The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1890-05-11
And ceaselessiy he asked himself:
'What shall l do? What will become

hIlu tue Wnliss n kTtut IdIl u tctiuots
light, like q caress from the rising sun,
developed the awakened world, and with
this glimmer a hope gay, rabid, brutal
seized on the heart of the viscount. Vas
he mad to let himself be SO struck down
by fear before anything had ever been de-
Of this George Lamil, before he yet knew
IL he was going to fight at all?
He made his toilet, dressed himself, and
left the house with q firm step.
He repeated to himself while walking:
at must be decided-very decided. /
must prove that l Am not afraid"
His seconds, the marquis and the colonel
put themselves at his disposition, and
after having pressed his hands energetic
ally, discussed the conditions OF the meet
ing;
"You want q serious duel""
The viscount answered.:
every serious"
The marquis took up the word.
'Yes.n
"Do you leave us free TO settle the rest"
The v%iscount ~articulated with a dry,
jerky voice.
"Twenty PAGES, firing at the word, lift
ing the arm instead OF lowering il. Ex-
change Of shots until some one is badly
wounded"
The colonel declared. in a satisfied
n
'Thosc are excellent conditions. You
are a good shot; h chances are all in
M favor"
And they separated. The viscount re-
turned bone to wait for them. His agita-
ton, which had been temporarily Gained,
was now increasing with every moment.
He felt along his arms. along his legs, In
his chest, n kind Of quivering. n kind Of
continuous vibration; he could not stay In
place. neither sitting down nor standing
up. He had no longer a place of moisture
In his moisture In his mouth, and he made
at every instant a noisy movement Of the
tongue as IL to unglue ii from his palate.
A warmth, like a burn, seized on him. II
was followed as soon by n giddiness of
the soul. He thought. .
~ know the way. Now II will 90 all
right"
But at the end OF an hour he had emp
tied the decanter, and his state If agita-
ton was become again intolerable. He
felt a wild necessity to roll upon the
ground, to cry, TO bite. Evening fell.
The sound of the door bell caused him
such a feeling of suifocation hat he had
not h strength to rise and meet his Sec
onds.
He did not dare to talk to them any
longer-to say "How do you do ," to pro-
nounce a single word, for fear lest they
divine all from the alteration to his
voice.
lIeColOI1cl Sllu.
Everything Is settled according to the
conditions which you fixed You OPP
ponent at first insisted on the privileges
of the offended party, but he yielded
almost Immediately, and has agreed To
everything. His seconds are two officers.
The viscount said:
"Thank YOU"
The marquis resumed.
Excuse us IL we only just run i'm and
out, but we've still a thousand things tn
do. We must have a good doctor, because
the duel is not To stop until after some
one is badly hit, and you know there is no
trifling with bullets. A place must be APP
pointed near some house where we can
carry the wounded one Of the two, IL il is
necessary, etc; it will take us quite two
or three hours more.
The v~iscount articulated a second time
THAT you"
The colonel asked:
YOU'RE all right? You're aim"
"les, quite calm, thanks"
The two men retired.
When he felt himself alone again |,
seemed to him that he was going mad,
His servant having lit the lamps he sal
down before his table to write some let.
tiers. After tracing at the top of n page
''this is my will" he got up again and
drew off, feeling incapable of putting two
ideas together, Of making a single rcsolu
ton. Of deciding anything at all.
htiu so h' vas koihS w hght a. aieis NV
could no longer escape that. What could
be passing within him? He wanted Il
fight he had that intention and that reso
luton firmly fixed, and he felt yer,
plainly that, Notwithstanding all ia,
effort of his mind and all the tension oil
his will. he would not be able to retain
strength enough to go as far as the plac,
of the encounter. He tried t. fancy III,
combat, his own attitude, and the bearing
OF his adversary.
From time to time his teeth struck
against one another in his mouth with q
little dry noise. He tried To read. and tool
up de Chateauvillard's dueling code. Ther
he asked himself:
MY adversary. has he frequented
the shooting galleries? Is he wei
known? What's his class? How can
He remembered the book by Baron de
Vaux upon pistol shooters, and hs
searched through il from one end to the
other. Georges Lamil was not men
toned. But, IL the man had not been {
good shot. he would not have accepte,
Immediately that dangerous weapon an,
those conditions, which were mortal.
His pistol case by Gastinne Renette Ia.
on a little round table. As he passed h,
opened it u took out onc Of the pistols
then placed himself as IL To shoot, an,
raised his arm. but he trembled from hea,
To foot, and the barrel tremblcd in al
directions.
Then he said:
1T is impossible. | can not fight lik'
this"
At the end of the barrel he regarde,
that little hole, black and deep, wbicl
spits out death; hc thought of dishonor
OF the whispers In the club, OF the laugh
ter in the drawing rooms, Of the disdail
Of women, of the illusions in the papers
of the insults which would he thrown a
him by towards.
He went on staring at the pistol, and
. raising the hammer, he suddenly saw
| printing glitter beneath like a little re-
fiame. The pistol had been left loade'
by chance, by oversight.
! IL in the presence Of his adversary h
I had not the calm and noble bearinI