r life and stayed here without her?" I said.

"As for risking life, that kind of criticism doesn't come well from you.
And as for Antoinette," he added with a smile, "I expect to see something
of her later on."

"Well," I answered with a sigh of supreme content, "you have been a fool
all your life, and I hope that she will make you sensible."

"You never could make me so," said Nick, "and besides, I don't think
you've been so damned sensible yourself."

We were silent again for a space.

"Davy," he asked, "do you remember what I said when you had that
miniature here?"

"You said a great many things, I believe."

"I told you to consider carefully the masterful features of that lady,
and to thank God you hadn't married her. I vow I never thought she'd
turn up. Upon my oath I never thought I should be such a blind slave as
I have been for the last fortnight. Faith, Monsieur de St. Gre is a
strong man, but he was no more than a puppet in his own house when he
came back here for a day. That lady could govern a province,--no, a
kingdom. But I warrant you there would be no climbing of balconies in
her dominions. I have never been so generalled in my life."

I had no answer for these comments.

"The deuce of it is the way she does it," he continued, plainly bent on
relieving himself. "There's no noise, no fuss; but you must obey, you
don't know why. And yet you may flay me if I don't love her."

"Love her!" I repeated.

"She saved your life," said Nick; "I don't believe any other woman could
have done it. She hadn't any thought of her own. She has been here, in
this room, almost constantly night and day, and she never let you go.
The little French doctor gave you up--not she. She held on. Cursed if I
see why she did it."

"Nor I," I answered.

"Well," he said apologetically, "of course I would have done it, but you
weren't anything to her. Yes, egad, you were something to be
saved,--that was all that was necessary. She had you brought back
here--we are in Monsieur de St. Gre's house, by the way--in a litter, and
she took command as though she had nursed yellow fever cases all her
life. No flurry. I said that you were in love with her once, Davy, when
I saw you looking at the portrait. I take it back. Of course a man
could be very fond of her," he said, "but a king ought to have married
her. As for that poor Vicomte she's tied up to, I reckon I know the
reason why he didn't come to America. An ordinary man would