e impossible might be accomplished, and the
valour of his comrade stem the accursed horde. To no purpose. As he
turned like lightning to deliver a thrust to the left, a blow from a
billhook on the right crushed his skull; he dropped, and his bleeding
body was instantly robbed and dragged out to the Place d'Armes.

Meanwhile du Repaire, inspired by the heroic conduct of de Varicourt,
took advantage of the momentary diversion to slip across and occupy his
fallen comrade's post. The assailants, some of the boldest of whom had
suffered from de Varicourt's sword, were astonished and daunted by the
sight of another Bodyguard in the same place.

"_Canaille!_ we know how to die!" he cried, and stood ready to strike
the first on-comer.

"So do we!" cried the Admiral, and struck at him, but tripped and was
pulled back.

"Save yourself, du Repaire, if you can," commanded Germain from within
the door.

Seizing the moment's confusion, du Repaire sprang through the weakest
part of the semicircle around him, and scattering the tramps in the rest
of the hall before him, reached the door of the Great Hall of the Guards
opposite, not without several wounds. The door was fortunately opened
and Grancey, who opened it, emptied his pistol into the foremost pursuer
and killed him, obtaining time to lock and bolt again.

The crowning instance of the spirit of the Bodyguard was now given.
Miomandre de Ste Marie, who had sheltered himself from the first rush of
the mob in the window embrasure at the head of the staircase, seeing the
crowd rush after du Repaire, and not knowing of the command to abandon
the post, sped over and stationed himself in the same position.
Meanwhile, during the few minutes in which all this took place, Germain
had opened the door of the Queen's drawing-room and said quietly to a
lady of honour, "Save the Queen; they want to kill her." The ladies of
honour bolted the drawing-room door, hurried to the Queen, hastily
dressed her, opened a secret door in a panel near her bed, and hurried
her by a passage to the chamber of the King.

Miomandre, meanwhile, was attacked like Varicourt and du Repaire.
Knocked down from behind with the butt of a musket, he would have been
despatched but for the scramble of the Galley men to rob his body of his
watch, and by the diversion of the rage of the crowd against his
companions shut in the Great Hall.

While Ste Marie lay insensible, those in the Great Hall were actively
piling