegant simplicity he thought would be +likely to suit Isabelle’s fastidious taste better than any more gorgeous +array, and in which it must be confessed that he looked adorably +handsome—his really beautiful face and fine figure appearing to the +utmost advantage. +</p> + +<p> +His toilet completed, he sent a peremptory order to his coachman to have the +carriage, with the four bays, ready in a quarter of an hour. When Picard had +departed on this errand, Vallombreuse began pacing slowly to and fro in his +chamber, glancing into the mirror each time he passed it with a self-satisfied +smile. “That proud little minx must be deucedly cross-grained and +unappreciative,” said he, “if she does not perceive how much more +worthy I am of her admiration than that shabby de Sigognac. Oh, yes! +she’ll be sure to come round, in spite of her obstinate affectation of +such ferocious virtue, and her tiresome, Platonic love for her impecunious +suitor. Yes, my little beauty, your portrait shall figure in one of those oval +frames ere long. I think I’ll have you painted as chaste Diana, descended +from the sky, despite her coldness, to lavish sweet kisses on Endymion. You +shall take your place among those other goddesses, who were as coy and hard to +please at first as yourself, and who are far greater ladies, my dear, than you +ever will be. Your fall is at hand, and you must learn, as your betters have +done before you, that there’s no withstanding the will of a Vallombreuse. +‘Frango nec frangor,’ is my motto.” +</p> + +<p> +A servant entered to announce that the carriage awaited his lordship’s +pleasure, and during the short drive from his own house to the Rue Dauphine, +the young duke, despite his arrogant assurance, felt his heart beating faster +than usual as he wondered how Isabelle would receive him. When the splendid +carriage, with its four prancing horses and servants in gorgeous liveries, +drove into the courtyard of the hotel where the comedians were stopping, the +landlord himself, cap in hand, rushed out to ask the pleasure of the lordly +visitor; but, rapid as were his movements, the duke had already alighted before +he could reach him. He cut short the obsequious host’s obeisances and +breathless offers of service by an impatient gesture, and said peremptorily: +</p> + +<p> +“Mlle. Isabelle is stopping here. I wish to see her. Is she at home? Do +not send to announce my visit; only let me have a servant to show me the way to +her room.” +</p> + +<p> +“My lord, let me have the glory of conducting your lordship +myself—such an honour is too great for a rascally servant—I myself +am not worthy of so distinguished a privilege.” +</p> + +<p> +“As you please,” said Vallombreuse, with haughty negligence, +“only be quick about it. There are people at every window already, +staring down at me as if I were the Grand Turk in person.” +</p> + +<p> +He followed his guide, who, with many bows and apologies, preceded him +upstairs, and down a long, narrow corridor with doors on either side, like a +convent, until they reached Isabelle’s room, where the landlord paused, +and, bowing lower than ever, asked what name he should have the honour of +announcing. +</p> + +<p> +“You can go, now,” the duke replied, laying his hand on the door; +“I will announce myself.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle was sitting by the window, diligently studying her part in a new play +to be shortly put in rehearsal, and, at the moment the Duke of Vallombreuse +softly entered her chamber, was repeating, in a low voice and with closed eyes, +the verses she was learning by heart—just as a child does its lessons. +The light from the window shone full upon her beautiful head and +face—seen in profile—and her lovely figure, thrown back in a +negligent attitude full of grace and <i>abandon</i>. She made a most bewitching +picture thus, and with a delicious effect of chiaroscuro that would have +enchanted an artist—it enthralled the young duke. +</p> + +<p> +Supposing that the intruder who entered so quietly was only the chambermaid, +come to perform some forgotten duty, Isabelle did not interrupt her study or +look up, but went on composedly with her recitation. The duke, who had +breathlessly advanced to the centre of the room, paused there, and stood +motionless, gazing with rapture upon her beauty. As he waited for her to open +her eyes and become aware of his presence, he sank gracefully down upon one +knee, holding his hat so that its long plume swept the floor, and laying his +hand on his heart, in an attitude that was slightly theatrical perhaps, but as +respectful as if he had been kneeling before a queen. Excitement and agitation +had flushed his pale cheeks a little, his eyes were luminous and full of fire, +a sweet smile hovered on his rich, red lips, and he had never looked more +splendidly, irresistibly handsome in his life. At last Isabelle moved, raised +her eyelids, turned her head, and perceived the Duke of Vallombreuse, kneeling +within six feet of her. If Perseus had suddenly appeared before her, holding up +Medusa’s horrid head, the effect would have been much the same. She sat +like a statue, motionless, breathless, as if she had been petrified, or frozen +stiff—her eyes, dilated with excessive terror, fixed upon his face, her +lips parted, her throat parched and dry, her tongue paralyzed—unable to +move or speak. A ghastly pallor overspread her horror-stricken countenance, a +deathly chill seized upon all her being, and for one dreadful moment of supreme +anguish she feared that she was going to faint quite away; but, by a desperate, +prodigious effort of will, she recalled her failing senses, that she might not +leave herself entirely defenceless in the power of her cruel persecutor. +</p> + +<p> +“Can it be possible that I inspire such overwhelming horror in your +gentle breast, my sweet Isabelle,” said Vallombreuse in his most dulcet +tones, and without stirring from his position, “that the mere sight of me +produces an effect like this? Why, a wild beast, crouching to spring upon you +from his lair, with angry roar and blazing eyeballs, could not terrify you +more. My presence here may be a little sudden and startling, I admit; but you +must not be too hard upon one who lives only to love and adore you. I knew that +I risked your anger when I decided to take this step; but I could not exist any +longer without a sight of you, and I humbly crave your pardon if I have +offended you by my ardour and devotion. I kneel at your feet, fair lady, a +despairing and most unhappy suppliant for your grace and favour.” +</p> + +<p> +“Rise, my lord, I beseech you,” said the frightened, trembling +girl, speaking with great difficulty and in a voice that sounded strange in her +own ears; “such a position does not become your rank. I am only an +actress, and my poor attractions do not warrant such homage. Forget this +fleeting fancy, I pray you, and carry elsewhere the ardour and devotion that +are wasted upon me, and that so many great and noble ladies would be proud and +happy to receive and reward.” +</p> + +<p> +“What do I care for other women, be they what they may?” cried +Vallombreuse impetuously, as he rose in obedience to her request; “it is +<i>your</i> pride and purity that I adore, <i>your</i> beauty and goodness that +I worship; your very cruelty is more charming to me than the utmost favour of +any other woman in the world. Your sweet modesty and angelic loveliness have +inspired in me a passion that is almost delirium, and unless you can learn to +love me I shall die—I cannot live without you. You need not be afraid of +me,” he added, as Isabelle recoiled when he made one step forward, and +tried to open the window with her trembling hands, as if she meant to throw +herself out in case of his coming any nearer; “see, I will stay where I +am. I will not touch you, not even the hem of your garment, so great is my +respect for you, charming Isabelle! I do not ask anything more than that you +will deign to suffer my presence here a little longer now, and permit me to pay +my court to you, lay siege to your heart, and wait patiently until it +surrenders itself to me freely and of its own accord, as it surely will. The +most respectful lover could not do more.” +</p> + +<p> +“Spare me this useless pursuit, my lord,” pleaded Isabelle, +“and I will reward you with the warmest gratitude; but love you I cannot, +now or ever.” +</p> + +<p> +“You have neither father, brother, husband, or affianced lover,” +persisted Vallombreuse, “to forbid the advances of a gallant gentleman, +who seeks only to please and serve you. My sincere homage is surely not +insulting to you; why do you repulse me so? Oh! you do not dream what a +splendid prospect would open out before you if you would but yield to my +entreaties. I would surround you with everything that is beautiful and dainty, +luxurious and rare. I would anticipate your every wish; I would devote my whole +life to your service. The story of our love should be more enchanting, more +blissful than that of Love himself with his delicious Psyche—not even the +gods could rival us. Come, Isabelle, do not turn so coldly away from me, do not +persevere in this maddening silence, nor drive to desperation and desperate +deeds a passion that is capable of anything, of everything, save renouncing its +adored object, your own sweet, charming self!” +</p> + +<p> +“But this love, of which any other woman would be justly proud,” +said Isabelle modestly, “I cannot return or accept; you <i>must</i> +believe me, my lord, for I mean every word I say, and I shall never swerve from +this decision. Even if the virtue and purity that I value more highly than life +itself were not against it, I should still feel myself obliged to decline this +dangerous honour.” +</p> + +<p> +“Deign to look upon me with favour and indulgence, my sweet +Isabelle,” continued Vallombreuse, without heeding her words, “and +I will make you an object of envy to the greatest and noblest ladies in all +France. To any other woman I should say—take what you please of my +treasures—my châteaux, my estates, my gold, my jewels—dress your +lackeys in liveries richer than the court costumes of princes—have your +horses shod with silver—live as luxuriously as a queen—make even +Paris wonder at your lavish splendour if you will—though Paris is not +easily roused to wonder—but I well know that you have a soul far above +all such sordid temptations as these. They would have no weight with you, my +noble Isabelle! But there <i>is</i> a glory that may touch you—that of +having conquered Vallombreuse—of leading him captive behind your chariot +wheels—of commanding him as your servant, and your slave. Vallombreuse, +who has never yielded before—who has been the commander, not the +commanded—and whose proud neck has never yet bowed to wear the fetters +that so many fair hands have essayed to fasten round it.” +</p> + +<p> +“Such a captive would be too illustrious for my chains,” said +Isabelle, firmly, “and as I could never consent to accept so much honour +at your hands, my lord, I pray you to desist, and relieve me of your +presence.” +</p> + +<p> +Hitherto the Duke of Vallombreuse had managed to keep his temper under control; +he had artfully concealed his naturally violent and domineering spirit under a +feigned mildness and humility, but, at Isabelle’s determined and +continued—though modest and respectful—resistance to his pleading, +his anger was rapidly rising to boiling point. He felt that there was +love—devoted love—for another behind her persistent rejection of +his suit, and his wrath and jealousy augmented each other. Throwing aside all +restraint, he advanced towards her impetuously—whereat she made another +desperate effort to tear open the casement. A fierce frown contracted his brow, +he gnawed his under lip savagely, and his whole face was transformed—if +it had been beautiful enough for an angel’s before, it was like a +demon’s now. +</p> + +<p> +“Why don’t you tell the truth,” he cried, in a loud, angry +voice, “and say that you are madly in love with that precious rascal, de +Sigognac? <i>That</i> is the real reason for all this pretended virtue that you +shamelessly flaunt in men’s faces. What is there about that cursed +scoundrel, I should like to know, that charms you so? Am I not handsomer, of +higher rank, younger, richer, as clever, and as much in love with you as he can +possibly be? aye, and more—ten thousand times more.” +</p> + +<p> +“He has at least one quality that you are lacking in, my lord,” +said Isabelle, with dignity; “he knows how to respect the woman he +loves.” +</p> + +<p> +“That’s only because he cares so little about you, my +charmer!” cried Vallombreuse, suddenly seizing Isabelle, who vainly +strove to escape from him, in his arms, and straining her violently to his +breast—despite her frantic struggles, and agonized cry for help. As if in +response to it, the door was suddenly opened, and the tyrant, making the most +deprecating gestures and profound bows, entered the room and advanced towards +Isabelle, who was at once released by Vallombreuse, with muttered curses at +this most inopportune intrusion. +</p> + +<p> +“I beg your pardon, mademoiselle,” said Hérode, with a furtive +glance at the duke, “for interrupting you. I did not know that you were +in such good company; but the hour for rehearsal has struck, and we are only +waiting for you to begin.” +</p> + +<p> +He had left the door ajar, and an apparently waiting group could be discerned +without, consisting of the pedant, Scapin, Leander, and Zerbine; a reassuring +and most welcome sight to poor Isabelle. For one instant the duke, in his rage, +was tempted to draw his sword, make a furious charge upon the intruding +<i>canaille</i>, and disperse them “<i>vi et armis</i>”—but a +second thought stayed his hand, as he realized that the killing or wounding of +two or three of these miserable actors would not further his suit; and besides, +he could not stain his noble hands with such vile blood as theirs. So he put +force upon himself and restrained his rage, and, bowing with icy politeness to +Isabelle, who, trembling in every limb, had edged nearer to her friends, he +made his way out of the room; turning, however, at the threshold to say, with +peculiar emphasis, “Au revoir, mademoiselle!”—a very simple +phrase certainly, but replete with significance of a very terrible and +threatening nature from the way in which it was spoken. His face was so +expressive of evil passions as he said it that Isabelle shuddered, and felt a +violent spasm of fear pass over her, even though the presence of her companions +guaranteed her against any further attempts at violence just then. She felt the +mortal anguish of the fated dove, above which the cruel kite is circling +swiftly in the air, drawing nearer with every rapid round. +</p> + +<p> +The Duke of Vallombreuse regained his carriage, which awaited him in the court +followed by the obsequious landlord, with much superfluous and aggravating +ceremony that he would gladly have dispensed with, and the next minute the +rumble of wheels indicated to Isabelle that her dangerous visitor had taken his +departure. +</p> + +<p> +Now, to explain the timely interruption that came so opportunely to rescue +Isabelle from her enemy’s clutches. The arrival of the duke in his superb +carriage at the hotel in the Rue Dauphine had caused an excitement and flutter +throughout the whole establishment, which soon reached the ears of the tyrant, +who, like Isabelle, was busy learning his new part in the seclusion of his own +room. In the absence of de Sigognac, who was detained at the theatre to try on +a new costume, the worthy tyrant, knowing the duke’s evil intentions, +determined to keep a close watch over his actions, and having summoned the +others, applied his ear to the key-hole of Isabelle’s door, and listened +attentively to all that passed within—holding himself in readiness to +interfere at any moment, if the duke should venture to offer violence to the +defenceless girl—and to his prudence and courage it was due that she +escaped further persecution, on that occasion, from her relentless and +unscrupulous tormentor. +</p> + +<p> +That day was destined to be an eventful one. It will be remembered that +Lampourde, the professional assassin, had received from Mérindol—acting +for the Duke Of Vallombreuse—a commission to put Captain Fracasse quietly +out of the way, and accordingly that worthy was dodging about on the Pont-Neuf, +at the hour of sunset, waiting to intercept his intended victim, who would +necessarily pass that way in returning to his hotel. Jacquemin awaited his +arrival impatiently, frequently breathing on his fingers and rubbing them +vigorously, so that they should not be quite numb with the cold when the moment +for action came, and stamping up and down in order to warm his half-frozen +feet. The weather was extremely cold, and the sun had set behind the Pont +Rouge, in a heavy mass of blood-red clouds. Twilight was coming on apace, and +already there were only occasional foot-passengers, or vehicles, to be +encountered hurrying along the deserted streets. +</p> + +<p> +At last de Sigognac appeared, walking very fast, for a vague anxiety about +Isabelle had taken possession of him, and he was in haste to get back to her. +In his hurry and preoccupation he did not notice Lampourde, who suddenly +approached and laid hold of his cloak, which he snatched off, with a quick, +strong jerk that broke its fastenings. Without stopping to dispute the cloak +with his assailant, whom he mistook at first for an ordinary foot-pad, de +Sigognac instantly drew his sword and attacked him. Lampourde, on his side, was +ready for him, and pleased with the baron’s way of handling his weapon, +said to himself, though in an audible tone, “Now for a little fun.” +Then began a contest that would have delighted and astonished a connoisseur in +fencing—such swift, lightning-like flashing of the blades, as they gave +and parried cut and thrust—the clashing of the steel, the blue sparks +that leaped from the contending swords as the fight grew more +furious—Lampourde keeping up meanwhile an odd running commentary, as his +wonder and admiration grew momentarily greater and more enthusiastic, and he +had soon reached an exulting mood. Here at last was a “foeman worthy of +his steel,” and he could not resist paying a tribute to the amazing skill +that constantly and easily baffled his best efforts, in the shape of such +extraordinary and original compliments that de Sigognac was mightily amused +thereby. As usual, he was perfectly cool and self-possessed, keeping control of +his temper as well as of his sword—though by this time he felt sure that +it was another agent of the Duke of Vallombreuse’s he had to deal with, +and that his life, not his cloak, was the matter at stake. At last Lampourde, +who had begun to entertain an immense respect for his valiant opponent, could +restrain his curiosity no longer, and eagerly asked, +</p> + +<p> +“Would it be indiscreet, sir, to inquire who was your instructor? +Girolamo, Paraguante, or Cote d’Acier would have reason to be proud of +such a pupil. Which one of them was it?” +</p> + +<p> +“My only master was an old soldier, Pierre by name,” answered de +Sigognac, more and more amused at the oddities of the accomplished swordsman he +was engaged with. “Stay, take that! it is one of his favourite +strokes.” +</p> + +<p> +“The devil!” cried Lampourde, falling back a step, “I was +very nearly done for, do you know! The point of your sword actually went +through my sleeve and touched my arm—I felt the cold steel; luckily for +me it was not broad daylight—I should have been winged; but you are not +accustomed, like me, to this dim, uncertain light for such work. All the same, +it was admirably well done, and Jacquemin Lampourde congratulates you upon it, +sir! Now, pay attention, to me—I will not take any mean advantage of such +a glorious foe as you are, and I give you fair warning that I am going to try +on you my own secret and special thrust Captain Fracasse—the crowning +glory of my art, the ‘ne plus ultra’ of my science—the elixir +of my life. It is known only to myself, and up to this time has been +infallible. I have never failed to kill my man with it. If you can parry it I +will teach it to you. It is my only possession, and I will leave it to you if +you survive it; otherwise I will take my secret to the grave with me. I have +never yet found any one capable of executing it, unless indeed it be +yourself—admirable, incomparable swordsman that you are! It is a joy to +meet such an one. But suppose we suspend hostilities a moment to take +breath.” +</p> + +<p> +So saying Jacquemin Lampourde lowered the point of his sword, and de Sigognac +did the same. They stood eyeing each other for a few moments with mutual +admiration and curiosity, and then resumed the contest more fiercely than +ever—each man doing his best, as he had need to do, and enjoying it. +After a few passes, de Sigognac became aware that his adversary was preparing +to give the decisive blow, and held himself on his guard against a surprise; +when it came, delivered with terrible force, he parried it so successfully that +Lampourde’s sword was broken short off in the encounter with his own +trusty weapon, leaving only the hilt and a few inches of the blade in his hand. +</p> + +<p> +“If you have not got the rest of my sword in your body,” cried +Lampourde, excitedly, “you are a great man!—a hero!—a +god!” +</p> + +<p> +“No,” de Sigognac replied calmly, “it did not touch me; and +now, if I chose, I could pin you to the wall like a bat; but that would be +repugnant to me, though you did waylay me to take my life, and besides, you +have really amused me with your droll sayings. +</p> + +<p> +“Baron,” said Jacquemin Lampourde, calmly, “permit me, I +humbly pray you, to be henceforth, so long as I live, your devoted admirer, +your slave, your dog! I was to be paid for killing you—I even received a +portion of the money in advance, which I have spent. But never mind that; I +will pay it back, every penny of it, though I must rob some one else to do +it.” +</p> + +<p> +With these words he picked up de Sigognac’s cloak, and having put it +carefully, even reverentially, over his shoulders, made him a profound +obeisance, and departed. +</p> + +<p> +Thus the efforts of the Duke of Vallombreuse, to advance his suit and to get +rid of his rival, had once more failed ignominiously. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap14"></a>CHAPTER XIV.<br/> +LAMPOURDE’S DELICACY</h2> + +<p> +It is easy to imagine the frame of mind in which the Duke of Vallombreuse +returned home after his repulse by Isabelle, and her rescue from his arms by +the timely intervention of her friends, the comedians. At sight of his face, +fairly livid and contorted with suppressed rage, his servants trembled and +shrunk away from him—as well they might—for his natural cruelty was +apt to vent itself upon the first unhappy dependent that happened to come in +his way when his wrath was excited. He was not an easy master to serve, even in +his most genial mood—this haughty, exacting young nobleman—and in +his frantic fits of anger he was more savage and relentless than a half-starved +tiger. Upon entering his own house he rushed through it like a whirlwind, +shutting every door behind him with such a violent bang that the very walls +shook, and pieces of the gilt mouldings round the panels were snapped off, and +scattered on the floor. When he reached his own room he flung down his hat with +such force that it was completely flattened, and the feather broken short off. +Then, unable to breathe freely, he tore open his rich velvet <i>pourpoint</i>, +as he rushed frantically to and fro, without any regard for the superb diamond +buttons that fastened it, which flew in every direction. The exquisitely fine +lace ruffles round his neck were reduced to shreds in a second, and with a +vigorous kick he knocked over a large arm-chair that stood in his way, and left +it upside down, with its legs in the air. +</p> + +<p> +“The impudent little hussy!” he cried, as he continued his frenzied +walk, like a wild beast in a cage. “I have a great mind to have her +thrown into prison, there to be well-whipped, and have her hair shaved off, +before being sent to a lunatic asylum—or better still to some strict +convent where they take in bad girls who have been forcibly rescued from lives +of infamy. I could easily manage it. But no, it would be worse than +useless—persecution would only make her hate me more, and would not make +her love that cursed de Sigognac a bit less. How can I punish her? what on +earth shall I do?” and still he paced restlessly to and fro, cursing and +swearing, and raving like a madman. While he was indulging in these transports +of rage, without paying any attention to how the time was passing, evening drew +on, and it was rapidly growing dark when his faithful Picard, full of +commiseration, screwed up his courage to the highest point, and ventured to go +softly in—though he had not been called, and was disobeying +orders—to light the candles in his master’s room; thinking that he +was quite gloomy enough already without being left in darkness as well, and +hoping that the lights might help to make him more cheerful. They did seem to +afford him some relief, in that they caused a diversion; for his thoughts, +which had been all of Isabelle and her cruel repulse of his passionate +entreaties, suddenly flew to his successful rival, the Baron de Sigognac. +</p> + +<p> +“But how is this?” he cried, stopping short in his rapid pacing up +and down the room. “How comes it that that miserable, degraded wretch has +not been despatched before this? I gave the most explicit orders about it to +that good-for-nothing Mérindol. In spite of what Vidalinc says, I am convinced +that I shall succeed with Isabelle when once that cursed lover of hers is out +of my way. She will be left entirely at my mercy then, and will have to submit +to my will and pleasure with the best grace she can muster—for I shall +not allow any sulking or tears. Doubtless she clings so obstinately to that +confounded brute in the belief that she can induce him to marry her in the end. +She means to be Mme. la Baronne de Sigognac—the aspiring little actress! +That must be the reason of all this mighty display of mock modesty, and of her +venturing to repulse the attentions of a duke, as scornfully, by Jove! as if he +were a stable-boy. But she shall rue it—the impertinent little minx! and +I’ll have no mercy shown to the audacious scoundrel who dared to disable +this right arm of mine. Halloa there! send Mérindol up to me instantly, do you +hear?” +</p> + +<p> +Picard flew to summon him, and in a few moments the discomfited bully made his +appearance; pale from abject terror, with teeth chattering and limbs trembling, +as he was ushered into the dread presence of his angry lord. In spite of his +efforts to assume the <i>sang-froid</i> he was so far from feeling, he +staggered like a drunken man, though he had not drank enough wine that day to +drown a fly, and did not dare to lift his eyes to his master’s face. +</p> + +<p> +“Well, you cowardly beast,” said Vallombreuse angrily, how long, +pray, are you going to stand there speechless, like a stupid fool, with that +hang-dog air, as if you already had the rope that you so richly deserve round +your wicked neck? “I only awaited your lordship’s orders,” +stammered Mérindol, trying to appear at ease, and failing lamentably. “My +lord duke knows that I am entirely devoted to his service—even to being +hanged, if it seems good to your lordship.” +</p> + +<p> +“Enough of that cant!” interrupted the duke impatiently. +“Didn’t I charge you to have that cursed de Sigognac, otherwise +Captain Fracasse, cleared out of my way? You have not done it—my orders +have not been obeyed. It is worth while, upon my word, to keep confounded hired +rascals to do such work for me, at this rate! All that you are good for is to +stuff yourself in the kitchen, you dastardly beast, and to guzzle my good wine +from morning until night. But I’ve had enough of this, by Jove! and if +there is not a change, and that without any further loss of time, to the +hangman you shall go—do you hear? just as sure as you stand there, gaping +like a drivelling idiot.” +</p> + +<p> +“My lord duke,” said Mérindol in a trembling voice, “is +unjust to his faithful servant, who desires nothing but to do his lord’s +bidding. But this Baron de Sigognac is not to be disposed of so easily as my +lord believes. Never was there a braver, more fearless man. In our first attack +on him, at Poitiers, he got the better of us in a most wonderful way—we +never saw the like of it—and all he had to fight with was a dull, rusty +sword, not intended for use at all; a theatre sword, just for looks. And when +we tried to do for him here in Paris, the very night he got here, it all came +to naught, because he was so watchful, and somehow suspected what we were up +to, and was ready for us; and that upset our beautiful little plan entirely. I +never was so surprised in my life; and there was nothing for us to do, the +whole four of us, but to get out of his sight as fast as we could, and he +standing there laughing at us. Oh! he’s a rare one, is Captain Fracasse. +And now he knows my face, so I can’t go near him myself. But I have +engaged the services of a particular friend of mine—the bravest man and +the best fighter in Paris—he hasn’t his equal in the world with the +sword, they all say. He is lying in wait for him on the Pont-Neuf now, at this +very moment, and there’ll be no mistake this time. Lampourde will be sure +to despatch him for us—if it is not done already—and that without +the slightest danger of your lordship’s name being mixed up with the +affair in any way, as it might have been if your lordship’s own servants +had done it.” +</p> + +<p> +“The plan is not a bad one,” said the young duke, somewhat +mollified, “and perhaps it is better that it should be done in that way. +But are you really sure of the courage and skill of this friend of yours? He +will need both to get the better of that confounded de Sigognac, who is no +coward, and a master hand with the sword, I am bound to acknowledge, though I +do hate him like the devil.” +</p> + +<p> +“My lord need have no fears,” said Mérindol enthusiastically, being +now more at his ease. “Jacquemin Lampourde is a hero, a wonder, as +everybody will tell your lordship. He is more valiant than Achilles, or the +great Alexander. He is not spotless certainly, like the Chevalier Bayard, but +he is fearless.” +</p> + +<p> +Picard, who had been hovering about for a few minutes in an uneasy way, now +seeing that his master was in a better humour, approached and told him that a +very odd-looking man was below, who asked to see him immediately on most +important business. +</p> + +<p> +“You may bring him in,” said the duke, “but just warn him, +Picard, that if he dares to intrude upon me for any trifling matter, I’ll +have him skinned alive before I let him go.” +</p> + +<p> +Mirindol was just about leaving the room, when the entrance of the newcomer +rooted him to the spot; he was so astonished and alarmed that he could not move +hand or foot. And no wonder, for it was no other than the hero whose name he +had just spoken—Jacquemin Lampourde in person—and the bare fact of +his having dared to penetrate so boldly into the dread presence of that high +and mighty seignior, the Duke of Vallombreuse, ignoring entirely the agent +through whom his services had been engaged, showed of itself that something +very extraordinary must have taken place. +</p> + +<p> +Lampourde himself did not seem to be in the least disconcerted, and after +winking at his friend furtively in a very knowing way, stood unabashed before +the duke, with the bright light of the many wax candles shining full upon his +face. There was a red mark across his forehead, where his hat had been pressed +down over it, and great drops of sweat stood on it, as if he had been running +fast, or exercising violently. His eyes, of a bluish gray tint, with a sort of +metallic lustre in them, were fixed upon those of the haughty young nobleman, +with a calm insolence that made Mérindol’s blood run cold in his veins; +his large nose, whose shadow covered all one side of his face, as the shadow of +Mount Etna covers a considerable portion of the island of Sicily, stood out +prominently, almost grotesquely, in profile; his mustache, with its long stiff +points carefully waxed, which produced exactly the effect of an iron skewer +stuck through his upper lip, and the “royal” on his chin curled +upward, like a comma turned the wrong way, all contributed to make up a very +extraordinary physiognomy, such as caricaturists dote on. He wore a large +scarlet cloak, wrapped closely about his erect, vigorous form, and in one hand, +which he extended towards the duke, he held suspended a well filled +purse—a strange and mysterious proceeding which Mirindol could by no +means understand. +</p> + +<p> +“Well, you rascal,” said the duke, after staring for a moment in +astonishment at this odd-looking specimen, “what does this mean? Are you +offering alms to me, pray, or what? with your purse there held out at +arm’s length, apparently for my acceptance.” +</p> + +<p> +“In the first place, my lord duke,” said Lampourde, with perfect +<i>sang-froid</i> and gravity, “may it not displease your highness, but I +am not a rascal. My name is Jacquemin Lampourde, and I ply the sword for a +living. My profession is an honourable one. I have never degraded myself by +taking part in trade of any kind, or by manual labour. Killing is my business, +at the risk of my own life and limb—for I always do my work alone, +unaided, armed only with my trusty sword. Fair play is a jewel, and I would +scorn to take a mean advantage of anybody. I always give warning before I +attack a man, and let him have a chance to defend himself—having a horror +of treachery, and cowardly, sneaking ways. What profession could be more noble +than mine, pray? I am no common, brutal assassin, my lord duke, and I beseech +your lordship to take back that offensive epithet, which I could never accept, +save in a friendly, joking way—it outrages too painfully the sensitive +delicacy of my <i>amour-propre</i>, my lord!” +</p> + +<p> +“Very well, so be it, Maître Jacquemin Lampourde, since you desire +it,” answered Vallombreuse, very much amused at the oddity of his strange +visitor. “And now have the goodness to explain your business here, with a +purse in your hand, that you certainly appear to be steadily offering to +me.” +</p> + +<p> +Jacquemin satisfied by this concession to his susceptibility, suddenly jerked +his head forward, without bending his body, while he waved the hat that he held +slowly to and fro, making, according to his ideas, a salute that was a +judicious mingling of the soldier’s and the courtier’s—which +ceremony being concluded, he proceeded as follows with his explanation: +</p> + +<p> +“Here is the whole thing in a nutshell, my lord duke! I received, from +Mérindol—acting for your lordship—part payment in advance for +despatching a certain Baron de Sigognac, commonly called Captain Fracasse. On +account of circumstances beyond my control, I have not been able to finish the +job, and as I am a great stickler for honesty, and honour also, I have hastened +to bring back to you, my lord duke, the money that I did not earn.” +</p> + +<p> +With these words he advanced a step, and with a gesture that was not devoid of +dignity, gently laid the purse down on a beautiful Florentine mosaic table, +that stood at the duke’s elbow. +</p> + +<p> +“Verily,” said Vallombreuse sneeringly, “we seem to have here +one of those droll bullies who are good for naught but to figure in a comedy; +an ass in a lion’s skin, whose roar is nothing worse than a bray. Come, +my man, own up frankly that you were afraid of that same de Sigognac.” +</p> + +<p> +“Jacquemin Lampourde has never been afraid of anybody in his life,” +the fighting man replied, drawing himself up haughtily, “and no adversary +has ever seen his back. Those who know me will tell your lordship that easy +victories have no charm for me. I love danger and court it. I take positive +delight in it. I attacked the Baron de Sigognac ‘<i>secundum +artem</i>,’ and with one of my very best swords—made by Alonzo de +Sahagun, the elder, of Toledo.” +</p> + +<p> +“Well, and what happened then?” said the young duke eagerly. +“It would seem that you could not have been victorious, since you wish to +refund this money, which was to pay you for despatching him.” +</p> + +<p> +“First let me inform your highness that in the course of my duels and +combats, of one sort and another, I have left no less than thirty-seven men +stretched dead upon the ground—and that without counting in all those I +have wounded mortally or crippled for life. But this Baron de Sigognac +intrenched himself within a circle of flashing steel as impenetrable as the +walls of a granite fortress. I called into requisition all the resources of my +art against him, and tried in every possible way to surprise him off his guard, +but he was ready for everything—as quick as a flash, as firm as a +rock—he parried every thrust triumphantly, magnificently, with the most +consummate science, and a grace and ease I have never seen equalled. He kept me +busy defending myself too all the time, and more than once had nearly done for +me. His audacity was astonishing, his <i>sang-froid</i> superb, and his perfect +mastery over his sword, and his temper, sublime—he was not a man, but a +god. I could have fallen down and worshipped him. At the risk of being spitted +on his sword, I prolonged the fight as much as I dared, so as to enjoy his +marvellous, glorious, unparalleled method to the utmost. However, there had to +be an end of it, and I thought I was sure of despatching him at last by means +of a secret I possess—an infallible and very difficult thrust, taught and +bequeathed to me by the great Girolamo of Naples, my beloved master—no +man living has a knowledge of it but myself—there is no one else left +capable of executing it to perfection, and upon that depends its success. Well, +my lord duke, Girolamo himself could not have done it better than I did +to-night. I was thunderstruck when my opponent did not go down before it as if +he had been shot. I expected to see him lying dead at my feet. But not at all, +by Jove! That devil of a Captain Fracasse parried my blow with dazzling +swiftness, and with such force that my blade was broken short off, and I left +completely at his mercy, with nothing but the stump in my hand. See here, my +lord duke! just look what he did to my precious, priceless Sahagun.” And +Jacquemin Lampourde, with a piteous air, drew out and exhibited the sorry +remains of his trusty sword—almost weeping over it—and calling the +duke’s attention to the perfectly straight and even break. +</p> + +<p> +“Your highness can see that it was a prodigious blow that snapped this +steel like a pipe-stem, and it was done with such ease and precision. To +despatch Captain Fracasse by fair means is beyond my skill, my lord duke, and I +would scorn to resort to treachery. Like all truly brave men, he is generous. I +was left entirely defenceless, and he could have spitted me like an ortolan +just by extending his arm, but he refrained; he let me go unscathed. A +miraculous display of delicacy, as well as chivalrous generosity, from a +gentleman assaulted in the gloaming on the Pont-Neuf. I owe my life to him, and +moreover, such a debt of gratitude as I shall never be able to repay. I cannot +undertake anything more against him, my lord duke; henceforth he is sacred to +me. Besides, it would be a pity to destroy such a swordsman—good ones are +rare in these degenerate days, and growing more so every year. I don’t +believe he has his equal on earth. Most men handle a sword as if it were a +broomstick nowadays, and then expect to be praised and applauded, the clumsy, +stupid fools! Now, I have given my reasons for coming to inform your highness +that I must resign the commission I had accepted. As for the money there, I +might perhaps have been justified in keeping it, to indemnify me for the great +risk and peril I incurred, but such a questionable proceeding would be +repugnant to my tender conscience and my honest pride, as your highness can +understand.” +</p> + +<p> +“In the name of all the devils in the infernal regions, take back your +money!” cried Vallombreuse impetuously, “or I will have you pitched +out of the window yonder, you and your money both. I never heard of such a +scrupulous scoundrel in my life. You, Mérindol, and your cursed crew, have not +a spark of honour or honesty among you all; far enough from it.” Then +perceiving that Lampourde hesitated about picking up the purse, he added, +“Take it, I tell you! I give it to you to drink my health with.” +</p> + +<p> +“In that, my lord duke, you shall be religiously obeyed,” Lampourde +replied joyfully; “however, I do not suppose that your highness will +object to my dedicating part of it to lansquenet.” And he stretched out +his long arm, seized the purse, and with one dexterous movement, like a +juggler, chucked it jingling into the depths of his pocket. +</p> + +<p> +“It is understood then, my lord duke, that I retire from the affair so +far as the Baron de Sigognac is concerned,” continued Lampourde, +“but, if agreeable to your highness, it will be taken in hand by my +‘<i>alter ego</i>,’ the Chevalier Malartic, who is worthy to be +intrusted with the most delicate and hazardous enterprises, because of his +remarkable adroitness and superior ability, and he is one of the best fellows +in the world into the bargain. I had sketched out a scheme for the abduction of +the young actress, in whom your highness condescends to take an interest, which +Malartic will now carry out, with all the wonderful perfection of detail that +characterizes his clever way of doing things. Mérindol here, who knows him, +will testify to his rare qualifications, my lord duke, and you could not find a +better man for your purpose. I am presenting a real treasure to your lordship +in tendering Malartic’s services. When he is wanted your highness has +only to send a trusty messenger to mark a cross in chalk on the left-hand +door-post of the Crowned Radish. Malartic will understand, and repair at once, +in proper disguise, to this house, to receive your lordship’s last +orders.” +</p> + +<p> +Having finished this triumphant address, Maître Jacquemin Lampourde again +saluted the duke as before, then put his hat on his head and stalked +majestically out of the room, exceedingly well satisfied with his own +eloquence, and what he considered courtly grace, in the presence of so +illustrious a nobleman. His oddity and originality, together with his strange +mingling of lofty notions of honour and rascality, had greatly amused and +interested the young Duke of Vallombreuse, who was even willing to forgive him +for not having despatched de Sigognac; for, if even this famous professional +duellist could not get the better of him, he really must be invincible, and in +consequence the thought of his own defeat became less galling and intolerable +to his pride and vanity. Moreover, he had not been able to get rid of an +uncomfortable consciousness, even in his most angry mood, that his endeavouring +to compass de Sigognac’s assassination was rather too great an enormity, +not on account of any conscientious scruples, but simply because his rival was +a gentleman; he would not have hesitated a second about having half-a-dozen +<i>bourgeois</i> murdered, if they had been rash or unfortunate enough to +interfere with him, the blood of such base, ignoble creature being of no more +consequence in his eyes than so much water. Vallombreuse would have liked to +despatch his enemy himself in honourable combat, but that was rendered +impossible by the baron’s superior ability as a swordsman, of which he +still had a painful reminder in his wounded arm; which was scarcely healed yet, +and would prevent his indulging in anything like a duel for some time to come. +So his thoughts turned to the abduction of the young actress; a pleasanter +subject to dwell upon, as he felt not the slightest doubt that once he had her +to himself, separated from de Sigognac and her companions, she would not long +be able to withstand his eloquent pleading and personal attractions. His +self-conceit was boundless, but not much to be wondered at, considering his +invariable and triumphant success in affairs of gallantry; so, in spite of his +recent repulse, he flattered himself that he only required a fitting +opportunity to obtain from Isabelle all that he desired. +</p> + +<p> +“Let me have her for a few days in some secluded place,” said he to +himself, “where she cannot escape from me, or have any intercourse with +her friends, and I shall be sure to win her heart. I shall be so kind and good +and considerate to her, treat her with so much delicacy and devotion, that she +cannot help feeling grateful to me; and then the transition to love will be +easy and natural. But when once I have won her, made her wholly mine, then she +shall pay dearly for what she has made me suffer. Yes, my lady, I mean to have +my revenge—you may rest assured of that.” +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap15"></a>CHAPTER XV.<br/> +MALARTIC AT WORK</h2> + +<p> +If the Duke of Vallombreuse had been furious after his unsuccessful visit to +Isabelle, the Baron de Sigognac was not less so, when, upon his return that +evening, he learned what had taken place during his absence. The tyrant and +Blazius were almost obliged to use force to prevent his rushing off, without +losing a minute, to challenge the duke to mortal combat—a challenge sure +to be refused; for de Sigognac, being neither the brother nor husband of the +injured fair one, had no earthly right to call any other gentleman to account +for his conduct towards her; in France all men are at liberty to pay their +court to every pretty woman. +</p> + +<p> +As to the attack upon the baron on the Pont-Neuf, there could be no doubt that +it was instigated by the Duke of Vallombreuse; but how to prove it? that was +the difficulty. And even supposing it could be proved, what good would that do? +In the eyes of the world the Baron de Sigognac, who carefully concealed his +real rank, was only Captain Fracasse, a low play-actor, upon whom a great +noble, like the Duke of Vallombreuse, had a perfect right to inflict a beating, +imprisonment, or even assassination, if it so pleased him; and that without +incurring the blame, or serious disapproval, of his friends and equals. +</p> + +<p> +So far as Isabelle was concerned, if the affair were made public, nobody would +believe that she was really pure and virtuous—the very fact of her being +an actress was enough to condemn her—for her sake it was important to +keep the matter secret if possible. So there was positively no means of calling +their enemy to account for his flagrant misdeeds, though de Sigognac, who was +almost beside himself with rage and indignation, and burning to avenge +Isabelle’s wrongs and his own, swore that he would punish him, even if he +had to move heaven and earth to compass it. Yet, when he became a little +calmer, he could not but acknowledge that Hérode and Blazius were right in +advising that they should all remain perfectly quiet, and feign the most +absolute indifference; but at the same time keep their eyes and ears very wide +open, and be unceasingly on their guard against artful surprises, since it was +only too evident that the vindictive young duke, who was handsome as a god and +wicked as the devil, did not intend to abandon his designs upon them; although +thus far he had failed ignominiously in everything he had undertaken against +them. +</p> + +<p> +A gentle, loving remonstrance from Isabelle, as she held de Sigognac’s +hands, all hot and trembling with suppressed rage, between her own soft, cool +palms, and caressingly interlaced her slender white fingers with his, did more +to pacify him than all the rest, and he finally yielded to her persuasions; +promising to keep quiet himself, and allow, things to go on just as usual. +</p> + +<p> +Meantime the representations of the troupe had met with splendid success. +Isabelle’s modest grace and refined beauty, Serafina’s more +brilliant charms, the <i>soubrette’s</i> sparkling vivacity and +bewitching coquetry, the superb extravagances of Captain Fracasse, the +tyrant’s majestic mien, Leander’s manly beauty, the grotesque good +humour of the pedant, Scapin’s spicy deviltries, and the duenna’s +perfect acting had taken Paris by storm, and their highest hopes were likely to +be realized. Having triumphantly won the approbation of the Parisians, nothing +was wanting but to gain also that of the court, then at Saint Germain, and a +rumour had reached their ears that they were shortly to be summoned thither; +for it was asserted that the king, having heard such favourable reports of +them, had expressed a desire to see them himself. Whereas Hérode, in his +character of treasurer, greatly rejoiced, and all felt a pleasant excitement at +the prospect of so distinguished an honour. Meanwhile the troupe was often in +requisition to give private representations at the houses of various people of +rank and wealth in Paris, and it quickly became the fashion among them to offer +this very popular style of entertainment to their guests. +</p> + +<p> +Thus it befell that the tyrant, being perfectly accustomed to that sort of +thing, was not at all surprised, or suspicious of evil, when one fine morning a +stranger, of most venerable and dignified mien, presented himself at the hotel +in the Rue Dauphine, and asked to speak with him on business. He appeared to be +the major-domo, or steward, of some great nobleman’s establishment, and, +in effect, announced to Hérode that he had been sent to consult with him, as +manager of the troupe, by his master, the Comte de Pommereuil. +</p> + +<p> +This highly respectable old functionary was richly dressed in black velvet, and +had a heavy gold chain round his neck. His face was slightly sunburnt; the wavy +hair that fell upon his shoulders, his thick, bushy eyebrows, heavy mustache, +and long, sweeping beard were all white as snow. He had the most patriarchal, +benevolent air imaginable, and a very gentle, yet dignified manner. The tyrant +could not help admiring him very much, as he said, courteously, “Are you, +sir, the famous Hérode I am in quest of, who rules with a hand as firm as +Apollo’s the excellent company of comedians now playing in Paris? Their +renown has gone abroad, beyond the walls of the city, and penetrated even to my +master’s ears, on his estate out in the country.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, I have the honour to be the man you seek,” the tyrant +answered, bowing very graciously. +</p> + +<p> +“The Comte de Pommereuil greatly desires to have you give one of your +celebrated representations at his château, where guests of high rank are +sojourning at this moment, and I have come to ascertain whether it will be +possible for you to do so. The distance is not very considerable, only a few +leagues. The comte, my master, is a very great and generous seignior, who is +prepared to reward your illustrious company munificently for their trouble, and +will do everything in his power to make them comfortable while they are under +his roof.” +</p> + +<p> +“I will gladly do all that I can to please your noble master,” the +tyrant replied, “though it will be a little difficult for us to leave +Paris at present, just in the height of the season; even if it be only for a +short absence.” +</p> + +<p> +“Three days would suffice for this expedition,” said the venerable +major-domo persuasively; “one for the journey, the second for the +representation, and the third for the return to Paris. There is a capital +theatre at the château, furnished with everything that is requisite, so that +you need not be encumbered with much luggage—nothing beyond your +costumes. Here is a purse containing a hundred <i>pistoles</i> that the Comte +de Pommereuil charged me to put into your hands, to defray the expenses of the +journey. You will receive as much more before you return, and there will be +handsome presents for the actresses forthcoming, of valuable jewels, as +souvenirs of the occasion.” +</p> + +<p> +After a momentary hesitation, the tyrant accepted the well-filled purse +tendered to him, and, with a gesture of acquiescence, put it into his pocket. +</p> + +<p> +“I am to understand then that you accept, and I may tell my master that +you will give a representation at the château, as he desires?” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, I place myself and my company at his disposition,” Hérode +said, smilingly. “And now let me know what day you want us to go, and +which of our pieces your master prefers.” +</p> + +<p> +“Thursday is the day my master designated; as for selecting the play, +that he leaves to your own good taste and discretion.” +</p> + +<p> +“Very well; and now you have only to give me directions as to the road we +must take to reach the château. Be as explicit as you can, I pray you, so that +there may be no danger of our going astray.” +</p> + +<p> +The agent of the Comte de Pommereuil accordingly gave the most minute and exact +directions possible, but ended by saying, “Never mind, you need not +burden your memory with all these troublesome details! I will send you a lackey +to serve as guide.” +</p> + +<p> +Matters being thus satisfactorily arranged, the charming old major-domo took +leave of Hérode, who accompanied him down the stairs and across the court to +the outer door of the hotel, and departed, looking back to exchange a last +polite sign of farewell ere he turned the corner of the street. If the honest +tyrant could have seen him as he walked briskly away, the moment he was safely +out of sight, he would have been astonished at the way the broad, stooping +shoulders straightened themselves up, and at the rapid, vigorous step that +succeeded to the slow, rather infirm gait of his venerable visitor—but +these things our worthy Hérode neither saw nor suspected. +</p> + +<p> +On Wednesday morning, as the comedians were finishing the packing of their +chariot, which stood ready for departure in the courtyard of the hotel, with a +pair of fine spirited horses before it that the tyrant had hired for the +journey, a tall, rather fierce-looking lackey, dressed in a neat livery and +mounted on a stout pony, presented himself at the outer door, cracking his whip +vigorously, and announcing himself as the guide, sent according to promise by +the considerate major-domo, to conduct them to the Château de Pommereuil. +</p> + +<p> +Eight clear strokes rang out from the Samaritan just as the heavy vehicle +emerged into the Rue Dauphine, and our company of players set forth on their +ill-fated expedition. In less than half an hour they had left the Porte Saint +Antoine and the Bastile behind them, passed through the thickly settled +<i>faubourg</i> and gained the open country; advancing towards Vincennes, which +they could distinguish in the distance, with its massive keep partially veiled +by a delicate blue mist, that was rapidly dispersing under the influence of the +bright, morning sunshine. As the horses were fresh, and travelled at a good +pace, they soon came up with the ancient fortress—which was still +formidable in appearance, though it could not have offered any adequate +resistance to the projectiles of modern artillery. The gilded crescents on the +minarets of the chapel built by Pierre de Montereau shone out brightly, as if +joyous at finding themselves in such close proximity to the cross—the +sign of redemption. After pausing a few minutes to admire this monument of the +ancient splendour of our kings, the travellers entered the forest, where, amid +the dense growth of younger trees, stood a few majestic old +oaks—contemporaries doubtless of the one under which Saint Louis, that +king of blessed memory, used to sit and dispense justice to his loyal subjects +in person—a most becoming and laudable occupation for a monarch. +</p> + +<p> +The road was so little used that it was grass-grown in many places, and the +chariot rolled so smoothly and noiselessly along over it that they occasionally +surprised a party of rabbits frolicking merrily together, and were very much +amused to see them scamper away, in as great a hurry as if the hounds were at +their heels. Farther on a frightened deer bounded across the road in front of +them, and they could watch its swift, graceful flight for some distance amid +the leafless trees. The young baron was especially interested in all these +things, being country-bred, and it was a delight unspeakable to him to see the +fields, the hedgerows, the forest, and the wild creatures of the wood once +more. It was a pleasure he had been deprived of ever since he had frequented +cities and towns, where there is nothing to look at but dingy houses, muddy +streets and smoky chimneys—the works of man not of God. He would have +pined in them for the fresh country air if he had not had the sweet +companionship of the lovely woman he adored; in whose deep, blue eyes he saw a +whole heaven of bliss. +</p> + +<p> +Upon emerging from the wood the road wound up a steep hill-side, so the horses +were stopped, to rest a few minutes before beginning the ascent, and de +Sigognac, profiting by the opportunity thus afforded him, said to Isabelle, +“Dear heart, will you get down and walk a little way with me? You will +find it a pleasant change and rest after sitting still in the chariot so long. +The road is smooth and dry, and the sunshine deliciously warm—do +come!” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle joyfully acceded to this request, and putting her hand into the one +extended to help her, jumped lightly down. It was a welcome means of according +an innocent tête-à-tête to her devoted lover, and both felt as if they were +treading on air, they were so happy to find themselves alone together, as, arm +in arm, they walked briskly forward, until they were out of sight of their +companions. Then they paused to look long and lovingly into each other’s +eyes, and de Sigognac began again to pour out to Isabelle “the old, old +story,” that she was never weary of hearing, but found more heavenly +sweet at every telling. They were like the first pair of mortal lovers in +Paradise, entirely sufficient to and happy in each other. Yet even then +Isabelle gently checked the passionate utterances of her faithful suitor, and +strove to moderate his rapturous transports, though their very fervour made her +heart rejoice, and brought a bright flush to her cheeks and a happy light to +her eyes that rendered her more adorably beautiful than ever. +</p> + +<p> +“Whatever you may do or say, my darling,” he answered, with a +sweet, tender smile, “you will never be able to tire out my constancy. If +need be, I will wait for you until all your scruples shall have vanished of +themselves—though it be not till these beautiful, soft brown tresses, +with their exquisite tinge of gold where the sun shines on them, shall have +turned to silver.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh!” cried Isabelle, “I shall be so old and so ugly then +that even your sublime courage will be daunted, and I fear that in rewarding +your perseverance and fidelity by the gift of myself I should only be punishing +my devoted knight and brave champion.” +</p> + +<p> +“You will never be ugly, my beloved Isabelle, if you live to be a +hundred,” he replied, with an adoring glance, “for yours is not the +mere physical beauty, that fades away and vanishes—it is the beauty of +the soul, which is immortal.” +</p> + +<p> +“All the same you would be badly off,” rejoined Isabelle, “if +I were to take you at your word, and promise to be yours when I was old and +gray. But enough of this jesting,” she continued gravely, “let us +be serious! You know my resolution, de Sigognac, so try to content yourself +with being the object of the deepest, truest, most devoted love that was ever +yet bestowed on mortal man since hearts began to beat in this strange world of +ours.” +</p> + +<p> +“Such a charming avowal ought to satisfy me, I admit, but it does not! My +love for you is infinite—it can brook no bounds—it is ever +increasing—rising higher and higher, despite your heavenly voice, that +bids it keep within the limits you have fixed for it.” +</p> + +<p> +“Do not talk so, de Sigognac! you vex me by such extravagances,” +said Isabelle, with a little pout that was as charming as her sweetest smile; +for in spite of herself her heart beat high with joy at these fervent +protestations of a love that no coldness could repel, no remonstrance diminish. +</p> + +<p> +They walked on a little way in silence—de Sigognac not daring to say more +then, lest he should seriously displease the sweet creature he loved better +than his own life. Suddenly she drew her arm out of his, and with an +exclamation of delight, sprang to a little bank by the road-side, where she had +spied a tiny violet, peeping out from amid the dead leaves that had lain there +all the winter through—the first harbinger of spring, smiling up at her a +friendly greeting, despite the wintry cold of February. She knelt down and +gently cleared away the dry leaves and grass about it, carefully broke the +frail little stem, and returned to de Sigognac’s side with her +treasure—more delighted than if she had found a precious jewel lying +hidden among the mosses. +</p> + +<p> +“Only see, how exquisitely beautiful and delicate it is”—said +she, showing it to him—“with its dear little petals scarcely +unrolled yet to return the greeting of this bright, warm sunshine, that has +roused it from its long winter sleep.” +</p> + +<p> +“It was not the sunshine, however bright and warm,” answered de +Sigognac, “but the light of your eyes, sweet Isabelle, that made it open +out to greet you—and it is exactly the colour too of those dear eyes of +yours.” +</p> + +<p> +“It has scarcely any fragrance, but that is because it’s so +cold,” said Isabelle, loosening her scarf, and putting it carefully +inside the ruff that encircled her slender, white neck. In a few minutes she +took it out again, inhaled its rich perfume, pressed it furtively to her lips, +and offered it to de Sigognac. +</p> + +<p> +“See how sweet it is now! The warmth I imparted to it has reassured the +little modest, timid blossom, and it breathes out its incomparable fragrance in +gratitude to me.” +</p> + +<p> +“Say rather that it has received it from you,” he replied, raising +the violet tenderly to his lips, and taking from it the kiss Isabelle had +bestowed—“for this delicate, delicious odour has nothing gross or +earthly about it—it is angelically pure and sweet, like yourself, my own +Isabelle.” +</p> + +<p> +“Ah! the naughty flatterer,” said she, smiling upon him with all +her heart in her eyes. “I give him a little flower that he may enjoy its +perfume, and straightway he draws from it inspiration for all sorts of +high-flown conceits, and fine compliments. There’s no doing anything with +him—to the simplest, most commonplace remark he replies with a poetical +flight of fancy.” +</p> + +<p> +However, she could not have been very seriously displeased, for she took his +arm again, and even leaned upon it rather more heavily than the exigencies of +the way actually required; which goes to prove that the purest virtue is not +insensible to pretty compliments, and that modesty itself knows how to +recompense delicate flattery. +</p> + +<p> +Not far from the road they were travelling stood a small group of thatched +cottages—scarcely more than huts—whose inhabitants were all afield +at their work, excepting a poor blind man, attended by a little ragged boy, who +sat on a stone by the wayside, apparently to solicit alms from those who passed +by. Although he seemed to be extremely aged and feeble, he was chanting a sort +of lament over his misfortunes, and an appeal to the charity of travellers, in +a loud, whining, yet vigorous voice; promising his prayers to those who gave +him of their substance, and assuring them that they should surely go to +Paradise as a reward for their generosity. For some time before they came up +with him, Isabelle and de Sigognac had heard his doleful chant—much to +the annoyance of the latter; for when one is listening, entranced, to the sweet +singing of the nightingale, it is sorely vexatious to be intruded upon by the +discordant croaking of a raven. As they drew near to the poor old blind man, +they saw his little attendant bend down and whisper in his ear, whereupon he +redoubled his groans and supplications—at the same time holding out +towards them a small wooden bowl, in which were a few coppers, and shaking it, +so as to make them rattle as loudly as possible, to attract their attention. He +was a venerable looking old man, with a long white beard, and seemed to be +shivering with cold, despite the great, thick, woollen cloak in which he was +wrapped. The child, a wild-looking little creature, whose scanty, tattered +clothing was but a poor protection against the stinging cold, shrunk timidly +from notice, and tried to hide himself behind his aged charge. Isabelle’s +tender heart was moved to pity at the sight of so much misery, and she stopped +in front of the forlorn little group while she searched in her pocket for her +purse—not finding it there she turned to her companion and asked him to +lend her a little money for the poor old blind beggar, which the baron hastened +to do—though he was thoroughly out of patience with his whining +jeremiads—and, to prevent Isabelle’s coming in actual contact with +him, stepped forward himself to deposit the coins in his wooden bowl. +Thereupon, instead of tearfully thanking his benefactor and invoking blessings +upon his head, after the usual fashion of such gentry, the blind man—to +Isabelle’s inexpressible alarm—suddenly sprang to his feet, and +straightening himself up with a jerk, opened his arms wide, as a vulture +spreads its wings for flight, gathered up his ample cloak about his shoulders +with lightning rapidity and flung it from him with a quick, sweeping motion +like that with which the fisherman casts his net. The huge, heavy mantle spread +itself out like a dense cloud directly above de Sigognac, and falling over and +about him enveloped him from head to foot in its long, clinging folds, held +firmly down by the lead with which its edges were weighted—making him a +helpless prisoner—depriving him at once of sight and breath, and of the +use of his hands and feet. The young actress, wild with terror, turned to fly +and call for help, but before she could stir, or utter a sound, a hand was +clapped over her mouth, and she felt herself lifted from the ground. The old +blind beggar, who, as by a miracle, had suddenly become young and active, and +possessed of all his faculties, had seized her by the shoulders, while the boy +took her by the feet, and they carried her swiftly and silently round a clump +of bushes near by to where a man on horseback and masked, was waiting for them. +Two other men, also mounted and masked, and armed to the teeth, were standing +close at hand, behind a wall that prevented their being seen from the road. +Poor Isabelle, nearly fainting with fright, was lifted up in front of the first +horseman, and seated on a cloak folded so as to serve for a cushion; a broad +leather strap being passed round her waist, which also encircled that of the +rider, to hold her securely in her place. All this was done with great rapidity +and dexterity, as if her captors were accustomed to such manœuvres, and then +the horseman, who held her firmly with one hand, shook his bridle with the +other, drove his spurs into the horse’s sides, and was off like a +flash—the whole thing being done in less time than it takes to describe +it. Meanwhile de Sigognac was struggling fiercely and wildly under the heavy +cloak that enveloped him—like a gladiator entangled in his +adversary’s net—beside himself with rage and despair, as he gasped +for breath in his stifling prison, and realized that this diabolical outrage +must be the work of the Duke of Vallombreuse. Suddenly, like an inspiration, +the thought flashed into his mind of using his dagger to free himself from the +thick, clinging folds, that weighed him down like the leaden cloaks of the +wretched condemned spirits we read of with a shudder in Dante’s Inferno. +With two or three strong, quick strokes he succeeded in cutting through it, and +casting it from him, with a fierce imprecation, perceived Isabelle’s +abductors, still near at hand, galloping across a neighbouring field, and +apparently making for a thick grove at a considerable distance from where he +was standing. As to the blind beggar and the child, they had +disappeared—probably hiding somewhere near by—but de Sigognac did +not waste a second thought on them; throwing off his own cloak, lest it should +impede him, he started swiftly in pursuit of the flying enemy and their fair +prize, with fury and despair in his heart. He was agile and vigorous, lithe of +frame, fleet of foot, the very figure for a runner, and he quickly began to +gain on the horsemen. As soon as they became aware of this one of them drew a +pistol from his girdle and fired at their pursuer, but missed him; whereupon de +Sigognac, bounding rapidly from side to side as he ran, made it impossible for +them to take aim at him, and effectually prevented their arresting his course +in that way. The man who had Isabelle in front of him tried to ride on in +advance, and leave the other two to deal with the baron, but the young actress +struggled so violently on the horse’s neck, and kept clutching so +persistently at the bridle, that his rider could not urge him to his greatest +speed. Meantime de Sigognac was steadily gaining upon them; without slackening +his pace he had managed to draw his sword from the scabbard, and brandished it +aloft, ready for action, as he ran. It is true that he was one against +three—that he was on foot while they were on horseback—but he had +not time to consider the odds against him, and he seemed possessed of the +strength of a giant in Isabelle’s behalf. Making a prodigious effort, he +suddenly increased his speed, and coming up with the two horsemen, who were a +little behind the other one, quickly disposed of them, by vigorously pricking +their horses’ flanks with the point of his sword; for, what with fright +and pain, the animals, after plunging violently, threw off all restraint and +bolted—dashing off across country as if the devil were after them, and +carrying their riders with them, just as de Sigognac had expected and intended +that they should do. The brave young baron was nearly spent—panting, +almost sobbing, as he struggled desperately on—feeling as if his heart +would burst at every agonizing throb; but he was indued with supernatural +strength and endurance, and as Isabelle’s voice reached his ear calling, +“Help, de Sigognac, help!” he cleared with a bound the space that +separated them, and leaping up to catch the broad leathern strap that was +passed round her and her captor, answered in a hoarse, shrill tone, “I am +here.” Clinging to the strap, he ran along beside the galloping +horse—like the grooms that the Romans called <i>desultores</i>—and +strove with all his might to pull the rider down out of his saddle. He did not +dare to use his sword to disable him, as they struggled together, lest he +should wound Isabelle also; and, meantime, the man on horseback was trying his +utmost to shake off his fierce assailant-unsuccessfully, because he had both +hands fully occupied with his horse and his captive, who was doing all she +could to slip from his grasp, and throw herself into her lover’s arms. +Loosing his hold on the rein for a second, the horseman managed to draw a knife +from his girdle, and with one blow severed the strap to which the baron was +clinging; then, driving his spurs into the horse’s sides made the +frightened animal spring suddenly forward, while de Sigognac—who was not +prepared for this emergency, and found himself deprived of all +support—fell violently upon his back in the road. He was up again in an +instant, and flying after Isabelle, who was now being borne rapidly away from +him, and whose cries for help came more and more faintly to his ear; but the +moment he had lost made his pursuit hopeless, and he knew that it was all in +vain when he saw her disappear behind the thicket her ravisher had been aiming +for from the first. His heart sank within him, and he staggered as he still ran +feebly on—feeling now the effects of his superhuman exertions, and +fearing at each step that his feet would carry him no farther. He was soon +overtaken by Hérode and Scapin, who, alarmed by the pistol shot, and fearing +that something was wrong, had started in hot pursuit, though the lackey who +served them as guide had done all that he possibly could to hinder them, and in +a few faltering words he told them what had occurred. +</p> + +<p> +“Vallombreuse again!” cried the tyrant, with an oath. “But +how the devil did he get wind of our expedition to the Château de Pommereuil? +or can it be possible that it was all a plot from the beginning, and we are +bound on a fool’s errand? I really begin to think it must be so. If it is +true, I never saw a better actor in my life than that respectable old +major-domo, confound him! But let us make haste and search this grove +thoroughly; we may find some trace of poor Isabelle; sweet creature that she +is! Rough old tyrant though I be, my heart warms to her, and I love her more +tenderly than I do myself. Alas! I’m afraid, that this poor, innocent, +little fly is caught in the toils of a cruel spider, who will take care never +to let us get sight of her again.” +</p> + +<p> +“I will crush him,” said de Sigognac, striking his heel savagely on +the ground, as if he actually had the spider under it. “I will crush the +life out of him, the venomous beast!” and the fierce, determined +expression of his usually calm, mild countenance showed that this was no idle +threat, but that he was terribly in earnest. +</p> + +<p> +“Look,” cried Hérode, as they dashed through the thicket, +“there they are!” +</p> + +<p> +They could just discern, through the screen of leafless but thickly interlaced +branches, a carriage, with all the curtains carefully closed, and drawn by four +horses lashed to a gallop, which was rapidly rolling away from them in the +distance. The two men whose horses had run away with them had them again under +control, and were riding on either side of it—one of them leading the +horse that had carried Isabelle and her captor. <i>He</i> was doubtless +mounting guard over her in the carriage—perhaps using force to keep her +quiet—at thought of which de Sigognac could scarcely control the +transport of rage and agony that shook him. Although the three pursuers +followed the fugitives, as fast as they could run, it was all of no avail, for +they soon lost sight of them altogether, and nothing remained to be done but to +ascertain, if possible, the direction they had taken, so as to have some clew +to poor Isabelle’s whereabouts. They had considerable difficulty in +making out the marks of the carriage wheels, for the roads were very dry; and +when at length they had succeeded in tracing them to a place where four roads +met they lost them entirely—it was utterly impossible to tell which way +they had gone. After a long and fruitless search they turned back sorrowfully +to join their companions, trying to devise some plan for Isabelle’s +rescue, but feeling acutely how hopeless it was. They found the others in the +chariot waiting for them, just where the tyrant and Scapin had left them, for +their false guide had put spurs to his horse and ridden off after his +confederates, as soon as he became aware that their undertaking had proved +successful. When Hérode asked an old peasant woman, who came by with a bundle +of fagots on her back, how far it was to the Château de Pommereuil, she +answered that there was no place of that name anywhere in the country round. +Upon being questioned closely, she said that she had lived in the neighbourhood +for seventy years, knew every house within many leagues, and could positively +assure them that there was no such Château within a day’s journey. So it +was only too evident that they were the dupes of the clever agents of the Duke +of Vallombreuse, who had at last succeeded in getting possession of Isabelle, +as he had sworn that he would do. Accordingly, all of the party turned back +towards Paris, excepting de Sigognac, the tyrant and Scapin, who had decided to +go on to the next village, where they hoped to be able to procure horses, with +which to prosecute their search for Isabelle and her abductors. +</p> + +<p> +After the baron’s fall, she had been swiftly taken on to the other side +of the thicket, where the carriage stood awaiting her; then lifted down from +the horse and put into it, in spite of her frantic struggles and remonstrances. +The man who had held her in front of him got down also and sprang in after her, +closing the door with a bang, and instantly they were off at a tremendous pace. +He seated himself opposite to her, and when she impetuously tried to pull aside +the curtain, so that she could see out of the window nearest to her, he +respectfully but firmly restrained her. +</p> + +<p> +“Mademoiselle, I implore you to keep quiet,” he said, with the +utmost politeness, “and not oblige me to use forcible means to restrain +so charming and adorable a creature as your most lovely self. No harm shall +come to you—do not be afraid!—only kindness is intended; therefore +I beseech you do not persist in vain resistance. If you will only submit +quietly, you shall be treated with as much consideration and respect as a +captive queen, but if you go on acting like the devil, struggling and +shrieking, I have means to bring you to terms, and I shall certainly resort to +them. <i>This</i> will stop your screaming, mademoiselle, and <i>this</i> will +prevent your struggling.” +</p> + +<p> +As he spoke he drew out of his pocket a small gag, very artistically made, and +a long, thick, silken cord, rolled up into a ball. +</p> + +<p> +“It would be barbarous indeed,” he continued, “to apply such +a thing as this to that sweet, rosy mouth of yours, mademoiselle, as I am sure +that you will admit—or to bind together those pretty, delicate, little +wrists, upon which no worse fetters than diamond bracelets should ever be +placed.” +</p> + +<p> +Poor Isabelle, furious and frightened though she was, could not but acknowledge +to herself that further physical resistance then would be worse than useless, +and determined to spare herself at least such indignities as she was at that +moment threatened with; so, without vouchsafing a word to her attendant, she +threw herself back into the corner of the carriage, closed her eyes, and tried +to keep perfectly still. But in spite of her utmost endeavours she could not +altogether repress an occasional sob, nor hold back the great tears that welled +forth from under her drooping eyelids and rolled down over her pale cheeks, as +she thought of de Sigognac’s despair and her own danger. +</p> + +<p> +“After the nervous excitement comes the moist stage;” said her +masked guardian to himself, “things are following their usual and natural +course. I am very glad of it, for I should have greatly disliked to be obliged +to act a brutal part with such a sweet, charming girl as this.” +</p> + +<p> +Now and then Isabelle opened her eyes and cast a timid glance at her abductor, +who finally said to her, in a voice he vainly strove to render soft and mild: +</p> + +<p> +“You need not be afraid of me, mademoiselle! I would not harm you in any +way for the world. If fortune had been more generous to me I certainly would +never have undertaken this enterprise against such a lovely, gentle young lady +as you are; but poor men like me are driven to all sorts of expedients to earn +a little money; they have to take whatever comes within their reach, and +sacrifice their scruples to their necessities.” +</p> + +<p> +“You do admit then,” said Isabelle vehemently, “that you have +been bribed to carry me off? An infamous, cruel, outrageous thing it is.” +</p> + +<p> +“After what I have had to do,” he replied, “it would be idle +to deny it. There are a good many philosophers like myself in Paris, +mademoiselle, who, instead of indulging in love affairs, and intrigues of +various sorts, of their own, interest themselves in those of other people, and, +for a consideration, make use of their courage, ingenuity and strength to +further them. But to change the subject, how charming you were in that last new +play! You went through the scene of the avowal with a grace I have never seen +equalled. I applauded you to the echo; the pair of hands that kept it up so +perseveringly and vigorously, you know, belonged to me.” +</p> + +<p> +“I beg you to dispense with these ill-judged remarks and compliments, and +to tell me where you are taking me, in this strange, outrageous manner, against +my will, and, in despite of all the ordinary usages of civilized +society.” +</p> + +<p> +“I cannot tell you that, mademoiselle, and besides, it would do you no +sort of good to know. In our profession, you see, we are obliged to observe as +much secrecy and discretion as confessors and physicians. Indeed, in such +affairs as this we often do not know the names of the parties we are working +for ourselves.” +</p> + +<p> +“Do you mean to say that you do not know who has employed you to commit +this abominable, cruel crime?” +</p> + +<p> +“It makes no difference whether I know his name or not, since I am not at +liberty to disclose it to you. Think over your numerous admirers, mademoiselle! +the most ardent and least favoured one among them would probably be at the +bottom of all this.” +</p> + +<p> +Finding that she could not get any information from him, Isabelle desisted, and +did not speak again. She had not the slightest doubt that the Duke of +Vallombreuse was the author of this new and daring enterprise. The significant +and threatening way in which he had said “<i>au revoir, +mademoiselle</i>,” as he quitted her presence after she had repulsed him +a few days before, had haunted her, and she had been in constant dread ever +since of some new outrage. She hoped, against hope, that de Sigognac, her +valiant lover, would yet come to her rescue, and thought proudly of the gallant +deeds he had already done in her behalf that day—but how was he to find +out where to seek her? +</p> + +<p> +“If worst comes to worst,” she said to herself, “I still have +Chiquita’s knife, and I can and will escape from my persecutor in that +way, if all other means fail.” +</p> + +<p> +For two long hours she sat motionless, a prey to sad and terrible thoughts and +fears, while the carriage rolled swiftly on without slackening its speed, save +once, for a moment, when they changed horses. As the curtains were all lowered, +she could not catch even a glimpse of the country she was passing through, nor +tell in what direction she was being driven. At last she heard the hollow sound +of a drawbridge under the wheels; the carriage stopped, and her masked +companion, promptly opening the door, jumped nimbly out and helped her to +alight. She cast a hurried glance round her, as she stepped down, saw that she +was in a large, square court, and that all the tall, narrow windows in the high +brick walls that surrounded it had their inside shutters carefully closed. The +stone pavement of the spacious courtyard was in some places partly covered with +moss, and a few weeds had sprung up in the corners, and along the edges by the +walls. At the foot of a broad, easy flight of steps, leading up to a covered +porch, two majestic Egyptian sphinxes lay keeping guard; their huge rounded +flanks mottled here and there with patches of moss and lichens. Although the +large château looked lonely and deserted, it had a grand, lordly air, and +seemed to be kept in perfect order and repair. Isabelle was led up the steps +and into the vestibule by the man who had brought her there, and then consigned +to the care of a respectable-looking majordomo, who preceded her up a +magnificent staircase, and into a suite of rooms furnished with the utmost +luxury and elegance. Passing through the first—which was enriched with +fine old carvings in oak, dark with age—he left her in a spacious, +admirably proportioned apartment, where a cheery wood fire was roaring up the +huge chimney, and she saw a bed in a curtained alcove. She chanced to catch +sight of her own face in the mirror over an elaborately furnished +dressing-table, as she passed it, and was startled and shocked at its ghastly +pallor and altered expression; she scarcely could recognise it, and felt as if +she had seen a ghost—poor Isabelle! Over the high, richly ornamented +chimney-piece hung a portrait of a gentleman, which, as she approached the +fire, at once caught and riveted her attention. The face seemed strangely +familiar to her, and yet she could not remember where she had seen it before. +It was pale, with large, black eyes, full red lips, and wavy brown hair, thrown +carelessly back from it-apparently the likeness of a man about forty years of +age and it had a charming air of nobility and lofty pride, tempered with +benevolence and tenderness, which was inexpressibly attractive. The portrait +was only half-length—the breast being covered with a steel cuirass, +richly inlaid with gold, which was partly concealed by a white scarf, loosely +knotted over it. Isabelle, despite her great alarm and anxiety, could not long +withdraw her eyes or her thoughts from this picture, which seemed to exert a +strange fascination over her. There was something about it that at the first +glance resembled the Duke of Vallombreuse, but the expression was so different +that the likeness disappeared entirely upon closer examination. It brought +vague memories to Isabelle’s mind that she tried in vain to +seize—she felt as if she must be looking at it in a dream. She was still +absorbed in reverie before it when the major-domo reappeared, followed by two +lackeys, in quiet livery, carrying a small table set for one person, which they +put down near the fire; and as one of them took the cover off an old-fashioned, +massive silver tureen, he announced to Isabelle that her dinner was ready. The +savoury odour from the smoking soup was very tempting, and she was very hungry; +but after she had mechanically seated herself and dipped her spoon into the +broth, it suddenly occurred to her that the food might contain a +narcotic—such things had been done—and she pushed away the plate in +front of her in alarm. The major-domo, who was standing at a respectful +distance watching her, ready to anticipate her every wish, seemed to divine her +thought, for he advanced to the table and deliberately partook of all the +viands upon it, as well as of the wine and water—as if to prove to her +that there was nothing wrong or unusual about them. Isabelle was somewhat +reassured by this, and feeling that she would probably have need of all her +strength, did bring herself to eat and drink, though very sparingly. Then, +quitting the table, she sat down in a large easy-chair in front of the fire to +think over her terrible position, and endeavour to devise some means of escape +from it. When the servants had attended to their duties and left her alone +again, she rose languidly and walked slowly to the window—feeling as weak +as though she had had a severe illness, after the violent emotions and terrors +of the day, and as if she had aged years in the last few hours. Could it be +possible that only that very morning she and de Sigognac had been walking +together, with hearts full of happiness and peace—and she had rapturously +hailed the appearance of the first spring violet as an omen of good, and +gathered the sweet little blossom to bestow upon the devoted lover who adored +her? And now, alas! alas! they were as inexorably and hopelessly separated as +if half the globe lay between them. No wonder that her breast heaved +tumultuously with choking sobs, and hot tears rained down over her pallid +cheeks, as she wept convulsively at the thought of all she had lost. But she +did not long indulge her grief—she remembered that at any moment she +might have need of all her coolness and fortitude—and making a mighty +effort, like the brave heroine that she was, she regained control over herself, +and drove back the gushing tears to await a more fitting season. She was +relieved to find that there were no bars at the window, as she had feared; but +upon opening the casement and leaning out she saw immediately beneath her a +broad moat, full of stagnant water, which surrounded the château, and forbade +any hope of succour or escape on that side. Beyond the moat was a thick grove +of large trees, which entirely shut out the view; and she returned to her seat +by the fire, more disheartened and cast down than ever. She was very nervous, +and trembled at the slightest sound—casting hasty, terrified glances +round the vast apartment, and dreading lest an unseen door in some shadowy +corner should be softly opened, or a hidden panel in the wall be slipped aside, +to admit her relentless enemy to her presence. She remembered all the horrible +tales she had ever heard of secret passages and winding staircases in the +walls, that are supposed to abound in ancient castles; and the mysterious +visitants, both human and supernatural, that are said to be in the habit of +issuing from them, in the gloaming, and at midnight. As the twilight deepened +into darkness, her terror increased, and she nearly fainted from fright when a +servant suddenly entered with lights. +</p> + +<p> +While poor Isabelle was suffering such agony in one part of the château, her +abductors were having a grand carouse in another. They were to remain there for +a while as a sort of garrison, in case of an attack by de Sigognac and his +friends; and were gathered round the table in a large room down on the ground +floor—as remote as possible from Isabelle’s sumptuous quarters. +They were all drinking like sponges, and making merry over their wine and good +cheer, but one of them especially showed the most remarkable and astounding +powers of ingurgitation—it was the man who had carried off the fair prize +before him on his horse; and, now that the mask was thrown aside, he disclosed +to view the deathly pale face and fiery red nose of Malartic, bosom friend and +“<i>alter ego</i>” of Maître Jacquemin Lampourde. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap16"></a>CHAPTER XVI.<br/> +VALLOMBREUSE</h2> + +<p> +Isabelle sat for a long time perfectly motionless in her luxurious chamber, +sunk in a sad reverie, apparently entirely oblivious of the glow of light, +warmth, and comfort that closed her in—glancing up occasionally at the +portrait over the chimney-piece, which seemed to be smiling down upon her and +promising her protection and peace, while it more than ever reminded her of +some dear face she had known and loved long ago. After a time, however, her +mood changed. She grew restless, and rising, began to wander aimlessly about +the room; but her uneasiness only increased, and finally, in desperation, she +resolved to venture out into the corridor and look about her, no matter at what +risk. Anything would be better than this enforced inactivity and suspense. She +tried the door with a trembling hand, dreading to find herself locked in, but +it was not fastened, and seeing that all was dark outside, she took up a small +lamp, that had been left burning on a side table, and boldly setting forth, +went softly down the long flight of stairs, in the hope of finding some means +of exit from the château on the lower floor. At the foot of the stairs she came +to a large double door, one leaf of which yielded easily when she timidly tried +to open it, but creaked dolefully as it turned on its hinges. She hesitated for +a moment, fearing that the noise would alarm the servants and bring them out to +see what was amiss; but no one came, and taking fresh courage, she moved on and +passed into a lofty, vaulted hall, with high-backed, oaken benches ranged +against the tapestry-covered walls, upon which hung several large trophies of +arms, and sundry swords, shields, and steel gauntlets, which caught and flashed +back the light from her lamp as she held it up to examine them. The air was +heavy, chilly, and damp. An awful stillness reigned in this deserted hall. +Isabelle shivered as she crept slowly along, and nearly stumbled against a huge +table, with massive carved feet, that stood in the centre of the tesselated +marble pavement. She was making for a door, opposite the one by which she had +entered; but, as she approached it, was horror-stricken when she perceived two +tall men, clad in armour, standing like sentinels, one on either side of it. +She stopped short, then tried to turn and fly, but was so paralyzed with terror +that she could not stir, expecting every instant that they would pounce upon +her and take her prisoner, while she bitterly repented her temerity in having +ventured to leave her own room, and vainly wished herself back by the quiet +fireside there. Meanwhile the two dread figures stood as motionless as +herself—the silence was unbroken, and “the beating of her own heart +was the only sound she heard.” So at last she plucked up courage to look +more closely at the grim sentinels, and could not help smiling at her own +needless alarm, when she found that they were suits of armour, indeed, but +without men inside of them—just such as one sees standing about in the +ancient royal palaces of France. Passing them with a saucy glance of defiance, +and a little triumphant toss of the head, Isabelle entered a vast dining room, +with tall, sculptured buffets, on which stood many superb vessels of gold and +silver, together with delicate specimens of exquisite Venetian and Bohemian +glass, and precious pieces of fine porcelain, fit for a king’s table. +Large handsome chairs, with carved backs, were standing round the great +dining-table, and the walls, above the heavy oaken wainscot, were hung with +richly embossed Cordova leather, glowing with warm, bright tints and golden +arabesques. +</p> + +<p> +She did not linger to examine and admire all the beautified things dimly +revealed to her by the feeble light of her small lamp, but hurried on to the +third door, which opened into an apartment yet more spacious and magnificent +than the other two. At one end of it was a lordly dais, raised three steps +above the inlaid floor, upon which stood a splendid great arm-chair, almost a +throne, under a canopy emblazoned with a brilliant coat of arms and surmounted +by a tuft of nodding plumes. Still hurrying on, Isabelle next entered a +sumptuous bed-chamber, and, as she paused for an instant to hold up her lamp +and look about her, fancied that she could hear the regular breathing of a +sleeper in the immense bed, behind the crimson silk curtains which were closely +drawn around it. She did not dare to stop and investigate the matter, but flew +on her way, as lightly as any bird, and next found herself in a library, where +the white busts surmounting the well-filled book-cases stared down at her with +their hard, stony eyes, and made her shudder as she nervously sought for an +exit, without delaying one moment to glance at the great variety of curious and +beautiful objects scattered lavishly about, which, under any ordinary +circumstances, would have held her enthralled. +</p> + +<p> +Running at right angles with the library, and opening out of it, was the +picture gallery, where the family portraits were arranged in chronological +order on one side, while opposite to them was a long row of windows, looking +into the court. The shutters were closed, but near the top of each one was a +small circular opening, through which the moon shone and faintly lighted the +dusky gallery, striking here and there directly upon the face of a portrait, +with an indescribably weird and startling effect. It required all of +Isabelle’s really heroic courage to keep on past the long line of strange +faces, looking down mockingly it seemed to her from their proud height upon her +trembling form as she glided swiftly by, and she was thankful to find, at the +end of the gallery, a glass door opening out upon the court. It was not +fastened, and after carefully placing her lamp in a sheltered corner, where no +draughts could reach it, she stepped out under the stars. It was a relief to +find herself breathing freely in the fresh, pure air, though she was actually +no less a prisoner than before, and as she stood looking up into the clear +evening sky, and thinking of her own true lover, she seemed to feel new courage +and hope springing up in her heart. +</p> + +<p> +In one corner of the court she saw a strong light shining out through the +crevices in the shutters that closed several low windows, and heard sounds of +revelry from the same direction—the only signs of life she had detected +about the whole place. Her curiosity was excited by them, and she stole softly +over towards the quarter from whence they came, keeping carefully in the shadow +of the wall, and glancing anxiously about to make sure that no one was +furtively watching her. Finding a considerable aperture in one of the wooden +shutters she peeped through it, and saw a party of men gathered around a table, +eating and drinking and making merry in a very noisy fashion. The light from a +lamp with three burners, which was suspended by a copper chain from the low +ceiling, fell full upon them, and although she had only seen them masked +before, Isabelle instantly recognised those who had been concerned in her +abduction. At the head of the table sat Malartic, whose extraordinary face was +paler and nose redder than ever, and at sight of whom the young girl shuddered +and drew back. When she had recovered herself a little, she looked in again +upon the repulsive scene, and was surprised to see, at the other end of the +table, and somewhat apart from the others, Agostino, the brigand, who had now +laid aside the long white beard in which he had played the part of the old +blind beggar so successfully. A great deal of loud talking was going on, +constantly interrupted by bursts of laughter, but Isabelle could not hear +distinctly enough through the closed window to make out what they were saying. +Even if she had been actually in the room with them, she would have found much +of their conversation incomprehensible, as it was largely made up of the +extraordinary slang of the Paris street Arabs and rascals generally. From time +to time one or the other of the participants in this orgy seemed to propose a +toast, whereupon they would all clink their glasses together before raising +them to their lips, drain them at a draught, and applaud vociferously, while +there was a constant drawing of corks and placing of fresh bottles on the table +by the servant who was waiting upon them. Just as Isabelle, thoroughly +disgusted with the brutality of the scene before her, was about to turn away, +Malartic rapped loudly on the table to obtain a hearing, and after making a +proposition, which met with ready and cordial assent, rose from his seat, +cleared his throat, and began to sing, or rather shout, a ribald song, all the +others joining in the chorus, with horrible grimaces and gesticulations, which +so frightened poor Isabelle that she could scarcely find strength to creep away +from the loathsome spectacle. +</p> + +<p> +Before re-entering the house she went to look at the drawbridge, with a faint +hope that she might chance upon some unexpected means of escape, but all was +secure there, and a little postern, opening on the moat, which she discovered +near by, was also carefully fastened, with bolts and bars strong enough to keep +out an army. As these seemed to be the only means of exit from the château, she +felt that she was a prisoner indeed, and understood why it had not been deemed +necessary to lock any of the inner doors against her. She walked slowly back to +the gallery, entered it by the glass door, found her lamp burning tranquilly +just where she had left it, retraced her steps swiftly through the long suite +of spacious apartments already described and flew up the grand staircase to her +own room, congratulating herself upon not having been detected in her +wanderings. She put her lamp down in the antechamber, but paused in terror on +the threshold of the inner room, stifling a shriek that had nearly escaped her +as she caught sight of a strange, wild figure crouching on the hearth. But her +fears were short-lived, for with an exclamation of delight the intruder sprang +towards her and she saw that it was Chiquita—but Chiquita in boy’s +clothes. +</p> + +<p> +“Have you got the knife yet?” said the strange little creature +abruptly to Isabelle—“the knife with three bonny red marks.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, Chiquita, I have it here in my bosom,” she replied. +“But why do you ask? Is my life in danger?” +</p> + +<p> +“A knife,” said the child with fierce, sparkling eyes, “a +knife is a faithful friend and servant; it never betrays or fails its master, +if he is careful to give it a drink now and then, for a knife is often thirsty +you know.” +</p> + +<p> +“You frighten me, you naughty child!” exclaimed Isabelle, much +troubled and agitated by these sinister, extravagant words, which perhaps, she +thought, might be intended as a friendly warning. +</p> + +<p> +“Sharpen the edge on the marble of the chimney-piece, like this,” +continued Chiquita, “and polish the blade on the sole of your +shoe.” +</p> + +<p> +“Why do you tell me all this?” cried Isabelle, turning very pale. +</p> + +<p> +“For nothing in particular, only he who would defend himself gets his +weapons ready—that’s all.” +</p> + +<p> +These odd, fierce phrases greatly alarmed Isabelle, yet Chiquita’s +presence in her room was a wonderful relief and comfort to her. The child +apparently cherished a warm and sincere affection for her, which was none the +less genuine because of its having arisen from such a trivial +incident—for the pearl beads were more precious than diamonds to +Chiquita. She had given a voluntary promise to Isabelle never to kill or harm +her, and with her strange, wild, yet exalted notions of honour she looked upon +it as a solemn obligation and vow, by which she must always abide—for +there was a certain savage nobility in Chiquita’s character, and she +could be faithful unto death. Isabelle was the only human being, excepting +Agostino, who had been kind to her. She had smiled upon the unkempt child, and +given her the coveted necklace, and Chiquita loved her for it, while she adored +her beauty. Isabelle’s sweet countenance, so angelically mild and pure, +exercised a wonderful influence over the neglected little savage, who had +always been surrounded by fierce, haggard faces, expressive of every evil +passion, and disfigured by indulgence in the lowest vices, and excesses of +every kind. +</p> + +<p> +“But how does it happen that you are here, Chiquita?” asked +Isabelle, after a short silence. “Were you sent to keep guard over +me?” +</p> + +<p> +“No, I came alone and of my own accord,” answered Chiquita, +“because I saw the light and fire. I was tired of lying all cramped up in +a corner, and keeping quiet, while those beastly men drank bottle after bottle +of wine, and gorged themselves with the good things set before them. I am so +little, you know, so young and slender, that they pay no more attention to me +than they would to a kitten asleep under the table. While they were making a +great noise I slipped quietly away unperceived. The smell of the wine and the +food sickened me. I am used to the sweet perfume of the heather, and the pure +resinous odour of the pines. I cannot breathe in such an atmosphere as there is +down below there.” +</p> + +<p> +“And you were not afraid to wander alone, without a light, through the +long, dark corridors, and the lonely, deserted rooms?” +</p> + +<p> +“Chiquita does not know what it is to be afraid—her eyes can see in +the dark, and her feet never stumble. The very owls shut their eyes when they +meet her, and the bats fold their wings when she comes near their haunts. +Wandering ghosts stand aside to let her pass, or turn back when they see her +approaching. Night is her comrade and hides no secrets from her, and Chiquita +never betrays them to the day.” +</p> + +<p> +Her eyes flashed and dilated as she spoke, and Isabelle looked at her with +growing wonder, not unmixed with a vague sensation of fear. +</p> + +<p> +“I like much better to stay here, in this heavenly quiet, by the fire +with you,” continued the child, “than down there in all the uproar. +You are so beautiful that I love to look at you-you are like the Blessed Virgin +that I have seen shining above the altar. Only from afar though, for they +always chase me out of the churches with the dogs, because I am so shabby and +forlorn. How white your hand is! Mine looks like a monkey’s paw beside +it—and your hair is as fine and soft as silk, while mine is all rough and +tangled. Oh! I am so horribly ugly—you must think so too.” +</p> + +<p> +“No, my dear child,” Isabelle replied, touched by her naive +expressions of affection and admiration, “I do not think so. You have +beauty too—you only need to make yourself neat and clean to be as pretty +a little girl as one would wish to see.” +</p> + +<p> +“Do you really think so? Are you telling me true? I would steal fine +clothes if they would make me pretty, for then Agostino would love me.” +</p> + +<p> +This idea brought a little flush of colour to her thin brown cheeks, and for a +few minutes she seemed lost in a pleasant reverie. +</p> + +<p> +“Do you know where we are?” asked Isabelle, when Chiquita looked up +at her again. +</p> + +<p> +“In a château that belongs to the great seignior who has so much money, +and who wanted to carry you off at Poitiers. I had only to draw the bolt and it +would have been done then. But you gave me the pearl necklace, and I love you, +and I would not do anything you did not like.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yet you have helped to carry me off this time,” said Isabelle +reproachfully. “Is it because you don’t love me any more that you +have given me up to my enemies?” +</p> + +<p> +“Agostino ordered me, and I had to obey; besides, some other child could +have played guide to the blind man as well as I, and then I could not have come +into the château with you, do you see?—here I may be able to do something +to help you. I am brave, active and strong, though I am so small, and quick as +lightning too—and I shall not let anybody harm you.” +</p> + +<p> +“Is this château very far from Paris?” asked Isabelle, drawing +Chiquita up on her lap. “Did you hear any one mention the name of this +place?” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, one of them called it—now what was it?” said the child, +looking up at the ceiling and absently scratching her head, as if to stimulate +her memory. +</p> + +<p> +“Try to remember it, my child!” said Isabelle, softly stroking +Chiquita’s brown cheeks, which flushed with delight at the unwonted +caress—no one had ever petted the poor child in her life before. +</p> + +<p> +“I think that it was Val-lom-breuse,” said Chiquita at last, +pronouncing the syllables separately and slowly, as if listening to an inward +echo. “Yes, Vallombreuse, I am sure of it now. It is the name of the +seignior that your Captain Fracasse wounded in a duel—he would have done +much better if he had killed him outright—saved a great deal of trouble +to himself and to you. He is very wicked, that rich duke, though he does throw +his gold about so freely by the handfuls—just like a man sowing grain. +You hate him, don’t you? and you would be glad if you could get away from +him, eh?” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh yes, indeed!” cried Isabelle impetuously. “But alas! it +is impossible—a deep moat runs all around this château the drawbridge is +up, the postern securely fastened—there is no way of escape.” +</p> + +<p> +“Chiquita laughs at bolts and bars, at high walls and deep moats. +Chiquita can get out of the best guarded prison whenever she pleases, and fly +away to the moon, right before the eyes of her astonished jailer. If you +choose, before the sun rises your Captain Fracasse shall know where the +treasure that he seeks is hidden.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle was afraid, when she heard these incoherent phrases, that the child +was not quite sane, but her little face was so calm, her dark eyes so clear and +steady, her voice so earnest, and she spoke with such an air of quiet +conviction, that the supposition was not admissible, and the strange little +creature did seem to be possessed of some of the magic powers she claimed. As +if to convince Isabelle that she was not merely boasting, she continued, +“Let me think a moment, to make a plan—don’t speak nor move, +for the least sound interferes with me—I must listen to the +spirit.” +</p> + +<p> +Chiquita bent down her head, put her hand over her eyes, and remained for +several minutes perfectly motionless; then she raised her head and without a +word went and opened the window, clambered up on the sill, and gazed out +intently into the darkness. +</p> + +<p> +“Is she really going to take flight?” said Isabelle to herself, as +she anxiously watched Chiquita’s movements, not knowing what to expect. +Exactly opposite to the window, on the other side of the moat, was an immense +tree, very high and old, whose great branches, spreading out horizontally, +overhung the water; but the longest of them did not reach the wall of the +château by at least ten feet. It was upon this tree, however, that +Chiquita’s plan for escape depended. She turned away from the window, +drew from her pocket a long cord made of horse-hair, very fine and strong, +which she carefully unrolled to its full length and laid upon the floor; then +produced from another pocket an iron hook, which she fastened securely to the +cord. This done to her satisfaction, she went to the window again, and threw +the end of the cord with the hook into the branches of the tree. The first time +she was unsuccessful; the iron hook fell and struck against the stone wall +beneath the casement; but at the second attempt the hook caught and held, and +Chiquita, drawing the cord taut, asked Isabelle to take hold of it and bear her +whole weight on it, until the branch was bent as far as possible towards the +château—coming five or six feet nearer to the window where they were. +Then Chiquita tied the cord firmly to the ornamental iron railing of the tiny +balcony, with a knot that could not slip, climbed over, and grasping the cord +with both hands, swung herself off, and hung suspended over the waters of the +moat far below. Isabelle held her breath. With a rapid motion of the hands +Chiquita crossed the clear space, reached the tree safely, and climbed down +into it with the agility of a monkey. +</p> + +<p> +“Now undo the knot so that I can take the cord with me,” she said, +in a low but very distinct tone of voice to Isabelle, who began to breathe +freely again, “unless, indeed, you would like to follow me. But you would +be frightened and dizzy, and might fall, so you had better stay where you are. +Good-bye! I am going straight to Paris, and shall soon be back again; I can get +on quickly in this bright moonlight.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle did as she was bid, and the branch, being no longer held by the cord, +swung back to its original position. In less than a minute Chiquita had +scrambled down to the ground, and the captive soon lost sight of her slender +little figure as she walked off briskly towards the capital. +</p> + +<p> +All that had just occurred seemed like a strange dream to Isabelle, now that +she found herself alone again. She remained for some time at the open casement, +looking at the great tree opposite, and trembling as she realized the terrible +risk Chiquita had run for her sake—feeling warm gratitude and tender +affection for the wild, incomprehensible little creature, who manifested such a +strong attachment for herself, and a new hope sprang up in her heart as she +thought that now de Sigognac would soon know where to find her. The cold night +air at last forced her to close the window, and after arranging the curtains +over it carefully, so as to show no signs of having been disturbed, she +returned to her easy-chair by the fire; and just in time, for she had scarcely +seated herself when the major-domo entered, followed by the two servants, again +carrying the little table, set for one, with her supper daintily arranged upon +it. A few minutes earlier and Chiquita’s escape would have been +discovered and prevented. Isabelle, still greatly agitated by all that had +passed, could not eat, and signed to the servants to remove the supper +untouched. Whereupon the major-domo himself put some bread and wine on a small +table beside the bed, and placed on a chair near the fire a richly trimmed +dressing-gown, and everything that a lady could require in making her toilet +for the night. Several large logs of wood were piled up on the massive +andirons, the candles were renewed, and then the major-domo, approaching +Isabelle with a profound obeisance, said to her that if she desired the +services of a maid he would send one to her. As she made a gesture of dissent +he withdrew, after again bowing to her most respectfully. When they had all +gone, Isabelle, quite worn out, threw herself down on the outside of the bed +without undressing, so as to be ready in case of any sudden alarm in the night; +then took out Chiquita’s knife, opened it, and laid it beside her. Having +taken these precautions, she closed her eyes, and hoped that she could for a +while forget her troubles in sleep; but she had been so much excited and +agitated that her nerves were all quivering, and it was long before she even +grew drowsy. There were so many strange, incomprehensible noises in the great, +empty house to disturb and startle her; and in her own room, the cracking of +the furniture, the ticking of a death-watch in the wall near her bed, the +gnawing of a rat behind the wainscot, the snapping of the fire. At each fresh +sound she started up in terror, with her poor heart throbbing as if it would +burst out of her breast, a cold perspiration breaking out on her forehead, and +trembling in every limb. At last, however, weary nature had to succumb, and she +fell into a deep sleep, which lasted until she was awakened by the sun shining +on her face. Her first thought was to wonder that she had not yet seen the Duke +of Vallombreuse; but she was thankful for his absence, and hoped that it would +continue until Chiquita should have brought de Sigognac to the rescue. +</p> + +<p> +The reason why the young duke had not yet made his appearance was one of +policy. He had taken especial pains to show himself at Saint Germain on the day +of the abduction—had joined the royal hunting party, and been exceedingly +and unwontedly affable to all who happened to come in contact with him. In the +evening he had played at cards, and lost ostentatiously sums that would have +been of importance to a less wealthy man—being all the time in a very +genial mood—especially after the arrival of a mounted messenger, who +brought him a little note. Thus the duke’s desire to be able to establish +an incontestable alibi, in case of need, had spared Isabelle thus far the +infliction of his hated presence; but while she was congratulating herself upon +it, and welcoming the sunshine that streamed into her room, she heard the +drawbridge being let down, and immediately after a carriage dashed over it and +thundered into the court. Her heart sank, for who would be likely to enter in +that style save the master of the house? Her face grew deathly pale, she +reeled, and for one dreadful moment felt as if she should faint; but, rallying +her courage, she reminded herself that Chiquita had gone to bring de Sigognac +to her aid, and determined afresh to meet bravely whatever trials might be in +store for her, until her beloved knight and champion should arrive, to rescue +her from her terrible danger and irksome imprisonment. Her eyes involuntarily +sought the portrait over the chimney-piece, and after passionately invoking it, +and imploring its aid and protection, as if it had been her patron saint, she +felt a certain sense of ease and security, as if what she had so earnestly +entreated would really be accorded to her. +</p> + +<p> +A full hour had elapsed, which the young duke had employed in the duties of the +toilet, and in snatching a few minutes of repose after his rapid night-journey, +when the major-domo presented himself, and asked respectfully if Isabelle would +receive the Duke of Vallombreuse. +</p> + +<p> +“I am a prisoner,” she replied, with quiet dignity, “and this +demand, which would be fitting and polite in any ordinary case, is only a +mockery when addressed to one in my position. I have no means of preventing +your master’s coming into this room, nor can I quit it to avoid him. I do +not accept his visit but submit to it. He must do as he pleases about it, and +come and go when he likes. He allows me no choice in the matter. Go and tell +him exactly what I have said to you.” +</p> + +<p> +The major-domo bowed low, and retired backward to the door, having received +strict orders to treat Isabelle with the greatest respect and consideration. In +a few minutes he returned, and announced the Duke of Vallombreuse. +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle half rose from her chair by the fire, but turned very pale and fell +back into it, as her unwelcome visitor made his appearance at the door. He +closed it and advanced slowly towards her, hat in hand, but when he perceived +that she was trembling violently, and looked ready to faint, he stopped in the +middle of the room, made a low bow, and said in his most dulcet, persuasive +tones: +</p> + +<p> +“If my presence is too unbearably odious now to the charming Isabelle, +and she would like to have a little time to get used to the thought of seeing +me, I will withdraw. She is my prisoner, it is true, but I am none the less her +slave.” +</p> + +<p> +“This courtesy is tardy,” Isabelle replied coldly, “after the +violence you have made use of against me.” +</p> + +<p> +“That is the natural result,” said the duke, with a smile, +“of pushing people to extremity by a too obstinate and prolonged +resistance. Having lost all hope, they stop at nothing—knowing that they +cannot make matters any worse, whatever they do. If you had only been willing +to suffer me to pay my court to you in the regular way, and shown a little +indulgence to my love, I should have quietly remained among the ranks of your +passionate adorers; striving, by dint of delicate attentions, chivalrous +devotion, magnificent offerings, and respectful yet ardent solicitations, to +soften that hard heart of yours. If I could not have succeeded in inspiring it +with love for me, I might at least have awakened in it that tender pity which +is akin to love, and which is so often only its forerunner. In the end, +perhaps, you would have repented of your cruel severity, and acknowledged that +you had been unjust towards me. Believe me, my charming Isabelle, I should have +neglected nothing to bring it about.” +</p> + +<p> +“If you had employed only honest and honourable means in your +suit,” Isabelle rejoined, “I should have felt very sorry that I had +been so unfortunate as to inspire an attachment I could not reciprocate, and +would have given you my warm sympathy, and friendly regard, instead of being +reluctantly compelled, by repeated outrages, to hate you instead. +</p> + +<p> +“You do hate me then?—you acknowledge it?” the duke cried, +his voice trembling with rage; but he controlled himself, and after a short +pause continued, in a gentler tone, “Yet I do not deserve it. My only +wrongs towards you, if any there be, have come from the excess and ardour of my +love; and what woman, however chaste and virtuous, can be seriously angry with +a gallant gentleman because he has been conquered by the power of her adorable +charms? whether she so desired or not.” +</p> + +<p> +“Certainly, that is not a reason for dislike or anger, my lord, if the +suitor does not overstep the limits of respect, as all women will agree. But +when his insolent impatience leads him to commit excesses, and he resorts to +fraud, abduction, and imprisonment, as you have not hesitated to do, there is +no other result possible than an unconquerable aversion. Coercion is always and +inevitably revolting to a nature that has any proper pride or delicacy. Love, +true love, is divine, and cannot be furnished to order, or extorted by +violence. It is spontaneous, and freely given—not to be bought, nor yet +won by importunity.” +</p> + +<p> +“Is an unconquerable aversion then all that I am to expect from +you?” said Vallombreuse, who had become pale to ghastliness, and been +fiercely gnawing his under lip, while Isabelle was speaking, in her sweet, +clear tones, which fell on his ear like the soft chiming of silver bells, and +only served to enhance his devouring passion. +</p> + +<p> +“There is yet one means of winning my friendship and gratitude—be +noble and generous, and give me back the liberty of which you have deprived me. +Let me return to my companions, who must be anxiously seeking for me, and +suffering keenly because of their fears for my safety. Let me go and resume my +lowly life as an actress, before this outrageous affair—which may +irreparably injure my reputation—has become generally known, or my +absence from the theatre been remarked by the public.” +</p> + +<p> +“How unfortunate it is,” cried the duke, angrily, “that you +should ask of me the only thing I cannot do for you. If you had expressed your +desire for an empire, a throne, I would have given it to you—or if you +had wished for a star, I would have climbed up into the heavens to get it for +you. But here you calmly ask me to open the door of this cage, little bird, to +which you would never come back of your own accord, if I were stupid enough to +let you go. It is impossible! I know well that you love me so little, or rather +hate me so much, that you would never see me again of your own free +will—that my only chance of enjoying your charming society is to lock you +up—keep you my prisoner. However much it may cost my pride, I must do +it—for I can no more live without you than a plant without the light. My +thoughts turn to you as the heliotrope to the sun. Where you are not, all is +darkness for me. If what I have dared to do is a crime, I must make the best of +it, and profit by it as much as I can—for you would never forgive nor +overlook it, whatever you may say now. Here at least I have you—I hold +you. I can surround you with my love and care, and strive to melt the ice of +your coldness by the heat of my passion. Your eyes must behold me—your +ears must listen to my voice. I shall exert an influence over you, if only by +the alarm and detestation I am so unfortunate as to inspire in your gentle +breast; the sound of my footsteps in your antechamber will make you start and +tremble. And then, besides all that, this captivity separates you effectually +from the miserable fellow you fancy that you love—and whom I abhor; +because he has dared to turn your heart away from me. I can at least enjoy this +small satisfaction, of keeping you from him; and I will not let you go free to +return to him—you may be perfectly sure of that, my fair lady!” +</p> + +<p> +“And how long do you intend to keep me captive?—not like a +Christian gentleman, but like a lawless corsair.” +</p> + +<p> +“Until you have learned to love me—or at least to say that you +have, which amounts to the same thing.” +</p> + +<p> +Then he made her a low bow, and departed, with as self-satisfied and jaunty an +air as if he had been in truth a favoured suitor. Half an hour later a lackey +brought in a beautiful bouquet, of the rarest and choicest flowers, while the +stems were clasped by a magnificent bracelet, fit for a queen’s wearing. +A little piece of folded paper nestled among the flowers—a note from the +duke—and the fair prisoner recognised the handwriting as the same in +which “For Isabelle” was written, on the slip of paper that +accompanied the casket of jewels at Poitiers. The note read as follows: +</p> + +<p class="p2"> +“D<small>EAR</small> I<small>SABELLE</small>—I send you these +flowers, though I know they will be ungraciously received. As they come from +me, their beauty and fragrance will not find favour in your eyes. But whatever +may be their fate, even though you only touch them to fling them disdainfully +out of the window, they will force you to think for a moment—if it be but +in anger—of him who declares himself, in spite of everything, your +devoted adorer, +</p> + +<p class="right"> +“V<small>ALLOMBREUSE</small>.” +</p> + +<p> +This note, breathing of the most specious gallantry, and tenacity of purpose, +did produce very much the effect it predicted; for it made Isabelle exceedingly +angry; and, without even once inhaling the delicious perfume of the flowers, or +pausing for an instant to admire their beauty, she flung the bouquet, diamond +bracelet and all, out into the antechamber. Never surely were lovely blossoms +so badly treated; and yet Isabelle was excessively fond of them; but she feared +that if she even allowed them to remain a little while in her room, their donor +would presume upon the slight concession. She had scarcely resumed her seat by +the fire, after disposing of the obnoxious bouquet, when a maid appeared, who +had been sent to wait upon her. She was a pretty, refined looking girl, but +very pale, and with an air of deep melancholy—as if she were brooding +over a secret sorrow. She offered her services to Isabelle without looking up, +and in a low, subdued voice, as if she feared that the very walls had ears. +Isabelle allowed her to take down and comb out her long, silky hair, which was +very much dishevelled, and to arrange it again as she habitually wore it; which +was quickly and skilfully done. Then the maid opened a wardrobe and took out +several beautiful gowns, exquisitely made and trimmed, and just +Isabelle’s size; but she would not even look at them, and sharply ordered +that they should instantly be put back where they belonged, though her own +dress was very much the worse for the rough treatment it had been subjected to +on the preceding day, and it was a trial to the sweet, dainty creature to be so +untidy. But she was determined to accept nothing from the duke, no matter how +long her captivity might last. The maid did not insist, but acceded to her +wishes with a mild, pitying air—just as indulgence is shown, as far as +possible, to all the little whims and caprices of prisoners condemned to death. +Isabelle would have liked to question her attendant, and endeavour to elicit +some information from her, but the girl was more like an automaton than +anything else, and it was impossible to gain more than a monosyllable from her +lips. So Isabelle resigned herself with a sigh to her mute ministerings, not +without a sort of vague terror. +</p> + +<p> +After the maid had retired, dinner was served as before, and Isabelle made a +hearty meal—feeling that she must keep up her strength, and also hopeful +of hearing something in a few hours more from her faithful lover. Her thoughts +were all of him, and as she realized the dangers to which he would inevitably +be exposed for her sake, her eyes filled with tears, and a sharp pang shot +through her heart. She was angry with herself for being the cause of so much +trouble, and fain to curse her own beauty—the unhappy occasion of it all. +She was absorbed in these sad thoughts when a little noise as if a hail-stone +had struck against the window pane, suddenly aroused her. She flew to the +casement, and saw Chiquita, in the tree opposite, signing to her to open it, +and swinging back and forth the long horse-hair cord, with the iron hook +attached to it. She hastened to comply with the wishes of her strange little +ally, and, as she stepped back in obedience to another sign, the hook, thrown +with unerring aim, caught securely in the iron railing of the little balcony. +Chiquita tied the other end of the cord to the branch to which she was +clinging, and then began to cross over the intervening space as before; but ere +she was half-way over, the knot gave way, and poor Isabelle for one moment of +intense agony thought that the child was lost. But, instead of falling into the +moat beneath her, Chiquita, who did not appear to be in the least disconcerted +by this accident, swung over against the wall below the balcony, and climbing +up the cord hand over hand, leaped lightly into the room, before Isabelle had +recovered her breath. Finding her very pale, and tremulous, the child said +smilingly, “You were frightened, eh? and thought Chiquita would fall down +among the frogs in the moat. When I tied my cord to the branch, I only made a +slip-knot, so that I could bring it back with me. I must have looked like a big +spider climbing up its thread,” she added, with a laugh. +</p> + +<p> +“My dear child,” said Isabelle, with much feeling, and kissing +Chiquita’s forehead, “you are a very brave little girl.” +</p> + +<p> +“I saw your friends. They had been searching and searching for you; but +without Chiquita they would never have found out where you were hidden. The +captain was rushing about like an angry lion—his eyes flashed +fire—he was magnificent. I came back with him. He rode, and held me in +front of him. He is hidden in a little wood not far off, he and his +comrades—they must keep out of sight, you know. This evening, as soon as +it is dark, they will try to get in here to you—by the tree, you know. +There’s sure to be a scrimmage—pistol shots and swords +clashing—oh! it will be splendid; for there’s nothing so fine as a +good fight; when the men are in earnest, and fierce and brave. Now don’t +you be frightened and scream, as silly women do; nothing upsets them like that. +You must just remain perfectly quiet, and keep out of their way. If you like, I +will come and stay by you, so that you will not be afraid.” +</p> + +<p> +“Don’t be uneasy about that, Chiquita! I will not annoy my brave +friends, who come to save my life at the risk of their own, by any foolish +fears or demonstrations; that I promise you.” +</p> + +<p> +“That’s right,” the child replied, “and until they +come, you can defend yourself with my knife, you know. Don’t forget the +proper way to use it. Strike like this, and then do so; you can rip him up +beautifully. As for me, I’m going to hunt up a quiet corner where I can +get a nap. No, I can’t stay here, for we must not be seen together; it +would never do. Now do you be sure to keep away from that window. You must not +even go near it, no matter what you hear, for fear they might suspect that you +hoped for help from that direction. If they did, it would be all up with us; +for they would send out and search the woods, and beat the bushes, and find our +friends where they lie hidden. The whole thing would fall through, and you +would have to stop here with this horrid duke that you hate so much.” +</p> + +<p> +“I will not go near the window,” Isabelle answered, “nor even +look towards it, however much I may wish to. You may depend upon my discretion, +Chiquita, I do assure you.” +</p> + +<p> +Reassured upon this important point, Chiquita crept softly away, and went back +to the lower room where she had left the ruffians carousing. They were still +there—lying about on the benches and the floor, in a drunken sleep, and +evidently had not even missed her. She curled herself up in a corner, as far as +might be from the loathsome brutes, and was asleep in a minute. The poor child +was completely tired out; her slender little feet had travelled eight leagues +the night before, running a good part of the way, and the return on horseback +had perhaps fatigued her even more, being unaccustomed to it. Although her +fragile little body had the strength and endurance of steel, she was worn out +now, and lay, pale and motionless, in a sleep that seemed like death. +</p> + +<p> +“Dear me! how these children do sleep to be sure,” said Malartic, +when he roused himself at last and looked about him. “In spite of our +carouse, and all the noise we made, that little monkey in the corner there has +never waked nor stirred. Halloa! wake up you fellows! drunken beasts that you +are. Try to stand up on your hind legs, and go out in the court and dash a +bucket of cold water over your cursed heads. The Circe of drunkenness has made +swine of you in earnest—go and see if the baptism I recommend will turn +you back into men, and then we’ll take a little look round the place, to +make sure there’s no plot hatching to rescue the little beauty we have in +charge.” +</p> + +<p> +The men scrambled to their feet slowly and with difficulty, and staggered out +into the court as best they might, where the fresh air, and the treatment +prescribed by Malartic, did a good deal towards reviving them; but they were a +sorry looking set after all, and there were many aching heads among them. As +soon as they were fit for it, Malartic took three of the least tipsy of them, +and leading the way to a small postern that opened on the moat, unchained a +row-boat lying there, crossed the broad ditch, ascended a steep flight of steps +leading up the bank on the other side, and, leaving one man to guard the boat, +proceeded to make a tour of inspection in the immediate vicinity of the +château; fortunately without stumbling on the party concealed in the wood, or +seeing anything to arouse their suspicions; so they returned to their quarters +perfectly satisfied that there was no enemy lurking near. +</p> + +<p> +Meantime Isabelle, left quite alone, tried in vain to interest herself in a +book she had found lying upon one of the side-tables. She read a few pages +mechanically, and then, finding it impossible to fix her attention upon it, +threw the volume from her and sat idly in front of the fire, which was blazing +cheerily, thinking of her own true lover, and praying that he might be +preserved from injury in the impending struggle. Evening came at last—a +servant brought in lights, and soon after the major-domo announced a visit from +the Duke of Vallombreuse. He entered at once, and greeted his fair captive with +the most finished courtesy. He looked very handsome, in a superb suit of pearl +gray satin, richly trimmed with crimson velvet, and Isabelle could not but +admire his personal appearance, much as she detested his character. +</p> + +<p> +“I have come to see, my adorable Isabelle, whether <i>I</i> shall be more +kindly received than my flowers,” said he, drawing up a chair beside +hers. “I have not the vanity to think so, but I want you to become +accustomed to my presence. To-morrow another bouquet, and another visit.” +</p> + +<p> +“Both will be useless, my lord,” she replied, “though I am +sorry to have to be so rude as to say so—but I had much better be +perfectly frank with you.” +</p> + +<p> +“Ah, well!” rejoined the duke, with a malicious smile, “I +will dispense with hope, and content myself with reality. You do not know, my +poor child, what a Vallombreuse can do—you, who vainly try to resist him. +He has never yet known what it was to have an unsatisfied desire—he +invariably gains his ends, in spite of all opposition—nothing can stop +him. Tears, supplication, laments, threats, even dead bodies and smoking ruins +would not daunt him. Do not tempt him too powerfully, by throwing new obstacles +in his way, you imprudent child!” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle, frightened by the expression of his countenance as he spoke thus, +instinctively pushed her chair farther away from his, and felt for +Chiquita’s knife. But the wily duke, seeing that he had made a mistake, +instantly changed his tone, and begging her pardon most humbly for his +vehemence, endeavoured to persuade her, by many specious arguments, that she +was wrong in persistently turning a deaf ear to his suit—setting forth at +length, and in glowing words, all the advantages that would accrue to her if +she would but yield to his wishes, and describing the happiness in store for +her. While he was thus eloquently pleading his cause, Isabelle, who had given +him only a divided attention, thought that she heard a peculiar little noise in +the direction whence the longed-for aid was to come, and fearing that +Vallombreuse might hear it also, hastened to answer him the instant that he +paused, in a way to vex him still further—for she preferred his anger to +his love-making. Also, she hoped that by quarrelling with him she would be able +to prevent his perceiving the suspicious little sound—now growing louder +and more noticeable. +</p> + +<p> +“The happiness that you so eloquently describe, my lord, would be for me +a disgrace, which I am resolved to escape by death, if all other means fail me. +You never shall have me living. Formerly I regarded you with indifference, but +now I both hate and despise you, for your infamous, outrageous and violent +behaviour to me, your helpless victim. Yes, I may as well tell you +openly—and I glory in it—that I do love the Baron de Sigognac, whom +you have more than once so basely tried to assassinate, through your miserable +hired ruffians.” +</p> + +<p> +The strange noise still kept on, and Isabelle raised her voice to drown it. At +her audacious, defiant words, so distinctly and impressively +enunciated—hurled at him, as it were—Vallombreuse turned pale, and +his eyes flashed ominously; a light foam gathered about the corners of his +mouth, and he laid hold of the handle of his sword. For an instant he thought +of killing Isabelle himself, then and there. If he could not have her, at least +no one else should. But he relinquished that idea almost as soon as it occurred +to him, and with a hard, forced laugh said, as he sprang up and advanced +impetuously towards Isabelle, who retreated before him: +</p> + +<p> +“Now, by all the devils in hell, I cannot help admiring you immensely in +this mood. It is a new role for you, and you are deucedly charming in it. You +have got such a splendid colour, and your eyes are so bright—you are +superb, I declare. I am greatly flattered at your blazing out into such +dazzling beauty on my account—upon my word I am. You have done well to +speak out openly—I hate deceit. So you love de Sigognac, do you? So much +the better, say I—it will be all the sweeter to call you mine. It will be +a pleasing variety to press ardent kisses upon sweet lips that say ‘I +hate you,’ instead of the insipid, everlasting ‘I love you,’ +that one gets a surfeit of from all the pretty women of one’s +acquaintance.” +</p> + +<p> +Alarmed at this coarse language, and the threatening gestures that accompanied +it, Isabelle started back and drew out Chiquita’s knife. +</p> + +<p> +“Bravo!” cried the duke—“here comes the traditional +poniard. We are being treated to a bit of high tragedy. But, my fierce little +beauty, if you are well up in your Roman history, you will remember that the +chaste Mme. Lucretia did not make use of her dagger until <i>after</i> the +assault of Sextus, the bold son of Tarquin the Proud. That ancient and +much-cited example is a good one to follow.” +</p> + +<p> +And without paying any more attention to the knife than to a bee-sting, he had +violently seized Isabelle in his arms before she could raise it to strike. +</p> + +<p> +Just at that moment a loud cracking noise was heard, followed by a tremendous +crash, and the casement fell clattering to the floor, with every pane of glass +in it shattered; as if a giant had put his knee against it and broken it in; +while a mass of branches protruded through the opening into the room. It was +the top of the tree that Chiquita had made such good use of as a way of escape +and return. The trunk, sawed nearly through by de Sigognac and his companions, +was guided in its fall so as to make a means of access to Isabelle’s +window; both bridging the moat, and answering all the purposes of a ladder. +</p> + +<p> +The Duke of Vallombreuse, astonished at this most extraordinary intrusion upon +his love-making, released his trembling victim, and drew his sword. Chiquita, +who had crept into the room unperceived when the crash came, pulled +Isabelle’s sleeve and whispered, “Come into this corner, out of the +way; the dance is going to begin.” +</p> + +<p> +As she spoke, several pistol shots were heard without, and four of the +duke’s ruffians—who were doing garrison duty came rushing up the +stairs, four steps at a time, and dashed into the room-sword in hand, and eager +for the fray. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap17"></a>CHAPTER XVII.<br/> +THE AMETHYST RING</h2> + +<p> +The topmost branches of the tree, protruding through the window, rendered the +centre of the room untenable, so Malartic and his three aids ranged themselves +two and two against the wall on either side of it, armed with pistols and +swords—ready to give the assailants a warm welcome. +</p> + +<p> +“You had better retire, my lord duke, or else put on a mask,” +whispered Malartic to the young nobleman, “so that you may not be seen +and recognised in this affair.” +</p> + +<p> +“What do I care?” cried Vallombreuse, flourishing his sword. +“I am not afraid of anybody in the world—and besides, those who see +me will never go away from this to tell of it.” +</p> + +<p> +“But at least your lordship will place this second Helen in some safe +retreat. A stray bullet might so easily deprive your highness of the prize that +cost so dear—and it would be such a pity.” +</p> + +<p> +The duke, finding this advice judicious, went at once over to where Isabelle +was standing beside Chiquita, and throwing his arms round her attempted to +carry her into the next room. The poor girl made a desperate resistance, and +slipping from the duke’s grasp rushed to the window, regardless of +danger, crying, “Save me, de Sigognac! save me!” A voice from +without answered, “I am coming,” but, before he could reach the +window, Vallombreuse had again seized his prey, and succeeded in carrying her +into the adjoining room, closing and bolting the stout oaken door behind him +just as de Sigognac bounded into the chamber he had quitted. His entrance was +so sudden, and so swiftly and boldly made, that he entirely escaped the pistol +shots aimed at him, and the four bullets all fell harmless. When the smoke had +cleared away and the “garrison” saw that he was unhurt, a murmur of +astonishment arose, and one of the men exclaimed aloud that Captain +Fracasse—the only name by which <i>they</i> knew him—must bear a +charmed life; whereupon, Malartic cried, “Leave him to me, I’ll +soon finish him, and do you three keep a strict guard over the window there; +for there will be more to follow this one if I am not mistaken.” +</p> + +<p> +But he did not find his self-imposed task as easy as he supposed—for de +Sigognac was ready for him, and gave him plenty to do, though his surprise and +disappointment were overwhelming when he found that Isabelle was nowhere to be +seen. +</p> + +<p> +“Where is she?” he cried impetuously. “Where is Isabelle? I +heard her voice in here only a moment ago.” +</p> + +<p> +“Don’t ask me!” Malartic retorted. “<i>You</i> +didn’t give her into my charge.” And all this time their swords +were flashing and clashing, as the combat between them grew more animated. +</p> + +<p> +A moment later, before the men had finished reloading their pistols, Scapin +dashed in through the window, throwing a remarkable somersault like an acrobat +as he came, and seeing that the three ruffians had laid down their swords +beside them on the floor while attending to their other weapons, he seized upon +them all, ere their owners had recovered from their astonishment at his +extraordinary advent, and hurled them through the broken casement down into the +moat. Then, laying hold of one of the three from behind, and pinning down his +arms securely, he placed him in front of himself for a shield—turning him +dexterously this way and that, in order to keep his body always between his own +and the enemy; so that they dared not fire upon him lest they should kill their +comrade, who was vehemently beseeching them to spare his life, and vainly +struggling to escape from Scapin’s iron grip. +</p> + +<p> +The combat between de Sigognac and Malartic was still going on, but at last, +the baron—who had already wounded his adversary slightly, and whose agony +and desperation at being kept from prosecuting his search for Isabelle were +intense—wrested Malartic’s sword from his grasp, by a dexterous +manœuvre with his own, and putting his foot upon it as it lay on the floor +raised the point of his blade to the professional ruffian’s throat, +crying “Surrender, or you are a dead man!” +</p> + +<p> +At this critical moment another one of the besieging party burst in through the +window, who, seeing at a glance how matters stood, said to Malartic in an +authoritative tone, “You can surrender without dishonour to this valiant +hero—you are entirely at his mercy. You have done your duty +loyally—now consider yourself a prisoner of war.” +</p> + +<p> +Then turning to de Sigognac, he said, “You may trust his word, for he is +an honourable fellow in his way, and will not molest you again—I will +answer for him.” +</p> + +<p> +Malartic made a gesture of acquiescence, and the baron let him +go—whereupon the discomfited bully picked up his sword, and with a +crestfallen air walked off very disconsolately to a corner, where he sat down +and occupied himself in staunching the blood that was flowing from his wound. +The other three men were quickly conquered, and, at the suggestion of the +latest comer, were securely bound hand and foot as they lay upon the floor, and +then left to reflect upon their misfortunes. +</p> + +<p> +“They can’t do any more mischief now,” said Jacquemin +Lampourde, mockingly; for it was that famous fighting man in person, who, in +his enthusiastic admiration, or rather adoration, for de Sigognac, had offered +his services on this momentous occasion—services by no means to be +despised. As to the brave Hérode, he was doing good service in fighting the +rest of the garrison below. They had hastened out and crossed the moat in the +little row-boat as quickly as possible after the alarm was given, but arrived +too late, as we have seen, to prevent the assailants from ascending their +strange scaling ladder. So they determined to follow, hoping to overtake and +dislodge some of them. But Hérode, who had found the upper branches bending and +cracking in a very ominous manner under his great weight, was forced to turn +about and make his way back to the main trunk, where, under cover of darkness, +he quietly awaited the climbing foe. Mérindol, who commanded this detachment of +the garrison, was first, and being completely taken by surprise was easily +dislodged and thrown down into the water below. The next one, aroused to a +sense of his danger by this, pulled out a pistol and fired, but in the +agitation of the moment, and the darkness, missed his aim, so that he was +entirely at the tyrant’s mercy, and in an instant was held suspended over +the deep waters of the moat. He clung desperately to a little branch he had +managed to lay hold of, and made such a brave fight for his life, that Hérode, +who was merciful by nature, though so fierce of aspect, decided to make terms +with him, if he could do so without injuring the interests of his own party; +and upon receiving a solemn promise from him to remain strictly neutral during +the remainder of the fray, the powerful actor lifted him up, with the greatest +ease, and seated him in safety upon the tree-trunk again. The poor fellow was +so grateful that he was even better than his word, for, making use of the +password and giving a pretended order from Mérindol to the other two, who were +some distance behind him and ignorant of what had happened, he sent them off +post-haste to attend to an imaginary foe at some distance from the château; +availing himself of their absence to make good his escape, after heartily +thanking Hérode for his clemency. The moon was just rising, and by its light +the tyrant spied the little row-boat, lying not very far off at the foot of a +flight of steps in the steep bank, and he was not slow to make use of it to +cross the moat, and penetrate into the interior court of the château—the +postern having been fortunately left open. Looking about him, to see how he +could best rejoin his comrades within the building, his eyes fell upon the +porch guarded by the two huge, calm sphinxes, and he wisely concluded that +through it must lie his way to the scene of action. +</p> + +<p> +Meantime de Sigognac, Scapin and Lampourde, having a chance to look about them, +were horrified to find that they were prisoners in the room where the battle +had been fought. In vain they tried to burst open the stout oaken door which +was their only means of egress—for the tree had, but a moment before, +given way and fallen with a loud crash into the moat; in vain they strove to +cut through one of the panels, or force the lock from its fastenings. To de +Sigognac this delay was maddening, for he knew that the Duke of Vallombreuse +had carried Isabelle away, and that he must still be with her. He worked like a +giant himself, and incited the others to redouble their efforts; making +battering rams of various pieces of furniture—resorting to every means +that their ingenuity could devise—but without making the least impression +on the massive barrier. They had paused in dismay, when suddenly a slight, +grinding noise was heard, like a key turning in a lock, and the door, so +unsuccessfully attacked, opened as if by magic before them. +</p> + +<p> +“What good angel has come to our aid?” cried de Sigognac; +“and by what miracle does this door open of itself, after having so +stoutly resisted all our efforts?” +</p> + +<p> +“There is neither angel nor miracle; only Chiquita,” answered a +quiet little voice, as the child appeared from behind the door, and fixed her +great, dark, liquid eyes calmly on de Sigognac. She had managed to slip out +with Vallombreuse and Isabelle, entirely unnoticed by the former, and in the +hope of being of use to the latter. +</p> + +<p> +“Where is Isabelle?” cried the baron, as he crossed the threshold +and looked anxiously round the anteroom, which was dimly lighted by one little +flickering lamp. For a moment he did not perceive her; the Duke of +Vallombreuse, surprised at the sudden opening of the door, which he had +believed to be securely fastened and impenetrable, had retreated into a corner, +and placed Isabelle, who was almost fainting from terror and exhaustion, behind +him. She had sunk upon her knees, with her head leaning against the wall, her +long hair, which had come down, falling about her, and her dress in the utmost +disorder; for she had struggled desperately in the arms of her captor; who, +feeling that his fair victim was about to escape from his clutches, had vainly +striven to snatch a few kisses from the sweet lips so temptingly near his own. +</p> + +<p> +“Here she is,” said Chiquita, “in this corner, behind the +Duke of Vallombreuse; but to get to her you must first kill him.” +</p> + +<p> +“Of course I shall kill him,” cried de Sigognac, advancing sword in +hand towards the young duke, who was ready to receive him. +</p> + +<p> +“We shall see about that, Sir Captain Fracasse—doughty knight of +<i>Bohémiennes!</i>” said Vallombreuse disdainfully, and the conflict +began. The duke was not de Sigognac’s equal at this kind of work, but +still he was skilful and brave, and had had too much good instruction to handle +his sword like a broom-stick, as Lampourde expressed it. He stood entirely upon +the defensive, and was exceedingly wary and prudent, hoping, as his adversary +must be already considerably fatigued by his encounter with Malartic, that he +might be able to get the better of him this time, and retrieve his previous +defeat. At the very beginning he had succeeded in raising a small silver +whistle to his lips with his left hand—and its shrill summons brought +five or six armed attendants into the room. +</p> + +<p> +“Carry away this woman,” he cried, “and put out those two +rascals. I will take care of the captain myself.” +</p> + +<p> +The sudden interruption of these fresh forces astonished de Sigognac, and as he +saw two of the men lift up and carry off Isabelle—who had fainted quite +away—he was thrown for an instant off his guard, and very nearly run +through the body by his opponent. +</p> + +<p> +Roused to a sense of his danger, he attacked the duke with renewed fury, and +with a terrible thrust, that made him reel, wounded him seriously in the upper +part of the chest. +</p> + +<p> +Meanwhile Lampourde and Scapin had shown the duke’s lackeys that it would +not be a very easy matter to put them out, and were handling them rather +roughly, when the cowardly fellows, seeing that their master was wounded, and +leaning against the wall, deathly pale, thought that he was done for, and +although they were fully armed, took to their heels and fled, deaf to his +feeble cry for assistance. While all this was going on, the tyrant was making +his way up the grand staircase, as fast as his corpulence would permit, and +reached the top just in time to see Isabelle, pale, dishevelled, motionless, +and apparently dead, being borne along the corridor by two lackeys. Without +stopping to make any inquiries, and full of wrath at the thought that the sweet +girl had fallen a victim to the wickedness of the cruel Duke of Vallombreuse, +he drew his sword, and fell upon the two men with such fury that they dropped +their light burden and fled down the stairs as fast as their legs could carry +them. Then he knelt down beside the unconscious girl, raised her gently in his +arms, and found that her heart was beating, though but feebly, and that she +apparently had no wound, while she sighed faintly, like a person beginning to +revive after a swoon. In this position he was found by de Sigognac, who had +effectually gotten rid of Vallombreuse, by the famous and well-directed thrust +that had thrown Jacquemin Lampourde into a rapture of admiration and delight. +He knelt down beside his darling, took both her hands in his, and said, in the +most tender tones, that Isabelle heard vaguely as if in a dream: +</p> + +<p> +“Rouse yourself, dear heart, and fear nothing. You are safe now, with +your own friends, and your own true lover—nobody can harm or frighten you +again.” +</p> + +<p> +Although she did not yet open her eyes, a faint smile dawned upon the +colourless lips, and her cold, trembling, little fingers feebly returned the +tender pressure of de Sigognac’s warm hands. Lampourde stood by, and +looked down with tearful eyes upon this touching group—for he was +exceedingly romantic and sentimental, and always intensely interested in a love +affair. Suddenly, in the midst of the profound silence that had succeeded to +the uproar of the mêlée, the winding of a horn was heard without, and in a +moment energetically repeated. It was evidently a summons that had to be +instantly obeyed; the drawbridge was lowered in haste, with a great rattling of +chains, and a carriage driven rapidly into the court, while the red flaring +light of torches flashed through the windows of the corridor. In another minute +the door of the vestibule was thrown open, and hasty steps ascended the grand +staircase. First came four tall lackeys, in rich liveries, carrying lights, and +directly behind them a tall, noble-looking man, who was dressed from head to +foot in black velvet, with an order shining on his breast—of those that +are usually reserved for kings and princes of the blood, and only very +exceptionally bestowed, upon the most illustrious personages. +</p> + +<p> +When the four lackeys reached the landing at the head of the stairs, they +silently ranged themselves against the wall, and stood like statues bearing +torches; without the raising of an eyelid, or the slightest change in the +stolid expression of their countenances to indicate that they perceived +anything out of the usual way—exhibiting in perfection that miraculous +imperturbability and self-command which is peculiar to well-bred, thoroughly +trained menservants. The gentleman whom they had preceded paused ere he stepped +upon the landing. Although age had brought wrinkles to his handsome face, and +turned his abundant dark hair gray, it was still easy to recognise in him the +original of the portrait that had so fascinated Isabelle, and whose protection +she had passionately implored in her distress. +</p> + +<p> +It was the princely father of Vallombreuse—the son bearing a different +name, that of a duchy he possessed, until he in his turn should become the head +of the family, and succeed to the title of prince. +</p> + +<p> +At sight of Isabelle, supported by de Sigognac and the tyrant, whose ghastly +pallor made her look like one dead, the aged gentleman raised his arms towards +heaven and groaned. +</p> + +<p> +“Alas! I am too late,” said he, “for all the haste I +made,” and advancing a few steps he bent over the prostrate girl, and +took her lifeless hand in his. Upon this hand, white, cold and diaphanous, as +if it had been sculptured in alabaster, shone a ring, set with an amethyst of +unusual size. The old nobleman seemed strangely agitated as it caught his eye. +He drew it gently from Isabelle’s slender finger, with a trembling hand +signed to one of the torch-bearers to bring his light nearer, and by it eagerly +examined the device cut upon the stone; first holding it close to the light and +then at arm’s length; as those whose eyesight is impaired by age are wont +to do. The Baron de Sigognac, Hérode and Lampourde anxiously watched the +agitated movements of the prince, and his change of expression, as he +contemplated this jewel, which he seemed to recognise; and which he turned and +twisted between his fingers, with a pained look in his face, as if some great +trouble had befallen him. +</p> + +<p> +“Where is the Duke of Vallombreuse?” he cried at last, in a voice +of thunder. “Where is that monster in human shape, who is unworthy of my +race?” +</p> + +<p> +He had recognised, without a possibility of doubt, in this ring, the one +bearing a fanciful device, with which he had been accustomed, long ago, to seal +the notes he wrote to Cornelia—Isabelle’s mother, and his own +youthful love. How happened it that this ring was on the finger of the young +actress, who had been forcibly and shamefully abducted by Vallombreuse? From +whom could she have received it? These questions were torturing to him. +</p> + +<p> +“Can it be possible that she is Cornelia’s daughter and +mine?” said the prince to himself. “Her profession, her age, her +sweet face, in which I can trace a softened, beautified likeness of her +mother’s, but which has a peculiarly high bred, refined expression, +worthy of a royal princess, all combine to make me believe it must be so. Then, +alas! alas! it is his own sister that this cursed libertine has so wronged, and +he has been guilty of a horrible, horrible crime. Oh! I am cruelly punished for +my youthful folly and sin.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle at length opened her eyes, and her first look fell upon the prince, +holding the ring that he had drawn from her finger. It seemed to her as if she +had seen his face before—but in youth, without the gray hair and beard. +It seemed also to be an aged copy of the portrait over the chimney-piece in her +room, and a feeling of profound veneration filled her heart as she gazed at +him. She saw, too, her beloved de Sigognac kneeling beside her, watching her +with tenderest devotion; and the worthy tyrant as well—both safe and +sound. To the horrors of the terrible struggle had succeeded the peace and +security of deliverance. She had nothing more to fear, for her friends or for +herself—how could she ever be thankful enough? +</p> + +<p> +The prince, who had been gazing at her with passionate earnestness, as if her +fair face possessed an irresistible charm for him, now addressed her in low, +moved tones: +</p> + +<p> +“Mademoiselle, will you kindly tell me how you came by this ring, which +recalls very dear and sacred memories to me? Has it been long in your +possession?” +</p> + +<p> +“I have had it ever since my infancy; it is the only thing that my poor +mother left me,” Isabelle replied, with gentle dignity. +</p> + +<p> +“And who was your mother? Will you, tell me something about her?” +continued the prince, with increasing emotion. +</p> + +<p> +“Her name was Cornelia, and she was an actress, belonging to the same +troupe that I am a member of now.” +</p> + +<p> +“Cornelia! then there is no possible doubt about it,” murmured the +prince to himself, in great agitation. “Yes, it is certainly she whom I +have been seeking all these years—and now to find her thus!” +</p> + +<p> +Then, controlling his emotion, he resumed his usual calm, majestic demeanour, +and turning back to Isabelle, said to her, “Permit me to keep this ring +for the present; I will soon give it back to you.” +</p> + +<p> +“I am content to leave it in your lordship’s hands,” the +young actress replied, in whose mind the memory of a face, that she had seen +long years ago bending over her cradle, was growing clearer and more distinct +every moment. +</p> + +<p> +“Gentlemen,” said the prince, turning to de Sigognac and his +companions, “under any other circumstances I might find your presence +here, in my château, with arms in your hands, unwarranted, but I am aware of +the necessity that drove you to forcibly invade this mansion, hitherto sacred +from such scenes as this—I know that violence must be met with violence, +and justifies it; therefore I shall take no further notice of what has happened +here to-night, and you need have no fears of any evil consequences to +yourselves because of your share in it. But where is the Duke of Vallombreuse? +that degenerate son who disgraces my old age.” +</p> + +<p> +As if in obedience to his father’s call, the young duke at that moment +appeared upon the threshold of the door leading into what had been +Isabelle’s apartment, supported by Malartic. He was frightfully pale, and +his clinched hand pressed a handkerchief tightly upon his wounded chest. He +came forward with difficulty, looking like a ghost. Only a strong effort of +will kept him from falling—an effort that gave to his face the immobility +of a marble mask. He had heard the voice of his father, whom, depraved and +shameless as he was, he yet respected and dreaded, and he hoped to be able to +conceal his wound from him. He bit his lips so as not to cry out or groan in +his agony, and resolutely swallowed down the bloody foam that kept rising and +filling his mouth. He even took off his hat, in spite of the frightful pain the +raising of his arm caused him, and stood uncovered and silent before his angry +parent. +</p> + +<p> +“Sir,” said the prince, severely, “your misdeeds transcend +all limits, and your behaviour is such that I shall be forced to implore the +king to send you to prison, or into exile. You are not fit to be at large. +Abduction—imprisonment—criminal assault. These are not simple +gallantries; and though I might be willing to pardon and overlook many +excesses, committed in the wildness of licentious youth, I never could bring +myself to forgive a deliberate and premeditated crime. Do you know, you +monster,” he continued approaching Vallombreuse, and whispering in his +ear, so that no one else could hear, “do you know who this young girl is? +this good and chaste Isabelle, whom you have forcibly abducted, in spite of her +determined and virtuous resistance! She is your own sister! +</p> + +<p> +“May she replace the son you are about to lose,” the young duke +replied, attacked by a sudden faintness, and an agony of pain which he felt +that he could not long endure and live; “but I am not as guilty as you +suppose. Isabelle is pure—stainless. I swear it, by the God before whom I +must shortly appear. Death does not lie, and you may believe what I say, upon +the word of a dying gentleman.” +</p> + +<p> +These words were uttered loudly and distinctly, so as to be heard by all. +Isabelle turned her beautiful eyes, wet with tears, upon de Sigognac, and read +in those of her true and faithful lover that he had not waited for the solemn +attestation, “in extremis,” of the Duke of Vallombreuse to believe +in the perfect purity of her whom he adored. +</p> + +<p> +“But what is the matter?” asked the prince, holding out his hand to +his son, who staggered and swayed to and fro in spite of Malartic’s +efforts to support him, and whose face was fairly livid. +</p> + +<p> +“Nothing, father,” answered Vallombreuse, in a scarcely articulate +voice, “nothing—only I am dying”—and he fell at full +length on the floor before the prince could clasp him in his arms, as he +endeavoured to do. +</p> + +<p> +“He did not fall on his face,” said Jacquemin Lampourde, +sententiously; “it’s nothing but a fainting fit. He may escape yet. +We duellists are familiar with this sort of thing, my lord; a great deal more +so than most medical men, and you may depend upon what I say.” +</p> + +<p> +“A doctor! a doctor!” cried the prince, forgetting his anger as he +saw his son lying apparently lifeless at his feet. “Perhaps this man is +right, and there may be some hope for him yet. A fortune to whomsoever will +save my son!—my only son!—the last scion of a noble race. Go! run +quickly! What are you about there?—don’t you understand me? Go, I +say, and run as fast as you can; take the fleetest horse in the stable.” +</p> + +<p> +Whereupon two of the imperturbable lackeys, who had held their torches +throughout this exciting scene without moving a muscle, hastened off to execute +their master’s orders. Some of his own servants now came forward, raised +up the unconscious Duke of Vallombreuse with every possible care and +precaution, and by his father’s command carried him to his own room and +laid him on his own bed, the aged prince following, with a face from which +grief and anxiety had already driven away all traces of anger. He saw his race +extinct in the death of this son, whom he so dearly loved—despite his +fault—and whose vices he forgot for the moment, remembering only his +brilliant and lovable qualities. A profound melancholy took complete possession +of him, as he stood for a few moments plunged in a sorrowful reverie that +everybody respected. +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle, entirely revived, and no longer feeling at all faint, had risen to +her feet, and now stood between de Sigognac and the tyrant, adjusting, with a +trembling hand, her disordered dress and dishevelled hair. Lampourde and Scapin +had retired to a little distance from them, and held themselves modestly aloof, +whilst the men within, still bound hand and foot, kept as quiet as possible; +fearful of their fate if brought to the prince’s notice. At length that +aged nobleman returned, and breaking the terrible silence that had weighed upon +all, said, in severe tones, “Let all those who placed their services at +the disposition of the Duke of Vallombreuse, to aid him in indulging his evil +passions and committing a terrible crime, quit this château instantly. I will +refrain from placing you in the hands of the public executioner, though you +richly deserve it. Go now! vanish! get ye back to your lairs! and rest assured +that justice will not fail to overtake you at last.” +</p> + +<p> +These words were not complimentary, but the trembling offenders were thankful +to get off so easily, and the ruffians, whom Lampourde and Scapin had unbound, +followed Malartic down the stairs in silence, without daring to claim their +promised reward. When they had disappeared, the prince advanced and took +Isabelle by the hand, and gently detaching her from the group of which she had +formed a part, led her over to where he had been standing, and kept her beside +him. +</p> + +<p> +“Stay here, mademoiselle,” he said; “your place is henceforth +by my side. It is the least that you can do to fulfil your duty as my daughter, +since you are the innocent means of depriving me of my son.” And he wiped +away a tear, that, despite all his efforts to control his grief, rolled down +his withered cheek. Then turning to de Sigognac, he said, with an incomparably +noble gesture, “Sir, you are at liberty to withdraw, with your brave +companions. Isabelle will have nothing to fear under her father’s +protection, and this château will be her home for the present. Now that her +birth is made known it is not fitting that my daughter should return to Paris +with you. I thank you, though it costs me the hope of perpetuating my race, for +having spared my son a disgraceful action—what do I say? An abominable +crime. I would rather have a bloodstain on my escutcheon than a dishonourable +blot. Since Vallombreuse was infamous in his conduct, you have done well to +kill him. You have acted like a true gentleman, which I am assured that you +are, in chivalrously protecting weakness, innocence and virtue. You are nobly +in the right. That my daughter’s honour has been preserved unstained, I +owe to you—and it compensates me for the loss of my son—at least my +reason tells me that it should do so; but the father’s heart rebels, and +unjust ideas of revenge might arise, which I should find it difficult to +conquer and set at rest. Therefore you had better go your way now, and whatever +the result may be I will not pursue or molest you. I will try to forget that a +terrible necessity turned your sword against my son’s life.” +</p> + +<p> +“My lord,” said de Sigognac, with profound respect, “I feel +so keenly for your grief as a father, that I would have accepted any +reproaches, no matter how bitter and unjust, from you, without one word of +protest or feeling of resentment; even though I cannot reproach myself for my +share in this disastrous conflict. I do not wish to say anything to justify +myself in your eyes, at the expense of the unhappy Duke of Vallombreuse, but I +beg you to believe that this quarrel was not of my seeking. He persistently +threw himself in my way, and I have done everything I could to spare him, in +more than one encounter. Even here it was his own blind fury that led to his +being wounded. I leave Isabelle, who is dearer to me than my own soul, in your +hands, and shall grieve my whole life long for this sad victory; which is a +veritable and terrible defeat for me, since it destroys my happiness. Ah! if +only I could have been slain myself, instead of your unhappy son; it would have +been better and happier for me.” +</p> + +<p> +He bowed with grave dignity to the prince, who courteously returned his salute, +exchanged a long look, eloquent of passionate love and heart-breaking regret, +with Isabelle, and went sadly down the grand staircase, followed by his +companions—not however without glancing back more than once at the sweet +girl he was leaving—who to save herself from falling, leaned heavily +against the railing of the landing, sobbing as if her heart would break, and +pressing a handkerchief to her streaming eyes. And, so strange a thing is the +human heart, the Baron de Sigognac departed much comforted by the bitter grief +and tears of her whom he so devotedly loved and worshipped. He and his friends +went on foot to the little wood where they had left their horses tied to the +trees, found them undisturbed, mounted and returned to Paris. +</p> + +<p> +“What do you think, my lord, of all these wonderful events?” said +the tyrant, after a long silence, to de Sigognac, beside whom he was riding. +“It all ends up like a regular tragi-comedy. Who would ever have dreamed, +in the midst of the mêlée, of the sudden entrance upon the scene of the grand +old princely father, preceded by torches, and coming to put a little wholesome +restraint on the too atrociously outrageous pranks of his dissolute young son? +And then the recognition of Isabelle as his daughter, by means of the ring with +a peculiar device of his own engraved upon it; haven’t you seen exactly +the same sort of thing on the stage? But, after all, it is not so surprising +perhaps as it seems at the first glance—since the theatre is only a copy +of real life. Therefore, real life should resemble it, just as the original +does the portrait, eh? I have always heard that our sweet little actress was of +noble birth. Blazius and old Mme. Léonarde remember seeing the prince when he +was devoted to Cornelia. The duenna has often tried to persuade Isabelle to +seek out her father, but she is of too modest and gentle a nature to take a +step of that kind; not wishing to intrude upon a family that might reject her, +and willing to content herself in her own lowly, position.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, I knew all about that,” rejoined de Sigognac, “for +Isabelle told me some time ago her mother’s history, and spoke of the +ring; but without attaching any importance to the fact of her illustrious +origin. It is very evident, however, from the nobility and delicacy of her +nature, without any other proof, that princely blood flows in her veins; and +also the refined, pure, elevated type of her beauty testifies to her descent. +But what a terrible fatality that this cursed Vallombreuse should turn out to +be her brother! There is a dead body between us now—a stream of blood +separates us—and yet, I could not save her honour in any other way. +Unhappy mortal that I am! I have myself created the obstacle upon which my love +is wrecked, and killed my hopes of future bliss with the very sword that +defended the purity of the woman I adore. In guarding her I love, I have put +her away from me forever. How could I go now and present myself to Isabelle +with blood-stained hands? Alas! that the blood which I was forced to shed in +her defence should have been her brother’s. Even if she, in her heavenly +goodness, could forgive me, and look upon me without a feeling of horror, the +prince, her father, would repulse and curse me as the murderer of his only son. +I was born, alas! under an unlucky star.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, it is all very sad and lamentable, certainly,” said the +tyrant; “but worse entanglements than this have come out all right in the +end. You must remember that the Duke of Vallombreuse is only half-brother to +Isabelle, and that they were aware of the relationship but for a few minutes +before he fell dead at our feet; which must make a great difference in her +feelings. And besides, she hated that overbearing nobleman, who pursued her so +cruelly with his violent and scandalous gallantries. The prince himself was far +from being satisfied with his wretched son—who was ferocious as Nero, +dissolute as Heliogabalus, and perverse as Satan himself, and who would have +been hanged ten times over if he had not been a duke. Do not be so +disheartened! things may turn out a great deal better than you think +now.” +</p> + +<p> +“God grant it, my good Hérode,” said de Sigognac fervently. +“But naturally I cannot feel happy about it. It would have been far +better for all if I had been killed instead of the duke, since Isabelle would +have been safe from his criminal pursuit under her father’s care. And +then, I may as well tell you all, a secret horror froze the very marrow in my +bones when I saw that handsome young man, but a moment before so full of life, +fire, and passion, fall lifeless, pale and stiff at my feet. Hérode, the death +of a man is a grave thing, and though I cannot suffer from remorse for this +one, since I have committed no crime, still, all the time I see Vallombreuse +before me, lying, motionless and ghastly, with the blood oozing slowly from his +wound. It haunts me. I cannot drive the horrid sight away.” +</p> + +<p> +“That is all wrong,” said the tyrant, soothingly—for the +other was much excited—“for you could not have done otherwise. Your +conscience should not reproach you. You have acted throughout, from the very +beginning to the end, like the noble gentleman that you are. These scruples are +owing to exhaustion, to the feverishness due to the excitement you have gone +through, and the chill from the night air. We will gallop on swiftly in a +moment, to set our blood flowing more freely, and drive away these sad thoughts +of yours. But one thing must be promptly done; you must quit Paris, forthwith, +and retire for a time to some quiet retreat, until all this trouble is +forgotten. The violent death of the Duke of Vallombreuse will make a stir at +the court, and in the city, no matter how much pains may be taken to keep the +facts from the public, and, although he was not at all popular, indeed very +much the reverse, there will be much regret expressed, and you will probably be +severely blamed. But now let us put spurs to these lazy steeds of ours, and try +to get on a little faster.” +</p> + +<p> +While they are galloping towards Paris, we will return to the château—as +quiet now as it had been noisy a little while before. In the young duke’s +room, a candelabrum, with several branches, stood on a round table, so that the +light from the candles fell upon the bed, where he lay with closed eyes, as +motionless as a corpse, and as pale. The walls of the large chamber, above a +high wainscot of ebony picked out with gold, were hung with superb tapestry, +representing the history of Medea and Jason, with all its murderous and +revolting details. Here, Medea was seen cutting the body of Pelias into pieces, +under pretext of restoring his youth—there, the madly jealous woman and +unnatural mother was murdering her own children; in another panel she was +fleeing, surfeited with vengeance, in her chariot, drawn by huge dragons +breathing out flames of fire. The tapestry was certainly magnificent in quality +and workmanship, rich in colouring, artistic in design, and very +costly—but inexpressibly repulsive. These mythological horrors gave the +luxurious room an intensely disagreeable, lugubrious aspect, and testified to +the natural ferocity and cruelty of the person who had selected them. Behind +the bed the crimson silk curtains had been drawn apart, exposing to view the +representation of Jason’s terrible conflict with the fierce, brazen bulls +that guarded the golden fleece, and Vallombreuse, lying senseless below them, +looked as if he might have been one of their victims. Various suits of clothes, +of the greatest richness and elegance, which had been successively tried on and +rejected, were scattered about, and in a splendid great Japanese vase, standing +on an ebony table near the head of the bed, was a bouquet of beautiful flowers, +destined to replace the one Isabelle had already refused to receive—its +glowing tints making a strange contrast with the death-like face, which was +whiter than the snowy pillow it rested on. The prince, sitting in an arm-chair +beside the bed, gazed at his unconscious son with mournful intentness, and bent +down from time to time to listen at the slightly parted lips; but no fluttering +breath came through them; all was still. Never had the young duke looked +handsomer. The haughty, fierce expression, habitual with him, had given place +to a serenity that was wonderfully beautiful, though so like death. As the +father contemplated the perfect face and form, so soon to crumble into dust, he +forgot, in his overwhelming grief, that the soul of a demon had animated it, +and he thought sorrowfully of the great name that had been revered and honoured +for centuries past, but which could not go down to centuries to come. More even +than the death of his son did he mourn for the extinction of his home. +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle stood at the foot of the bed, with clasped hands, praying with her +whole soul for this new-found brother, who had expiated his crime with his +life—the crime of loving too much, which woman pardons so easily. +</p> + +<p> +The prince, who had been for some time holding his son’s icy cold hand +between both his own, suddenly thought that he could feel a slight warmth in +it, and not realizing that he himself had imparted it, allowed himself to hope +again. +</p> + +<p> +“Will the doctor never come?” he cried impatiently; +“something may yet be done; I am persuaded of it.” +</p> + +<p> +Even as he spoke the door opened, and the surgeon appeared, followed by an +assistant carrying a case of instruments. He bowed to the prince, and without +saying one word went straight to the bedside, felt the patient’s pulse, +put his hand over his heart, and shook his head despondingly. However, to make +sure, he drew a little mirror of polished steel from his pocket, removed it +from its case, and held it for a moment over the parted lips; then, upon +examining its surface closely, he found that a slight dimness was visible upon +it. Surprised at this unexpected indication of life, he repeated the +experiment, and again the little mirror was dimmed—Isabelle and the +prince meantime breathlessly watching every movement, and even the expression +of the doctor’s face. +</p> + +<p> +“Life is not entirely extinct,” he said at last, turning to the +anxious father, as he wiped the polished surface of his tiny mirror. “The +patient still breathes, and as long as there is life there is hope, But do not +give yourself up to a premature joy that might render your grief more bitter +afterwards. I only say that the Duke of Vallombreuse has not yet breathed his +last; that is all. Now, I am going to probe the wound, which perhaps is not +fatal, as it did not kill him at once.” +</p> + +<p> +“You must not stay here, Isabelle,” said the prince, tenderly; +“such sights are too trying for a young girl like you. Go to your own +room now, my dear, and I will let you know the doctor’s verdict as soon +as he has pronounced it.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle accordingly withdrew, and was conducted to an apartment that had been +made ready for her; the one she had occupied being all in disorder after the +terrible scenes that had been enacted there. +</p> + +<p> +The surgeon proceeded with his examination, and when it was finished said to +the prince, “My lord, will you please to order a cot put up in that +corner yonder, and have a light supper sent in for my assistant and myself? We +shall remain for the night with the Duke of Vallombreuse, and take turns in +watching him. I must be with him constantly, so as to note every symptom; to +combat promptly those that are unfavorable, and aid those that are the reverse. +Your highness may trust everything to me, and feel assured that all that human +skill and science can do towards saving your son’s life shall be +faithfully done. Let me advise you to go to your own room now and try to get +some rest; I think I may safely answer for my patient’s life until the +morning.” +</p> + +<p> +A little calmed and much encouraged by this assurance, the prince retired to +his own apartment, where every hour a servant brought him a bulletin from the +sick-room. +</p> + +<p> +As to Isabelle, lying in her luxurious bed and vainly trying to sleep, she +lived over again in imagination all the wonderful as well as terrible +experiences of the last two days, and tried to realize her new position; that +she was now the acknowledged daughter of a mighty prince, than whom only +royalty was higher; that the dreaded Duke of Vallombreuse, so handsome and +winning despite his perversity, was no longer a bold lover to be feared and +detested, but a brother, whose passion, if he lived, would doubtless be changed +into a pure and calm fraternal affection. This château, no longer her prison, +had become her home, and she was treated by all with the respect and +consideration due to the daughter of its master. From what had seemed to be her +ruin had arisen her good fortune, and a destiny radiant, unhoped-for, and +beyond her wildest flights of fancy. Yet, surrounded as she was by everything +to make her happy and content, Isabelle was far from feeling so—she was +astonished at herself for being sad and listless, instead of joyous and +exultant—but the thought of de Sigognac, so infinitely dear to her, so +far more precious than any other earthly blessing, weighed upon her heart, and +the separation from him was a sorrow for which nothing could console her. Yet, +now that their relative positions were so changed, might not a great happiness +be in store for her? Did not this very change bring her nearer in reality to +that true, brave, faithful, and devoted lover, though for the moment they were +parted? As a poor nameless actress she had refused to accept his offered hand, +lest such an alliance should be disadvantageous to him and stand in the way of +his advancement, but now—how joyfully would she give herself to him. The +daughter of a great and powerful prince would be a fitting wife for the Baron +de Sigognac. But if he were the murderer of her father’s only son; ah! +then indeed they could never join hands over a grave. And even if the young +duke should recover, he might cherish a lasting resentment for the man who had +not only dared to oppose his wishes and designs, but had also defeated and +wounded him. As to the prince, good and generous though he was, still he might +not be able to bring himself to look with favour upon the man who had almost +deprived him of his son. Then, too, he might desire some other alliance for his +new-found daughter—it was not impossible—but in her inmost heart +she promised herself to be faithful to her first and only love; to take refuge +in a convent rather than accept the hand of any other; even though that other +were as handsome as Apollo, and gifted as the prince of a fairy tale. Comforted +by this secret vow, by which she dedicated her life and love to de Sigognac, +whether their destiny should give them to each other or keep them asunder, +Isabelle was just falling into a sweet sleep when a slight sound made her open +her eyes, and they fell upon Chiquita, standing at the foot of the bed and +gazing at her with a thoughtful, melancholy air. +</p> + +<p> +“What is it, my dear child?” said Isabelle, in her sweetest tones. +“You did not go away with the others, then? I am glad; and if you would +like to stay here with me, Chiquita, I will keep you and care for you tenderly; +as is justly due to you, my dear, for you have done a great deal for me.” +</p> + +<p> +“I love you dearly,” answered Chiquita, “but I cannot stay +with you while Agostino lives; he is my master, I must follow him. But I have +one favour to beg before I leave you; if you think that I have earned the pearl +necklace now, will you kiss me? No one ever did but you, and it was so +sweet.” +</p> + +<p> +“Indeed I will, and with all my heart,” said Isabelle, taking the +child’s thin face between her hands and kissing her warmly on her brown +cheeks, which flushed crimson under the soft caress. +</p> + +<p> +“And now, good-bye!” said Chiquita, when after a few moments of +silence she had resumed her usual <i>sang-froid</i>. She turned quickly away, +but, catching sight of the knife she had given Isabelle, which lay upon the +dressing-table, she seized it eagerly, saying, “Give me back my knife +now; you will not need it any more,” and vanished. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap18"></a>CHAPTER XVIII.<br/> +A FAMILY PARTY</h2> + +<p> +The next morning found the young Duke of Vallombreuse still living, though his +life hung by so slender a thread, that the surgeon, who anxiously watched his +every breath, feared from moment to moment that it might break. He was a +learned and skilful man, this same Maître Laurent, who only needed some +favourable opportunity to bring him into notice and make him as celebrated as +he deserved to be. His remarkable talents and skill had only been exercised +thus far “in anima vili,” among the lower orders of +society—whose living or dying was a matter of no moment whatever. But now +had come at last the chance so long sighed for in secret, and he felt that the +recovery of his illustrious patient was of paramount importance to himself. The +worthy doctor’s <i>amour-propre</i> and ambition were both actively +engaged in this desperate duel he was fighting with Death, and he set his teeth +and determined that the victory must rest with him. In order to keep the whole +glory of the triumph for himself, he had persuaded the prince—not without +difficulty—to renounce his intention of sending for the most celebrated +surgeons in Paris, assuring him that he himself was perfectly capable to do all +that could be done, and pleading that nothing was more dangerous than a change +of treatment in such a case as this. Maître Laurent conquered, and feeling that +there was now no danger of his being pushed into the background, threw his +whole heart and strength into the struggle; yet many times during that anxious +night he feared that his patient’s life was slipping away from his +detaining grasp, and almost repented him of having assumed the entire +responsibility. But with the morning came encouragement, and as the watchful +surgeon stood at the bedside, intently gazing upon the ghastly face on the +pillow, he murmured to himself: +</p> + +<p> +“No, he will not die—his countenance has lost that terrible, +hippocratic look that had settled upon it last evening when I first saw +him—his pulse is stronger, his breathing free and natural. Besides, he +<i>must</i> live—his recovery will make my fortune. I must and will tear +him out of the grim clutches of Death—fine, handsome, young fellow that +he is, and the heir and hope of his noble family—it will be long ere his +tomb need be made ready to receive him. He will help me to get away from this +wretched little village, where I vegetate ignobly, and eat my heart out day by +day. Now for a bold stroke!—at the risk of producing fever—at all +risks—I shall venture to give him a dose of that wonder-working potion of +mine.” Opening his case of medicines, he took out several small vials, +containing different preparations—some red as a ruby, others green as an +emerald—this one yellow as virgin gold, that bright and colourless as a +diamond—and on each one a small label bearing a Latin inscription. Maître +Laurent, though he was perfectly sure of himself, carefully read the +inscriptions upon those he had selected several times over, held up the tiny +vials one after another, where a ray of sunshine struck upon them, and looked +admiringly through the bright transparent liquids they contained—then, +measuring with the utmost care a few drops from each, compounded a potion after +a secret recipe of his own; which he made a mystery of, and refused to impart +to his fellow practitioners. Rousing his sleeping assistant, he ordered him to +raise the patient’s head a little, while, with a small spatula, he pried +the firmly set teeth apart sufficiently to allow the liquid he had prepared to +trickle slowly into the mouth. As it reached the throat there was a spasmodic +contraction that gave Maître Laurent an instant of intense anxiety—but it +was only momentary, and the remainder of the dose was swallowed easily and with +almost instantaneous effect. A slight tinge of colour showed itself in the +pallid cheeks, the eyelids trembled and half unclosed, and the hand that had +lain inert and motionless upon the counterpane stirred a little. Then the young +duke heaved a deep sigh, and opening his eyes looked vacantly in about him, +like one awakening from a dream, or returning from those mysterious regions +whither the soul takes flight when unconsciousness holds this mortal frame +enthralled. Only a glance, and the long eyelashes fell again upon the pale +cheeks—but a wonderful change had passed over the countenance. +</p> + +<p> +“I staked everything on that move,” said Maître Laurent to himself, +with a long breath of relief, “and I have won. It was either kill or +cure—and it has not killed him. All glory be to Æsculapius, Hygeia, and +Hippocrates!” +</p> + +<p> +At this moment a hand noiselessly put aside the hangings over the door, and the +venerable head of the prince appeared—looking ten years older for the +agony and dread of the terrible night just passed. +</p> + +<p> +“How is he, Maître Laurent?” he breathed, in broken, scarcely +audible tones. +</p> + +<p> +The surgeon put his finger to his lips, and with the other hand pointed to the +young duke’s face-still raised a little on the pillows, and no longer +wearing its death-like look; then, with the light step habitual with those who +are much about the sick, he went over to the prince, still standing on the +threshold, and drawing him gently outside and away from the door, said in a low +voice, “Your highness can see that the patient’s condition, so far +from growing worse, has decidedly improved. Certainly he is not out of danger +yet—his state is very critical—but unless some new and totally +unforeseen complication should arise, which I shall use every effort to +prevent, I think that we can pull him through, and that he will be able to +enjoy life again as if he had never been hurt.” +</p> + +<p> +The prince’s care-worn face brightened and his fine eyes flashed at these +hopeful words; he stepped forward to enter the sick-room, but Maître Laurent +respectfully opposed his doing so. +</p> + +<p> +“Permit me, my lord, to prevent your approaching your son’s bedside +just now—doctors are often very disagreeable, you know, and have to +impose trying conditions upon those to whom their patients are dear. I beseech +you not to go near the Duke of Vallombreuse at present. Your beloved presence +might, in the excessively weak and exhausted condition of my patient, cause +dangerous agitation. Any strong emotion would be instantly fatal to him, his +hold upon life is still so slight. Perfect tranquility is his only safety. If +all goes well—as I trust and believe that it will—in a few days he +will have regained his strength in a measure, his wound will be healing, and +you can probably be with him as much as you like, without any fear of doing him +harm. I know that this is very trying to your highness, but, believe me, it is +necessary to your son’s well-being.” +</p> + +<p> +The prince, very much relieved, and yielding readily to the doctor’s +wishes, returned to his own apartment; where he occupied himself with some +religious reading until noon, when the major-domo came to announce that dinner +was on the table. +</p> + +<p> +“Go and tell my daughter, the Comtesse Isabelle de Lineuil—such is +the title by which she is to be addressed henceforth—that I request her +to join me at dinner,” said the prince to the major-domo, who hastened +off to obey this order. +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle went quickly down the grand staircase with a light step, and smiled to +herself as she passed through the noble hall where she had been so frightened +by the two figures in armour, on the occasion of her bold exploring expedition +the first night after her arrival at the château. Everything looked very +different now—the bright sunshine was pouring in at the windows, and +large fires of juniper, and other sweet-smelling woods, had completely done +away with the damp, chilly, heavy atmosphere that pervaded the long disused +rooms when she was in them before. +</p> + +<p> +In the splendid dining-room she found a table sumptuously spread, and her +father already seated at it, in his large, high-backed, richly carved chair, +behind which stood two lackeys, in superb liveries. As she approached him she +made a most graceful curtsey, which had nothing in the least theatrical about +it, and would have met with approbation even in courtly circles. A servant was +holding the chair destined for her, and with some timidity, but no apparent +embarrassment, she took her seat opposite to the prince. She was served with +soup and wine, and then with course after course of delicate, tempting viands; +but she could not eat her heart was too full—her nerves were still +quivering, from the terror and excitement of the preceding day and night. +</p> + +<p> +She was dazzled and agitated by this sudden change of fortune, anxious about +her brother, now lying at the point of death, and, above all, troubled and +grieved at her separation from her lover—so she could only make a +pretence of dining, and played languidly with the food on her plate. +</p> + +<p> +“You are eating nothing, my dear <i>comtesse</i>,” said the prince, +who had been furtively watching her; “I pray you try to do better with +this bit of partridge I am sending you.” +</p> + +<p> +At this title of <i>comtesse</i>, spoken as a matter of course, and in such a +kind, tender tone, Isabelle looked up at the prince with astonishment written +in her beautiful, deep blue eyes, which seemed to plead timidly for an +explanation. +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, Comtesse de Lineuil; it is the title which goes with an estate I +have settled on you, my dear child, and which has long been destined for you. +The name of Isabelle alone, charming though it be, is not suitable for +<i>my</i> daughter.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle, yielding to the impulse of the moment—as the servants had +retired and she was alone with her father—rose, and going to his side, +knelt down and kissed his hand, in token of gratitude for his delicacy and +generosity. +</p> + +<p> +“Rise, my child,” said he, very tenderly, and much moved, +“and return to your place. What I have done is only just. It calls for no +thanks. I should have done it long ago if it had been in my power. In the +terrible circumstances that have reunited us, my dear daughter, I can see the +finger of Providence, and through them I have learned your worth. To your +virtue alone it is due that a horrible crime was not committed, and I love and +honour you for it; even though it may cost me the loss of my only son. But God +will be merciful and preserve his life, so that he may repent of having so +persecuted and outraged the purest innocence. Maître Laurent, in whom I have +every confidence, gives me some hope this morning; and when I looked at +Vallombreuse—from the threshold of his room only—I could see that +the seal of death was no longer upon his face.” +</p> + +<p> +They were interrupted by the servants, bringing in water to wash their fingers, +in a magnificent golden bowl, and this ceremony having been duly gone through +with, the prince threw down his napkin and led the way into the adjoining +<i>salon</i>, signing to Isabelle to follow him. He seated himself in a large +arm-chair in front of the blazing wood fire, and bidding Isabelle place herself +close beside him, took her hand tenderly between both of his, and looked long +and searchingly at this lovely young daughter, so strangely restored to him. +There was much of sadness mingled with the joy that shone in his eyes, for he +was still very anxious about his son, whose life was in such jeopardy; but as +he gazed upon Isabelle’s sweet face the joy predominated, and he smiled +very lovingly upon the new <i>comtesse</i>, as he began to talk to her of long +past days. +</p> + +<p> +“Doubtless, my beloved child, in the midst of the strange events that +have brought us together, in such an odd, romantic, almost supernatural manner, +the thought has suggested itself to your mind, that during all the years that +have passed since your infancy I have not sought you out, and that chance alone +has at last restored the long-lost child to her neglectful father. But you are +so good and noble that I know you would not dwell upon such an idea, and I hope +that you do not so misjudge me as to think me capable of such culpable neglect, +now that you are getting a little better acquainted with me. As you must know, +your mother, Cornelia, was excessively proud and high-spirited. She resented +every affront, whether intended as such or not, with extraordinary violence, +and when I was obliged, in spite of my most heartfelt wishes, to separate +myself from her, and reluctantly submit to a marriage that I could not avoid, +she obstinately refused to allow me to provide for her maintenance in comfort +and luxury, as well as for you and your education. All that I gave her, and +settled on her, she sent back to me with the most exaggerated disdain, and +inexorably refused to receive again. I could not but admire, though I so +deplored, her lofty spirit, and proud rejection of every benefit which I +desired to confer upon her, and I left in the hands of a trusty agent, for her, +the deeds of all the landed property and houses I had destined for her, as well +as the money and jewels—so that she could at any time reclaim them, if +she would—hoping that she might see fit to change her mind when the first +flush of anger was over. But, to my great chagrin, she persisted in her refusal +of everything, and changing her name, fled from Paris into the provinces; where +she was said to have joined a roving band of comedians. Soon after that I was +sent by my sovereign on several foreign missions that kept me long away from +France, and I lost all trace of her and you. In vain were all my efforts to +find you both, until at last I heard that she was dead. Then I redoubled my +diligence in the search for my little motherless daughter, whom I had so +tenderly loved; but all in vain. No trace of her could I find. I heard, indeed, +of many children among these strolling companies, and carefully investigated +each case that came to my knowledge; but it always ended in disappointment. +Several women, indeed, tried to palm off their little girls upon me as my +child, and I had to be on my guard against fraud; but I never failed to sift +the matter thoroughly, even though I knew that deceit was intended, lest I +should unawares reject the dear little one I was so anxiously seeking. At last +I was almost forced to conclude that you too had perished; yet a secret +intuition always told me that you were still in the land of the living. I used +to sit for hours and think of how sweet and lovely you were in infancy; how +your little rosy fingers used to play with and pull my long +mustache—which was black then, my dear—when I leaned over to kiss +you in your cradle—recalling all your pretty, engaging little baby +tricks, remembering how fond and proud I was of you, and grieving over the loss +that I seemed to feel more and more acutely as the years went on. The birth of +my son only made me long still more intensely for you, instead of consoling me +for your loss, or banishing you from my memory, and when I saw him decked with +rich laces and ribbons, like a royal babe, and playing with his jewelled +rattle, I would think with an aching heart that perhaps at that very moment my +dear little daughter was suffering from cold and hunger, or the unkind +treatment of those who had her in charge. Then I regretted deeply that I had +not taken you away from your mother in the very beginning, and had you brought +up as my daughter should be—but when you were born I did not dream of our +parting. As years rolled on new anxieties tortured me. I knew that you would be +beautiful, and how much you would have to suffer from the dissolute men who +hover about all young and pretty actresses—my blood would boil as I +thought of the insults and affronts to which you might be subjected, and from +which I was powerless to shield you—no words can tell what I suffered. +Affecting a taste for the theatre that I did not possess, I never let an +opportunity pass to see every company of players that I could hear +of—hoping to find you at last among them. But although I saw numberless +young actresses, about your age, not one of them could have been you, my dear +child—of that I was sure. So at last I abandoned the hope of finding my +long-lost daughter, though it was a bitter trial to feel that I must do so. The +princess, my wife, had died three years after our marriage, leaving me only one +child—Vallombreuse—whose ungovernable disposition has always given +me much trouble and anxiety. A few days ago, at Saint Germain, I heard some of +the courtiers speak in terms of high praise of Hérode’s troupe, and what +they said made me determine to go and see one of their representations without +delay, while my heart beat high with a new hope—for they especially +lauded a young actress, called Isabelle; whose graceful, modest, high-bred air +they declared to be irresistible, and her acting everything that could be +desired—adding that she was as virtuous as she was beautiful, and that +the boldest libertines respected her immaculate purity. Deeply agitated by a +secret presentiment, I hastened back to Paris, and went to the theatre that +very night. There I saw you, my darling, and though it would seem to be +impossible for even a father’s eye to recognise, in the beautiful young +woman of twenty, the babe that he had kissed in its cradle, and had never +beheld since, still I knew you instantly—the very moment you came in +sight—and I perceived, with a heart swelling with happiness and +thankfulness, that you were all that I could wish. Moreover, I recognised the +face of an old actor, who had been I knew in the troupe that Cornelia joined +when she fled from Paris, and I resolved to address myself first to him; so as +not to startle you by too abrupt a disclosure of my claims upon you. But when I +sent the next morning to the hotel in the Rue Dauphine, I learned that +Hérode’s troupe had just gone to give a representation at a château in +the environs of Paris, and would be absent three days. I should have +endeavoured to wait patiently for their return, had not a brave fellow, who +used to be in my service, and has my interest at heart, come to inform me that +the Duke of Vallombreuse, being madly in love with a young actress named +Isabelle, who resisted his suit with the utmost firmness and determination, had +arranged to gain forcible possession of her in the course of the day’s +journey—the expedition into the country being gotten up for that express +purpose—that he had a band of hired ruffians engaged to carry out his +nefarious purpose and bring his unhappy victim to this château—and that +he had come to warn me, fearing lest serious consequences should ensue to my +son, as the young actress would be accompanied by brave and faithful friends, +who were armed, and would defend her to the death. This terrible news threw me +into a frightful state of anxiety and excitement. Feeling sure, as I did, that +you were my own daughter, I shuddered at the thought of the horrible crime that +I might not be in time to prevent, and without one moment’s delay set out +for this place—suffering such agony by the way as I do not like even to +think of. You were already delivered from danger when I arrived, as you know, +and without having suffered anything beyond the alarm and dread—which +must have been terrible indeed, my poor child! And then, the amethyst ring on +your finger confirmed, past any possibility of doubt, what my heart had told +me, when first my eyes beheld you in the theatre.” +</p> + +<p> +“I pray you to believe, dear lord and father,” answered Isabelle, +“that I have never accused you of anything, nor considered myself +neglected. Accustomed from my infancy to the roving life of the troupe I was +with, I neither knew nor dreamed of any other. The little knowledge that I had +of the world made me realize that I should be wrong in wishing to force myself +upon an illustrious family, obliged doubtless by powerful reasons, of which I +knew nothing, to leave me in obscurity. The confused remembrance I had of my +origin sometimes inspired me—when I was very young—with a certain +pride, and I would say to myself, when I noticed the disdainful air with which +great ladies looked down upon us poor actresses, I also am of noble birth. But +I outgrew those fancies, and only preserved an invincible self-respect, which I +have always cherished. Nothing in the world would have induced me to dishonour +the illustrious blood that flows in my veins. The disgraceful license of the +<i>coulisses</i>, and the loathsome gallantries lavished upon all actresses, +even those who are not comely, disgusted me from the first, and I have lived in +the theatre almost as if in a convent. The good old pedant has been like a +watchful father to me, and as for Hérode, he would have severely chastised any +one who dared to touch me with the tip of his finger, or even to pronounce a +vulgar word in my presence. Although they are only obscure actors, they are +very honourable, worthy men, and I trust you will be good enough to help them +if they ever find themselves in need of assistance. I owe it partly to them +that I can lift my forehead for your kiss without a blush of shame, and proudly +declare myself worthy, so far as purity is concerned, to be your daughter. My +only regret is to have been the innocent cause of the misfortune that has +overtaken the duke, your son. I could have wished to enter your family, my dear +father, under more favourable auspices.” +</p> + +<p> +“You have nothing to reproach yourself with, my sweet child, for you +could not divine these mysteries, which have been suddenly disclosed by a +combination of circumstances that would be considered romantic and improbable, +even in a novel; and my joy at finding you as worthy in every way to be my +beloved and honoured daughter, as if you had not lived amid all the dangers of +such a career, makes up for the pain and anxiety caused by the illness and +danger of my son. Whether he lives or dies, I shall never for one moment blame +you for anything in connection with his misfortune. In any event, it was your +virtue and courage that saved him from being guilty of a crime that I shudder +to contemplate. And now, tell me, who was the handsome young man among your +liberators who seemed to direct the attack, and who wounded Vallombreuse? An +actor doubtless, though it appeared to me that he had a very noble bearing, and +magnificent courage.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, my dear father,” Isabelle replied, with a most lovely and +becoming blush, “he is an actor, a member of our troupe; but if I may +venture to betray his secret, which is already known to the Duke of +Vallombreuse, I will tell you that the so-called Captain Fracasse conceals +under his mask a noble countenance, as indeed you already know, and under his +theatrical pseudonym, the name of an illustrious family.” +</p> + +<p> +“True!” rejoined the prince, “I have heard something about +that already. It would certainly have been astonishing if an ordinary, low-born +actor had ventured upon so bold and rash a course as running counter to a Duke +of Vallombreuse, and actually entering into a combat with him; it needs noble +blood for such daring acts. Only a gentleman can conquer a gentleman, just as a +diamond can only be cut by a diamond.” +</p> + +<p> +The lofty pride of the aged prince found much consolation in the knowledge that +his son had not been attacked and wounded by an adversary of low origin; there +was nothing compromising in a duel between equals, and he drew a deep breath of +relief at thought of it. +</p> + +<p> +“And pray, what is the real name of this valiant champion?” +smilingly asked the prince, with a roguish twinkle in his dark +eyes—“this dauntless knight, and brave defender of innocence and +purity!” +</p> + +<p> +“He is the Baron de Sigognac,” Isabelle replied blushingly, with a +slight trembling perceptible in her sweet, low voice. “I reveal his name +fearlessly to you, my dear father, for you are both too just and too generous +to visit upon his head the disastrous consequences of a victory that he +deplores.” +</p> + +<p> +“De Sigognac?” said the prince. “I thought that ancient and +illustrious family was extinct. Is he not from Gascony?” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes; his home is in the neighbourhood of Dax.” +</p> + +<p> +“Exactly—and the de Sigognacs have an appropriate coat of +arms—three golden storks on an azure field. Yes, it is as I said, an +ancient and illustrious family—one of the oldest and most honourable in +France. Paramede de Sigognac figured gloriously in the first crusade. A +Raimbaud de Sigognac, the father of this young man without doubt, was the +devoted friend and companion of Henri IV, in his youth, but was not often seen +at court in later years. It was said that he was embarrassed financially, I +remember.” +</p> + +<p> +“So much so, that when our troupe sought refuge of a stormy night under +his roof, we found his son living in a half ruined château, haunted by bats and +owls, where his youth was passing in sadness and misery. We persuaded him to +come away with us, fearing that he would die there of starvation and +melancholy—but I never saw misfortune so bravely borne.” +</p> + +<p> +“Poverty is no disgrace,” said the prince, “and any noble +house that has preserved its honour unstained may rise again from its ruins to +its ancient height of glory and renown. But why did not the young baron apply +to some of his father’s old friends in his distress? or lay his case +before the king, who is the natural refuge of all loyal gentlemen under such +circumstances?” +</p> + +<p> +“Misfortunes such as his are apt to breed timidity, even with the +bravest,” Isabelle replied, “and pride deters many a man from +betraying his misery to the world. When the Baron de Sigognac consented to +accompany us to Paris, he hoped to find some opportunity there to retrieve his +fallen fortunes; but it has not presented itself. In order not to be an expense +to the troupe, he generously and nobly insisted upon taking the place of one of +the actors, who died on the way, and who was a great loss to us. As he could +appear upon the stage always masked, he surely did not compromise his dignity +by it.” +</p> + +<p> +“Under this theatrical disguise, I think that, without being a sorcerer, +I can detect a little bit of romance, eh?” said the prince, with a +mischievous smile. “But I will not inquire too closely; I know how good +and true you are well enough not to take alarm at any respectful tribute paid +to your charms. I have not been with you long enough yet as a father, my sweet +child, to venture upon sermonizing.” +</p> + +<p> +As he paused, Isabelle raised her lovely eyes, in which shone the purest +innocence and the most perfect loyalty, to his, and met his questioning gaze +unflinchingly. The rosy flush which the first mention of de Sigognac’s +name had called up was gone, and her countenance showed no faintest sign of +embarrassment or shame. In her pure heart the most searching looks of a father, +of God himself, could have found nothing to condemn. Just at this point the +doctor’s assistant was announced, who brought a most favourable report +from the sick-room. He was charged to tell the prince that his son’s +condition was eminently satisfactory—a marked change for the better +having taken place; and that Maître Laurent considered the danger +past—believing that his recovery was now only a question of time. +</p> + +<p> +A few days later, Vallombreuse, propped up on his pillows, received a visit +from his faithful and devoted friend, the Chevalier de Vidalinc, whom he had +not been permitted to see earlier. The prince was sitting by the bedside, +affectionately watching every flitting expression on his son’s face, +which was pathetically thin and pale, but handsomer than ever; because the old +haughty, fierce look had vanished, and a soft light, that had never been in +them before, shone in his beautiful eyes, whereat his father’s heart +rejoiced exceedingly. Isabelle stood at the other side of the bed, and the +young duke had clasped his thin, startlingly white fingers round her hand. As +he was forbidden to speak, save in monosyllables—because of his injured +lung—he took this means of testifying his sympathy with her, who had been +the involuntary cause of his being wounded and in danger of losing his life, +and thus made her understand that he cherished no resentments. The affectionate +brother had replaced the fiery lover, and his illness, in calming his ardent +passion, had contributed not a little to make the transition a less difficult +one than it could possibly have been otherwise. Isabelle was now for him really +and only the Comtesse de Lineuil, his dear sister. He nodded in a friendly way +to Vidalinc, and disengaged his hand for a moment from Isabelle’s to give +it to him—it was all that the doctor would allow—but his eyes were +eloquent enough to make up for his enforced silence. +</p> + +<p> +In the course of a few weeks, Vallombreuse, who had gained strength rapidly, +was able to leave his bed and recline upon a lounge near the open window; so as +to enjoy the mild, delightful air of spring, that brought colour to his cheeks +and light to his eyes. Isabelle was often with him, and read aloud for hours +together to entertain him; as Maître Laurent’s orders were strict that he +should not talk, even yet, any more than was actually necessary. One day, when +Isabelle had finished a chapter in the volume from which she was reading to +him, and was about to begin another, he interrupted her, and said, “My +dear sister, that book is certainly very amusing, and the author a man of +remarkable wit and talent; but I must confess that I prefer your charming +conversation to your delightful reading. Do you know, I would not have believed +it possible to gain so much, in losing all hope of what I desired more ardently +than I had ever done anything in my whole life before. The brother is very much +more kindly treated than the suitor—are you aware of that? You are as +sweet and amiable to the one as you were severe and unapproachable to the +other. I find in this calm, peaceful affection, charms that I had never dreamed +of, and you reveal to me a new side of the feminine character, hitherto utterly +unknown to me. Carried away by fiery passions, and irritated to madness by any +opposition, I was like the wild huntsman of the ancient legend, who stopped for +no obstacle, but rode recklessly over everything in his path. I looked upon +whatever beautiful woman I was in pursuit of as my legitimate prey. I scouted +the very idea of failure, and deemed myself irresistible. At the mention of +virtue, I only shrugged my shoulders, and I think I may say, without too much +conceit, to the only woman I ever pursued who did not yield to me, that I had +reason not to put much faith in it. My mother died when I was a mere baby; you, +my sweet sister, were not near me, and I have never known, until now, all the +purity, tenderness, and sublime courage of which your sex is capable. I chanced +to see you. An irresistible attraction, in which, perhaps, the unknown tie of +blood had its influence, drew me to you, and for the first time in my life a +feeling of respect and esteem mingled with my passion. Your character delighted +me, even when you drove me to despair. I could not but secretly approve and +admire the modest and courteous firmness with which you rejected my homage. The +more decidedly you repulsed me, the more I felt that you were worthy of my +adoration. Anger and admiration succeeded each other in my heart, and even in +my most violent paroxysms of rage I always respected you. I descried the angel +in the woman, and bowed to the ascendency of a celestial purity. Now I am happy +and blessed indeed; for I have in you precisely what I needed, without knowing +it—this pure affection, free from all earthly +taint—unalterable—eternal. I possess at last the love of a +soul.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, my dear brother, it is yours,” Isabelle replied; “and +it is a great source of happiness to me that I am able to assure you of it. You +have in me a devoted sister and friend, who will love you doubly to make up for +the years we have lost—above all, now that you have promised me to +correct the faults that have so grieved and alarmed our dear father, and to +exhibit only the good qualities of which <i>you</i> have plenty.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! you little preacher,” cried Vallombreuse, with a bright, +admiring smile; “how you take advantage of my weakness. However, it is +perfectly true that I have been a dreadful monster, but I really do mean to do +better in future—if not for love of virtue itself, at least to avoid +seeing my charming sister put on a severe, disapproving air, at some atrocious +escapade of mine. Still, I fear that I shall always be Folly, as you will be +Reason.” +</p> + +<p> +“If you will persist in paying me such high-flown compliments,” +said Isabelle, with a little shrug of her pretty shoulders, “I shall +certainly resume the reading, and you will have to listen to a long story that +the corsair is just about to relate to the beautiful princess, his captive, in +the cabin of his galley.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh, no! surely I do not deserve such a severe punishment as that. Even +at the risk of appearing garrulous, I do so want to talk a little. That +confounded doctor has kept me mute long enough in all conscience, and I am +tired to death of having the seal of silence upon my lips, like a statue of +Hippocrates.” +</p> + +<p> +“But I am afraid you may do yourself harm; remember that your wound is +scarcely healed yet, and the injured lung is still very irritable. Maître +Laurent laid such stress upon my reading to you, so that you should keep quiet, +and give your chest a good chance to get strong and well again.” +</p> + +<p> +“Maître Laurent doesn’t know what he’s talking about, and +only wants to prolong his own importance to me. My lungs work as well as ever +they did. I feel perfectly myself again, and I’ve a great mind to order +my horse and go for a canter in the forest.” +</p> + +<p> +“You had better talk than do such a wildly imprudent thing as that; it is +certainly less dangerous.” +</p> + +<p> +“I shall very soon be about again, my sweet little sister, and then I +shall have the pleasure of introducing you into the society suitable to your +rank—where your incomparable grace and beauty will create a sensation, +and bring crowds of adorers to your feet. From among them you will be able to +select a husband, eh?” “I can have no desire to do anything of that +kind, Vallombreuse, and pray do not think this the foolish declaration of a +girl who would be very sorry to be taken at her word. I am entirely in earnest, +I do assure you. I have bestowed my hand so often in the last act of the pieces +I have played that I am in no hurry to do it in reality. I do not wish for +anything better than to remain quietly here with the prince and +yourself.” +</p> + +<p> +“But, my dear girl, a father and brother will not always content +you—do not think it! Such affection cannot satisfy the demands of the +heart forever.” +</p> + +<p> +“It will be enough for me, however, and if some day they fail me, I can +take refuge in a convent.” +</p> + +<p> +“Heaven forbid! that would be carrying austerity too far indeed. I pray +you never to mention it again, if you have any regard for my peace of mind. And +now tell me, my sweet little sister, what do you think of my dear friend, the +Chevalier de Vidalinc? does not he seem to be possessed of every qualification +necessary to make a good husband?” +</p> + +<p> +“Doubtless, and the woman that he marries will have a right to consider +herself fortunate but however charming and desirable your friend may be, my +dear Vallombreuse, <i>I</i> shall never be that woman.” +</p> + +<p> +“Well, let him pass, then—but tell me what you think of the Marquis +de l’Estang, who came to see me the other day, and gazed spell-bound at +my lovely sister all the time he was here. He was so overwhelmed by your +surpassing grace, so dazzled by your exquisite beauty, that he was struck dumb, +and when he tried to pay you pretty compliments, did nothing but stammer and +blush. Aside from this timidity, which made him appear to great disadvantage, +and which your ladyship should readily excuse, since you yourself were the +cause of it, the marquis is an accomplished and estimable gentleman. He is +handsome, young, of high birth and great wealth. He would do capitally for my +fair sister, and is sure to address himself to the prince—if indeed he +has not already done so—as an aspirant to the honour of an alliance with +her.” +</p> + +<p> +“As I have the honour of belonging to this illustrious family,” +said Isabelle a little impatiently, for she was exceedingly annoyed by this +banter, “too much humility would not become me, therefore I will not say +that I consider myself unworthy of such an alliance; but if the Marquis de +l’Estang should ask my hand of my father, I would refuse him. I have told +you, my dear brother, more than once, that I do not wish to marry—and you +know it too—so pray don’t tease me any more about it.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! what a fierce, determined little woman is this fair sister of mine. +Diana herself was not more inaccessible, in the forests and valleys of +Haemus—yet, if the naughty mythological stories may be believed, she did +at last smile upon a certain Endymion. You are vexed, because I casually +propose some suitable candidates for the honour of your hand; but you need not +be, for, if <i>they</i> do not please you, we will hunt up one who will.” +</p> + +<p> +“I am not vexed, my dear brother, but you are certainly talking far too +much for an invalid, and I shall tell Maître Laurent to reprimand you, or not +permit you to have the promised bit of fowl for your supper.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! if that’s the case I will desist at once,” said +Vallombreuse, with a droll air of submission, “for I’m as hungry as +an ogre—but rest assured of one thing, my charming sister: No one shall +select your husband but myself.” +</p> + +<p> +To put an end to this teasing, Isabelle began to read the corsair’s long +story, without paying any attention to the indignant protests that were made, +and Vallombreuse, to revenge himself, finally closed his eyes and pretended to +be asleep; which feigned slumber soon became real, and Isabelle, perceiving +that it was so, put aside her book and quietly stole away. +</p> + +<p> +This conversation, in which, under all his mischievous banter, the duke seemed +to have a definite and serious purpose in view, worried Isabelle very much, in +spite of her efforts to banish it from her mind. Could it be that Vallombreuse +was nursing a secret resentment against de Sigognac? He had never once spoken +his name, or referred to him in any way, since he was wounded by him; and was +he trying to place an insurmountable barrier between his sister and the baron, +by bringing about her marriage with another? or was he simply trying to find +out whether the actress transformed to a countess, had changed in sentiments as +well as in rank? Isabelle could not answer these questions satisfactorily to +herself. As she was the duke’s sister, of course the rivalry between him +and de Sigognac could no longer exist; but, on the other hand, it was difficult +to imagine that such a haughty, vindictive character as the young duke’s +could have forgotten, or forgiven, the ignominy of his first defeat at the +baron’s hands, and still less of the second more disastrous encounter. +Although their relative positions were changed, Vallombreuse, in his heart, +would doubtless always hate de Sigognac—even if he had magnanimity enough +to forgive him, it could scarcely be expected that he should also love him, and +be willing to welcome him as a member of his family. No, all hope of such a +reconciliation must be abandoned. Besides, she feared that the prince, her +father, would never be able to regard with favour the man who had imperilled +the life of his only son. These sad thoughts threw poor Isabelle into a +profound melancholy, which she in vain endeavoured to shake off. As long as she +considered that her position as an actress would be an obstacle to de Sigognac, +she had resolutely repelled the idea of a marriage with him, but now that an +unhoped-for, undreamed-of stroke of destiny had heaped upon her all the good +things that heart could desire, she would have loved to reward, with the gift +of her hand and fortune, the faithful lover who had addressed her when she was +poor and lowly—it seemed an actual meanness, to her generous spirit, not +to share her prosperity with the devoted companion of her misery. But all that +she could do was to be faithful to him—for she dared not say a word in +his favour, either to the prince or to Vallombreuse. +</p> + +<p> +Very soon the young duke was well enough to join his father and sister at +meals, and he manifested such respectful and affectionate deference to the +prince, and such an ingenuous and delicate tenderness towards Isabelle, that it +was evident he had, in spite of his apparent frivolity, a mind and character +very superior to what one would have expected to find in such a licentious, +ungovernable youth as he had been, and which gave promise of an honourable and +useful manhood. Isabelle took her part modestly—but with a very sweet +dignity, that sat well upon her—in the conversation at the table, and in +the <i>salon</i>, and her remarks were so to the point, so witty, and so +apropos, that the prince was astonished as well as charmed, and grew daily more +proud of and devoted to his new treasure; finding a happiness and satisfaction +he had longed for all his life in the affection and devotion of his children. +</p> + +<p> +At last Vallombreuse was pronounced well enough to mount his horse, and go for +a ride in the forest—which he had long been sighing for—and +Isabelle gladly consented to bear him company. They looked a wonderfully +handsome pair, as they rode leisurely through the leafy arcades. But there was +one very marked difference between them. +</p> + +<p> +The young man’s countenance was radiant with happiness and smiles, but +the girl’s face was clouded over with an abiding melancholy. Occasionally +her brother’s lively sallies would bring a faint smile to her sweet lips, +but they fell back immediately into the mournful droop that had become habitual +with them. Vallombreuse apparently did not perceive it—though in reality +he was well aware of it, and of its cause—and was full of fun and frolic. +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! what a delicious thing it is to live,” he cried, “yet +how seldom we think of the exquisite enjoyment there is in the simple act of +breathing,” and he drew a long, deep breath, as if he never could get +enough of the soft, balmy air. “The trees surely were never so green +before, the sky so blue, or the flowers so fragrant. I feel as if I had been +born into the world only yesterday, and was looking upon nature for the first +time to-day. I never appreciated it before. When I remember that I might even +now be lying, stiff and stark, under a fine marble monument, and that instead +of that I am riding through an elysium, beside my darling sister, who has +really learned to love me, I am too divinely happy. I do not even feel my wound +any more. I don’t believe that I ever was wounded. And now for a gallop, +for I’m sure that our good father is wearying for us at home.” +</p> + +<p> +In spite of Isabelle’s remonstrances he put spurs to his horse, and she +could not restrain hers when its companion bounded forward, so off they went at +a swift pace, and never drew rein until they reached the château. As he lifted +his sister down from her saddle, Vallombreuse said, “Now, after +to-day’s achievement, I can surely be treated like a big boy, and get +permission to go out by myself.” +</p> + +<p> +“What! you want to go away and leave us already? and scarcely well yet, +you bad boy!” +</p> + +<p> +“Even so, my sweet sister; I want to make a little journey that will take +several days,” said Vallombreuse negligently. +</p> + +<p> +Accordingly, the very next morning he departed, after having taken an +affectionate leave of the prince, his father; who did not oppose his going, as +Isabelle had confidently expected, but seemed, on the contrary, to approve of +it heartily. After receiving many charges to be careful and prudent, from his +sister, which he dutifully promised to remember and obey, the young duke bade +her good-bye also, and said, in a mysterious, yet most significant way, +</p> + +<p> +“Au revoir, my sweet little sister, you will be pleased with what I am +about to do.” And Isabelle sought in vain for the key to the enigma. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap19"></a>CHAPTER XIX.<br/> +NETTLES AND COBWEBS</h2> + +<p> +The worthy tyrant’s advice was sensible and good, and de Sigognac +resolved to follow it without delay. Since Isabelle’s departure, no +attraction existed for him in the troupe, and he was very glad of a valid +pretext for quitting it; though he could not leave his humble friends without +some regrets. It was necessary that he should disappear for a +while—plunge into obscurity, until the excitement consequent upon the +violent death of the young Duke of Vallombreuse should be forgotten in some new +tragedy in real life. +</p> + +<p> +So, after bidding farewell to the worthy comedians, who had shown him so much +kindness, he departed from the gay capital—mounted on a stout pony, and +with a tolerably well-filled purse—his share of the receipts of the +troupe, which he had fairly earned. By easy stages he travelled slowly towards +his own ruined château. After the storm the bird flies home to its nest, no +matter how ragged and torn it may be. It was the only refuge open to him, and +in the midst of his despondency he felt a sort of sad pleasure at the thought +of returning to his ancestral home—desolate and forlorn as it +was—where it would have been better, perhaps, for him to have quietly +remained—for his fortunes were not improved, and this last crowning +disaster had been ruinous to all his hopes and prospects of happiness. +</p> + +<p> +“Ah, well!” said he to himself, sorrowfully, as he jogged slowly +on, “it was predestined that I should die of hunger and ennui within +those crumbling walls, and under my poor, dilapidated, old roof, that lets the +rain run through it like a huge sieve. No one can escape his destiny, and I +shall accomplish mine. I am doomed to be the last de Sigognac.” +</p> + +<p> +Then came visions of what might have been, that made the sad present seem even +darker by contrast; and his burden was well-nigh too heavy for him to bear, +when he remembered all Isabelle’s goodness and loveliness—now lost +to him forever. No wonder that his eyes were often wet with tears, and that +there was no brightness even in the sunshine for him. +</p> + +<p> +It is needless to describe in detail a journey that lasted twenty days, and was +not marked by any remarkable incidents or adventures. It is enough to say that +one fine evening de Sigognac saw from afar the lofty towers of his ancient +château, illuminated by the setting sun, and shining out in bold relief against +the soft purple of the evening sky; whilst one of the few remaining casements +had caught the fiery sunset glow, and looked like a great carbuncle set in the +fine facade of the stately old castle. This sight aroused a strange tenderness +and agitation in the young baron’s breast. It was true that he had +suffered long and acutely in that dreary mansion, yet after all it was very +dear to him—far more than he knew before he had quitted it—and he +was deeply moved at seeing it again. In a few moments more the glorious god of +day had sunk behind the western horizon, and the château seemed to retreat, +until it became scarcely perceptible as the light faded, forming only a vague, +gray blot in the distance as the gloaming succeeded to the glow. But de +Sigognac knew every step of the way perfectly, and soon turned from the highway +into the neglected, grass-grown road that led to the château. In the profound +stillness, which seemed wonderfully peaceful and pleasant to him, he fancied +that he could distinguish the distant barking of a dog, and that it sounded +like Miraut. He stopped to listen; yes, there could be no doubt about it, and +it was approaching. The baron gave a clear, melodious whistle—a signal +well known of old to Miraut-and in a few moments the faithful dog, running as +fast as his poor old legs could carry him, burst through a break in the +hedge—panting, barking, almost sobbing for joy. He strove to jump up on +the horse’s neck to get at his beloved master; he was beside himself with +delight, and manifested it in the most frantic manner, whilst de Sigognac bent +down to pat his head and try to quiet his wild transports. After bearing his +master company a little way, Miraut set off again at full speed, to announce +the good news to the others at the château—that is to say, to Pierre, +Bayard, and Beelzebub—and bounding into the kitchen where the old servant +was sitting, lost in sad thoughts, he barked in such a significant way that +Pierre knew at once that something unusual had happened. +</p> + +<p> +“Can it be possible that the young master is coming? said he aloud, +rising, in compliance with Miraut’s wishes, who was pulling at the skirts +of his coat, and imploring him with his eyes to bestir himself and follow him. +As it was quite dark by this time, Pierre lighted a pine torch, which he +carried with him, and as he turned into the road its ruddy light suddenly +flashed upon de Sigognac and his horse. +</p> + +<p> +“Is it really you, my lord?” cried Pierre, joyfully, as he caught +sight of his young master; “Miraut had tried to tell me of your arrival +in his own way before I left the house, but as I had not heard anything about +your even thinking of coming, I feared that he might be mistaken. Welcome home +to your own domain, my beloved master! We are overjoyed to see you.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, my good Pierre, it is really I, and not my wraith. Miraut was not +mistaken. Here I am again, if not richer than when I went away, at least all +safe and sound. Come now, lead the way with your torch, and we will go into the +château.” +</p> + +<p> +Pierre, not without considerable difficulty, opened the great door, and the +Baron de Sigognac rode slowly through the ancient portico, fantastically +illuminated by the flaring torchlight, in which the three sculptured storks +overhead seemed to be flapping their wings, as if in joyful salutation to the +last representative of the family they had symbolized for so many centuries. +Then a loud, impatient whinny, like the blast of a trumpet, was heard ringing +out on the still night air, as Bayard, in his stable, caught the welcome sound +of his master’s voice. +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, yes, I hear you, my poor old Bayard,” cried de Sigognac, as +he dismounted in the court, and threw the bridle to Pierre; “I am coming +to say how d’you do,” and as he turned he stumbled over Beelzebub, +who was trying to rub himself against his master’s legs, purring and +mewing alternately to attract his attention. The baron stooped down, took the +old black cat up in his arms, and tenderly caressed him as he advanced towards +the stables; then put him down gently as he reached Bayard’s stall, and +another touching scene of affectionate greeting was enacted. The poor old pony +laid his head lovingly on his master’s shoulder, and actually tried to +kick up his hind legs in a frisky way in honour of the great event; also, he +received the horse that de Sigognac had ridden all the way from Paris, and +which was put in the stall beside his own, very politely, and seemed pleased to +have a companion in his solitary grandeur. +</p> + +<p> +“And now that I have responded to the endearments of my dumb +friends,” said the baron to Pierre, “we will go into the kitchen, +and examine into the condition of your larder. I had but a poor breakfast this +morning, and no dinner at all, being anxious to push on and reach my +journey’s end before nightfall. I am as hungry as a bear, and will be +glad of anything, no matter what.” +</p> + +<p> +“I have not much to put before you, my lord, and I fear that you will +find it but sorry fare after the delicacies you must have been accustomed to in +Paris; but though it will not be tempting, nor over savoury, it will at least +satisfy your hunger.” +</p> + +<p> +“That is all that can be required of any food,” answered de +Sigognac, “and I am not as ungrateful as you seem to think, my good +Pierre, to the frugal fare of my youth, which has certainly made me healthy, +vigorous, and strong. Bring out what you have, and serve it as proudly as if it +were of the choicest and daintiest; I will promise to do honour to it, for I am +desperately hungry.” +</p> + +<p> +The old servant bustled about joyously, and quickly had the table ready for his +master; then stood behind his chair, while he ate and drank with a +traveller’s appetite, as proudly erect as if he had been a grand +major-domo waiting on a prince. According to the old custom, Miraut and +Beelzebub, stationed on the right and on the left, watched their master’s +every motion, and received a share of everything that was on the table. The +great kitchen was lighted, not very brilliantly, by a torch, stuck in an iron +bracket just inside the broad, open chimney, so that the smoke should escape +through it and not fill the room, and the scene was so exactly a counterpart of +the one described at the beginning of this narrative, that the baron, struck +with the perfect resemblance, fancied that he must have been dreaming, and had +never quitted his ancient château at all. Everything was precisely as he had +left it, excepting that the nettles and weeds had grown a little taller, and +the cobweb draperies a little more voluminous; all else was unchanged. +Unconsciously lapsing into the old ways, de Sigognac fell into a deep reverie +after he had finished his simple repast, which Pierre, as of old, respected, +and even Miraut and Beelzebub did not venture to intrude upon. All that had +occurred since he last sat at his own table passed in review before him, but +seemed like adventures that he had read of, not actually participated in +himself. It had all passed into the background. Captain Fracasse, already +nearly obliterated, appeared like a pale spectre in the far distance; his +combats with the Duke of Vallombreuse seemed equally unreal. In fine, +everything that he had seen, done, and suffered, had sunk into shadowy +vagueness; but his love for Isabelle had undergone no change; it had neither +diminished nor grown cold; it was as passionate and all-absorbing as ever; it +was his very life; yet rather like an aspiration of the soul than a real +passion, since with it all he knew that the angelic being who was its object, +and whom he worshipped from afar, could never, never be his. The wheels of his +chariot, which for a brief space had turned aside into a new track, were back +in the old rut again, and realizing that there could be no further escape from +it possible for him, he gave way sullenly to a despairing, stolid sort of +resignation, that he had no heart to struggle against, but yielded to it +passively; blaming himself the while for having presumed to indulge in a season +of bright hopes and delicious dreams. Why the devil should such an unlucky +fellow as he had always been venture to aspire to happiness? It was all +foolishness, and sure to end in bitter disappointment; but he had had his +lesson now, and would be wiser for the future. +</p> + +<p> +He sat perfectly motionless for a long time, plunged in a sad +reverie—sunk in a species of torpor; but he roused himself at last, and +perceiving that his faithful old follower’s eyes were fixed upon him, +full of timid questioning that he did not venture to put into words, briefly +related to him the principal incidents of his journey up to the capital, and +his short stay there. When he graphically described his two duels with the Duke +of Vallombreuse—the old man, filled with pride and delight at the +proficiency of his beloved pupil, could not restrain his enthusiasm, and +snatching up a stick gave vigorous illustrations of all the most salient points +of the encounters as the baron delineated them, ending up with a wild flourish +and a shout of triumph. +</p> + +<p> +“Alas! my good Pierre,” said he, with a sigh, when quiet was +restored, “you taught me how to use my sword only too well. My +unfortunate victory has been my ruin, and has sent me back, hopeless and +bereaved, to this poor old crumbling château of mine, where I am doomed to drag +out the weary remainder of my days in sorrow and misery. I am peculiarly +unhappy, in that my very triumphs have only made matters worse for me—it +would have been better far for me, and for all, if I had been wounded, or even +killed, in this last disastrous encounter, instead of my rival and enemy, the +young Duke of Vallombreuse.” +</p> + +<p> +“The de Sigognacs are never beaten,” said the old retainer loftily. +“No matter what may come of it, I am glad, my dear young master, that you +killed that insolent duke. The whole thing was conducted in strict accordance +with the code of honour—what more could be desired? How could any valiant +gentleman object to die gloriously, sword in hand, of a good, honest wound, +fairly given? He should consider himself most fortunate.” +</p> + +<p> +“Ah well! perhaps you are right—I will not dispute you,” said +de Sigognac, smiling secretly at the old man’s philosophy. “But I +am very tired, and would like to go to my own room now—will you light the +lamp, my good Pierre, and lead the way?” +</p> + +<p> +Pierre obeyed, and the baron, preceded by his old servant and followed by his +old dog and cat, slowly ascended the ancient staircase. The quaint frescoes +were gradually fading, growing ever paler and more indistinct, and there were +new stains on the dull blue sky of the vaulted ceiling, where the rain and +melting snow of winter storms had filtered through from the dilapidated roof. +The ruinous condition of everything in and about the crumbling old château, to +which de Sigognac had been perfectly accustomed before he quitted it, and taken +as a matter of course, now struck him forcibly, and increased his dejection. He +saw in it the sad and inevitable decadence of his race, and said to himself, +“If these ancient walls had any pity for the last forlorn remnant of the +family they have sheltered for centuries, they would fall in and bury me in +their ruins.” +</p> + +<p> +When he reached the landing at the head of the stairs he took the lamp from +Pierre’s hand, bade him good-night and dismissed him—not willing +that even his faithful old servant, who had cared for him ever since his birth, +should witness his overpowering emotion. He walked slowly through the great +banqueting hall, where the comedians had supped on that memorable night, and +the remembrance of that gay scene rendered the present dreary solitude and +silence more terrible than they had ever seemed to him before. The death-like +stillness was only broken by the horrid gnawing of a rat somewhere in the wall, +and the old family portraits glared down at him reproachfully, as he passed on +below them with listless step and downcast eyes, oblivious of everything but +his own deep misery, and his yearning for his lost Isabelle. As he came under +the last portrait of all, that of his own sweet young mother, he suddenly +looked up, and as his eyes rested on the calm, beautiful +countenance—which had always worn such a pathetic, mournful expression +that it used to make his heart ache to look at it in his boyish days—it +seemed to smile upon him. He was startled for an instant, and then, thrilling +with a strange, exquisite delight, and inspired with new hope and courage, he +said in a low, earnest tone, “I accept my dear dead mother’s smile +as a good omen—perhaps all may not be lost even yet—I will try to +believe so.” +</p> + +<p> +After a moment of silent thought, he went on into his own chamber, and put down +the small lamp he carried, upon the little table, where still lay the stray +volume of Ronsard’s poems that he had been reading—or rather trying +to read—on that tempestuous night when the old pedant knocked at his +door. And there was his bed, where Isabelle had slept—the very pillow +upon which her dear head had rested. He trembled as he stood and gazed at it, +and saw, as in a vision, the perfect form lying there again in his place, and +the sweetest face in all the world turned towards him, with a tender smile +parting the ripe red lips, a rosy flush mantling in the delicate cheeks, and +warm lovelight shining in the deep blue eyes. He stood spell-bound—afraid +to move or breathe—and worshipped the beautiful vision with all his soul +and strength, as if it had been indeed divine—but alas! it faded as +suddenly as it had appeared, and he felt as if the doors of heaven had been +shut upon him. He hastily undressed, and threw himself down in the place where +Isabelle had actually reposed; passionately kissed the pillow that had been +hallowed by the touch of her head, and bedewed it with his tears. He lay long +awake, thinking of the angelic being who loved him and whom he adored, whilst +Beelzebub, rolled up in a ball, slept at his feet, and snored like the +traditional cat of Mahomet, that lay and slumbered upon the prophet’s +sleeve. +</p> + +<p> +When morning came, de Sigognac was more impressed than ever with the +dilapidated, crumbling condition of his ancient mansion. Daylight has no mercy +upon old age and ruins; it reveals with cruel distinctness the wrinkles, gray +hairs, poverty, misery, stains, fissures, dust and mould in which they abound; +but more kindly night softens or conceals all defects, with its friendly shade, +spreading over them its mantle of darkness. The rooms that used to seem so vast +to their youthful owner had shrunken, and looked almost small and insignificant +to him now, to his extreme surprise and mortification; but he soon regained the +feeling of being really at home, and resumed his former way of life completely; +just as one goes back to an old garment, that has for a time been laid aside, +and replaced by a new one. His days were spent thus: early in the morning he +went to say a short prayer in the half-ruined chapel where his ancestors lay, +ere he repaired to the kitchen where his simple breakfast awaited him; that +disposed of, he and old Pierre fetched their swords, and fought their friendly +duels; after which he mounted Bayard, or the pony he had brought home with him, +and went off for long, solitary rides over the desolate Landes. Returning late +in the afternoon he sat, sad and silent as of old, until his frugal supper was +prepared, partook of it, also in silence, and then retired to his lonely +chamber, where he tried to read some musty old volume which he knew by heart +already, or else flung himself on his bed—never without kissing the +sacred pillow that had supported Isabelle’s beloved head—and lay +there a prey to mournful and bitter meditations, until at last he could forget +his troubles and grief in sleep. There was not a vestige left of the brilliant +Captain Fracasse, nor of the high-spirited rival of the haughty Duke of +Vallombreuse; the unfortunate young Baron de Sigognac had relapsed entirely +into the sad-eyed, dejected master of Castle Misery. +</p> + +<p> +One morning he sauntered listlessly down into the garden, which was wilder and +more overgrown than ever—a tangled mass of weeds and brambles. He +mechanically directed his steps towards the straggling eglantine that had had a +little rose ready for each of the fair visitors that accompanied him when last +he was there, and was surprised and delighted to see that it again held forth, +as if for his acceptance, two lovely little blossoms that had come out to greet +him, and upon each of which a dewdrop sparkled amid the frail, delicately +tinted petals. He was strangely moved and touched by the sight of these tiny +wild roses, which awoke such tender, precious memories, and he repeated to +himself, as he had often done before, the words in which Isabelle had confessed +to him that she had furtively kissed the little flower, his offering, and +dropped a tear upon it, and then secretly given him her own heart in exchange +for it—surely the sweetest words ever spoken on this earth. He gently +plucked one of the dainty little roses, passionately inhaled its delicate +fragrance and pressed a kiss upon it, as if it had been her lips, which were +not less sweet, and soft, and fresh. He had done nothing but think of Isabelle +ever since their separation, and he fully realized now, if he had not before, +how indispensable she was to his happiness. She was never out of his mind, +waking or sleeping, for he dreamed of her every night, and his love grew +fonder, if that were possible, as the weary days went on. She was so good and +true, so pure and sweet, so beautiful, so everything that was lovely and +desirable, “made of all creatures’ best,” a veritable angel +in human guise. Ah! how passionately he loved her—how could he live +without her? Yet he feared—he was almost forced to believe—that he +had lost her irreparably, and that for him hope was dead. Those were terrible +days for the poor, grief-stricken young baron, and he felt that he could not +long endure such misery and live. Two or three months passed away thus, and one +day when de Sigognac chanced to be in his own room, finishing a sonnet +addressed to Isabelle, Pierre entered, and announced to his master that there +was a gentleman without who wished to speak with him. +</p> + +<p> +“A gentleman, who wants to see me!” exclaimed the astonished baron. +“You must be either romancing or mad, my good Pierre! There is no +gentleman in the world who can have anything to say to me. However, for the +rarity of the thing, you may bring in this extraordinary mortal—if such +there really be, and you are not dreaming, as I shrewdly suspect. But tell me +his name first, or hasn’t he got any?” +</p> + +<p> +“He declined to give it, saying that it would not afford your lordship +any information,” Pierre made answer, as he turned back and opened wide +both leaves of the door. +</p> + +<p> +Upon the threshold appeared a handsome young man, dressed in a rich and elegant +travelling costume of chestnut brown cloth trimmed with green, and holding in +his hand a broad felt hat with a long green plume; leaving his well shaped, +proudly carried head fully exposed to view, as well as the delicate, regular +features of a face worthy of an ancient Greek statue. The sight of this fine +cavalier did not seem to make an agreeable impression upon de Sigognac, who +turned very pale, and rushing to where his trusty sword was suspended, over the +head of his bed, drew it from the scabbard, and turned to face the new-comer +with the naked blade in his hand. +</p> + +<p> +“By heaven, my lord duke, I believed that I had killed you!” he +cried in excited tones. “Is it really you—your very self—or +your wraith that stands before me?” +</p> + +<p> +“It is really I—my very self—Hannibal de Vallombreuse, in the +flesh, and no wraith; as far from being dead as possible,” answered the +young duke, with a radiant smile. “But put up that sword I pray you, my +dear baron! We have fought twice already, you know, and surely that is enough. +I do not come as an enemy, and if I have to reproach myself with some little +sins against you, you have certainly had your revenge for them, so we are +quits. To prove that my intentions are not hostile, but of the most friendly +nature if you will so allow, I have brought credentials, in the shape of this +commission, signed by the king, which gives you command of a regiment. My good +father and I have reminded his majesty of the devotion of your illustrious +ancestors to his royal ones, and I have ventured to bring you this good news in +person. And now, as I am your guest, I pray you have something or other killed, +I don’t care what, and put on the spit to roast as quickly as may +be—for the love of God give me something to eat—I am starving. The +inns are so far apart and so abominably bad down here that there might almost +as well be none at all, and my baggage-wagon, stocked with edibles, is stuck +fast in a quagmire a long way from this. So you see the necessities of the +case.” +</p> + +<p> +“I am very much afraid, my lord duke, that the fare I can offer will seem +to you only another form of revenge on my part,” said de Sigognac with +playful courtesy; “but do not, I beseech you, attribute to resentment the +meagre repast for which I shall be obliged to claim your indulgence. You must +know how gladly I would put before you a sumptuous meal if I could; and what we +can give you will at least, as my good Pierre says, satisfy hunger, though it +may not gratify the palate. And let me now say that your frank and cordial +words touch me deeply, and find an echo in my inmost heart. I am both proud and +happy to call you my friend—henceforth you will not have one more loyal +and devoted than myself—and though you may not often have need of my +services, they will be, none the less, always at your disposition. Halloa! +Pierre! do you go, without a moment’s delay, and hunt up some fowls, +eggs, meat, whatever you can find, and try to serve a substantial meal to this +gentleman, my friend, who is nearly dying with hunger, and is not used to it +like you and I.” +</p> + +<p> +Pierre put in his pocket some of the money his master had sent him from +Paris—which he had never touched before—mounted the pony, and +galloped off to the nearest village in search of provisions. He found several +fowls—such as they were—a splendid Bayonne ham, a few bottles of +fine old wine, and by great good luck, discovered, at the priest’s house, +a grand big <i>pâté</i> of ducks’ livers—a delicacy worthy of a +bishop’s or a prince’s table—and which he had much difficulty +to obtain from his reverence, who was a bit of a gourmand, at an almost +fabulous price. But this was evidently a great occasion, and the faithful old +servant would spare no pains to do it honour. In less than an hour he was at +home again, and leaving the charge of the cooking to a capable woman he had +found and sent out to the château, he immediately proceeded to set the table, +in the ancient banqueting hall—gathering together all the fine porcelain +and dainty glass that yet remained intact in the two tall +buffets—evidences of former splendour. But the profusion of gold and +silver plate that used to adorn the festive board of the de Sigognacs had all +been converted into coin of the realm long ago. +</p> + +<p> +When at last the old servant announced that dinner was ready, the two young men +took their places opposite to each other at table, and Vallombreuse, who was in +the gayest, most jovial mood, attacked the viands with an eagerness and +ferocity immensely diverting to his host. After devouring almost the whole of a +chicken, which, it is true, seemed to have died of a consumption, there was so +little flesh on its bones, he fell back upon the tempting, rosy slices of the +delicate Bayonne ham, and then passed to the <i>pâté</i> of ducks’ +livers, which he declared to be supremely delicious, exquisite, +ambrosial—food fit for the gods; and he found the sharp cheese, made of +goat’s milk, which followed, an excellent relish. He praised the wine, +too—which was really very old and fine and drank it with great gusto, out +of his delicate Venetian wine-glass. Once, when he caught sight of +Pierre’s bewildered, terrified look, as he heard his master address his +merry guest as the Duke of Vallombreuse—who ought to be dead, if he was +not—he fairly roared with laughter, and was as full of fun and frolic as +a school-boy out for a holiday; Meantime de Sigognac, whilst he endeavoured to +play the attentive host, and to respond as well as he could to the young +duke’s lively sallies, could not recover from his surprise at seeing him +sitting there opposite to himself, as a guest at his own table—making +himself very much at home, too, in the most charming, genial, easy way +imaginable—and yet he was the haughty, overbearing, insolent young +nobleman, who had been his hated rival; whom he had twice encountered and +defeated, in fierce combat, and who had several times tried to compass his +death by means of hired ruffians. What could be the explanation of it all? +</p> + +<p> +The Duke of Vallombreuse divined his companion’s thoughts, and when the +old servant had retired, after placing a bottle of especially choice wine and +two small glasses on the table, he looked up at de Sigognac and said, with the +most amicable frankness, “I can plainly perceive, my dear baron, in spite +of your admirable courtesy, that this unexpected step of mine appears very +strange and inexplicable to you. You have been saying to yourself, How in the +world has it come about, that the arrogant, imperious Vallombreuse has been +transformed, from the unscrupulous, cruel, blood-thirsty tiger that he was, +into the peaceable, playful lamb he seems to be now—which a ‘gentle +shepherdess’ might lead about with a ribbon round its neck!—I will +tell you. During the six weeks that I was confined to my bed, I made various +reflections, which the thoughtless might pronounce cowardly, but which are +permitted to the bravest and most valiant when death stares them in the face. I +realized then, for the first time, the relative value of many things, and also +how wrong and wicked my own course had been; and I promised myself to do very +differently for the future, if I recovered. As the passionate love that +Isabelle inspired in my heart had been replaced by a pure and sacred fraternal +affection—which is the greatest blessing of my life—I had no +further reason to dislike you. You were no longer my rival; a brother cannot be +jealous in that way of his own sister; and then, I was deeply grateful to you, +for the respectful tenderness and deference I knew you had never failed to +manifest towards her, when she was in a position that authorized great license. +You were the first to recognise her pure, exalted soul, while she was still +only an obscure actress. When she was poor, and despised by those who will +cringe to her now, you offered to her—lowly as was her station—the +most precious treasure that a nobleman can possess: the time-honoured name of +his ancestors. You would have made her your wife then—now that she is +rich, and of high rank, she belongs to you of right. The true, faithful lover +of Isabelle, the actress, should be the honoured husband of the Comtesse de +Lineuil.” +</p> + +<p> +“But you forget,” cried de Sigognac, in much agitation, “that +she always absolutely refused me, though she knew that I was perfectly +disinterested.” +</p> + +<p> +“It was because of her supreme delicacy, her angelic susceptibility, and +her noble spirit of self-sacrifice that she said that. She feared that she +would necessarily be a disadvantage to you—an obstacle in the way of your +advancement. But the situation is entirely changed now.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, now it is I who would be a disadvantage to her; have I then a right +to be less generous and magnanimous than she was?” +</p> + +<p> +“Do you still love my sister?” said Vallombreuse, in a grave tone. +“As her brother, I have the right to ask this question.” +</p> + +<p> +“I love her with all my heart, with all my soul, with all my +strength,” de Sigognac replied fervently, “as much and more than +ever man loved woman on this earth—where nothing is perfect—save +Isabelle.” +</p> + +<p> +“Such being the case, my dear Captain of Mousquetaires, and governor of a +province—soon to be—have your horse saddled, and come with me to +the Château of Vallombreuse, so that I may formally present you to the prince, +my father, as the favoured suitor of the Comtesse de Lineuil, my sister. +Isabelle has refused even to think of the Chevalier de Vidalinc, or the Marquis +de l’Estang, as aspirants to her hand—both right handsome, +attractive, eligible young fellows, by Jove!—but I am of opinion that she +will accept, without very much persuasion, the Baron de Sigognac.” +</p> + +<p> +The next day the duke and the baron were riding gaily forward, side by side, on +the road to Paris. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap20"></a>CHAPTER XX.<br/> +CHIQUITA’S DECLARATION OF LOVE</h2> + +<p> +A compact crowd filled the Place de Grève, despite the early hour indicated by +the clock of the Hôtel de Ville. +</p> + +<p> +The tall buildings on the eastern side of the square threw their shadows more +than half-way across it, and upon a sinister-looking wooden framework, which +rose several feet above the heads of the populace, and bore a number of +ominous, dull red stains. At the windows of the houses surrounding the crowded +square, a few heads were to be seen looking out from time to time, but quickly +drawn back again as they perceived that the interesting performance, for which +all were waiting, had not yet begun. Clinging to the transverse piece of the +tall stone cross, which stood at that side of the open square nearest the +river, was a forlorn, little, ragged boy, who had climbed up to it with the +greatest difficulty, and was holding on with all his might, his arms clasped +round the cross-piece and his legs round the upright, in a most painful and +precarious position. But nothing would have induced him to abandon it, so long +as he could possibly maintain himself there, no matter at what cost of +discomfort, or even actual distress, for from it he had a capital view of the +scaffold, and all its horribly fascinating details—the wheel upon which +the criminal was to revolve, the coil of rope to bind him to it, and the heavy +bar to break his bones. +</p> + +<p> +If any one among the anxious crowd of spectators, however, had carefully +studied the small, thin countenance of the child perched up on the tall stone +cross, he would have discovered that its expression was by no means that of +vulgar curiosity. It was not simply the fierce attractions of an execution that +had drawn thither this wild, weird-looking young creature, with his sun-burned +complexion, great, flashing, dark eyes, brilliant white teeth, unkempt masses +of thick, black hair, and slender brown hands—which were convulsively +clinging to the rough, cold stone. The delicacy of the features would seem to +indicate a different sex from the dress—but nobody paid any attention to +the child, And all eyes were turned towards the scaffold, or the direction from +which the cart bearing the condemned criminal was to come. Among the groups +close around the scaffold were several faces we have seen before; notably, the +chalky countenance and fiery red nose of Malartic, and the bold profile of +Jacquemin Lampourde, also several of the ruffians engaged in the abduction of +Isabelle, as well as various other <i>habitués</i> of the Crowned Radish. The +Place de Grève, to which sooner or later they were all pretty sure to come and +expiate their crimes with their lives, seemed to exercise a singular +fascination over murderers, thieves, and criminals of all sorts, who invariably +gathered in force to witness an execution. They evidently could not resist it, +and appeared to find a fierce satisfaction in watching the terrible spectacle +that they themselves would some day probably furnish to the gaping multitude. +Then the victim himself always expected his friends’ attendance—he +would be hurt and disappointed if his comrades did not rally round him at the +last. A criminal in that position likes to see familiar faces in the throng +that hems him in. It gives him courage, steadies his nerves. +</p> + +<p> +He cannot exhibit any signs of cowardice before those who appreciate true merit +and bravery, according to his way of thinking, and pride comes to his aid. A +man will meet death like a Roman under such circumstances, who would be weak as +a woman if he were despatched in private. +</p> + +<p> +The criminal to be executed on that occasion was a thief, already notorious in +Paris for his daring and dexterity, though he had only been there a few months. +But, unfortunately for himself—though very much the reverse for the +well-to-do citizens of the capital in general—he had not confined himself +to his legitimate business. In his last enterprise—breaking into a +private dwelling to gain possession of a large sum of money that was to be kept +there for a single night—he had killed the master of the house, who was +aroused by his entrance; and, not content to stop there, had also brutally +murdered his wife, as she lay quietly sleeping in her bed—like a tiger, +that has tasted blood and is wild for more. So atrocious a crime had roused the +indignation of even his own unscrupulous, hardened companions, and it was not +long ere his hiding-place was mysteriously revealed, and he was arrested, +tried, and condemned to death. Now he was to pay the penalty of his guilt. +</p> + +<p> +As the fatal hour approached, a carriage drove down along the quay, turned into +the Place de Grève, and attempted to cross it; but, becoming immediately +entangled in the crowd, could make little or no progress, despite the utmost +exertions of the majestic coachman and attendant lackeys to induce the people +to make way for it, and let it pass. +</p> + +<p> +But for the grand coat of arms and ducal coronet emblazoned on the panels, +which inspired a certain awe as well as respect in the motley throng of +pedestrians, the equipage would undoubtedly have been roughly dealt with-but as +it was, they contented themselves with resolutely and obstinately barring its +passage, after it had reached the middle of the square. The indignant coachman +did not dare to urge his spirited horses forward at all hazards, ruthlessly +trampling down the unlucky individuals who happened to be directly in his way, +as he would certainly have done in any ordinary crowd, for the <i>canaille</i>, +that filled the Place de Grève to overflowing, was out in too great force to be +trifled with—so there was nothing for it but patience. +</p> + +<p> +“These rascals are waiting for an execution, and will not stir, nor let +us stir, until it is over,” said a remarkably handsome young man, +magnificently dressed, to his equally fine looking, though more modestly +attired friend, who was seated beside him in the luxurious carriage. “The +devil take the unlucky dog who must needs be broken on the wheel just when we +want to cross the Place de Grève. Why couldn’t he have put it off until +to-morrow morning, I should like to know!” +</p> + +<p> +“You may be sure that the poor wretch would be only too glad to do so if +he could,” answered the other, “for the occasion is a far more +serious matter to him than to us.” +</p> + +<p> +“The best thing we can do under the circumstances, my dear de Sigognac, +is to turn our heads away if the spectacle is too revolting—though it is +by no means easy, when something horrible is taking place close at hand. Even +Saint Augustine opened his eyes in the arena at a loud cheer from the people, +though he had vowed to himself beforehand to keep them closed.” +</p> + +<p> +“At all events, we shall not be detained here long,” rejoined de +Sigognac, “for there comes the prisoner. See, Vallombreuse, how the crowd +gives way before him, though it will not let us move an inch.” +</p> + +<p> +A rickety cart, drawn by a miserable old skeleton of a horse, and surrounded by +mounted guards, was slowly advancing through the dense throng towards the +scaffold. In it were a venerable priest, with a long white beard, who was +holding a crucifix to the lips of the condemned man, seated beside him, the +executioner, placed behind his victim, and holding the end of the rope that +bound him, and an assistant, who was driving the poor old horse. The criminal, +whom every one turned to gaze at, was no other than our old acquaintance, +Agostino, the brigand. +</p> + +<p> +“Why, what is this!” cried de Sigognac, in great surprise. “I +know that man—he is the fellow who stopped us on the highway, and tried +to frighten us with his band of scarecrows, as poor Matamore called them. I +told you all about it when we came by the place where it happened.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, I remember perfectly,” said Vallombreuse; “it was a +capital story, and I had a good laugh over it. But it would seem that the +ingenious rascal has been up to something more serious since then—his +ambition has probably been his ruin. He certainly is no coward—only look +what a good face he puts on it.” +</p> + +<p> +Agostino, holding his head proudly erect, but a trifle paler than usual +perhaps, seemed to be searching for some one in the crowd. When the cart passed +slowly in front of the stone cross, he caught sight of the little boy, who had +not budged from his excessively uncomfortable and wearisome position, and a +flash of joy shone in the brigand’s eyes, a slight smile parted his lips, +as he made an almost imperceptible sign with his head, and said, in a low tone, +“Chiquita!” +</p> + +<p> +“My son, what was that strange word you spoke?” asked the priest. +“It sounded like an outlandish woman’s name. Dismiss all such +subjects from your mind, and fix your thoughts on your own hopes of salvation, +for you stand on the threshold of eternity.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, my father, I know it but too well, and though my hair is black and +my form erect, whilst you are bowed with age, and your long beard is white as +snow, you are younger now than I—every turn of the wheels, towards that +scaffold yonder, ages me by ten years.” +</p> + +<p> +During this brief colloquy the cart had made steady progress, and in a moment +more had stopped at the foot of the rude wooden steps that led up to the +scaffold, which Agostino ascended slowly but unfalteringly—preceded by +the assistant, supported by the priest, and followed by the executioner. In +less than a minute he was firmly bound upon the wheel, and the executioner, +having thrown off his showy scarlet cloak, braided with white, and rolled up +his sleeves, stooped to pick up the terrible bar that lay at his feet. It was a +moment of intense horror and excitement. An anxious curiosity, largely mixed +with dread, oppressed the hearts of the spectators, who stood motionless, +breathless, with pale faces, and straining eyes fixed upon the tragic group on +the fatal scaffold. Suddenly a strange stir ran through the crowd—the +child, who was perched up on the cross, had slipped quickly down to the ground, +and gliding like a serpent through the closely packed throng, reached the +scaffold, cleared the steps at a bound, and appeared beside the astonished +executioner, who was just in the act of raising the ponderous bar to strike, +with such a wild, ghastly, yet inspired and noble countenance—lighted up +by a strength of will and purpose that made it actually sublime—that the +grim dealer of death paused involuntarily, and withheld the murderous blow +about to fall. +</p> + +<p> +“Get out of my way, thou puppet!” he roared in angry tones, as he +recovered his <i>sang-froid</i>, “or thou wilt get thy accursed head +smashed.” +</p> + +<p> +But Chiquita paid no attention to him—she did not care whether she was +killed too, or not. Bending over Agostino, she passionately kissed his +forehead, whispered “I love thee!”—and then, with a blow as +swift as lightning, plunged into his heart the knife she had reclaimed from +Isabelle. It was dealt with so firm a hand, and unerring an aim, that death was +almost instantaneous—scarcely had Agostino time to murmur +“Thanks.” +</p> + +<p> +With a wild burst of hysterical laughter the child sprang down from the +scaffold, while the executioner, stupefied at her bold deed, lowered his now +useless club; uncertain whether or not he should proceed to break the bones of +the man already dead, and beyond his power to torture. +</p> + +<p> +“Well done, Chiquita, well done, and bravely!” cried +Malartic—who had recognised her in spite of her boy’s +clothes—losing his self-restraint in his admiration. The other ruffians, +who had seen Chiquita at the Crowned Radish, and wondered at and admired her +courage when she stood against the door and let Agostino fling his terrible +<i>navaja</i> at her without moving a muscle, now grouped themselves closely +together so as to effectually prevent the soldiers from pursuing her. The +fracas that ensued gave Chiquita time to reach the carriage of the Duke of +Vallombreuse—which, taking advantage of the stir and shifting in the +throng, was slowly making its way out of the Place de Grève. She climbed up on +the step, and catching sight of de Sigognac within, appealed to him, in +scarcely audible words, as she panted and trembled—“I saved your +Isabelle, now save me!” +</p> + +<p> +Vallombreuse, who had been very much interested by this strange and exciting +scene, cried to the coachman, “Get on as fast as you can, even if you +have to drive over the people.” +</p> + +<p> +But there was no need—the crowd opened as if by magic before the +carriage, and closed again compactly after it had passed, so that +Chiquita’s pursuers could not penetrate it, or make any +progress—they were completely baffled, whichever way they turned. +Meanwhile the fugitive was being rapidly carried beyond their reach. As soon as +the open street was gained, the coachman had urged his horses forward, and in a +very few minutes they reached the Porte Saint Antoine. As the report of what +had occurred in the Place de Grève could not have preceded them, Vallombreuse +thought it better to proceed at a more moderate pace—fearing that their +very speed might arouse suspicion—and gave orders accordingly; as soon as +they were fairly beyond the gate he took Chiquita into the carriage—where +she seated herself, without a word, opposite to de Sigognac. Under the calmest +exterior she was filled with a preternatural excitement—not a muscle of +her face moved; but a bright flush glowed on her usually pale cheeks, which +gave to her magnificent dark eyes—now fixed upon vacancy, and seeing +nothing that was before them—a marvellous brilliancy. A complete +transformation had taken place in Chiquita—this violent shock had torn +asunder the childish chrysalis in which the young maiden had lain +dormant—as she plunged her knife into Agostino’s heart she opened +her own. Her love was born of that murder—the strange, almost sexless +being, half child, half goblin, that she had been until then, existed no +longer—Chiquita was a woman from the moment of that heroic act of sublime +devotion. Her passion, that had bloomed out in one instant, was destined to be +eternal—a kiss and a stab, that was Chiquita’s love story. +</p> + +<p> +The carriage rolled smoothly and swiftly on its way towards Vallombreuse, and +when the high, steep roof of the château came in sight the young duke said to +de Sigognac, “You must go with me to my room first, where you can get rid +of the dust, and freshen up a bit before I present you to my sister—who +knows nothing whatever of my journey, or its motive. I have prepared a surprise +for her, and I want it to be complete—so please draw down the curtain on +your side, while I do the same on mine, in order that we may not be seen, as we +drive into the court, from any of the windows that command a view of it. But +what are we to do with this little wretch here?” +</p> + +<p> +Chiquita, who was roused from her deep reverie by the duke’s question, +looked gravely up at him, and said, “Let some one take me to Mlle. +Isabelle—she will decide what is to be done with me.” +</p> + +<p> +With all the curtains carefully drawn down the carriage drove over the +drawbridge and into the court. Vallombreuse alighted, took de Sigognac’s +arm, and led him silently to his own apartment, after having ordered a servant +to conduct Chiquita to the presence of the Comtesse de Lineuil. At sight of her +Isabelle was greatly astonished, and, laying down the book she was reading, +fixed upon the poor child a look full of interest, affection, and questioning. +</p> + +<p> +Chiquita stood silent and motionless until the servant had retired, then, with +a strange solemnity, which was entirely new in her, she went up to Isabelle, +and timidly taking her hand, said: +</p> + +<p> +“My knife is in Agostino’s heart. I have no master now, and I must +devote myself to somebody. Next to him who is dead I love you best of all the +world. You gave me the pearl necklace I wished for, and you kissed me. Will you +have me for your servant, your slave, your dog? Only give me a black dress, so +that I may wear mourning for my lost love—it is all I ask. I will sleep +on the floor outside your door, so that I shall not be in your way. When you +want me, whistle for me, like this,”—and she whistled +shrilly—“and I will come instantly. Will you have me?” +</p> + +<p> +In answer Isabelle drew Chiquita into her arms, pressed her lips to the +girl’s forehead warmly, and thankfully accepted this soul, that dedicated +itself to her. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap21"></a>CHAPTER XXI.<br/> +HYMEN! OH HYMEN!</h2> + +<p> +Isabelle, accustomed to Chiquita’s odd, enigmatical ways, had refrained +from questioning her—waiting to ask for explanations until the poor girl +should have become more quiet, and able to give them. She could see that some +terrible catastrophe must have occurred, which had left all her nerves +quivering, and caused the strong shudders that passed over her in rapid +succession; but the child had rendered her such good service, in her own hour +of need, that she felt the least she could do was to receive and care for the +poor little waif tenderly, without making any inquiries as to her evidently +desperate situation. After giving her in charge to her own maid, with orders +that she should be properly clothed, and made thoroughly comfortable in every +way, Isabelle resumed her reading—or rather tried to resume it; but her +thoughts would wander, and after mechanically turning over a few pages in a +listless way, she laid the book down, beside her neglected embroidery, on a +little table at her elbow. Leaning her head on her hand, and closing her eyes, +she lapsed into a sorrowful reverie—as, indeed, she had done of late many +times every day. +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! what has become of de Sigognac?” she said to herself. +“Where can he be? and does he still think of me, and love me as of old? +Yes, I am sure he does; he will be true and faithful to me so long as he lives, +my brave, devoted knight! I fear that he has gone back to his desolate, old +château, and, believing that my brother is dead, does not dare to approach me. +It must be that chimerical obstacle that stands in his way—otherwise he +would surely have tried to see me again—or at least have written to me. +Perhaps I ought to have sent him word that Vallombreuse had recovered; yet how +could I do that? A modest woman shrinks from even seeming to wish to entice her +absent lover back to her side. How often I think that I should be far happier +if I could have remained as I was—an obscure actress; then I could at +least have had the bliss of seeing him every day, and of enjoying in peace the +sweetness of being loved by such a noble, tender heart as his. Despite the +touching affection and devotion that my princely father lavishes upon me, I +feel sad and lonely in this magnificent château. If Vallombreuse were only here +his society would help to pass the time; but he is staying away so +long—and I try in vain to make out what he meant when he told me, with +such a significant smile, as he bade me adieu, that I would be pleased with +what he was about to do. Sometimes I fancy that I do understand; but I dare not +indulge myself with such blissful thoughts for an instant. If I did, and were +mistaken after all, the disappointment would be too cruel—too +heart-rending. But, if it only could be true! ah! if it only might! I fear I +should go mad with excess of joy.” +</p> + +<p> +The young Comtesse de Lineuil was still absorbed in sad thoughts when a tall +lackey appeared, and asked if she would receive his lordship, the Duke of +Vallombreuse who had just arrived, at the château and desired to speak with +her. +</p> + +<p> +“Certainly, I shall be delighted to see him,” she said in glad +surprise; “ask him to come to me at once.” +</p> + +<p> +In a few minutes—which had seemed like hours to Isabelle—the young +duke made his appearance, with beaming eyes, rosy cheeks, light, elastic step, +and that air of glorious health and vigour which had distinguished him before +his illness. He threw down his broad felt hat as he came in, and, hastening to +his sister’s side, took her pretty white hands and raised them to his +lips. +</p> + +<p> +“Dearest Isabelle,” he cried, “I am so rejoiced to see you +again! I was obliged to stay away from you much longer than I wished, for it is +a great deprivation to me now not to be with you every day—I have gotten +so thoroughly into the habit of depending upon your sweet society. But I have +been occupied entirely with your interests during my absence, and the hope of +pleasing my darling sister, and adding to her happiness, has helped me to +endure the long separation from her.” +</p> + +<p> +“The way to please me most, as you ought to have known,” Isabelle +replied, “was to stay here at home quietly with your father and me, and +let us take care of you, instead of rushing off so rashly—with your wound +scarcely healed, or your health fully re-established—on some foolish +errand or other, that you were not willing to acknowledge.” +</p> + +<p> +“Was I ever really wounded, or ill?” said Vallombreuse, laughing. +“Upon my word I had forgotten all about it. Never in my life was I in +better health than at this moment, and my little expedition has done me no end +of good. But you, my sweet sister, are not looking as well as when I left you; +you have grown thin and pale. What is the matter? I fear that you find your +life here at the château very dull. Solitude and seclusion are not at all the +thing for a beautiful young woman, I know. Reading and embroidery are but +melancholy pastimes at best and there must be moments when even the gravest, +most sedate of maidens grows weary of gazing out upon the stagnant waters of +the moat, and longs to look upon the face of a handsome young knight.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! what an unmerciful tease you are, Vallombreuse, and how you do love +to torment me with these strange fancies of yours. You forget that I have had +the society of the prince, who is so kind and devoted to me, and who abounds in +wise and instructive discourse.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, there is no doubt that our worthy father is a most learned and +accomplished gentleman, honoured and admired at home and abroad; but his +pursuits and occupations are too grave and weighty for you to share, my dear +little sister, and I don’t want to see your youth passed altogether in +such a solemn way. As you would not smile upon my friend, the Chevalier de +Vidalinc, nor condescend to listen to the suit of the Marquis de +l’Estang, I concluded to go in search of somebody that would be more +likely to please your fastidious taste, and, my dear, I have found him. Such a +charming, perfect, ideal husband he will make! I am convinced that you will +dote upon him.” +</p> + +<p> +“It is downright cruelty, Vallombreuse, to persecute me as you do, with +such unfeeling jests. You know perfectly well that I do not wish to marry; I +cannot give my hand without my heart, and my heart is not mine to give.” +</p> + +<p> +“But you will talk very differently, I do assure you, my dear little +sister, when you see the husband I have chosen for you.” +</p> + +<p> +“Never! never!” cried Isabelle, whose voice betrayed her distress. +“I shall always be faithful to a memory that is infinitely dear and +precious to me; for I cannot think that you intend to force me to act against +my will.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh, no! I am not quite such a tyrant as that; I only ask you not to +reject my protégé before you have seen him.” +</p> + +<p> +Without waiting for her reply, Vallombreuse abruptly left the room, and +returned in a moment with de Sigognac, whose heart was throbbing as if it would +burst out of his breast. The two young men, hand in hand, paused on the +threshold, hoping that Isabelle would turn her eyes towards them; but she +modestly cast them down and kept them fixed upon the floor, while her thoughts +flew far away, to hover about the beloved being who she little dreamed was so +near her. Vallombreuse, seeing that she took no notice of them, and had fallen +into a reverie, advanced towards her, still holding de Sigognac by the hand, +and made a ceremonious bow, as did also his companion; but while the young duke +was smiling and gay, de Sigognac was deeply agitated, and very pale. Brave as a +lion when he had to do with men, he was timid with women—as are all +generous, manly hearts. +</p> + +<p> +“Comtesse de Lineuil,” said Vallombreuse, in an emphatic tone of +voice, “permit me to present to you one of my dearest friends, for whom I +entreat your favour—the Baron de Sigognac.” +</p> + +<p> +As he pronounced this name, which she at first believed to be a jest on her +brother’s part, Isabelle started, trembled violently, and then glanced up +timidly at the newcomer. +</p> + +<p> +When she saw that Vallombreuse had not deceived her, that it was really he, her +own true lover, standing there before her, she turned deathly pale, and had +nearly fallen from her chair; then the quick reaction came, and a most lovely +blush spread itself all over her fair face, and even her snowy neck, as far as +it could be seen. Without a word, she sprang up, and throwing her arms round +her brother’s neck hid her face on his shoulder, while two or three +convulsive sobs shook her slender frame and a little shower of tears fell from +her eyes. By this instinctive movement, so exquisitely modest and truly +feminine, Isabelle manifested all the exceeding delicacy and purity of her +nature. Thus were her warm thanks to Vallombreuse, whose kindness and +generosity overcame her, mutely expressed; and as she could not follow the +dictates of her heart, and throw herself into her lover’s arms, she took +refuge in her transport of joy with her brother, who had restored him to her. +</p> + +<p> +Vallombreuse supported her tenderly for a few moments, until he found she was +growing calmer, when he gently disengaged himself from her clasping arms, and +drawing down the hands with which she had covered her face, to hide its tears +and blushes, said, “My sweet sister, do not, I pray you, hide your lovely +face from us; I fear my protégé will be driven to believe that you entertain +such an invincible dislike to him you will not even look at him.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle raised her drooping head, and turning full upon de Sigognac her +glorious eyes, shining with a celestial joy, in spite of the sparkling +tear-drops that still hung upon their long lashes, held out to him her +beautiful white hand, which he took reverentially in both his own, and bending +down pressed fervently to his lips. The passionate kiss he imprinted upon it +thrilled through Isabelle’s whole being, and for a second she turned +faint and giddy; but the delicious ecstasy, which is almost anguish, of such +emotion as hers, is never hurtful, and she presently looked up and smiled +reassuringly upon her anxious lover, as the colour returned to her lips and +cheeks, and the warm light to her eyes. +</p> + +<p> +“And now tell me, my sweet little sister,” began Vallombreuse, with +an air of triumph, and a mischievous twinkle in his eyes, “wasn’t I +right when I declared that you would smile upon the husband I had chosen for +you? and would not be discouraged, though you were so obstinate? If I had not +been equally so, this dear de Sigognac would have gone back to his far-away +château, without even having seen you; and that would have been a pity, as you +must admit.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, I do admit it, my dearest brother, and also that you have been +adorably kind and good to me. You were the only one who, under the +circumstances, could bring about this reunion, and we both know how to +appreciate what you have so nobly and generously done for us.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes, indeed,” said de Sigognac warmly; “your brother has +given us ample proof of the nobility and generosity of his nature—he +magnanimously put aside the resentment that might seem legitimate, and came to +me with his hand outstretched, and his heart in it. He revenges himself nobly +for the harm I was obliged to do him, by imposing an eternal gratitude upon +me—a light burden, that I shall bear joyfully so long as I live.” +</p> + +<p> +“Say nothing more about that, my dear baron!” Vallombreuse +exclaimed. “You would have done as much in my place. The differences of +two valiant adversaries are very apt to end in a warm mutual +attachment—we were destined from the beginning to become, sooner or +later, a devoted pair of friends; like Theseus and Pirithous, Nisus and +Euryalus, or Damon and Pythias. But never mind about me now, and tell my sister +how you were thinking of her, and longing for her, in that lonely château of +yours; where, by the way, I made one of the best meals I ever had in my life, +though you do pretend that starvation is the rule down there.” +</p> + +<p> +“And <i>I</i> had a charming supper there too,” said Isabelle with +a smile, “which I look back upon with the greatest pleasure.” +</p> + +<p> +“Nevertheless,” rejoined de Sigognac, “plenty does not abound +there—but I cannot regret the blessed poverty that was the means of first +winning me your regard, my precious darling! I am thankful for it—I owe +everything to it.” +</p> + +<p> +“<i>I</i> am of opinion,” interrupted Vallombreuse, with a +significant smile, “that it would be well for me to go and report myself +to my father. I want to announce your arrival to him myself, de Sigognac! Not +that he will need to be specially prepared to receive you, for I am bound to +confess—what may surprise my little sister here—that he knew such a +thing might come about, and was equally implicated with my graceless self in +this little conspiracy. But one thing yet—tell me before I go, Isabelle, +Comtesse de Lineuil, whether you really do intend to accept the Baron de +Sigognac as your husband—I don’t want to run any risk of making a +blunder at this stage of the proceedings, you understand, after having +conducted the negotiations successfully up to this point. You do definitely and +finally accept him, eh?—that is well—and now I will go to the +prince. Engaged lovers sometimes have matters to discuss that even a brother +may not hear, so I will leave you together, feeling sure that you will both +thank me for it in your hearts. Adieu!—make the most of your time, for I +shall soon return to conduct de Sigognac to the prince.” +</p> + +<p> +With a laughing nod the young duke picked up his hat and went away, leaving the +two happy lovers alone together, and—however agreeable his company may +have been to them, it must be admitted that his absence was, as he had +predicted, very welcome to both. The Baron de Sigognac eagerly approached +Isabelle, and—again possessed himself of her fair hand, which she did not +withdraw from his warm, loving clasp. Neither spoke, and for a few minutes the +fond lovers stood side by side and gazed into each other’s eyes. Such +silence is more eloquent than any words. At last de Sigognac said softly, +“I can scarcely believe even yet in the reality of so much bliss. Oh! +what a strange, contradictory destiny is mine. You loved me, my darling, +because I was poor and unhappy—and thus my past misery was the direct +cause of my present felicity. A troupe of strolling actors, who chanced to seek +refuge under my crumbling roof, held in reserve for me an angel of purity and +goodness—a hostile encounter has given me a devoted friend—and, +most wonderful of all, your forcible abduction led to your meeting the fond +father who had been seeking you so many years in vain. And all this because a +Thespian chariot went astray one stormy night in the Landes.” +</p> + +<p> +“We were destined for each other—it was all arranged for us in +heaven above. Twin souls are sure to come together at last, if they can only +have patience to wait for the meeting. I felt instinctively, when we met at the +Château de Sigognac, that you were my fate. At sight of you my heart, which had +always lain dormant before, and never responded to any appeal, thrilled within +me, and, unasked, yielded to you all its love and allegiance. Your very +timidity won more for you than the greatest boldness and assurance could have +done, and from the first moment of our acquaintance I resolved never to give +myself to any one but you, or God.” +</p> + +<p> +“And yet, cruel, hard-hearted child that you were—though so +divinely good and lovely—you refused your hand to me, when I sued for it +on my knees. I know well that it was all through generosity, and that of the +noblest—but, my darling, it was a very cruel generosity too.” +</p> + +<p> +“I will do my best to atone for it now, my dearest de Sigognac, in giving +you this hand you wished for, together with my heart, which has long been all +your own. The Comtesse de Lineuil is not bound to be governed by the scruples +of Isabelle, the actress. I have had only one fear—that your pride might +keep you from ever seeking me again as I am now. But, even if you had given me +up, you would never have loved another woman, would you, de Sigognac? You would +have been faithful to me always, even though you had renounced me—I felt +so sure of that. Were you thinking of me down there in your ancient château, +when Vallombreuse broke in upon your solitude?” +</p> + +<p> +“My dearest Isabelle, by day I had only one thought—of +you—and at night, when I kissed the sacred pillow on which your lovely +head had rested, before laying my own down upon it, I besought the god of +dreams to show me your adored image while I slept.” +</p> + +<p> +“And were your prayers sometimes answered?” +</p> + +<p> +“Always—not once was I disappointed—and only when morning +came did you leave me, vanishing through ‘the ivory gates.’ Oh I +how interminable the sad, lonely days seemed to me, and how I wished that I +could sleep, and dream of you, my angel, all the weary time.” +</p> + +<p> +“I saw you also in my dreams, many nights in succession. Our souls must +have met, de Sigognac, while our bodies lay wrapped in slumber. But now, thanks +be to God, we are reunited—and forever. The prince, my father, knew and +approved of your being brought here, Vallombreuse said, so we can have no +opposition to our wishes to fear from him. He has spoken to me of you several +times of late in very flattering terms; looking at me searchingly, the while, +in a way that greatly agitated and troubled me, for I did not know what might +be in his mind, as Vallombreuse had not then told me that he no longer hated +you, and I feared that he would always do so after his double defeat at your +hands. But all the terrible anxiety is over now, my beloved, and blessed peace +and happiness lie before us.” +</p> + +<p> +At this moment the door opened, and the young duke announced to de Sigognac +that his father was waiting to receive him. The baron immediately rose from his +seat beside Isabelle, bowed low to her, and followed Vallombreuse to the +prince’s presence. The aged nobleman, dressed entirely in black, and with +his breast covered with orders, was sitting in a large arm-chair at a table +heaped up with books and papers, with which he had evidently been occupied. His +attitude was stately and dignified, and the expression of his noble, benevolent +countenance affable in the extreme. He rose to receive de Sigognac, gave him a +cordial greeting, and politely bade him be seated. +</p> + +<p> +“My dear father,” said Vallombreuse, “I present to you the +Baron de Sigognac; formerly my rival, now my friend, and soon to be my brother, +if you consent. Any improvement that you may see in me is due to his influence, +and it is no light obligation that I owe to him—though he will not admit +that there is any. The baron comes to ask a favour of you, which I shall +rejoice to see accorded to him.” +</p> + +<p> +The prince made a gesture of acquiescence, and looked reassuringly at de +Sigognac, as if inviting him to speak fearlessly for himself. Encouraged by the +expression of his eyes, the baron rose, and, with a low bow, said, in clear, +distinct tones, “Prince, I am here to ask of you the hand of Mlle. la +Comtesse Isabelle de Lineuil, your daughter.” +</p> + +<p> +The old nobleman looked at him steadily and searchingly for a moment, and then, +as if satisfied with his scrutiny, answered: “Baron de Sigognac, I accede +to your request, and consent to this alliance, with great pleasure—so +far, that is, as my paternal will accords with the wishes of my beloved +daughter—whom I should never attempt to coerce in anything. The Comtesse +de Lineuil must be consulted in this matter, and herself decide the question +which is of such vital importance to her. I cannot undertake to answer for +her—the whims and fancies of young ladies are sometimes so odd and +unexpected.” +</p> + +<p> +The prince said this with a mischievous smile—as if he had not long known +that Isabelle loved de Sigognac with all her heart, and was pining for him. +After a brief pause, he added: “Vallombreuse, go and fetch your sister, +for, without her, I cannot give a definite answer to the Baron de +Sigognac.” +</p> + +<p> +The young duke accordingly went for Isabelle, who was greatly alarmed at this +summons, and obeyed it in fear and trembling. Despite her brother’s +assurances, she could not bring herself to believe in the reality of such great +happiness. Her breast heaved tumultuously, her face was very pale, at each step +her knees threatened to give way under her, and when her father drew her fondly +to his side she was forced to grasp the arm of his chair tightly, to save +herself from falling. +</p> + +<p> +“My daughter,” said the prince gravely, “here is a gentleman +who does you the honour to sue for your hand. For my own part, I should hail +this union with joy—for he is of an ancient and illustrious family, of +stainless reputation and tried courage, and appears to me to possess every +qualification that heart could desire. I am perfectly satisfied with +him—but has he succeeded in pleasing you, my child? Young heads do not +always agree with gray ones. Examine your own heart carefully, and tell me if +you are willing to accept the Baron de Sigognac as your husband. Take plenty of +time to consider—you shall not be hurried, my dear child, in so grave a +matter as this.” +</p> + +<p> +The prince’s kindly, cordial smile gave evidence that he was in a playful +mood, and Isabelle, plucking up courage, threw her arms round her +father’s neck, and said in the softest tones, “There is no need for +me to consider or hesitate, my dear lord and father! Since the Baron de +Sigognac is so happy as to please you, I confess, freely and frankly, that I +have loved him ever since we first met, and have never wished for any other +alliance. To obey, you in this will be my highest happiness.” +</p> + +<p> +“And now clasp hands, my children, and exchange the kiss of +betrothal,” cried the Duke of Vallombreuse gaily. “Verily, the +romance ends more happily than could have been expected after such a stormy +beginning. And now the next question is, when shall the wedding be?” +</p> + +<p> +“It will take a little time to make due preparation,” said the +prince. “So many people must be set to work, in order that the marriage +of my only daughter may be worthily celebrated. Meanwhile, Isabelle, here is +your dowry, the deed of the estate of Lineuil—from which you derive your +title, and which yields you an income of fifty thousand crowns per +annum—together with rent-rolls, and all the various documents +appertaining thereto”—and he handed a formidable roll of papers to +her. “As to you, my dear de Sigognac, I have here for you a royal +ordinance, which constitutes you governor of a province; and no one, I venture +to say, could be more worthy of this distinguished honour than yourself.” +</p> + +<p> +Vallombreuse, who had gone out of the room while his father was speaking, now +made his appearance, followed by a servant carrying a box covered with crimson +velvet. +</p> + +<p> +He took it from the lackey at the door, and advancing, placed it upon the table +in front of Isabelle. +</p> + +<p> +“My dear little sister,” said he, “will you accept this from +me as a wedding gift?” +</p> + +<p> +On the cover was inscribed “For Isabelle,” in golden letters, and +it contained the very casket which the Duke of Vallombreuse had offered at +Poitiers to the young actress, and which she had so indignantly refused to +receive, or even look at. +</p> + +<p> +“You will accept it this time?” he pleaded, with a radiant smile; +“and honour these diamonds of finest water, and these pearls of richest +lustre, by wearing them, for <i>my</i> sake. They are not more pure and +beautiful than yourself.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle smilingly took up a magnificent necklace and clasped it round her fair +neck, to show that she harboured no resentment; then put the exquisite +bracelets on her round, white arms, and decked herself with the various superb +ornaments that the beautiful casket contained. +</p> + +<p> +And now we have only to add, that a week later Isabelle and de Sigognac were +united in marriage in the chapel at Vallombreuse, which was brilliantly +lighted, and filled with fragrance from the profusion of flowers that converted +it into a very bower. The music was heavenly, the fair bride adorably +beautiful, with her long white veil floating about her, and the Baron de +Sigognac radiant with happiness. The Marquis de Bruyères was one of his +witnesses, and a most brilliant and aristocratic assemblage +“assisted” at this notable wedding in high life. No one, who had +not been previously informed of it, could ever have suspected that the lovely +bride—at once so noble and modest, so dignified and graceful, so gentle +and refined, yet with as lofty a bearing as a princess of the blood +royal—had only a short time before been one of a band of strolling +players, nightly fulfilling her duties as an actress. While de Sigognac, +governor of a province, captain of mousquetaires, superbly dressed, dignified, +stately and affable, the very beau-ideal of a distinguished young nobleman, had +nothing about him to recall the poor, shabby, disconsolate youth, almost +starving in his dreary, half-ruined château, whose misery was described at the +beginning of this tale. +</p> + +<p> +After a splendid collation, graced by the presence of the bride and groom, the +happy pair vanished; but we will not attempt to follow them, or intrude upon +their privacy—turning away at the very threshold of the nuptial chamber, +singing, in low tones, after the fashion of the ancients, “Hymen! oh +Hymen!” +</p> + +<p> +The mysteries of such sacred happiness as theirs should be respected; and +besides, sweet, modest Isabelle would have died of shame if so much as a single +one of the pins that held her bodice were indiscreetly drawn out. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap22"></a>CHAPTER XXII.<br/> +THE CASTLE OF HAPPINESS</h2> + +<h3>EPILOGUE</h3> + +<p> +It will be readily believed that our sweet Isabelle had not forgotten, in her +exceeding happiness as Mme. la Baronne de Sigognac, her former companions of +Hérode’s troupe. As she could not invite them to her wedding because they +would have been so much out of place there—she had, in commemoration of +that auspicious occasion, sent handsome and appropriate gifts to them all; +offered with a grace so charming that it redoubled their value. So long as the +company remained in Paris, she went often to see them play; applauding her old +friends heartily, and judiciously as well, knowing just where the applause +should be given. The young <i>baronne</i> did not attempt to conceal the fact +that she had formerly been an actress herself—not parading it, but +referring to it quietly, if necessary, as a matter of course; an excellent +method to disarm ill-natured tongues, which would surely have wagged vigorously +had any mystery been made about it. In addition, her illustrious birth and +exalted position imposed silence upon those around her, and her sweet dignity +and modesty had soon won all hearts—even those of her own sex—until +it was universally conceded that there was not a greater or truer lady in court +circles than the beautiful young Baronne de Sigognac. +</p> + +<p> +The king, Louis XIII, having heard Isabelle’s eventful history, praised +her highly for her virtuous conduct, and evinced great interest in de Sigognac, +whom he heartily commended for his respectful, honourable gallantry, under +circumstances that, according to general opinion, would authorize all manner of +license. His deference to defenceless virtue peculiarly pleased the chaste, +reserved monarch, who had no sympathy with, or indulgence for the wild, +unbridled excesses of the licentious youth of his capital and court. As to +Vallombreuse, he had entirely changed and amended his way of life, and seemed +to find unfailing pleasure and satisfaction, as well as benefit, in the +companionship of his new friend and brother, to whom he was devoted, and who +fully reciprocated his warm affection; while the prince, his father, joyfully +dwelt in the bosom of his reunited family, and found in it the happiness he had +vainly sought before. The young husband and wife led a charming life, more and +more in love with and devoted to each other, and never experiencing that +satiety of bliss which is ruinous to the most perfect happiness. Although +Isabelle had no concealments from her husband, and shared even her inmost +thoughts with him, yet for a time she seemed very much occupied with some +mysterious business—apparently exclusively her own. +</p> + +<p> +She had secret conferences with her steward, with an architect, and also with +certain sculptors and painters—all without de Sigognac’s knowledge, +and by the connivance of Vallombreuse, who seemed to be her confidant, aider +and abettor. +</p> + +<p> +One fine morning, several months after their marriage, Isabelle said to de +Sigognac, as if a sudden thought had struck her: “My dear lord, do you +never think of your poor, deserted, old château? and have you no desire to +return to the birthplace of our love?” +</p> + +<p> +“I am not so unfeeling as that, my darling, and I have thought of it +longingly many times of late. But I did not like to propose the journey to you +without being sure that it would please you. I did not like to tear you away +from the delights of the court—of which you are the chief +ornament—and take you to that poor, old, half-ruined mansion, the haunt +of rats and owls, where I could not hope to make you even comfortable, yet, +which I prefer, miserable as it is, to the most luxurious palaces; for it was +the home of my ancestors, and the place where I first saw you, my heart’s +delight!—spot ever sacred and dear to me, upon which I should like to +erect an altar.” +</p> + +<p> +“And I,” rejoined Isabelle, “often wonder whether the +eglantine in the garden still blooms, as it did for me.” +</p> + +<p> +“It does,” said de Sigognac, “I am sure of it—having +once been blessed by your touch, it must be always blooming—even though +there be none to see.” +</p> + +<p> +“Ah! my lord, unlike husbands in general, you are more gallant after +marriage than before,” Isabelle said, laughingly, yet deeply touched by +his tender words, “and you pay your wife compliments as if she were your +ladylove. And now, since I have ascertained that your wishes accord with my +whim, will it please your lordship to set out for the Château de Sigognac this +week? The weather is fine. The great heat of summer is over, and we can really +enjoy the journey. Vallombreuse will go with us, and I shall take Chiquita. She +will be glad to see her own country again.” +</p> + +<p> +The needful preparations were soon made, and the travelling party set off in +high spirits. The journey was rapid and delightful. Relays of horses had been +sent on in advance by Vallombreuse, so that in a few days they reached the +point where the road leading to the Château de Sigognac branched off from the +great post-road. It was about two o’clock of a bright, warm afternoon +when the carriage turned off the highway, and as they got, at the same moment, +their first view of the château, de Sigognac could not believe the testimony of +his own eyes—he was bewildered, dazzled, overwhelmed—he no longer +recognised the familiar details which had been so deeply impressed upon his +memory. All was changed, as if by magic. The road, smooth, free from grass and +weeds, and freshly gravelled, had no more ruts; the hedges, neatly trimmed and +properly tended, no longer reached out long, straggling arms to catch the rare +passer-by; the tall trees on either side had been carefully pruned, so that +their branches met in an arch overhead, and framed in a most astonishing +picture. Instead of the dreary ruin, slowly crumbling into dust, a fine new +château rose before them—resembling the old one as a son resembles his +father. It was an exact reproduction—nothing had been changed, only +renewed—it was simply the ancient mansion rejuvenated. The walls were +smooth and unbroken, the lofty towers intact, rising proudly at the four angles +of the building, with their freshly gilded weathercocks gleaming in the +sunlight. A handsome new roof, tastefully ornamented with a pretty design in +different coloured slates, had replaced the broken, weather-stained tiles, +through which the rain used to find its way down into the frescoed hall, and +the long suite of deserted rooms. Every window had bright large panes of clear +glass shining in its casement, and a magnificent great door, turning smoothly +and noiselessly upon its huge hinges, had superseded the old, worm-eaten one, +that used to groan and creak piteously when opened ever so little. Above it +shone the de Sigognac arms—three golden storks upon an azure field, with +this noble motto—entirely obliterated of old—“Alta +petunt.” +</p> + +<p> +For a few moments de Sigognac gazed at it all in silence, overcome by +astonishment and emotion. Then he suddenly turned to Isabelle, with joyful +surprise written in every line of his speaking countenance, and seizing her +hands passionately, and holding them firmly clasped in his, said: “It is +to you, my kind, generous fairy, that I owe this marvellous transformation of +my poor, dilapidated, old château. You have touched it with your wand and +restored its ancient splendour, majesty and youth. I cannot tell you how +enchanted, how gratified I am by this wonderful surprise. It is unspeakably +charming and delightful, like everything that emanates from my good angel. +Without a word or hint from me, you have divined, and carried out, the secret +and most earnest wish of my heart.” +</p> + +<p> +“You must also thank a certain sorcerer, who has greatly aided me in all +this,” said Isabelle softly, touched by her husband’s emotion and +delight, and pointing to Vallombreuse, who was sitting opposite to her. The two +young men clasped hands for a moment, and smiled at each other in friendly +fashion. There was a perfect under standing between these kindred spirits now, +and no words were needed on either side. +</p> + +<p> +By this time the carriage had reached the château, where Pierre, in a fine new +livery—and a tremor of delight—was waiting to receive them. After +an affectionate, as well as respectful, greeting from the faithful old servant, +they entered the grand portico, which had been, like all the rest, admirably +restored, and, alighting from the carriage, paused a moment to admire its +magnificent proportions ere they passed on into the frescoed hall, where eight +or ten tall lackeys were drawn up in line, and bowed profoundly to their new +master and mistress. Skilful artists had retouched the ancient frescoes, and +made them glow with all their original brilliant tints. The colossal figures of +Hercules were still supporting the heavy cornice, and the busts of the Roman +emperors looked out majestically from their niches. Higher up, the vine +climbing on its trellis was as luxuriant as in the olden time, and there were +no unsightly stains on the bright blue sky of the vaulted roof to mar its +beauty. A like metamorphosis had been worked everywhere—the worm-eaten +woodwork had been renewed, the uneven floors relaid, the tarnished gilding +restored to its original splendour—and the new furniture throughout had +been made exactly like the old that it replaced. The fine old tapestry in de +Sigognac’s own room had been minutely copied, down to the smallest +detail, and the hangings of the bed were of green and white brocade, in +precisely the same delicate tint and graceful pattern as the old. +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle, with her innate delicacy and perfect taste, had not aimed at +producing a sensation, by any overwhelming magnificence or dazzling splendour +in renovating the intrinsically fine old Château de Sigognac, but had simply +wished to gratify and delight the heart of her husband, so tenderly loved, in +giving back to him the impressions and surroundings of his childhood and youth, +robbed of their misery and sadness. All was bright and gay now in this lordly +mansion, erst so dreary and melancholy; even the sombre old family portraits, +cleansed, retouched and revarnished by skilful hands, smiled down upon them, as +if pleased with the new order of things; especially their own handsome, richly +gilt frames. +</p> + +<p> +After looking through the interior of the château, de Sigognac and Isabelle +went out into the court, where no weeds or nettles were to be seen, no grass +growing up between the paving stones, no heaps of rubbish in the corners, and +through the clear glass panes of the numerous windows looking into it were +visible the folds of the rich curtains in the chambers that were formerly the +favourite haunt of owls and bats. They went on down into the garden, by a noble +flight of broad stone steps, no longer tottering and moss-grown, and turned +first to seek the wild eglantine which had offered its delicate little rose to +the young actress, on the memorable morning when the baron had decided to go +forth from his ruined castle for love of her. It had another dainty blossom +ready for her now, which Isabelle received from de Sigognac’s hand, with +tears, that told of a happiness too deep for words, welling up into her eyes, +and exchanged with her adored and adoring husband a long, fond look, that +seemed to give to each a glimpse of heaven. +</p> + +<p> +The gardeners had been busy too, and had converted the neglected wilderness we +made acquaintance with long ago into a veritable little paradise. At the end of +the well-ordered and exquisitely arranged garden, Pomona still stood in her +cool grotto, restored to all the beauty of her youth, while a stream of pure, +sparkling water poured from the lion’s mouth, and fell with a musical +murmur into the marble basin. Even in their best and most glorious days the +garden and the château had never known greater beauty and luxury than now. The +baron, ever more and more astonished and enchanted, as he rambled slowly +through it all, like one in a delicious dream, kept Isabelle’s arm +pressed tenderly to his heart, and was not ashamed to let her see the tears +that at last he could no longer restrain, and which came from a very full +heart. +</p> + +<p> +“Now,” said Isabelle, “that we have seen everything here, we +must go and inspect the different pieces of property we have been able to buy +back, so as to reconstruct, as nearly as possible, the ancient barony of +Sigognac. I will leave you for a few moments, to go and put on my riding habit; +I shall not be long, for I learned to make changes of that sort very rapidly in +my old profession, you know. Will you, meantime, go and select our horses, and +order that they should be made ready?” +</p> + +<p> +Vallombreuse accompanied de Sigognac to the stables, where they found ten +splendid horses contentedly munching their oats in their oaken stalls. +Everything was in perfect order, but ere the baron had time to admire and +praise, as he wished to do, a loud whinnying that was almost deafening suddenly +burst forth, as good old Bayard peremptorily claimed his attention. Isabelle +had long ago sent orders to the château that the superannuated pony should +always have the best place in the stable, and be tenderly cared for. His manger +was full of ground oats, which he seemed to be enjoying with great gusto, and +he evidently approved highly of the new regime. In his stall Miraut lay +sleeping, but the sound of his master’s voice aroused him, and he +joyfully jumped up and came to lick his hand, and claim the accustomed caress. +As to Beelzebub, though he had not yet made his appearance, it must not be +attributed to a want of affection on his part, but rather to an excess of +timidity. The poor old cat had been so unsettled and alarmed at the invasion of +the quiet château by an army of noisy workmen, and all the confusion and +changes that had followed, that he had fled from his usual haunts, and taken up +his abode in a remote attic; where he lay in concealment, impatiently waiting +for darkness to come, so that he might venture out to pay his respects to his +beloved master. +</p> + +<p> +The baron, after petting Bayard and Miraut until they were in ecstasies of +delight, chose from among the horses a beautiful, spirited chestnut for +himself, the duke selected a Spanish jennet, with proudly arched neck and +flowing mane, which was worthy to carry an Infanta, and an exquisite white +palfrey, whose skin shone like satin, was brought out for the <i>baronne</i>. +In a few moments Isabelle came down, attired in a superb riding habit, which +consisted of a dark blue velvet basque, richly braided with silver, over a +long, ample skirt of silver-gray satin, and her broad hat of white felt, like a +cavalier’s, was trimmed with a floating, dark blue feather. Her beautiful +hair was confined in the most coquettish little blue and silver net, and as she +came forward, radiant with smiles, she was a vision of loveliness, that drew +forth fervent exclamations of delight from her two devoted and adoring knights. +The Baronne de Sigognac certainly was enchantingly beautiful in her rich +equestrian costume, which displayed the perfection of her slender, well-rounded +figure to the greatest advantage, and there was a high-bred, dainty look about +her which bore silent witness to her illustrious origin. She was still the +sweet, modest Isabelle of old, but she was also the daughter of a mighty +prince, the sister of a proud young duke, and the honoured wife of a valiant +gentleman, whose race had been noble since before the crusades. Vallombreuse, +remarking it, could not forbear to say: “My dearest sister, how +magnificent you look to-day! Hippolyte, queen of the Amazons, was never more +superb, or more triumphantly beautiful, than you are in this most becoming +costume.” +</p> + +<p> +Isabelle smiled in reply, as she put her pretty little foot into de +Sigognac’s hand, and sprang lightly into her saddle. +</p> + +<p> +Her husband and brother mounted also, and the little cavalcade set forth in +high glee, making the vaulted portico ring with their merry laughter, as they +rode through it. Just in front of the château they met the Marquis de Bruyères, +and several other gentlemen of the neighbourhood, coming to pay their respects. +They wished to go back into the château and receive their guests properly, +saying that they could ride out at any time, but the visitors would not listen +to such a thing, and turning their horses’ heads proposed to ride with +them. The party, increased by six or eight cavaliers in gala dress—for +the provincial lordlings had made themselves as fine as possible to do honour +to their new neighbours—was really very imposing; a cortege worthy of a +princess. They rode on between broad green fields, through woods and groves and +highly cultivated farms, all of which had now been restored to the estate they +had originally belonged to; and the grateful, adoring glances that the Baron de +Sigognac found opportunity to bestow upon his lovely <i>baronne</i>, made her +heart beat high with a happiness almost too perfect for this weary world of +trials and sorrows. +</p> + +<p> +As they were riding through a little pine wood, near the boundary line of the +estate, the barking of hounds was heard, and presently the party met the +beautiful Yolande de Foix, followed by her old uncle, and one or two attendant +cavaliers. The road was very narrow, and there was scarcely room to pass, +though each party endeavoured to make way for the other. Yolande’s horse +was prancing about restively, and the skirt of her long riding-habit brushed +Isabelle’s as she passed her. She was furiously angry, and sorely tempted +to address some cutting words to the “<i>Bohémienne</i>” she had +once so cruelly insulted; but Isabelle, who had a soul above such petty malice, +and had long ago forgiven Yolande for her unprovoked insolence, felt how much +her own triumph must wound the other’s proud spirit, and with perfect +dignity and grace bowed to Mlle. de Foix, who could not do less than respond by +a slight inclination of her haughty head, though her heart was filled with +rage, and she had much ado to control herself. The Baron de Sigognac, with a +quiet, unembarrassed air, had bowed respectfully to the fair huntress, who +looked eagerly, but in vain, into the eyes of her former adorer for a spark of +the old flame that used to blaze up in them at sight of her. Angry and +disappointed, she gave her horse a sharp cut with the whip, and swept away at a +gallop. +</p> + +<p> +“Now, by Venus and all the Loves,” said Vallombreuse to the Marquis +de Bruyères, beside whom he was riding, “that girl is a beauty, but she +looked deucedly savage and cross. How she did glare at my sister, eh! as if she +wanted to stab her.” +</p> + +<p> +“When one has long been the acknowledged queen of a neighbourhood,” +the marquis replied, “it is not pleasant to be dethroned, you know, and +every one must admit that Mme. la Baronne de Sigognac bears off the +palm.” +</p> + +<p> +The gay cavalcade, after a long ride, returned to the château, to find a +sumptuous repast awaiting them in the magnificent banqueting hall, where the +poor young baron had once supped with the wandering comedians, upon their own +provisions. What a transformation had been effected! now a superb service of +silver, bearing the family arms, shone upon the fine damask that covered the +table, in which also the three storks were apparent, while beautiful porcelain +and dainty glass, lovely flowers and luscious fruits contributed to the +attractions of the bountifully furnished board. Isabelle sat in the same place +she had occupied on the eventful night that had changed the destiny of the +young lord of the château, and she could not but think of, and live over, that +widely different occasion, as did also the baron, and the married lovers +exchanged furtive smiles and glances, in which tender memories and bright hopes +were happily mingled. +</p> + +<p> +Near one of the tall buffets stood a large, fine-looking man with a thick black +beard, dressed in black velvet, and wearing a massive chain of silver round his +neck, who kept a watchful eye upon the numerous lackeys waiting on the guests, +and from time to time gave an order, with a most majestic air. Presiding over +another buffet, on which were neatly arranged numerous wine-bottles of +different forms and dimensions, was another elderly man, of short, corpulent +figure, and with a jolly red face, who stepped about actively and lightly, +despite his age and weight, dispensing the wine to the servants as it was +needed. At first de Sigognac did not notice them, but chancing to glance in +their direction, was astonished to recognise in the first the tragic Hérode, +and in the second the grotesque Blazius. Isabelle, seeing that her husband had +become aware of their presence, whispered to him, that in order to provide for +the old age of those two devoted and faithful friends she had thought it well +to give them superior positions in their household; in which they would have +only easy duties to perform, as they had to direct others in their work, not to +do any themselves; and the baron heartily approved and commended what his sweet +young wife, ever considerate for others, had been pleased to do. +</p> + +<p> +Course succeeded to course, and bottle to bottle—there was much laughing +and talking around the convivial board, and the host was exerting himself to do +honour to the festive occasion, when he felt a head laid on his knee, and a +tattoo vigorously played by a pair of paws on his leg that was well known to +him of old. Miraut and Beelzebub, who had slipped into the room, and under the +table, without being detected, thus announced their presence to their indulgent +master. He did not repulse them, but managed, without attracting notice, to +give them a share of everything on his plate, and was especially amused at the +almost insatiable voracity of the old black cat—who had evidently been +fasting in his hiding-place in the attic. He actually seemed to enjoy, like an +epicure, the rich and dainty viands that had replaced the frugal fare of long +ago, and ate so much that when the meal was over he could scarcely stand, and +made his way with difficulty into his master’s bed-chamber, where he +curled himself up in a luxurious arm-chair and settled down comfortably for the +night. +</p> + +<p> +Vallombreuse kept pace with the Marquis de Bruyères, and the other guests, in +disposing of the choice wines, that did credit to the pedant’s selection; +but de Sigognac, who had not lost his temperate habits, only touched his lips +to the edge of his wine-glass, and made a pretence of keeping them company. +Isabelle, under pretext of fatigue, had withdrawn when the dessert was placed +upon the table. She really was very tired, and sent at once for Chiquita, now +promoted to the dignity of first lady’s maid, to come and perform her +nightly duties. The wild, untutored child had—under Isabelle’s +judicious, tender and careful training—developed into a quiet, +industrious and very beautiful young girl. She still wore mourning for +Agostino, and around her neck was the famous string of pearl beads—it was +a sacred treasure to Chiquita, and she was never seen without it. She attended +to her duties quickly and deftly—evidently taking great delight in +waiting upon the mistress she adored—and kissed her hand passionately, as +she never failed to do, when all was finished and she bade her good-night. +</p> + +<p> +When, an hour later, de Sigognac entered the room in which he had spent so many +weary, lonely nights—listening to the wind as it shrieked and moaned +round the outside of the desolate château, and wailed along the +corridors-feeling that life was a hard and bitter thing, and fancying that it +would never bring anything but trials and misery to him—he saw, by the +subdued light from the shaded lamp, the face to him most beautiful in all the +world smiling lovingly to greet him from under the green and white silken +curtains that hung round his own bed, where it lay resting upon the pillow he +had so often kissed, and moistened with his tears. His eyes were moist +now—but from excess of happiness, not sorrow—as he saw before him +the blessed, blissful realization of his vision. +</p> + +<p> +Towards morning Beelzebub, who had been excessively uneasy and restless all +night, managed, with great difficulty, to clamber up on the bed, where he +rubbed his nose against his master’s hand—trying at the same time +to purr in the old way, but failing lamentably. The baron woke instantly, and +saw poor Beelzebub looking at him appealingly, with his great green eyes +unnaturally dilated, and momentarily growing dim; he was trembling violently, +and as his master’s kind hand was stretched out to stroke his head, fell +over on his side, and with one half-stifled cry, one convulsive shudder, +breathed his last. +</p> + +<p> +“Poor Beelzebub!” softly said Isabelle, who had been roused from +her sweet slumber by his dying groan, “he has lived through all the +misery of the old time, but will not be here to share and enjoy the prosperity +of the new.” +</p> + +<p> +Beelzebub, it must be confessed, fell a victim to his own intemperance—a +severe fit of indigestion, consequent upon the enormous supper he had eaten, +was the cause of his death—his long-famished stomach was not accustomed +to, nor proof against, such excesses. This death, even though it was only that +of a dumb beast, touched de Sigognac deeply; for poor Beelzebub had been his +faithful companion, night and day, through many long, weary years of sadness +and poverty, and had always shown the warmest, most devoted affection for him. +He carefully wrapped the body in a piece of fine, soft cloth, and waited, until +evening should come, to bury it himself; when he would be safe from observation +and possible ridicule. Accordingly, after nightfall, he took a spade, a +lantern, and poor Beelzebub’s body, which was stiff and stark by that +time, and went down into the garden, where he set to work to dig the grave, +under the sacred eglantine, in what seemed to him like hallowed ground. He +wanted to make it deep enough to insure its not being disturbed by any roaming +beast of prey, and worked away diligently, until his spade struck sharply +against some hard substance, that he at first thought must be a large stone, or +piece of rock perhaps. He attempted, in various ways, to dislodge it, but all +in vain, and it gave out such a peculiar, hollow sound at every blow, that at +last he threw down his spade and took the lantern to see what the strange +obstacle might be. +</p> + +<p> +He was greatly surprised at finding the corner of a stout oaken chest, +strengthened with iron bands, much rusted, but still intact. He dug all round +it, and then, using his spade as a lever, succeeded in raising it, though it +was very heavy, to the edge of the hole, and sliding it out on the grass beside +it; then he put poor Beelzebub into the place it had occupied, and filled up +the grave. He carefully smoothed it over, replaced the sod, and when all was +finished to his satisfaction, went in search of his faithful old Pierre, upon +whose discretion and secrecy he knew that he could rely. Together they carried +the mysterious strong box into the château, but not without great difficulty +and frequent pauses to rest, because of its immense weight. Pierre broke open +the chest with an axe, and the cover sprang back, disclosing to view a mass of +gold coins—all ancient, and many of them foreign. Upon examination, a +quantity of valuable jewelry, set with precious stones, was found mingled with +the gold, and, under all, a piece of parchment, with a huge seal attached, +bearing the three storks of the de Sigognacs, still in a good state of +preservation; but the writing was almost entirely obliterated by dampness and +mould. The signature, however, was still visible, and letter by letter the +baron spelled it out—“Raymond de Sigognac.” It was the name +of one of his ancestors, who had gone to serve his king and country in the war +then raging, and never returned; leaving the mystery of his death, or +disappearance, unsolved. He had only one child, an infant son, and when he left +home—in those troublous times—must have buried all his treasures +for safety, and they had remained undiscovered until this late day. Doubtless, +he had confided the secret of their whereabouts to some trusty friend or +retainer, who, perhaps, had died suddenly before he could disclose it to the +rightful heir. From the time of that Raymond began the decadence of the de +Sigognacs, who, previous to that epoch, had always been wealthy and powerful. +</p> + +<p> +Of course, the mystery about this treasure—so strangely brought to +light—could never be cleared up now; but one thing was certain, beyond a +question or a doubt, that the strong box and its contents belonged of right to +the present Baron de Sigognac—the only living representative of the +family. His first move was to seek his generous, devoted wife, so that he might +show her the mysterious treasure he had found, and claim her sweet sympathy in +his joy, which would be incomplete without it. After relating to her all the +surprising incidents of the evening, he finished by saying, “Decidedly, +Beelzebub was the good genius of the de Sigognacs—through his means I +have become rich—and now that my blessed angel has come to me he has +taken his departure; for there is nothing else left for him to do, since you, +my love, have given me perfect happiness.” +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div style='display:block; margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CAPTAIN FRACASSE ***</div> +<div style='text-align:left'> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will +be renamed. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright +law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, +so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United +States without permission and without paying copyright +royalties. 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