e than grin, now scowled openly;
while a second, perhaps the most foolish of all, came to me with
advice, drew me with insistency into a niche near the door, and adjured
me to be cautious.

"You are too bold," he said; "and that way your enemies find their
opening. Do not go to the King now. He is incensed against you. But
we all know that he loves you; wait, therefore, my friend, until he has
had his day's hunting--he is just now booting himself and see him when
he has ridden off his annoyance."

"And when my friends, my dear Marquis, have had time to poison his mind
against me? No, no," I answered, wondering much whether he were as
simple as he looked.

"But the Queen is with him now," he persisted, seizing the lappel of my
coat to stay me, "and she will be sure to put in a word against you."

"Therefore," I answered drily, "I had better see his Majesty before the
one word becomes two."

"Be persuaded," he entreated me. "See him now, and nothing but ill
will come of it."

"Nothing but ill for some," I retorted, looking so keenly at him that
his visage fell. And with that he let me go, and with a smile I passed
through the door. The rumour had not yet gained such substance that
the crowd had lost all respect for me; it rolled back, and I passed
through it towards the end of the chamber, where the King was stooping
to draw on one of his boots. The Queen stood not far from him, gazing
into the fire with an air of ill-temper which the circle, serious and
silent, seemed to reflect, I looked everywhere for the Portuguese, but
he was not to be seen.

For a moment the King affected to be unaware of my presence, and even
turned his shoulder to me; but I observed that he reddened, and
fidgeted nervously with the boot which he was drawing on. Nothing
daunted, therefore, I waited until he perforce discovered me, and was
obliged to greet me. "You are early this morning," he said, at last,
with a grudging air.

"For the best of reasons, sire," I answered hardily. "I am ill placed
at home, and come to you for justice."

"What is it?" he said churlishly and unwillingly.

I was about to answer, when the Queen interposed with a sneer. "I think
that I can tell you, sire," she said. "M. de Sully is old enough to
know the adage, 'Bite before you are bitten.'"

"Madame," I said, respectfully but with firmness. "I know this only,
that my house was last night the scene of a gross outrage; and by all I
can learn it