The Russellville Democrat. [volume] (Russellville, Ark.) 1875-1898, 1889-05-30

HEbtCdAhVcA. AWohtg 0topef ~ VIZ
word OF command, raising the weapon
instead Of lowering it. Slrots to be ex-
changed until one or the other is seri-
ously wounded.
Those. are excellent conditions, the
Colonel announced in satisfied tone;
''you are good shot, all the chances
are on your side.n
And they separated. The Yieomte
went to his rooms to await their COM
ing. His agitation, which had been
quoted for time, grew now from
minute to minute. He was conscious
OF sort Of trembling. vibration
creeping over his arms, his legs. and
into his heart; neither sitting nor
standing could he keep still.
All the natural saliva had left his
mouth, and every now and then his
tongue clicked dryly against his pal
ate.
He thought at first he would break
fast, and then found he could not eat
The idea struck him to drink to give
himself courage, and then he had a
OF which he drank, one after the other.
six small glasses. He seemed envel-
oped in warmth like flame, then a
bewilderment of soul came to him.
He thought: 81 hold the means. Now
feel better-sure of myself"
But at the end of an hour he had
emptied the bottle, and his state of
nerves again became unbearable. He
felt mad desire to roll on the ground,
to cry out, to gnaw something.
A pull at the door-bell gave him so
great a feeling of suffocation that he
was not strong enough to get up and
receive his seconds. He no longer
dared speak to them, say good morn
ing" or pronounce one single word
for fear they would divine all from the
mere alteration in his voice.
"All is settled according to the con-
ditions you arranged the Colonel
announced your adversary first
claimed the privileges of the insulted
party, but he gave in very soon and
has accepted every thing. His seconds
are TWO military men.
The Vicomte managed to utter:
Thanks.
The Colonel went on:
Pardon us If we only come in and
go right out again, for we have
thousand things to do yet. We must
have good surgeon, since the duel is
to last until there is a serious wound;
and you know to get ball in ones
self is no joke. We must choose a
place near house, where the wounded
man may be carried if necessary, and
so forth and so on; in fact, we have
enough to keep US busy for two or
three hours"
Again the Vicomte articulated:
Thanks
"You are feeling we'll" said the Col
onel, feeling calmPn
Eyes. very calm, thanks.
The two men went away.
".
When he knew himself to be alone
once more he thought he was going
mad.
His man having lit the lamps, he
seated himself at his table to write
some letters. After having written on
the top of the page, This is my
will" he got up again with a shudder
and stretched himself impotently, feel
ing incapable of putting one idea with
another, of taking any resolution, de-
Gliding any thing.
So he was to fight! He could no
longer avoid it. What was happening
to himp He wished to fight, he meant
to fight, his mind was fully made up
to it, and it really seemed, in spite of
all his mental effort and the strain on
power of will, that he could not keep
hold Of sufficient strength to take him
to the meeting place, tie tried to
picture the duel to himself, his own
attitude, his adversary's bearing.
From time to time his teeth hit to-
gether in his mouth with a little dry
noise. He wished to read. and took
up Chateauvillard's Code of Deul-
ing" He then said to himself:
HAS my opponent frequented shoot
ing matches? Is he well known? Does
he belong to any special class? How
can | find out?"
He remembered Baron de Vaux's
book on marksmen, and looked it over
from one end TO the other. George
Lamil's name was not there. but yet If
this man we're not good shot, he
would not 50 readily have accepted so
dangerous a weapon and such deadly
conditions. Whilst pacing up and down
he opened box of CASTOR Kenneth,
placed it on a stand and took from it
one of the pistols, Then he put him
self in position TO fire and raised his
arm. But he trembled from head to
foot, the pistol waved in his grasp;
then he said:
at is impossible. | can not fight
like this He looked into the end of
the pistol, the little, deep, black hole
that spits forth death. He thought of
dishonor, the gossip OF the clubs, the
laughter OF society, the scorn of wom-
en-, the inuendoes of newspapers, of the
insults towards would fling at him. All
this time he was staring mt the weap-
on, and raising the cock, he saw sud-
denly the printing glistening under
meath like tiny red flame. Through
chance or forgetfulness the pistol had
been left loaded. 1t gave him feel
ing OF confused inexplicable joy.
II before the other he did not hold
himself as diGnihe1 and calm as he
should, he would be lost forever. He
would DO spotted, branded with in
fanny, driven out OF society-and that
calm, brave bearing, he would not
have it, he knew it, he felt it, And
yet he was brave, since he wished TO