wasn't going to be such a fool
as to stand up there to be a mark for a second William Tell, who would
not only shoot the apple from his head, but aim right at his heart. If
they wanted to have a fair fight, with all his heart--but let it be
with swords; then one would see who was the best man. We all talked to
him, told him not to play the fool, that he must stand his adversary's
fire no matter where he was shot, in his spur or his head. The
duellist has no power to refuse; he is in the hands of his seconds. At
last Behrend got curious to know what the row was about; he called to
me and Geza, and we had to tell him that Salista would not stand
another shot, but had demanded that the duel should be decided by
swords. To our surprise Ivan answered, coolly, 'With all my heart.
Give us the sabres.' 'Do you consent?' 'I consent to fight with
scythes if he wishes.' So it was agreed. Salista's seconds heard this
discussion with great satisfaction; they were very much put out by his
outbreak, it being quite unusual to change the weapons in a duel; and
there would have been a regular scandal if Ivan had used his right of
refusing any such alteration in the conditions under which the duel
was to be fought."

"And you have allowed such an innovation to be made?" said Angela,
looking at her cousin with contracted eyebrows.

"Certainly, when the challenger has agreed to it."

"It was shameful of you!" Angela continued, with suppressed tears in
her voice--"ungenerous to allow such an unequal fight. One man has
practised fencing all his life; it is his profession; the other has
never had a sword in his hand."

"The fight will be drawn at the first blood," said Edmund, in a
soothing voice.

"But you had no right to agree to such a bloodthirsty idea; you have
overstepped your duty as second. You should have said to Salista's
seconds that the affair should conclude then or never."

"That is quite true; and we should have done so, only Behrend chose to
interfere."

"You should not have allowed it; you could have stopped it. When does
the duel take place?"

"As we had no swords we could not fight this morning. It is against
the law to have a duel in the afternoon, therefore we have postponed
the second meeting until to-morrow at daylight."

"Before daylight to-morrow I will put a stop to the duel."

"How so?"

"I shall speak to Behrend; I shall explain everything to him."

"If you tell him that this affair has arisen out o