horse to a gallop, he crossed the
wide open space, and took his stand at that point of the circumference
of the cross-road immediately opposite to where De Guiche was stationed.
De Guiche remained motionless. At this distance of a hundred paces,
the two adversaries were absolutely invisible to each other, being
completely concealed by the thick shade of elms and chestnuts. A minute
elapsed amidst the profoundest silence. At the end of the minute, each
of them, in the deep shade in which he was concealed, heard the double
click of the trigger, as they put the pistols on full cock. De Guiche,
adopting the usual tactics, put his horse to a gallop, persuaded that he
should render his safety doubly sure by the movement, as well as by the
speed of the animal. He directed his course in a straight line towards
the point where, in his opinion, De Wardes would be stationed; and he
expected to meet De Wardes about half-way; but in this he was mistaken.
He continued his course, presuming that his adversary was impatiently
awaiting his approach. When, however, he had gone about two-thirds of
the distance, he beheld the trees suddenly illuminated and a ball flew
by, cutting the plume of his hat in two. Nearly at the same moment, and
as if the flash of the first shot had served to indicate the direction
of the other, a second report was heard, and a second ball passed
through the head of De Guiche's horse, a little below the ear. The
animal fell. These two reports, proceeding from the very opposite
direction in which he expected to find De Wardes, surprised him a
great deal; but as he was a man of amazing self-possession, he prepared
himself for his horse falling, but not so completely, however, that the
toe of his boot escaped being caught under the animal as it fell. Very
fortunately the horse in its dying agonies moved so as to enable him to
release the leg which was less entangled than the other. De Guiche rose,
felt himself all over, and found that he was not wounded. At the very
moment he had felt the horse tottering under him, he placed his pistols
in the holsters, afraid that the force of the fall might explode one at
least, if not both of them, by which he would have been disarmed, and
left utterly without defense. Once on his feet, he took the pistols out
of the holsters, and advanced towards the spot where, by the light of
the flash, he had seen De Wardes appear. De Wardes had, at the first
shot, accounted for the maneuver,