in juvenile modesty restrained him.

A ray of light all at once broke upon the mind of the host as he was
giving himself to the devil upon finding nothing.

"That letter is not lost!" cried he.

"What!" cried d'Artagnan.

"No, it has been stolen from you."

"Stolen? By whom?"

"By the gentleman who was here yesterday. He came down into the kitchen,
where your doublet was. He remained there some time alone. I would lay a
wager he has stolen it."

"Do you think so?" answered d'Artagnan, but little convinced, as he knew
better than anyone else how entirely personal the value of this letter
was, and was nothing in it likely to tempt cupidity. The fact was that
none of his servants, none of the travelers present, could have gained
anything by being possessed of this paper.

"Do you say," resumed d'Artagnan, "that you suspect that impertinent
gentleman?"

"I tell you I am sure of it," continued the host. "When I informed him
that your lordship was the protege of Monsieur de Treville, and that you
even had a letter for that illustrious gentleman, he appeared to be very
much disturbed, and asked me where that letter was, and immediately came
down into the kitchen, where he knew your doublet was."

"Then that's my thief," replied d'Artagnan. "I will complain to Monsieur
de Treville, and Monsieur de Treville will complain to the king." He
then drew two crowns majestically from his purse and gave them to the
host, who accompanied him, cap in hand, to the gate, and remounted his
yellow horse, which bore him without any further accident to the gate of
St. Antoine at Paris, where his owner sold him for three crowns, which
was a very good price, considering that d'Artagnan had ridden him hard
during the last stage. Thus the dealer to whom d'Artagnan sold him for
the nine livres did not conceal from the young man that he only gave
that enormous sum for him on the account of the originality of his
color.

Thus d'Artagnan entered Paris on foot, carrying his little packet under
his arm, and walked about till he found an apartment to be let on
terms suited to the scantiness of his means. This chamber was a sort of
garret, situated in the Rue des Fossoyeurs, near the Luxembourg.

As soon as the earnest money was paid, d'Artagnan took possession of his
lodging, and passed the remainder of the day in sewing onto his doublet
and hose some ornamental braiding which his mother had taken off an
almost-new doublet of the elder M. d'