ieur. What is it that you suggest?"

"I am signifying that when a man stands unmasked for a cheat, a liar,
and a thief, his own character should give him concern enough to
restrain him from strictures upon that of another."

A red flush showed through the tan of his skin, then faded and left him
livid--a very evil sight, as God lives. He flung his heavily-feathered
hat upon the table, and carried his hand to his hilt.

"God's blood!" he cried. "You shall answer me for this."

I shook my head and smiled; but I made no sign of drawing.

"Monsieur, we must talk a while. I think that you had better."

He raised his sullen eyes to mine. Perhaps the earnest impressiveness of
my tones prevailed. Be that as it may, his half-drawn sword was thrust
back with a click, and "What have you to say?" he asked.

"Be seated." I motioned him to a chair by the table and when he had
taken it I sat down opposite to him. Taking up a quill, I dipped it in
the ink-horn that stood by, and drew towards me a sheet of paper.

"When you lured me into the wager touching Mademoiselle de Lavedan,"
said I calmly, "you did so, counting upon certain circumstances, of
which you alone had knowledge, that should render impossible the urging
of my suit. That, Monsieur le Comte, was undeniably the action of a
cheat. Was it not?"

"Damnation!" he roared, and would have risen, but, my hand upon his arm,
I restrained him and pressed him back into his chair.

"By a sequence of fortuitous circumstances," I pursued, "it became
possible for me to circumvent the obstacle upon which you had based your
calculations. Those same circumstances led later to my being arrested in
error and in place of another man. You discovered how I had contravened
the influence upon which you counted; you trembled to see how the
unexpected had befriended me, and you began to fear for your wager.

"What did you do? Seeing me arraigned before you in your quality as
King's Commissioner, you pretended to no knowledge of me; you became
blind to my being any but Lesperon the rebel, and you sentenced me to
death in his place, so that being thus definitely removed I should be
unable to carry out my undertaking, and my lands should consequently
pass into your possession. That, monsieur, was at once the act of a
thief and a murderer. Wait, monsieur; restrain yourself until I shall
have done. To-day again fortune comes to my rescue. Again you see me
slipping from your grasp, and you are in