xpect to hear from you--and, by the
way, I understand from monsieur's card that he is an American.'

"I said, 'Yes; captain Second Infantry.'

"'Ah, a soldier--really! In the army of the Confederation, I presume.
We shall be enchanted to meet monsieur's friends.'

"'What!' I said; 'does monsieur the colonel wish to insult me? I am of
the North.'

"'A thousand pardons!'

"'No matter. You will hear from me shortly, or as soon as I am able
to find gentlemen who will be my seconds.' This seemed to suit them
until I remarked that, to save time, being the challenged party, I
might as well say that my friends would insist on the rifle at thirty
paces.

"'But monsieur, that is unusual, barbarous!' said the little man.

"'Indeed!' said I. 'Then suppose we say revolvers at twelve paces or
less. I have no prejudices.' It seems that the baron had, for he said
my new proposition was also unheard of, uncivilized.

"Upon this I stood up and said: 'Gentlemen, you have insisted on
manufacturing for me a quarrel with a man I never saw, and have
suggested--indeed, said--that I, a soldier, am afraid and have lied to
you. I accepted the situation thus forced on me, and in place of the
wretched little knitting-needles with which you fight child duels in
France, I propose to take it seriously.'

"I saw the little man--the colonel--was beginning to fidget. As I
stopped he said, 'Pardon me; I have not the honor fully to
comprehend.'

"'Indeed?' said I. 'So far I have hesitated to ascribe to gentlemen,
to a soldier, any motive for your difficulty in accepting weapons
which involve peril, and I thought that I had at last done so. I do
not see how I can make myself more clear.'

"'Sir,' said my little man, 'do I understand--'

"I was at the end of the sweetest temper west of the Mississippi. I
broke into English and said: 'You may understand what you damn
please.'

"You see, Mr. Greville, it was getting to be fatiguing--these two
improbable Frenchmen. I suppose the small man took my English as some
recondite insult, for he drew himself up, clicked his heels together,
and said, 'I shall have the honor to send to monsieur those who will
ask him, for me,--for me, personally,--to translate his words, and, I
trust, to withdraw the offensive statement which, no doubt, they are
meant to convey.'

"I replied that I had no more to say, except that I should instruct my
friends to abide by the weapons I had mentioned. On this he lost his