he blood from his face, and said
to me in a cool, determined voice:

"'Gaston Cheverny, I am in your debt for this. I will promise to pay
you off, with a balance to your credit.' That was all he said--I
scorned to have anything further to say, and mounting my horse, rode
off, but I have made a good enemy out of a remorseless scoundrel. At
all events, however, it is better than having him profess friendship
for me."

"Quite so," I answered, "and what did Mademoiselle Capello say when
she heard of it?"

"Of course, I did not speak of it to her, but equally of course, she
heard of it, and thanked me for it. And she had also heard that
Jacques Haret had promised to revenge himself. But she is no more
afraid of him than I am. She still hopes and believes that Lisa will
return, but no word has come of her, whether she be living or dead."

He then told me that Regnard, as usual, had timed his visit to
Brabant, so the brothers could be there together, and half laughing
and half chagrined, told me that Regnard, in his white Austrian
uniform, was very captivating to the eye. And they both desired
Francezka, who laughed at all suitors to her hand. Yet there was a
cheerfulness about Gaston Cheverny, which showed me that Francezka was
not less kind than formerly. Madame Riano was talking with renewed
earnestness of going to Scotland, and Gaston based great hopes on
that.

But the time of action had arrived, and soon we would all be on the
march. In the first days of February, 1733, Count Saxe's father, the
King of Poland and of Saxony, died. He left Count Saxe a fine fortune,
and he left war to Europe. The King of France was minded to have his
father-in-law, Stanislaus, ex-King of Poland, back on the electoral
throne of Poland. Nobody else wanted him there. I doubt if the poor
old man himself would not rather have lived and died peaceably at
Luneville. But he must try for it, against the wish and will of
Austria. A conflagration in Europe was impending, and meanwhile
another one occurred in a small way in Brabant. The same _estafette_
which brought the news of King August's death, also brought
intelligence, gleaned by chance, that in the middle of the night, four
days before, every granary, stable and outbuilding of the Manoir
Cheverny was burned to the ground; and on St. Valentine's day of 1733
Gaston Cheverny got letters saying that the Manoir Cheverny itself
was but a heap of ashes. Not a book nor a chair had been saved. T