HE momentous day had come. Looking out of my bedroom window in the morning, I saw the sunshine smiling on the bare trees and the frosted grass of the park. At that hour the shadows were long, and Rotten Row quiet as a lonely sea-shore, so that a lively flock of sparrows seemed to fill the whole air with their cheerful discussions, and I fancied they were debating whether they could let me go away and leave forever this little home that I had made.

“I would stay,” I said to them; “I would stay if I could.”

But, alas! it was to be my last day in England, the land I had first regarded as so alien, and then come to love so well. And there was no use standing here letting my spirit run down at heel.

Yet, when I came into my sitting-room and saw the bareness that had already been made by my preparations for departure, the absence of little things my eye had before fallen upon without noticing, and the presence of a half-packed box in one corner, my heart began to feel an emptiness again.

“I feel as a man must when he is going to get married,” I said to myself, and endeavored to smile gayly at my humor.

Hardly had I finished my breakfast, endeavoring as I read as usual my morning paper to forget that I was leaving all this, when I heard a quick step in the passage, and with a brisk, “Bon jour, monsieur!” the Marquis entered.

“Ah,” I thought, “he is in his element. No regrets with him.”

Yet, after the first alertness of his entry, I observed, to my surprise, a certain air of sentiment about him, which, if it was not regret, was at least not martial keenness.

“You did your business yesterday?” I said.

“I did,” he replied, in a grave tone, and with something like a tender look in his eye. “I did some private business of an unforgettable and momentous nature, my dear d'Haricot. But not now; I shall not tell you now. To-night you shall know.”

Then, making a gesture as if to banish this mood, he threw himself into a chair, and, bending his brows in a keen look at me, said:

“But to business, my friend; to the business we are embarked upon.”

“Precisely,” I said. “I await it.”

“In this house where you dine are two entrances. Your guests come in by one, and you await them in the rooms I have set apart for you. In the rest of the house I operate.”

“And what do you do?”

“I gather our force. Men picked by my agents are to be invited to enter by the other door. I offer them refreshments. They follow, or, rather, precede me. In a lane at the back of the house is yet another door; against it is drawn up a great van, a van used for removing furniture, a van of colossal size. You see?”

“Hardly; I fear I am stupid.”

“You do not see? Ah, my dear d'Haricot, eloquence is your gift, contrivance mine. I have not invented a flying-machine, a submarine vessel, and a dynamite gun for nothing. These men enter this van; the door is closed upon them; it is driven to the station, put on board my special train, and taken to the coast. They then emerge; I address them in such terms as will make it impossible for them to withdraw, even if they wish—and they are to be desperate, picked men; we arm them, and then to France! On the coast of Normandy we will be met by five regiments of foot, two of cavalry, and six batteries of artillery which I am assured will declare for the King. Paris is ripe for a revolution. Vive le Roi! Why are you silent? Is it not well thought of, my friend?”

“It is indeed ingenious,” I replied. “But the carrying of it out I foresee may not be so easy.”

“Nothing can fail. My confidence is implicit. Was I ever deceived?”

I might with truth have retorted “always,” but I saw that I should only enrage him.

I shrugged my shoulders and asked:

“You superintend the affair?”

“In the house. Hankey makes the arrangements at the station. Much is to be done. One man to one task.”

“And I? What do I do?”

“You bring your friends to the station. At eleven precisely the train starts. Do not be late.”

“But if they will not accompany me?”

“If all else fails, we go to France together. At least our brave countrymen will not be afraid, whatever these colder islanders may do.”

“You may depend on me for that,” I answered. “By-the-way, I should tell you that I bring a friend of my own to dinner—M. Lumme.”

“Lumme!” cried the Marquis. “You can trust him?”

“Implicitly.”

“And I trust you. Bring him if he is brave.” There was a minute's pause; he had suddenly fallen silent.

“Is that all?” I asked.

“All for the present, my brave friend; au revoir! We meet at the station at eleven precisely! Do not forget!”

He leaped up with that surprising vivacity that marked his movements, and before I had time to accompany him even as far as the door he had closed it and gone. In a moment, however, I heard his voice outside, apparently engaged in altercation with some one, and then followed some vigorous expletives and a brisk sound of scuffling.

I rushed into the passage, and there, to my consternation, beheld my friend retreating towards me before a vigorous onslaught by Halfred, who was flourishing his fists and exclaiming, “Come out, you beastly mounseer! Come out into the square and I'll paste your hugly mug inter a cocked at!”

“Diable!” cried the Marquis. “Leetle bad man stop short! Mon Dieu! What can it was?”

“Halfred!” I cried, indignantly. “Cease! What is the meaning of this?”

“Beg pardon, sir,” said Halfred, desisting, but unabashed at my anger. “You told me yourself, sir, as ow I was to do it.”

“I told you? Explain! Come into my room.”

I brought the two combatants in, closed the door, and repeated, sternly:

“Explain, sir!”

“This is the furriner as haccosted Miss Titch, sir,” said Halfred, doggedly, “and you said as 'ow I'd better practise my boxing on 'im. I didn't spot 'im the other night, but Miss Titch she seed 'im this morning and told me.”

“I know not the meaning you mean when you speak so fast!” cried the Marquis. “But I see you are intoxicate, foddled and squiff. Small beast, to damn with you!”

“You just wait till I gets you outside,” said Halfred, ominously. “I'll give you something to talk German about!”

“German!” shrieked the Marquis, catching at the only word he understood. “If you was gentleman not as could be which I then should—ha!” And he stamped his foot and made a gesture of lunging my retainer through the chest.

“Oh, you're ready to begin, are you?” said Halfred, mistaking this movement for the preliminary to a box and throwing himself into the proper attitude.

“With your permission, sir.”

“Stop!” I said. “You certainly have not my permission! I shall dismiss you if you strike my guest again!”

Yet I fear I was unable to keep my countenance as severe as it should have been. I then turned to the livid and furious Marquis and explained the cause of the assault.

“Address that girl!” cried he. “It was to ask her questions—questions about you, monsieur, when I wrongly distrusted you. This is a scandalous charge!”

“But you see how liable your action was to misconstruction?”

“I see, I do see!” he exclaimed. “He was right to feel jealous! I have given many good cause, yes, I confess it. Explain to him.”

I told Halfred of his mistake.

“Well, sir,” he said, “I takes your word, sir.”

“Good young man,” said the Marquis, turning to him with his finest courtesy. “I forgive. I admire. You have right. Many have I love, but your mistress is not admired of me. She is preserve! Good-night, young man; good-night, monsieur.”

And off he marched as briskly as ever.

Halfred shook his head darkly.

“Him being a friend of yours, sir, I says nothing,” he observed, but his abstinence from further comment was more eloquent than even his candid opinion would have been.

I posted my letter, I smoked, I read a book to pass the time, and at last, as the afternoon was wearing on, I went to my bedroom and packed a bag containing a change of clothes and other essentials, for I remembered that I should have to drive straight from the dinner-table to the train. I looked out into the street; dusk was falling, the lamps were lit, the lights of a carriage and the rattle of horses passed now and then, the steady hum of London reached my ears. It was still cheerful and inviting, but now my nerves were tighter strung and I felt rather excitement than depression.

“Monsieur! You in there?”

The voice came from my sitting-room. I started, I rushed towards the welcome sound, and the next moment I was embracing Dick Shafthead. He looked so uncomfortable at this un-English salutation that I had to begin with an apology.

“Never before and never again, I assure you!” I said. “For the instant I forgot myself; that is the truth. Tell me, what good angel has sent you?”

For I knew his sister could not yet have received my letter.

“We were afraid you'd got into the hands of the police again, and I've come prepared to bail you out. What the deuce happened to you?”

“You heard the circumstances of my departure?”

“We heard a cock-and-bull story from a thickheaded yokel—something about a pistol and a villain with a mustache and a carriage and pair; but as we learned that you'd appeared at the station safe and sound, we divided the yarn by five. I must say, though, I've been getting a little worried at hearing no news of you—that's to say, the women folk got in a flutter.”

“Did they?” I cried, with a pleasant excitement I could not quite conceal.

“Naturally, we are not accustomed to have our guests vanish like an Indian juggler. I've come to see what's up.”

I told him then the whole story, letting the Marquis's prohibition go to the winds. He listened in amused astonishment.

“Well,” he said, at last, “it seems I've just come in time for the fair. You've napkins enough to feed another conspirator, I suppose?”

“You are the one man I want!”

“That's all right, then,” said Dick. “I'd better be off to my rooms to dress. Where shall we meet?”

“I will call for you soon after half-past seven. The house is not far from the Temple, I believe.” So now, thanks to Providence, I would have both my best friends by my side. My spirits rose high, and I began to look forward gayly even to urging a bishop to start by a night train with a repeating-rifle.

Soon after seven Teddy appeared, immaculate and garrulous as ever, and in high spirits at the thought of the shock his reverend father would get on finding him included among the select party.

“The governor's looking forward to having a great night of it,” said this irreverend son. “Scratching his head when I last saw him, trying to remember the stories he generally tells to dooks and royalties. I told him he'd better get up a few spicy ones to tickle a Frenchie, don't you know.”

“My faith!” I exclaimed; “how disappointed they will all be! I scarcely have the face to meet them.”

“Rot,” said Teddy. “Do 'em good. Hullo! what's this bag for? Oh, I see, you cross to-night, don't you? Is Halfred going with you?”

I also looked at my servant in surprise. He was dressed in his overcoat, and stood holding my bag in one hand and his hat in the other.

“Going to take your bag down for you, sir,” he explained.

“But I do not need you, my good Halfred. I was just going to say farewell to you this moment.”

“I'm a-coming,” he persisted.

“Even against my wishes?”

“Beg pardon, sir, but that there furriner, 'e' s in this show, ain't he?”

“Why should you think so?”

“I smells a rat, sir, as soon as I sees 'im. I don't mean no offence, but you don't know Hengland as well as I do. I'll come along, sir, and if you happens to be thinking of a trip across the channel, I was thinking, sir, a change of hair wouldn't do me no 'arm.”

“But I cannot allow you! There is danger!”

“Just as I thought, sir; but I'm ready for 'em.”

And, laying down the bag, he showed me the butt of an immense pistol in his overcoat-pocket.

“Halfred,” I cried, “you may not glitter, but you are of gold! Come, then, my brave fellow, if you will!”

“Good sportsman, isn't he?” said Teddy, as we drove off together.

At a quarter to eight we three, Teddy and Dick and I, alighted at number Twenty-two Beacon Street, Strand, to find Halfred and the bag awaiting us outside the door. A waiter with a mysterious air showed us up a narrow staircase into a small, well-furnished reception-room. Beyond this, through folding-doors, opened a dining-room of moderate size, where we found the table laid and ready. The man closed the door and disappeared, and the four of us were left to await the arrival of my guests.