The Chevalier De Maison Rouge (3 page)

" Politeness is a virtue appertaining to the aristocracy, and we belong to the lower orders," replied the chief.

"Do not speak of these things before madame," said Louis; "perhaps she is an English woman. Do not be

angry at the supposition, my beautiful bird of the night,"

added he, gallantly, turning toward the unknown.

"Doubtless you are conversant with the poets, and one

of them tells us, ' That England is a swan's nest situated

in the midst of a large pond."

" Ah ! you betray yourself," said the chief of the enrolled ; "you avow yourself a creature of Pitt's, in the pay of England. A "

" Silence,"' said Louis ; " you do not understand poetry ; therefore I must speak to you in prose. We are National

Guards, affable and patient fellows enough, but still chil-

dren of Paris ; that is to say, if we are provoked, we strike rather hard."

" Madame," said Maurice, " from what you have now witnessed you can easily imagine what will soon follow.

In five minutes ten or twelve men will be cutting one an-

other's throats for you. Is the cause your defenders have

embraced worthy of the blood they are about to shed ?"

" Monsieur," replied the unknown, clasping her hands,

"I can only assure you that if you permit me to be ar-

rested, the result to myself will be dreadful, but to others fatal ; and that rather than you should abandon me, I

would beseech you to pierce me through the heart with

the weapon you hold in your hand, and cast my corpse

into the Seine."

" Madame," replied Maurice, " I will take all the responsibility upon myself ;" and letting drop the hand of the lovely incotjnita, which he held in his own :

" Citizens." said he, addressing himself to the Xational Guard, "'as an officer, as a patriot, and a Frenchman, I command you to protect this woman. And, Louis, if any

of these ra/iaillc say a word, put them to the bayonet I"

" Carry arms ! " said Louis.

THE CHEVALIER DE MAISON ROUGE. J5

" Oh, mon Dieu ! tnon Dieu ! " cried the unknown, en-Teloping her head still closer in her hood, and supporting

herself against a post. " Oh, mon Dieu, protect me ! "

The volunteers directly placed themselves on the de-

fensive, and one among them fired his pistol, when the

ball passed through the hat of Maurice.

" Cross bayonets ! " said Louis. " Plan, plan, plan, plan, plan, plan, plan ! "

Then, in the darkness of night, a scene of struggling

and confusion ensued, during which the sounds of one or

two shots were heard, followed by cries, imprecations,

and blasphemies ; but no one appeared, because, as we

have said, there was this evening a secret question of the

massacre, and it was believed the massacre had com-

menced. Two or three windows only were opened for an

instant, but were immediately closed. Less in number,

and worse armed, the enrolled volunteers were in an instant defeated. Two were badly wounded and four others

pinned against the wall, each with a bayonet through his

breast.

"There," said Louis. "I hope now you will remain as quiet as lambs. As for you, Citizen Maurice, I order you

to conduct this woman to the post of I'llotel de Ville.

You understand you are answerable for her."

" Yes," said Maurice. Then, in a low tone, " And the password ? " added he.

" The clevil ! " said Louis, rubbing his ear, "the password ; it is "

" Do not fear I shall make a bad use of it."

" Ma foil " said Louis. "' m;tke what use you like of it ; that is your concern."

" Tell me, then ?" said Maurice.

" I will tell you all in good time ; but let us first dispose of these tipsy fellows. Then, before we part, I shall

not bo very sorry to give you a few words of advice."

" Very well. I will wait."

Louis then returned to his Xational Guards, who still

kept the enrolled volunteers at bay.

/ 5 said he, " have you had sufficient ? "

16 THE CHEVALIER DE MAISON ROUGE.

" Yes, dog of a Girondin ! " replied the chief.

" You deceive yourself, my friend," said Louis, coolly ;

" we are better sans-culottes than yourselves, seeing that we belong to the club of Thermopyles, of whose patriotism

no one, I hope, entertains a doubt. Let go these citizens,"

continued Louis ; " they resist no longer."

" It is not the less true that this woman is an object of suspicion."

" If she were a suspicious character, she would have

made her escape during this skirmish, and not, as you see

she has done, waited till it had terminated."

"Hum!" said one of the volunteers. "What the Citizen Thermopyle observes is quite true."

" Besides, we shall know, since my friend goes to con-

duct her to the post, while we go to drink to the health

of the nation."

"Are we going to drink ? " said the chief.

" Certainly ; I am very thirsty, and I know a pretty

little cabaret at the corner of La Rue Thomas du Louvre."

" Why did you not say so at once, citizen ? We are

sorry to have doubted your patriotism ; and, to prove it,

let us, in the name of the nation and the law, embrace

one another as friends."

" Let us embrace," said Louis.

And the enrolled volunteers and the National Guards

embraced with warm enthusiasm. At this moment they

were more anxious to embrace than behead one another.

" Lot us now go," cried the two united troops, " to the corner of La Rue Thomas du Louvre."

" And we," said one of the wounded, in a plaintive voice, " do you intend to abandon us here ? "

"Ah! well, yes," said Louis; "abandon the heroes who have fallen bravely fighting for their country against

the patriots it is true, by mistake, but still true for all that ; we will send you some wheelbarrows. Meanwhile,

you can sing the ' Marseillaise,' it will divert you."

Then, approaching Maurice, who was waiting for him,

with this unknown, at the corner of La Rue du Coq,

the National Guards and enrolled volunteers went

THE CHEVALIER DE MAISON ROUGE. 17

back again arm in arm toward La Place du Palais Ega-

lite.

" Maurice/' said he, " I promised you some counsel, and this is it. Be persuaded to accompany us, rather

than compromise yourself by protecting this young

woman, who, it is true, is very charming, and on that

account not the less to DC suspected ; for charming

women who run about the streets of Paris at mid-

night "

" Monsieur," said the young woman, " judgt me not from appearances, I implore you."

" In the first place, you say monsieur, and that is a

great fault. Do you understand, citoyenne, what I say ?"

" Ah, well ! Yes, yes, citizen ; allow your friend to

accomplish this kind action."

" What is that ? "

" By conducting me home, and protecting me on my

road/'

" Maurice, Maurice," said Louis, " consider well what you are doing ; you will compromise yourself terribly."

"I know it well," said the young man; "but what would you have me do ? If I leave the poor woman, she

will be stopped at every step by the patrols."

" Oh ! yes, yes, monsieur, while with you while with

you, citizen, I meant to say I shall be safe."

"You hear?" said Louis, "safe. She, then, runs great danger ? "

" My dear Louis," said Maurice, "'let us be just. She must either be a good compatriot or an aristocrat. If

an aristocrat, we have erred in protecting her ; if a good

patriot, it is our duty to preserve her,"

" Pardon, pardon, chcr ami ; I am sorry for Aristotle, but your logic is folly. See what he says :

4i " Iris my reason steals away,

And yet she tells me to be wise ;

Oh ! lady, I can only say,

Then turn away those glorious eyes.' "

'"Louis," said Maurice, "a truce to Dorcit, to Parny, 18 THE CHEVALIER DE MAISON ROUGE.

and to Gentil Bernard, 1 pray you. Speak seriously ;

will you, or will you not, give me the password ? "

" That is to say, Maurice, you place me in this situa-

tion : I must either sacrifice my duty to my friend, or

my friend to my duty ; but I fear, Maurice, my duty will

fall the sacrifice."

"Decide, then, for one or the other, mon ami ; but, in the name of Heaven, decide quickly ! "

" You will not abuse it ?"

" I promise you."

"That is not sufficient ; swear."

' Upon what ?"

" Swear upon the altar of your country."

Louis pulled off his hat, presenting to Maurice the side

with the cockade, and Maurice, finding the affair very

simple, took, without smiling, the oath required upon

this extemporary altar.

" .Now," said Louis, " this is the password : France and Lutece ; perhaps you would say, France and Lucretia ;

but let that pass, it is Eoman, all the same."

" Citoyenne," said Maurice, "I am at your service.

Thanks, Louis."

" Bon voyage," cried he, replacing on his head "the altar of the country," and, faithful to his anacreontic taste, departed, singing :

"Eleonora, Eleonora !

Now I've taught you how to love,

Tell your passionate adorer,

Does the lesson weary prove ? "

CHAPTER III.

LA UTE DES FOSSES ST. VICTOK.

MAURICE, finding himself alone with the young woman,

felt for the moment deeply embarrassed. The fear of

being duped, attracted by her marvelous beauty, troubled

his conscience as a pure and exalted Republican, and

caused him to hesitate when about to offer her the sup-

port of his arm.

THE CHEVALIER DE MAISON ROUGE. 19

" Where are you going, citoyenne ? " said he.

" Alas ! monsieur, a long way from here," replied she.

11 But how far ?"

" By the side of the Jardin des Plantes."

" It is some distance ; let us proceed on our way."

"Ah, mon Dieu ! monsieur," said the unknown, "I plainly perceive I am a constraint upon you ; but indeed

it is no ordinary danger that I incur. Believe me, I will

not abuse your generosity."

" But, madame," said Maurice, who, during his tete-a-tete, had totally forgotten the language imposed by the

Republican vocabulary, and returned to the language of

a gentleman, " how is it, in all conscience, that at this hour you are found in the streets of Paris, where, with

the exception of ourselves, you do not see a single indi-

vidual ? "

" Monsieur, I have told you ; I had been paying a visit to the Faubourg clu Roule. Leaving home at midday,

and knowing nothing of what had taken place, I returned,

of course, in equal ignorance, all my time having been

spent in deep retirement."

" Yes," murmured Maurice, "in some retired house, the resort of the aristocrats. Confess, citoyenne, while

publicly demanding my protection, you laugh in your

sleeve at my egregious folly."

" Why should Tact thus"? "

" You are aware that a Republican acts as your guide.

Well, this Republican betrays his cause, that is all/'

" But, citizen," quickly rejoined the unknown, "I, as well as you, love the Republic ; you labor under a mistake concerning me."

" Then, citoyenne. if you are a good patriot, you can

have no cause for concealment. Where do you come

from ? ''

" Monsieur, excuse me."

There was in this ''monsieur " so much sweetness and

modesty of expression, that Maurice believed it to be

founded on some sentiment concealed.

20 THE CHEVALIER DE MAISON ROUGE.

"Surely," said he, "this woman is returning from some rendezvous d'arnour."

At this moment, without knowing why, he felt deeply

oppressed at this thought, and for a short time he re-

maiiied silent.

When these two noctural promenaders had reached La

Rue de la Verrerie, after having encountered three or

four patrols, who, thanks to the password, allowed them

free passage, an officer at length appeared inclined to

raise some difficulties. Maurice here found it necessary

to give his name and also his residence.

" That is all that is required from you," said the officer ; "bnt the citoyenne, who is she ?"

"The sister of my wife."

The officer permitted them to pass.

"Yon are, then, married, monsieur ?" murmured the unknown.

" Xo, madame ; why do you think so ? "

"Then," said she, laughing, "you had better have said I was your wife."

" Madame," said Maurice, " the name of wife is rather too sacred to be slightly bestowed. I have not the honor

of your acquaintance."

The unknown, in her turn, felt an impression of the

heart, and remained silent and confused. At this

moment they crossed the bridge Marie. The young

woman quickened her pace as they approached the end

of their journey. They crossed the bridge De la Tour-

ville.

" We are now, I believe, in your quarter," said Maurice, planting his foot on the quay St. Bernard.

"Yes, citizen/' replied the young woman ; "but it is precisely here I most require your assistance."

"Really, madame," said Maurice, "you forbid me to be indiscreet, yet you do all in your power to excite my

curiosity. This is not generous. Grant me your confi-

dence. I have merited it, I think. Are you not in honor

bound to tell me to whom I speak ? "

" You speak, monsieur," said the unknown, smiling, THE CHEVALIER DE MAISON ROUGE. 21

" to a woman whom you have saved from the greatest