The Washington herald., 1919-10-08
Twenty Years After
By ALEXANDRA DUMAS
Condensation by Rev. R Perry Bush, D. d.

Few Of US with red blood in our
veins ever lose our interest In deeds
OF chivalric valor and adventure. and
Dumas is a master in his delinea-
tion of soldiers of fortune-their IA
tai marksma nship. their matchless
welding Of sword and rapier. and
their hairbreadth escapes.
In Twenty Years After" he pre-
sents his Three Musketeers."
more matured and not as
rollicking as when we met them in
early manhood, but Just as ready to
champion the needy and unfortunate
Louis XIII of France is dead His
son. the king. is but 10 years Of
age. The mighty Richelieu is in his
grave. Mazarin is cardinal and
though but a ghost Of his iliustrious
predecessor. he holds almost abso-
lutte control over the queen-Anne OF
Austria.
The conditions are opportune for q
story Of personal daring and bloody
encounter.
Mazarin is an Italian and is uni
versally hated. Paris is leagued
against the ministry. and the SOL
diers of the royal guard are at
tackled and their lieutenant-Cum-
mings-is wounded. Everywhere
there are forebodings and cries OF
Down with Mazarin." The cardinal
DISCUSSES himself and inspects the
city. He finds the "FTondeurs''-the
insurrectionists-in full sway. Some
how he must secure trusty servants
or downfall awaits him. DArtasnau.
the lieutenant of the musketeers. is
recommended. together with his three
sturdy colleagues. Count de Roch-
fort Is brought from confinement in
the Bastile to testify to D'Artagnan's
allegiance, and is freed by the mob
while being taken back to prison.
Mazarin is in despair and be tells
spires to break their bonds" and
D'Artagnan is directed to find his
three friends and attach them to the
royal service. Aramis-Abbe D'Her-
blay-is an ecclesiastic in love with
Madame de Longueville. He hates
the cardinal and refuses.
Porthos-the giant-livfng in luxury
as Monsieur de Valon del Bracieux
de Pierrefonds, desires above all else
to be a baron. He enlists.
Athos-Monsieur de la Fere-re-
formed from drink and devoted to
a young ward-viscount de Brage-
lonne-is still as OF old. a noble
minded lover of the people. and will
not serve the cardinal.
Two for, and two against Mazariu.
the musketeers make
their way to Paris, where there is
great excitement because of a
prophecy that Due de Beaufort
the grandson of Henry Wi and the
idol of the populace-will escape
from the dungeon of vincennes be-
fore Whitsuntide Beaufort hates
Mazarin and uses ingenious means
Of Tidicul;ng him. Grimaud. a SEW
ant OF Athos, is set to guard MIN.
aud he With Count de Rochefort
effect his escape: and D'Artagnan
and Porthos, seeking to recapture
him. have an encounter in which
they are taken prisoner by A:hos
and Elopis, but are set free Gnd
the four pledge mutual friendship.
Meanwhile the preparations for L
surrection are intensified and a new
ally cf the popular cause is found in
Abbe Scarron-"the Queens in
valid" who is in control of the
mendicants of Paris and whose pen
sion has been cut of by Mazarin.
Another important character is also
introduced at this juncture-a
wounded soldier calls for a priest
and he who responds proves ITO be
the Monk Mordaunt. a desperate
character whose sole aim is to
avenge the death of his mother, in
which the Three Musketeers" par
ticipated. Learning from the man
to whom he ministered that he had
been the executioner of Milady.
Mordaunt stabs him to the heart
and then makes his escape.
At this time Lord de winter
uncle of Mordaunt-comes with a
letter from Charles / OF England.
to Queen Henrietta. who is an exile
in France, telling OF the desperate
straits in which he is placed by the
troops Of oliver Cromwell and d.
recting her to entreat Mazsrin to
grant him asylum. Henrietta goes
to plead with the cardinal. but is
preceded by Mordaunt. who is an
envoy of Cromwell. bearing from
the Puritan leader the message that
ito receive King Charles will be
equal to flagrant hostilities."
The Queens petition is accord
ingly refused. and she is in great
despair: but De Winter tells her
there are four men who might be
able to save her husband. OF the
four AtiIos and Aramis are per-
suaded to make the venture and
they leave for Boulogne secretly.
followed and spied upon by Nor
daunt. leaving D'Artagnan and
Porthos in the service of Mazarin.
But affairs grow worse in Paris. The
archbishop of the city is ridiculed at
court when he warns the queen not
to provoke civil war. and though the
cardinal tries to assuage his anger
by a gift of gold. he goes forth as a
leader of the Frondists and instructs
his curates to excite insurrection.
Count de Rochefort commands a de-
tachment Of soldiers and Able Scar
ron, the beggar of st. Eustache. dis
plays a signal from the tower OF St
JaQues which summons thousands
to barricade the streets.
Every Frondist wears a straw In his
hat Everywhere. there are cries OF
Down with Mazarin''-'Iong live
Broussel" Riot Is rampant in all
parts of the city and tumult swells to
revolution. The mob presses for
ward to the very sstes Of the royal