The Argosy, March 1907 — page 75: what you’re looking at

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

~ part. oiselle’s associates. S = po TRE EAGLE OF EMPIRE, =: faced serving fellow, but he was puzzled at what he heard. “It was mademoiselle’s wish that mon- sieur be permitted to remain until the last moment, because of the recent ill- ness, and M. le Surgeon so advised,” re- plied the other. * “Ah!” said Inwood dryly, “and so it was that: because it was thought the fever had weakened me. Jademoiselle and the little surgeon feared I might grow faint by the way. See if it would be so.” He reached forward and picked up a heavy chair; then, before the wondering eyes of the mute Frenchman, he tore the wood apart and dropped the pieces upon the floor. | Why he did this he would not have been able to explain, but a mood of recklessness was upon him. JMJademot- selle, the others who had occupied the house were gone, leaving a servant to bring him word that he, too, might de- And they had believed, or pre- tended to believe, that he was little better than an invalid. “And mademoiselle wished me to re- main until the last moment; well, has that moment come?’ he said sharply. “Vraiment! Mademoiselle was most particular on that point. But now mon- sicur has heard for himself. It will bea quarter of an hour, perhaps longer, for there are still ten houses between them and us. You will understand I have waited till the last moment—the very last—because there is the passage leading behind the garden into the alley. JMJon- steur can go that way quickly—and un- observed by any one in the Faubourg St. Germain.” “ And why _ stopped. He felt uncertain of his position, and the man’s words puzzled him, but he judged it better not to appear too curi- ous. Then suddenly something of what was meant dawned upon him. He remembered who had been madem- And he remembered also who was master in Paris at that moment. | “They are visiting the houses in the Faubourg St. Germain, I wunderstand,”’ he finished coolly. He remembered having heard that the ow. A Sn a ns _ <<. oe ai ae ers ts. — ~ T= 7 aon x ¢ ” began Inwood; then i 3 - great majority of houses in that thor- | oughfare were the residences of Royal- ists. That under the empire the broad street had assumed the aspect of a place deserted ; because those who dwelt there- on had closed their shutters and crossed the border, out of France. The Frenchman at his side made a quick gesture of assent. “It is as monsieur has observed. It has happened before—before the—em- peror went to Elba. ‘The minister of police used to search the houses fre- quently. I have seen some _ terrible things, monsteur.”’ ‘And since the return from Elba? During the last sixty days, while I lay here unconscious?” Inwood asked. “This is the first time, which is per- haps fortunate. But now they are searching the house again, monsieur.” It was easy now to read the meaning of the long roll of the drum, the taps and silence. The soldiers appointed by the emperor’s minister of police to search through the old nests of the Royalists were moving from house to house; beat- ing up the possible inmates as hunters, keen on the scent, beat up the under- brush. ' What surprised Inwood was that the thing should be done so openly; that opportunity was given to the victims to escape. Later, he learned that it was the pol- icy of the emperor to scatter his enemies, not to arrest by wholesale the Royalists of Paris. Perhaps Napoleon felt the threatening shadow which hung over his newly regained throne; it was at least his idea, for the moment, not to drive any sect of Frenchmen to desperation. To clear the Faubourg St. Germain, not to permit the old birds, the hatchers of treason against his power, to sit too se- curely upon their nests—this answered the purpose while he was amassing a new army. Later, when he had worsted the allies gathering beyond the frontier, it might be another matter. Once again all-powerful against external enemies he could crush beyond resurrection the ad- herents of the Bourbons who remained within reach of his arm. The crash of the drum rang out again ; this time a little nearer. Inwood glanced down into the street. GOmicbooks.co 7 . <