oby
knew 'em wild. So evening after evening Talleyrand crossed his sound leg
over his game one and Toby poured forth. Having been adopted into the
Senecas I, naturally, kept still, but Toby 'ud call on me to back up
some of his remarks, and by that means, and a habit he had of drawing
you on in talk, Talleyrand saw I knew something of his noble savages
too. Then he tried a trick. Coming back from an _emigre_ party he turns
into his little shop and puts it to me, laughing like, that I'd gone
with the two chiefs on their visit to Big Hand. _I_ hadn't told. Red
Jacket hadn't told, and Toby, of course, didn't know. 'Twas just
Talleyrand's guess. "Now," he says, "my English and Red Jacket's French
was so bad that I am not sure I got the rights of what the President
really said to the unsophisticated Huron. Do me the favour of telling it
again." I told him every word Red Jacket had told him and not one word
more. I had my suspicions, having just come from an _emigre_ party where
the Marquise was hating and praising him as usual.

'"Much obliged," he said. "But I couldn't gather from Red Jacket exactly
what the President said to Monsieur Genet, or to his American gentlemen
after Monsieur Genet had ridden away."

'I saw Talleyrand was guessing again, for Red Jacket hadn't told him a
word about the white man's pow-wow.'

'Why hadn't he?' Puck asked.

'Because Red Jacket was a chief. He told Talleyrand what the President
had said to him and Cornplanter; but he didn't repeat the talk, between
the white men, that Big Hand ordered him to leave behind.'

'Oh!' said Puck. 'I see. What did _you_ do?'

'First I was going to make some sort of tale round it, but Talleyrand
was a chief too. So I said, "As soon as I get Red Jacket's permission to
tell that part of the tale, I'll be delighted to refresh your memory,
abbe." What else could I have done?

'"Is that all?" he says, laughing. "Let me refresh your memory. In a
month from now I can give you a hundred dollars for your account of the
conversation."

'"Make it five hundred, abbe," I says.

'"Five, then," says he.

'"That will suit me admirably," I says. "Red Jacket will be in town
again by then, and the moment he gives me leave I'll claim the money."

'He had a hard fight to be civil but he come out smiling.

'"Monsieur," he says. "I beg your pardon as sincerely as I envy the
noble Huron your loyalty. Do me the honour to sit down while I explain."

'There wasn't another