; he had a big French nose, bright eyes that
popped a little and gave him the habit of looking sidewise, and grizzled,
chestnut eyebrows over them. He had a thin-lipped mouth and a round
chin.

"Citizen Reetchie, is it? I laik to know citizen's name glorified by
gran' cause. Reetchie?"

"Will you enter, citizens?" said the General.

I do not know why I followed them unless it were to satisfy a
devil-prompted curiosity as to how Auguste de St. Gre had got there. We
went into the room, where the General's slovenly negro was already
lighting the candles and the General proceeded to collect and fill six of
the glasses on the table. It was Citizen Captain Sullivan who gave the
toast.

"Citizens," he cried, "I give you the health of the foremost apostle of
Liberty in the Western world, the General who tamed the savage tribes,
who braved the elements, who brought to their knees the minions of a
despot king." A slight suspicion of a hiccough filled this gap. "Cast
aside by an ungrateful government, he is still unfaltering in his
allegiance to the people. May he lead our Legion victorious through the
Spanish dominions.

"Vive la Republique!" they shouted, draining their glasses. "Vive le
citoyen general Clark!"

"Louisiana!" shouted Citizen Sullivan, warming, "Louisiana, groaning
under oppression and tyranny, is imploring us with uplifted hands. To
those remaining veteran patriots whose footsteps we followed to this
distant desert, and who by their blood and toil have converted it into a
smiling country, we now look. Under your guidance, Citizen General, we
fought, we bled--"

How far the Citizen Captain would have gone is problematical. I had
noticed a look of disgust slowly creeping into the Citizen
Quartermaster's eyes, and at this juncture he seized the Citizen Captain
and thrust him into a chair.

"Sacre vent!" he exclaimed, "it is the proclamation--he recites the
proclamation! I see he have participate in those handbill. Poof, the
world is to conquer,--let us not spik so much."

"I give you one toast," said the little Citizen Gignoux, slyly, "we all
bring back one wife from Nouvelle Orleans!

"Ha," exclaimed the Sieur de St. Gre, laughing, "the Citizen Captain
Depeau--he has already one wife in Nouvelle Orleans."[1]

[1] It is unnecessary for the editor to remind the reader that these
are not Mr. Ritchie's words, but those of an adventurer. Mr. Depeau was
an honest and worthy gentleman, earnest enough in a