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Page 34
This gentleman was on horseback; two friends and two ladies made up his
party. We were following the same direction, but his gait was much more
rapid than ours; he passed us, saluting as he did so, and I noticed, so
far as I am concerned, nothing in his manner that could attract attention.
I was therefore much surprised to hear M. de Breuilly the next moment
murmur between his teeth: "That is an infamous trick!" Monsieur George,
who, at the moment of meeting, had become pale and turned his head
slightly away, looked sharply at Monsieur de Breuilly:
"What do you mean, sir? What do you refer to?"
"I refer to the impertinence of that brainless fool!"
I appealed energetically to Monsieur de Breuilly, reproaching him with his
quarrelsome disposition, and affirming that there had been no trace of
defiance either in the attitude or the features of Monsieur de Mauterne
when he had passed by us.
"Come, my friend," said Monsieur de Breuilly, "your eyes must have been
closed--or else you must have seen, as I saw myself, that the wretch
giggled as he looked at our friend. I don't know why you should wish the
gentleman to suffer an insult which neither you nor I would suffer!"
These unlucky words had been scarcely uttered, when Monsieur George
started his horse at a gallop.
"Are you mad?" I said to De Breuilly, who was trying to detain me; "and
what means such an invention?"
"My friend," he replied, "it was necessary to divert that boy's mind at
any cost."
I shrugged my shoulders. I freed myself from him and dashed after Monsieur
George; but, being better mounted than myself, he had already gained
considerable advance. I was still a hundred paces behind him when he
overtook Monsieur de Mauterne, who had stopped on hearing him coming. It
seemed to me that they were exchanging a few words, and almost at once I
saw Monsieur George's whip lashing several times, and with a sort of fury,
Monsieur de Mauterne's face. We barely arrived in time, Monsieur de
Breuilly and myself, to prevent that scene from assuming an odious
character of brutality.
A meeting having unfortunately become inevitable between the parties, we
took with us the two friends who accompanied Mauterne, Messieurs de
Quiroy and Astley, the latter an Englishman. Monsieur George had preceded
us to the chateau. The choice of weapons belonged without any possible
doubt to our adversary. Nevertheless, having noticed that his seconds
seemed to hesitate with a sort of indifference, or perhaps of
circumspection between swords and pistols, I thought that we might, with a
little good management, influence their decisions in the direction least
unfavorable to us. We went, therefore, Monsieur de Breuilly and I, to
consult Monsieur George on the subject. He pronounced at once in favor of
swords.
"But," remarked Monsieur de Breuilly, "you are a very good pistol-shot. I
have seen you at work. Are you certain to be a better swordsman? Do not
deceive yourself; this will be a mortal combat."
"I am satisfied of that," he replied, with a smile; "but I am particularly
anxious for swords, if at all possible."
After the expression of so formal a wish, we could but esteem ourselves
fortunate in obtaining the choice of arms, and the meeting was settled for
the next morning at nine o'clock.
During the remainder of the day, Monsieur George manifested an ease of
mind, and even at intervals a certain gayety, at which we were quite
surprised, and which Madame de Malouet, in particular, was at a loss to
understand. My poor wife of course had been left in ignorance of these
recent events.
At ten o'clock he retired, and I could still see a light through his
window two hours later. Impelled by my earnest affection and I know not
what vague anxiety was haunting me, I entered his room at about midnight;
I found him very calm; he had been writing and was just sealing up a few
envelopes.
"There!" he said, handing me the papers. "Now the worst is over, and I am
going to sleep the sleep of the just."
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