he State House. As he
stood, he saw Dr. Chovet stop his chaise.

"_Bonjour_, citizen," cried the doctor. "Your too intimate friend,
Monsieur Carteaux, is off for France. He will trouble you no more." As
usual, the doctor, safe in his chaise, was as impertinent as he dared to
be.

Too disturbed to notice anything but this startling information in
regard to his enemy, De Courval said: "Who told you that? It cannot be
true. He was at the State Department yesterday, and we were to meet this
afternoon over the affair of a British ship captured by a French
privateer."

"Oh, I met him on Fifth Street on horseback just now--a little while
ago."

"Well, what then?"

"'I am for New York,' he said. I asked: 'How can I send letters to
France?' He said: 'I cannot wait for them. I am in a hurry. I must
catch that corvette, the _Jean Bart_, in New York.' Then I cried after
him: 'Are you for France?' And he: 'Do you not wish you, too, were
going? Adieu. Wish me _bon voyage_.'"

"Was he really going? We would have heard of it."

"_Le diable_, I think so; but he has a mocking tongue. I think he goes.
My congratulations that you are rid of him. Adieu!"

"Insolent!" muttered De Courval. Was it only insolence, or was it true
that his enemy was about to escape him? The thought that he could not
leave it in doubt put an instant end to his indecisions.

"I shall not risk it," he said, and there was no time to be lost. His
mother, Margaret, the possible remonstrance from Schmidt, each in turn
had the thought of a moment and then were dismissed in turn as he
hurried homeward. Again he saw Avignon and Carteaux' dark face, and
heard the echoing memory of his father's death-cry, "Yvonne! Yvonne!" He
must tell Schmidt if he were in; if not, so much the better, and he
would go alone. He gave no thought to the unwisdom of such a course. His
whole mind was on one purpose, and the need to give it swift and
definite fulfilment.

He was not sorry that Schmidt was not at home. He sat down and wrote to
him that Carteaux was on his way to embark for France and that he meant
to overtake him. Would Schmidt explain to his mother his absence on
business? Then he took Schmidt's pistols from their place over the
mantel, loaded and primed them, and put half a dozen bullets and a
small powder-horn in his pocket. To carry the pistols, he took Schmidt's
saddle-holsters. What next? He wrote a note to the Secretary that he was
called out of town on busines