Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1895-02-22

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That may be-" replied he, 'but [
am have duel this afternoon with
Martial Rogue, and. though am no
novice in such matters and have caught
swallow on the wing many and many
time, one caunot be sure with 10 dan
gerous an antagonist what may happen. "
Staub and Sakosky stared at each
other aghast Such an off-hand pro-
ceeding took the breath out of them.
They reflected on the chance most
unlikely of course. but still possible
of his proving himselfthe better shot Of
the two. Rogue owed thom regular
pot Of money, and if he should chance
to fall by Symphorien's bullet, who
would pay their bills (?
Staub looked at Sakosky, Sakosky
looked at Staub 1t was enough They
understood each other,
Monsieur" said the latter. "iu
case like yours the choice of seconds is
a matter of great Importance, May
take the liberty of inquiriug the names
of those who act in your behalfY"
II have none as yet" replied the
young provincial. al shall probably
take. the first two soldiers | meet Any
one, in short. have no acquaintances
in Paris to whom can apply"
Then, monsieur said Staub. II
may venture to make you proposition.
Whenever have leisure moment,
am generally to be found in some shoot
ing gallery where our skilful marksmen
congregate. Therefore, as you are I'M
provided with seconds, if you will con-
descend to accept my services and those
of NJ. Sakosky"-
Willingly, monsieurs," interrupted
Symphoren, who desired nothing bet
ter. "You anticipate my wish and save
me an infnity of trouble"
Three hours later the two principals
and their seconds, punctual to the min
ute, arrived at the spot fixed upon for
the encounter.
"What," exclaimed Rogue, che has
chosen you 7"
"He could not do otherwise. You
gave him our names and addresses, and
as he knows no one else in Paris he was
only too glad to avail himself Of our
services
Roques sense Of humor, small NJ it
was, was so irresistibly tickled by the
absurdity of the situation that he laugh
cd outright. Encouraged by his unus-
ual geniality, his two creditors began
eloquently to implore him to be merci-
full
"Consider, monsieur" urged Sakos
ky, "lf you deprive US of so excellent a
customer, the loss it will be to both Of
us. A perfect treasure, who pays with.
out bargaining and before tho goods are
delivered Those are hard time, NJ.
Rogue
"And We have so many debts on our
books, NJ Rogue, "Staub added iusinu-
atingly.
There was a parley. Rogue was
clearly perplexcd, lie stood Il moment
in thought, evidently wavering between
passion and mirth Finally he walked
over to the outwardly calm Balivsau.
Monsieur" said he, with courte- :
Gus bow, you are sharper witted than
took you to be
"Eh In what way monsieur Sym
phorien demanded.
"You know how to save your skin
without compromising yourself But,
see you. tell me what made you 80 bent
on duel last lightY'
Ambition" frankly confessed the
provincial 81 wanted to be celebrated
and saw no other way"
"Ah, you have the mania, too, thenf
SO had oncc-till | outlivea the folly.
Well, no matter. You've courage, and
your wish shall be grati6ed more easily
and safely than mine was. Get iato
my cabriolet When they see us re-
turning together, people will say Of you
Behold, the only man who ever went
out with Rogue and came back safe and
sound Jump in before | change my
mind, which would be all the worse for
you"
Then, agreeably conscious that he
was tho object Of universal attention.
Baliveau proceeded to the cafe de Paris
the restaurant most in vogue at that
time-where he lcngthily dinod, know
ing that every eye, from the waiter to
the dame de compton, was fixed upon
him with an interest AMI curiosity that
satisfied, even beyond his anticipatisns.
his thirst for notoriety.
Alas for the unstablencss Of human
felicity Next morning there was n
panic on the bourse When be entered
Tortonis for breakfast, no one noticed
him They were too much absorb ID in
the profits and the losses
IL was the coup de grace to B.ii-
veau's brief celebrity. and weary aud
dispirted he returned % his province
home. cincinnati Commercial Gazette.