Monsieur le Comte was much in wine; he gambled
recklessly. It was my desire to change his course, but I went at it
either too late or bunglingly. In February he was exiled from court in
disgrace. I have never ascertained the character of this disgrace.
One night in March we had an exchange of opinions. My faith, your
Excellency, but that boy has a terrible tongue. There was not a place
in my armor that he did not pierce. I shall not repeat to you the
subject of our conversation. Suffice it to say that he roused the
devil and the fool in me, and I told him that he had no right to his
name. I am here to correct that wrong as much as lies within my power.
He did not give me an opportunity at home. It is not sentiment; it is
my sense of justice that brings me here. And I truly admire the lad's
spirit. To plunge into the wilderness without calculation; ah, well,
it is only the fool who stops to weigh the hazards of fortune. The boy
is my son, lawfully; and I want him to know it. I am growing old, and
this voyage has written a shorter term for me."

"Monsieur," said De Lauson, "what you tell me makes me truly happy.
But I am afraid that you have destroyed the Chevalier's trust in
humanity. If you ask me to judge you, I shall be severe. You have
committed a terrible sin, unnatural and brutal, unheard of till now by
me."

"I bow to all that," said the marquis. "It was brutal, cruel; it was
all you say. But the fact remains that it is done and that a part of
it must be undone."

"Your sense of justice does credit to a great noble like yourself.
Worldly reparation you may make, but you have wounded his heart and
soul beyond all earthly reparation."

"The worldly reparation quite satisfies me," replied the marquis,
fumbling with his lips. "As I observed, sentiment is out of the
question. Monsieur le Comte would not let me love him if I would,"
lightly. "I wish to undo as much as possible the evil I have done. If
he refuses to return to France, that is his affair, not mine. I shall
be the last to urge him. This Monsieur de Saumaise is a poet, I
understand."

"Who writes equally well with his sword."

"I should like to meet him. How long before De Leviston and
D'Herouville will be out of hospital?"

"D'Herouville, any day; De Leviston has a bad fever, having taken cold."

The marquis had not acquired the habit of smoking, so the governor lit
his pipe and smoked alone.

"Your Excellency, who is t