on, sir, I assure you. I am a lawyer, pleading a
case--the case of M. de Vilmorin. It is for his assassination that I have
come to beg the King's justice."

"But you yourself have said that it was a duel!" cried the Lieutenant,
between anger and bewilderment.

"I have said that it was made to appear a duel. There is a distinction,
as I shall show, if you will condescend to hear me out."

"Take your own time, sir!" said the ironical M. de Lesdiguieres, whose
tenure of office had never yet held anything that remotely resembled
this experience.

Andre-Louis took him literally. "I thank you, sir," he answered,
solemnly, and submitted his argument. "It can be shown that M. de
Vilmorin never practised fencing in all his life, and it is notorious
that M. de La Tour d'Azyr is an exceptional swordsman. Is it a duel,
monsieur, where one of the combatants alone is armed? For it amounts to
that on a comparison of their measures of respective skill."

"There has scarcely been a duel fought on which the same trumpery
argument might not be advanced."

"But not always with equal justice. And in one case, at least, it was
advanced successfully."

"Successfully? When was that?"

"Ten years ago, in Dauphiny. I refer to the case of M. de Gesvres,
a gentleman of that province, who forced a duel upon M. de la Roche
Jeannine, and killed him. M. de Jeannine was a member of a powerful
family, which exerted itself to obtain justice. It put forward just
such arguments as now obtain against M. de La Tour d'Azyr. As you will
remember, the judges held that the provocation had proceeded of intent
from M. de Gesvres; they found him guilty of premeditated murder, and he
was hanged."

M. de Lesdiguieres exploded yet again. "Death of my life!" he cried.
"Have you the effrontery to suggest that M. de La Tour d'Azyr should be
hanged? Have you?"

"But why not, monsieur, if it is the law, and there is precedent for it,
as I have shown you, and if it can be established that what I state is
the truth--as established it can be without difficulty?"

"Do you ask me, why not? Have you temerity to ask me that?"

"I have, monsieur. Can you answer me? If you cannot, monsieur, I shall
understand that whilst it is possible for a powerful family like that
of La Roche Jeannine to set the law in motion, the law must remain inert
for the obscure and uninfluential, however brutally wronged by a great
nobleman."

M. de Lesdiguieres perceived that in argument