D'Artagnan, the King Maker — page 67: what you’re looking at

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

58 A New Bidder. and dry as old Parmesan cheese, carried by himself in his gabardine, he made his supper, perhaps the first meal he had that day. He had appeased his appetite when an alarm at the aperture caused him to spring up, regretting that he was not a man of war who could have utilized some of the arms about the cave. It was only that mule, which, reinforced by the clam- ponnier, thrust its head in. He tied it up by the outlet, threw it an armful of rushes, of which the horse amicably partook, they pulling out mouthfuls by turns, and hung an old sail across the passageway, as much to keep out the air currents as the animals. Lighting a third candle, so that the other should not leave him in the dark, it approaching its end, he resumed his calculations. He frowned and smiled by turns. By his gloating look, one might consider that his mind’s eye was peering into a strong box full of gold and silver and other valuables. He was startled by the sound of more than one step without. The horse neighed and the mule whinnied. Poor out- cast, he wished to make friends with even his haughty cousins. The heavy ones were man’s—maybe Pedro’s; a lighter one, which neared the doorway, a woman’s, hardly Quaqua’s, for its ease and alacrity. Thieves would not come, with supporters perfectly careless concerning the noise they made. He was a little reassured as he stood between a desire to flee and a belief that he could not escape, by the light steps stopping at the ingress as if the person were not bold. At the same moment, a gentle rapping with a small white glove, made the doorpost resound. “Gloved? Whom have we there?” he asked himself, hiding the memorandum book in his sleeve. ‘The cred- itor was an offender against the functionaries and would hardly more seek to set them upon me than the fishers! After all, I have come, as far as he was entangled, simply for my dues. Hark! it is a woman! Oh, let us face the danger! I am not the fool to carry my treasure on my back!" smiling with the superiority of the few educated CORNICE OOOKS (E(0)