Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 190 — page 4: what you’re looking at

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

THE THREE GUARDSMEN. - —_ —EE —_ = -—. ——- father say—he who enjoined me 80 strongly to respect | sured, my dear fellow, that I will disseminate the title. the cardinal—if he knew that I was in the company of | What a genius he has, this Aramis! what a pity that auch reprobates ?”’ you could not follow your yocation, my dear fellow; Of course d’Artagnan dared not join in the conversa- | what an exquisite abbe you would have made !’ tion; he only kept his eyes and ears wide open,and| “Oh,it isa mere transitory delay,’ replied Aramis; every sense on the alert, that he might lose nothing ; | ‘one day or other I shall be one; for you well know, and in spite of the paternal advice, he found himself} Porthos, that I continue to study theology with that in- drawn by his tastes and instinct, rather to please than | tention.” blame the incredible things he heard around him. Never- “He will actually do as he says,’’ replied Porthos; theless, as he was absolutely a stranger to the crowd of | “ Be will do it, sooner or later.” M. de Treville’s courtiers and it was the first time he| ‘“ Very soon,” said Aramis. had been seen there, some one came to inquire what he| “He only waits for one thing to decide what he will wanted. At this question he humbly gave his name, | do, and to resume his cassock, which is hung up behind relying on his being a countryman, and requested the | his uniform,” remarked another musketeer, | gervant to solicit a moment's audience ef M. de Tre- “And what event does he wait for,” inquired ville,—a request which the inquirer,in the tone of a | another. protector, promised to make at the proper time. 4 D’Artagnan, a little recovered from his first surprise, | crown of France. had now time to study the dresses and countenances “Let us not jest on this subject, gentlemen, said of those around him. In the midst of the most | Porthos; ‘thank God, the queen is of an age to give it animated group, was a musketeer of great height, of a r haughty countenance, and so fantastical a costume as to attract general attention. He did not wear his uniform coat, which was not absolutely indispensable at that period of less liberty yet greater independence, bs but a coat of celestial blue, slightly faded and worn,| “Aramis, my friend, this time you are wrong, fe- and on this coat a magnificent border of gold embroid- | joined Porthos, “ and your wit always leads you too far. ot Spee glittered like scales upon the sunlit stream; | It would be the worse for youif M. de Treville heard a fully one. “It is said that the Duke ef Buckingham is in France,”’ ebserved Aramis, with an air of mockery, which gave to his remark, simple as was its appearance, a meeting sufficiently scandalous. mantle or cloak of crimson velvet, hung grace- | you talking in this manner.” m his shoulders, discevering the hisait wisoa of “ Do not lecture moe, Porthos,’ cried Aramis, in whose his splendid belt, from which depended his enormous | usually soft eye something like the lightning’s flash rapier. This musketeer, who had just come trom guard, | how appeared, complained of having caught cold, and coughed occa- “ My dear fellow, be either musketeer or abbe; be sionally with great affectation. Therefore, as he averred: | one or the other, but not first one, and then the he had taken his cloak; and whilst he was talking loudly | other ;” exclaimed Porthos, “You may remember about his head,and proudly curling his moustache, | that Athos told you the other day, that you every one much admired the embroidered belt, and | eat at every rack. Butlet us not dispute, I beseech you; d’Artagnan more than any one else. it would be perfectly useless. You know what is settled “What would you have?” said the musketeer. “It is | between you and me and Athos; you go to Madam de the fashion; I know very well that it is foolish, but it is | Bois Tracy, the cousin of Madam de Chevreuse, in whose the fashion; besides, one must spend one’s hereditary , ine graces you are thought to stand highly. Nay, my property on something or other.” ear fellow, confess not your good fortune: no one de- “Ah, Porthos!” cried one of the bystanders; “do not | mands your secret; every one knows your discretion; try to make us believe that this lace comes from the | but since you possess this good virtue yourself, surely paternal generosity; it was given you by the veiled lady | you will not grudge some portion of it to the queen, with whom I met you last Sunday, near the gate of St. | Occupy yourself as you please about the king and the Honore.” cardinal, but the queen is sacred; and if you speak of “No, upon my honor, and by the faith of a gentleman | her at all, let it be respectfully.” I bought it with my own money,” said he whom they “Porthos, you are as presumptious as Narcissus!” called Porthos. said Aramis; “You know that 1 detest moralizing, ex- “Yos, as I bought this new purse with its contents,” | cept from Athos; as to you, my dear fellow, you have cried another musketeer. rather toosplendid a belt to be powerful on that sub- “It is true,” said Porthos, “and the proof is, that 1| ject. Iwill be an abbe if it suits me; in the meantime paid twelve pistoles for it.’’ Iam a musketeer, in which character I say what I The wonder and admiration were redoubled, though | choose, and at this moment I choose to tell you that the doubt still existed. you are tedious.” “Ig it not so, Aramis?” inquired Porthos, turning to} ‘“ Aramis Se another musketeer. “ Porthos ! 4 The person thus appealed to formed a perfect contrast “Hallo! gentlemen! gentlemen!” cried out all te the one who thus questioned him, and who desig- | around them. nated him by the mene of Aramis. He was a young| “ M. de Treville awaitea M. de Artagnan,’’ interrupted man not more than twenty-two or twenty-three years of | the lackey, opening the door of the cabinet. age, with a soft and ingenuouscountenance,a black and| At this declaration, during which the door remained mild eye, and cheeks rosy and damask as an autumnal ee ae silent; and in the midst of this peach; his slender moustache marked a line of perfect | general silence, the young Gascon, passing through rectitude from his upper lip; his hands appeared to | part of the ante-chamber, entered the cabinet of the dread hanging down, for fear of ae their veing | captain of the musketeers, felicitating himself in his swell; and he was continually pinching the tips of his | heart upon just escaping the conclusion of this singular ears, to make them preserve a delicate and transparent | quarrel. carnation hue. Habitually he talked little and slowly, often bowed, laughed quietly, merely showing his teeth, which were good, and of which, as of the rest of his person, he appeared to take the greatest care. He re- — to his friend's question by an affirmative inclina- on of the head, and the affirmation appeared to settle all doubt concerning the embroidery. They therefore continued to admire it, but said no more about it; and by @ sudden change of thought, the conversation at once age to another subject. “Have you heard what Chalais’s squire says?’ in- quired another musketeer, not addressing any one in CHAPTER II, THE AUDIENCE. M. Dz Trevitite was at this moment in avery bad humor; nevertheless, as the young man bowed to the ground, he politely saluted him, and smiled on receiv- ing his compliments, which, in their accent at the same time recalled both his youth and his country—a double recollection, which makes a man smile at as of his life. But going towards the ante-chamber, and | making a sign with his hand to d’ n, as if request- particular, but the company in general. ing permission to finish his business with others before And what does he say?’ demanded Porthos, in a | he began with him, he called three times, raising his voice | conceited tone. each time so as to run through the intermediate scale “He says, that he found Rochefort, the tool of the | between the tone of command and that of anger— | es and failing int cardinal, at Brussels, disguised as a Capuchin friar; and * Athos | ’’—* Porthos !’’—Aramis!" The two musket- that this cursed Rochefort, thanks for his disguise, had Ee yobecnen ecrs, whose acquaintance we have already made, “He waits till the queen has given an heir to the a eee eC -_ ———— -- seastnee to be enlivened by some good and generous e The two musketeers blushed up to the very eyes. D’Artagnan knew not where he was, and wished him- self a hundred feet below the earth. “Yes, yes,” continued M. de Treville, becoming more warm, “yes, his majesty was right; for upon my honor, the musketeers cut but a sorry figure at court. Yesterday, whilst playing with raygh Pos-g the cardinal recounted, with an air of condolence which much annoyed me, that on the previous day these cursed musketeers, these devils incarnate—and he dwelt on these words with an ironical accent, which annoyed me the more—these cutters and slashers—(loo at me with the eye of a tiger)—had leitered beyond the regu- lar hour in a tavern in the Rue Feron, and that a pic- gnet of his guards had been obliged to arrest the turbers, ‘Od's-life! you ought to know somethi about this. Arrest the musketeers! You were amongs them—you, sirs! do not deny it; you were recognized, and the cardinal named py But it is all my own fault, yes, my fault ; for I choose my own men. Look ye, Aramis! why did you ask me fora uniform coat, when & cassock suited youso well? Hark ye, Porthos! have you got such a splendid belt, only to hang to it a sword - pe And Athos——I do not see Athos: where is e ” “Sir,”’ answered Aramis, in a melancholy tone, “ be is ill, very ill.’’ “Til! very ill, say you? and of what disorder ?’’ “We fear it will prove the small-pox,” answered Porthos, anxious to put in a word; “and this would be very distressing, since it would certainly spoil his ap- pearance,”’ j “The small-pox! this is a marvelous story you are telling me, Porthos! Il of small-pox at his age! No, no; but doubtless he is wounded, perhaps killed. Ah! if I were certain of this! By St. Dennis, gentlemen, I do not understand why you haunt such vile places, why you quarrel in the streets, and play with the swords in the crossways; and do not wish you to afford mirth for the cardinal’s guards, who are brave men, quiet, and skill- ful, who never throw themselves open to an arrest, and who, moreover, would not allow themselves to be ar- rested, not they! Iam sure they would rather die than yield one step to save themselves} It is you who fly! who scamper away! A fine thing for the royal musket- eers, indeed!” Porthos and Aramis shook with rage. They could have strangled M. de Treville, had they not preceived that his great affection for them was the foundation of all he said, As it was, they stam on the c t, bit grasped the hilts of their lips till the blood ran, an their swords in silent fury. M. de Treville’s summons for Athos, Porthos, and Aramis had, as we have said, been heard outside the room; and those who remained in the antechamber had concluded, from the sound of his voice, that he was ip a towering rage. Ten curious heads, therefore, rested against the tapestry, and grew pale with anger, for their ears, glued tothe door, lost not one word of what was said, whilst they rapidly repeated the taunting language of their captain to all. who were in the antechamber. In an instant the whole hotel, from the door of the cabinet to the outer gate, was in a state of commotion. “So! the musketeers of the king allow themselves to be arrested by the guards of the cardinal!” continued M. de Treville, not less excited within than were his soldiers without, but jerking out and mincing his words, and plunging them, as one may say, one by one, like the thrusts of a dagger, into the bosoms of his auditors. “So, six of his excellency’s guards arrest six of hie majesty’s musketeers! ‘Fore God! I have taken my resolve! I will go hence to the Louvre, where I shall tender to the king my resignation as captain of the musketeers, and demand a lieutenancy in the cardinal’s guards; and if I fail in this, by heaven, 1 will turn abbel’’ At these words the murmurs without broke out into a regular explosion; nothing but oaths and curses were everywhere heard. ‘“ Morbleu!” ‘“Sangdieu!"” and “ Death to all the devils!"’ resounded through the hotel. D’Artagnan hastily glanced around the cabinet in search of some eT behind which he might hide 8, felt an almost incontrollable esire to get under the table. “ Well, captain,’’ said Porthos, almost beside himself, deceived M, de Laignes, simpleton as he is.” “He is a simpleton,” said Porthos; “but is ita fact ? “I heard it from Aramis,’ answered the guards- an, “Really !"’ “Ay, you know it well enough, Porthos,” said Acamis, “I told it you myself yesterday evening; do not let us talk any more about it.’’ “Not talk any more about it! that’s your view of the matter,’ said Porthos; “not talk any more about it! Egad, you would make short work of it. What! the cardinal sets aspy upon a gentleman, robs him of his ndenoe through a traitor, a robber, a hang-dog; cuts Chalais's throat through this spy, and by means of this correspondence, under the flimsy pretext that he desired to kill the king, and marry monsieur to the queen ! No one knew one word of this enigma; you | told us of it yesterday evening, to the great astonish- ment of every one; and whilst we were still all amazed at the news, you come to-day, and say to us, ‘let us talk | NO more about it !'”’ “Well, then, since it better suits your humor, let us | talk about it,”’ calmly replied Aramis. | “Were I poor Chalais’s squire,”’ cried Porthos, “I, ee make but short work of it with this Roche- | ort !’’ . “And the red duke would make but short work with m you,” replied Aramis. “Ah, the red duke! bravo! bravo! the red duke!’ | exclaimed Porthos with an approving nod, and clap- ping his hands; “the red duke is charming! Rest as- and who answered to the two last of these three | “ the truth is, we were six against six, but were traitor- names, immediately quitted the group of which they | ously set upon, and before we had time to draw our formeda portion, and advanced towards the cabinet, | Swords, two of our party fell dead, and Athos was 80 the door of which was closed immediately they had eg tage wounded as to be scarcely in better plight. passed the threshold. Their countenances, although not | You know him well, captain; twice he endeavo to quite calm, were at the same time full of dignity and | Tise, and twice he fell back; and yet we did not yield submission, and their apparent indifference excited the | ourselves up. No, we were dragged away by force, but admiration ef d’Artagnan, who saw in these men a sca on the road. As for Athos, we believed him species of demi-gods, and in their chief an Olympian | dead, so ws left him on the field of age Jupiter, armed with all his thunders. | thinking he was worth carrying aw&y- That is the When the two musketeers had entered, and the door truth. Zounds! captain, one cannot gain every battle; was closed behind them—when the murmuring buzz of | even the Great ages | lost that of Pharsalia; and Fran- the antechamber, which the summons that had been | cis, who, I have heard, was 48 brave as most men, lost given had doubtless increased, had recommenced— the battle of Pavia.” when, lastly, M. de Treville had paced the whole length | “And Ican assure that I killed one fellow with his of his cabinet three or four times in silence, but with a | own sword,” said Aramis, “for mine was broken at the frowning brow, and ing each time before Porthos | first parry.” + and sume, stiff and mute ason parade, he suddenly | “Tdid not know these circumstances,” said M. d@ | stopped directly in front of them, and measuring them | Treville, in @ somewhat milder tone; ‘from what lnow from top to toe, with an angry look, exclaimed—“ Do learn, the cardinal must have exaggerated,’’ you ‘oat 8 what the king said to me, and that not later| “But I beseech you, sir,” said Aramis, who, secing ng: than last evening? Do you know, gentlemen ?”’ captain more calm,-ventured to hazard a requoss, rhe “No,” answered the two musketeers, after a moment's | beseech you, sir, do not say that Athos is wounded J silence ; ‘‘no, sir, we do not know, but we hope you| would be in despair if it came to the king’s ear; - will do us the honor of informing us,” added Aramis | a8 the wound is very severe, having. r Cae th in his most polished tone, and with the most graceful ohe: h the shoulder, penetrated the chest, it 18 2 w 8 —- ble and “ He told me that, for the future, he should recruit| At this moment the door opened, and ® Do his musketeers from the ranks of the cardinal.” beautiful head, but with a countenance frightfully pale, “From the ranks of the cardinal! And why?” de- | appeared, J manded Porthos. “ Athos !” exclaimed both of the guardsmen. “Because he saw very well that his thin dregs’ “Athos |’ repeated M, de Treville himself, GOMIGEHOOKS a