n
eyes. I swear to you he is the villain; the only question is, which of
us two is to kill him."

"Where is the man?"

"In the army of the Rhine."

"Ah! all the better."

"Covered with glory and honor. Curse him! oh, curse him! curse him!"

"I am in luck. I am going to the Rhine."

"I know it. That is why I waited here all through this night of misery.
Yes, you are in luck. But you will send me a line when you have killed
him; will you not? Then I shall know joy again. Should he escape you, he
shall not escape me."

"Young man," said Raynal, with dignity, "this rage is unmanly. Besides,
we have not heard his side of the story. He is a good soldier; perhaps
he is not all to blame: or perhaps passion has betrayed him into a sin
that his conscience and honor disapprove: if so, he must not die. You
think only of your wrong: it is natural: but I am the girl's brother;
guardian of her honor and my own. His life is precious as gold. I shall
make him marry her."

"What! reward him for his villany?" cried Edouard, frantically.

"A mighty reward," replied Raynal, with a sneer.

"You leave one thing out of the calculation, monsieur," said Edouard,
trembling with anger, "that I will kill your brother-in-law at the
altar, before her eyes."

"YOU leave one thing out of the calculation: that you will first have to
cross swords, at the altar, with me."

"So be it. I will not draw on my old commandant. I could not; but be
sure I will catch him and her alone some day, and the bride shall be a
widow in her honeymoon."

"As you please," said Raynal, coolly. "That is all fair, as you have
been wronged. I shall make her an honest wife, and then you may make
her an honest widow. (This is what they call LOVE, and sneer at me for
keeping clear of it.) But neither he nor you shall keep MY SISTER what
she is now, a ----," and he used a word out of camp.

Edouard winced and groaned. "Oh! don't call her by such a name. There
is some mystery. She loved me once. There must have been some strange
seduction."

"Now you deceive yourself," said Raynal. "I never saw a girl that could
take her own part better than she can; she is not like her sister at
all in character. Not that I excuse him; it was a dishonorable act, an
ungrateful act to my wife and my mother."

"And to you."

"Now listen to me: in four days I shall stand before him. I shall not
go into a pet like you; I am in earnest. I shall just say to him,
'Dujardin, I know al