The Argosy — page 87: what you’re looking at

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

74 Checkmate in Ten Moves. wondered what the servants must think of the appetite of English convalescents. Mariette must have contrived—I did not enquire how—to give the good Curé a hint that he was wanted. When evening came, and with it M. le Maire, the kind old priest was already in the drawing-room, keeping guard over his innocent hostess. Rash as Ulnch Leinhardt had been in venturing to Trois Etoiles at all, he had not so ignored his military training as to make no provi- sion for retreat. Some three miles off he had a friend, a shelter, and a horse—I believe, a passport also—waiting to help him back to-his regiment. What we had to do was simply to get him out of the town with a fair start ; rien que ca, as Mére Dénise said; and the more we talked the matter over, the more hazy the prospect seemed to grow. The sight of a workman carrying a load out of the house at that hour would rouse a suspicion directly; and the only alternative appeared to be the old woman’s favourite scheme of dressing him in her clothes —to which he showed a repugnance inconsistent with gratitude. And nothing had been settled when we went down to meet M. le Maire. ‘The first sight of him made me realise something of the task before me. His dress was a stately blending of the military and official—he held some rank in the National Guard,-of which he was very tenacious— and the cloak thrown over the left shoulder, the cap with gold orna- ments, the braided coat, and regulation sword, combined with the _amber-headed cane and municipal scarf, served to impress the beholder with his authority and power. Courteous though he was, he gave us at once to understand: that this was no ordinary visit ; and that we were to expect only as much of his respectful homage as duty would allow. On a slight pretext of admiring the show of fruit in the orchard, he begged leave to take a stroll round the premises, in which Eleanor accompanied him, rather amused by the excuses he made for glancing into every corner, shed, and outhouse that could possibly hold a spy. When they got back to the house, he had evidently had enough, for the present, of his heroic trappings ; and put aside cloak, cap, scarf, and sword, until the time for his next round. These were all laid carefully on a chair in the hall, that they might be resumed at a moment’s notice. Mariette and I had gone out to meet them with warnings about chill and dew; and as the Maire handed his hostess back into the drawing-room, we were for a moment behind them. I looked at the chair and then at her; the same thought came into both our minds. In that dress, and in none other, might Ulrich pass unchallenged— af only he could put tt on. To make matters as difficult. as possible, the Maire begged us to allow the door of the salon to be kept open, so that nothing could pass in the hall without his knowledge. His request was, of course, a command ; but I saw Mariette bite her pretty lip with vexation, and was afraid he saw it also. Gomichbooks (E@) m