a Hubbard
and her prophecies, and when we breakfasted together upon the morning
of the start I would have said that he was fit to race for his life.

And what a start it was, notwithstanding the hour! What a roaring and
racing of engines, cars tearing here and tearing there, gendarmes
everywhere, men with silver on their heads and silver on their toes;
jabbering officials telling you to do twenty things at once, and
quarrelling because you did them. The enclosure itself was like the
meat-market at Smithfield on a busy morning. I never heard so much
noise in any one place before; and if there was a man, woman, or child
who slept through it in the peaceful village of Champigny, well, he,
she, or it ought to go into a museum.

Of course, all this was exciting enough, and I caught something of the
fever when twenty soldiers pushed my old rattle-trap into the roadway,
and a very fine gentleman gave the signal to "Go." Upon my word, I do
believe there was just a moment when I thought I could get to Vienna
before the others; and, letting my clutch in gently, and telling Billy,
my mechanician, to make himself fast, I soon had her upon third speed,
and was racing as fast as the bad road would let me towards Provins.
This was a bumpy bit, to be sure, and if I had put her on the "fourth,"
some one would have had to sweep up the pieces quickly. But I kept her
steady, though the great cars began to go by like roaring locomotives
on a down incline, and really she was doing very well when the offside
front tyre asked for a change of air, and we knew that it was No. 1, so
far as punctures were concerned.

Well, this was twenty miles from Provins, upon a long and desolate
stretch of a poor road, with a distant view of the hills and a couple
of sleepy peasants out among the hay. We had been lucky with our draw,
and started early in the list, and you can imagine my surprise when a
car flashed into view and I recognised Ferdinand, who was almost the
last to get off, and must have passed any number of cars to overtake us
as he did. My word, and he was driving, too! His great machine
frightened you to watch it, leaping over the bumps as it did, and
threatening every moment to be flung sheer off the road into the
hayfield on the other side of the dyke. But there was a master at the
wheel, and with a cheery wave of the hand to us Ferdinand went by, and
was lost immediately in a mighty cloud of dust which rose clear above
the poplar