e guard; here, those of a gentleman toward Monsieur
l'Abbe, who has challenged me; afterward I shall have that honor with
you."

"If I permit you," said the Abbe, who was already on horseback.

They took sixty paces of ground--all that was afforded them by the
extent of the meadow that enclosed them. The Abbe de Gondi was stationed
between De Thou and his friend, who sat nearest the ramparts, upon which
two Spanish officers and a score of soldiers stood, as in a balcony,
to witness this duel of six persons--a spectacle common enough to them.
They showed the same signs of joy as at their bullfights, and laughed
with that savage and bitter laugh which their temperament derives from
their admixture of Arab blood.

At a sign from Gondi, the six horses set off at full gallop, and met,
without coming in contact, in the middle of the arena; at that instant,
six pistol-shots were heard almost together, and the smoke covered the
combatants.

When it dispersed, of the six cavaliers and six horses but three men and
three animals were on their legs. Cinq-Mars was on horseback, giving
his hand to his adversary, as calm as himself; at the other end of the
field, De Thou stood by his opponent, whose horse he had killed, and
whom he was helping to rise. As for Gondi and De Launay, neither was
to be seen. Cinq-Mars, looking about for them anxiously, perceived the
Abbe's horse, which, caracoling and curvetting, was dragging after him
the future cardinal, whose foot was caught in the stirrup, and who was
swearing as if he had never studied anything but the language of the
camp. His nose and hands were stained and bloody with his fall and with
his efforts to seize the grass; and he was regarding with considerable
dissatisfaction his horse, which in spite of himself he irritated
with his spurs, making its way to the trench, filled with water, which
surrounded the bastion, when, happily, Cinq-Mars, passing between the
edge of the swamp and the animal, seized its bridle and stopped its
career.

"Well, my dear Abbe, I see that no great harm has come to you, for you
speak with decided energy."

"Corbleu!" cried Gondi, wiping the dust out of his eyes, "to fire a
pistol in the face of that giant I had to lean forward and rise in my
stirrups, and thus I lost my balance; but I fancy that he is down, too."

"You are right, sir," said De Thou, coming up; "there is his horse
swimming in the ditch with its master, whose brains are blown out. We