Monsieur Beaucaire | Page 6

enough to behol' the opera
without wishing to sing; but no, England have teach' me I have those
vulgar desire'. Monsieur, I am goin' tell you a secret: the ladies of your
country are very diff'runt than ours. One may adore the demoiselle, one
must worship the lady of England. Our ladies have the - it is the beauty
of youth; yours remain comely at thirty. Ours are flowers, yours are
stars! See, I betray myself, I am so poor a patriot. And there is one
among these stars - ah, yes, there is one - the poor Frenchman has
observe' from his humble distance; even there he could bask in the
glowing!" M. Beaucaire turned to the window, and looked out into the
dark. He did not see the lights of the town. When he turned again, he
had half forgotten his prisoner; other pictures were before him.
"Ah, what radiance!" he cried. "Those people up over the sky, they
want to show they wish the earth to be happy, so they smile, and make
this lady. Gold-haired, an angel of heaven, and yet a Diana of the chase!
I see her fly by me on her great horse one day; she touch' his mane with
her fingers. I buy that clipping from the groom. I have it here with my
dear brother's picture. Ah, you! Oh, yes, you laugh! What do you know!
'Twas all I could get. But I have heard of the endeavor of M. le Duc to
recoup his fortunes. This alliance shall fail. It is not the way - that
heritage shall be safe' from him! It is you and me, monsieur! You can

laugh! The war is open', and by me! There is one great step taken: until
to-night there was nothing for you to ruin, to-morrow you have got a
noble of France - your own protege - to besiege and sack. And you are
to lose, because you think such ruin easy, and because you understand
nothing - far less - of divinity. How could you know? You have not the
fiber; the heart of a lady is a blank to you; you know nothing of the
vibration. There are some words that were made only to tell of Lady
Mary, for her alone - bellissima, divine, glorieuse! Ah, how I have
watch' her! It is sad to me when I see her surround' by your yo'ng
captains, your nobles, your rattles, your beaux - ha, ha! - and I mus' hol'
far aloof. It is sad for me - but oh, jus' to watch her and to wonder!
Strange it is, but I have almos' cry out with rapture at a look I have see'
her give another man, so beautiful it was, so tender, so dazzling of the
eyes and so mirthful of the lips. Ah, divine coquetry! A look for
another, ah-i -me! for many others; and even to you, one day, a rose,
while I - I, monsieur, could not even be so blessed as to be the groun'
beneath her little shoe! But to-night, monsieur - ha, ha! - to-night,
monsieur, you and me, two princes, M. le Duc de Winterset and M. le
Duc de Chateaurien - ha, ha! you see ? - we are goin' arm-in-arm to that
ball, and I am goin' have one of those looks, I! And a rose! I! It is time.
But ten minute', nonsieur. I make my apology to keep you waitin' so
long while I go in the nex' room and execute my poor mustachio - that
will be my only murder for jus' this one evening - and inves' myself in
white satin. Ha, ha! I shall be very gran', monsieur. Francois, send
Louis to me; Victor, to order two chairs for monsieur and me; we are
goin' out in the worl' to-right!"

Chapter Two
The chairmen swarmed in the street at Lady Malbourne's door, where
the joyous vulgar fought with muddied footmen and tipsy link-boys for
places of vantage whence to catch a glimpse of quality and of raiment
at its utmost. Dawn was in the east, and the guests were departing.
Singly or in pairs, glittering in finery, they came mincing down the
steps, the ghost of the night's smirk fading to jadedness as they sought

the dark recesses of their chairs. From within sounded the twang of
fiddles still swinging manfully at it, and the windows were bright with
the light of many candles. When the door was flung open to call the
chair of Lady Mary Carlisle, there was an eager pressure of the throng
to see.
A small, fair gentleman in white satin came out upon the steps, turned
and bowed before a lady who appeared in the doorway, a lady whose