D'Artagnan, the King Maker — page 266: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

A Fair Exchange. 249 At the same instant, a hasty hand tried the fastened door, and then began pounding on it with a hard fist. Porthos sprang up, awake, like a good soldier who sleeps on his arms, and, sword in hand, hastened to the point attacked while his eyes were opening. “Porthos, Porthos!” was the call. “AIl’s well! D’Artagnan! Why not come right in?” “Come in? Are you drunk? How can I come in, when you have barred and bolted the door!’’ “So I have,” replied Du Vallon, feeling, without abil- ity to see that it was so. “I do not remember; but you could not have done that from the outside!” He undid the door gropingly. A dazzling light blinded him. The musketeer appeared, illumined by a two-light candlestick held by a servant. Porthos drew further back, and his friend followed him well into the room. The footman placed the light on the console, and seeing that Porthos had overturned the hookah, took it out with him. “What a time you were opening?’ grumbled the newcomer, falling into the first chair. — “He did not find the prize,’ thought the amiable knight, sympathetically, “that is why he is cross, for once! Qh, these lovers!” Without being a wiseacre, he had discovered that the best way to counteract disagreeableness is to redouble one’s good-humor; his broad face instantly beamed and his smile widened. “T was killing time in your long absence,” began he. “For which, to have no witnesses, you locked your- self in! But with what? All ‘the dead men’ I see are under the table.” “Oh, the voided bottles; you are right. I was drink- ing, eating and smoking!” “T can smell smoke, but I see no crumbs “That is because I ate all up! It was a light colla- tion. If there were any scraps they fell off oh “With the dishes?” Porthos stared; he was unaware of the table having been cleared. “Never heed! but you were in the dark, like you are leaving me.” bP GOMIGEHOOkKSHEO