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 this handsome young priest who goes by the name of Brother Jacques; of what family?”

“That I do not know; no one knows; not even Father Chaumonot, who is his sponsor.  The good Father picked him up somewhere in Italy and placed him in a convent.”

“Monsieur le Comte, then, is at Three Rivers?”

“Yes; and to-morrow we shall set out for him; though he may return at any hour.”

“I thank your Excellency.  The Henri IV sails by next week, so I understand.  I daresay that we both shall be on it.  At any rate, I shall wait.”

The door opened and Jehan, expressing as much excitement as his weather-beaten face made possible, stood before them.

“Well?” said the marquis.

“Monsieur le Comte is returned from Three Rivers, and is about to dine in the citadel.”

“Tell a trooper that the presence of Monsieur le Chevalier is requested here at once.  Do not let the Chevalier see you,” and the governor rose and laid down his pipe.  “I will leave the room at your service, Monsieur.”