The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-06-15
THE THREE GUARDSMEN
Dv ALEXANDRE DUMAS

two friends r
 "Humph! have three who would be honorsd by joining in the sport with me- ]" ts
 .Three! That's, fortunate. That falls out oddly. Three is just my number" eaS &4 {. fss @ ' Now, then, who are youg asked the Englishman. .4 ~
 I am III. d,Artagnan, a Gascon gen. tleman serving in the guards !inN the company of M, Dessessart: And yours, .'I am the Lord de Winter. baron of Shefield.,'
 Later D'Artagnan employed himself In arranging little plan of which we shall hereafter see the execution and which promised him some agreeable adventure. ' a
 The hour. being come, D,Artagnan and the three guardsmen, with their four lackeys. repaired to a spot behind the Luxembourg. The lackeys were charged to act as sentinels.
 The Englishmen were all men of rank. Consequently the extraordinary names of their adversaries were for them not only matter of surprise, but of uneasiness-
 "But, after all this" said Lord de Winter when the three friends had been named, Eve do not know who you are. As gentlemen we cannot fight with such.n
 You gambled very willingly with us without knowing our real names, said Athos. .ss717 s
 That is true, but we fight with our equals only"
 .And that is but just," said Athos, and he took aside that one of>the- four Englishmen with wham> he was to fight and communicated his name in a low voice.
 Porthos and Aramis did the same.
 "You would have acted much more wisely If you had not required me to make myself known" said Athos.
 Why SOP" 7
 Because am believed to be dead and have reason for wishing nobody should know am living, so that l shall be obliged to kill you to prevent my secret getting wind"
 The Englishman looked at Athos, be- Ieving that he was joking, but Ati,os was not joking the least ill the world
 Gentlemen" said Athos, addressing at the same time his companions and their adversaries, ..guardv'
 And immediately eight swords gilt tered in the rays of the setting sun
 AthOs fenced with as much calmness and method as if he had been practic ing in a school. '@T 'a
 Porthos, corrected, no doubt, of his too great confidence by his adventure of Chantilly, played with prudence.
 Aramis, who had the third canto of . poem to finish, made all the dispatch of man very much pressed for time.
 Athos, the first, killed his adversary He hit him but once; but as he had foretold, that hit was mortal one.
 Porthos, the second. stretched his upon the grass with wound through his thigh, and as the Englishman, with out making any further resistance, then surrendered his sword, Porthos took him up in his arms and carried him to his carriage
 Aramis pushed his so vigorously that after going back fifty paces he finished by fairly taking to his heels and disap- peared amid the hooting of the Jack eys.
 As to D'Artagnan. he fought purely and simply or the defensive, and when he saw his adversary pretty well ia tigued. with vigorous side thrust he twisted the sword from his grasp and sent 1t glitterins into the air.
 "I could kill you, milord," said he to the Englishman. "You are completely at my mercy. but spare your life for the sake of your sister
 q D'Aftagnan was at the height of joy. He had realized the plan which he had fancied, the development of which had produced smiles upon his face. ; The Englishmap. delighted at nav ing to do with q gentleman of such a kind disposition, pressed D'Artagnan In his arms and paid thousand com pliments to the three musketeers. and as Porthos' adversary was already in- stalled in the carriage and as Aramis' had run. away, they had nothing to
 
 taken away by his friend.
 My young friend, if you will permit me. I hope to give you that name," said Lord de Winter; Ion this very evening, if agreeable to you, will pre- sent you to my sister, Lady Clark; for am desirous that she should take you into her good graces. and as she is not in bad OdOr at court. she may per haps on some future day speak a word that will not prove useless to you"
 D'Artagnan blushed with pleasure, and bowed a sign of assent.
 Lord de Winter, on quitting DAT tagnan, gave him his sisters address. She, lived in No. 6 Place Royale, then the fashionable quarter, and undertook to call and take him with him in order to introduce him. D'ArtagnansappOint