manner, made no
attempt to control himself. He never ceased to exclaim, 'Clodfoot!
Impostor!' and to taunt the stranger at each stroke with his father's
origin. Finally Louis was disarmed, whereupon, with the same silence,
Lecour handed back his sword--'with great dignity' said the Dragoon, and
Louis refused to receive it."

"'With great dignity!'" shouted de Lotbiniere--"You speak as though you
had no feeling."

"On the contrary," replied Repentigny, "I am very sorry for every one
concerned."

"Save your pity! I shall now bring up my heavy guns."

CHAPTER XXVII

JUDE AND THE GALLEY

The Council of the Galley-on-Land were gathered again in Gougeon's shop
at two in the morning. All Paris was sleeping, and even the orgies of
the Beggars' Ball had sunk to silence. There was animation among the
Council, for in a corner, not at first visible, lay a subject of
debate--a prisoner tightly bound with a rope. Each man held some piece
of sharp iron, Wife Gougeon her pistol. The Admiral sat wrapped in his
brown cloak.

"_I_ caught him!" shouted Hache hilariously; "I caught him myself."

"Who is he?" the Admiral asked.

"The sheep that followed me. They have followed me ever since the
breaking of Bec and Caron. This one was the worst. He follows you along
like a lizard under a wall; but I caught him, I caught him!"

A stifled struggle with its fastenings were heard from the bundle in the
corner.

"Bring him over," order the Admiral.

Gougeon and Hache went over, lifted the bundle, and deposited it in the
centre of the group, where the candle rays brought out amidst it the
lines of a face. A woollen gag was across the mouth, the eyes were
bloodshot and fear-distorted, but the features were unmistakable. They
were those of Jude.

Jude, when deprived of the favour of the Princess, had offered his
services to the police administration. He was set on the track of Hache,
whom he successfully shadowed and was about to expose, together with the
Gougeons and their den, when his victim caught him.

Gougeon took hold of the prisoner's hand roughly, and bound a new gag
under the chin and tightly over the head; he then loosened the mouth gag
and turned away, without any interest in the sequel, to pick at a
driblet of grease running down the side of the candle.

The change in the gags allowed of speech between the teeth while
preventing the prisoner's mouth from opening to cry out.

"Spy," said the Admiral severely.