The Man-at-Arms; or, Henry De Cerons. Volumes I and II. G. P. R. James
were not." And the aubergiste, rejoining in a somewhat lower tone, "Perhaps I can tell him where he is likely to find service by-and-by," left us to seek the basin of soup, which, with half a loaf and a small bottle of very good wine, was our allotted breakfast.
Seating myself at the same table, while Andriot took his place a little farther down, I waited patiently for the arrival of my mess, giving from time to time a glance towards the previous occupant of the room, who was busily engaged in emptying the contents of his own bowl, and, apparently, taking very little notice of what was passing around him. As far as I could see, he was a good-looking man, somewhat below forty years of age, broad and powerfully made, with hair not red, but of a light glossy brown, curling round his brow with flowing and graceful waves. The mustache which he wore upon his upper lip was very thick and long, but lighter even in colour than his hair. The features were good, without being strikingly handsome; but when he opened his mouth, the expression of his whole face was injured by the want of three of his front teeth. There was a scar or two on other parts of his countenance, which bespoke the soldier; and one of his hands, which rested somewhat listlessly on the table while he ate his soup with the other, was disfigured by a large round scar on the back, and seemed to have been penetrated either by a spear or a ball. He ate his bread with his soup, but drank no wine till he had done; he then, however, nearly filled his cup, and, after having drank it, looked up, saying, with a slight foreign accent, "Good wine in these parts. Are you of this country, young gentleman?"
"No," I replied (for I was born on the banks of the Loire); and, having satisfied myself by speaking the simple truth in one monosyllable, I took no farther notice till he said. "And yet yours is a Gascon accent, it seems to me."
"And yours a Scotch one," I replied.
"Well hit, my young falcon," replied the stranger, in a light tone; "you follow the game true."
"As every one should do," I replied, not a little doubtful of the character of my worthy companion, and answering no more than was absolutely necessary. The stranger, however, was not so easily to be frustrated, and he returned to the charge about my Gascon accent.
"Some birds," he said, "have a rare skill in deceiving their pursuers. I should not marvel still if Guienne had been your birthplace."
"You could not wish me a better," I answered.
"No, nor a shrewder wit, you think," he said: "however, I give you good-morning."
And, taking up his hat, which lay beside him, he finished his small bottle of wine and moved towards the door.
At that moment Jacques de Cannes was coming in with a bowl of soup for Andriot, and the stranger stopped him for a minute or two, saying something that we did not hear. The aubergiste replied in the same low voice, and the stranger, turning away, added aloud, "Not till I have seen him again, Maître Jacques."
After putting down the pottage for Andriot, the good aubergiste came up to me, and, bending down his head, he said, "You are seeking service in arms, I think, seigneur; you could not trust to any one better than that gentleman who has just gone out. He is an old soldier and a good one, and as stanch a Protestant as ever lived. But he will be back here to dinner, and, if you like to talk to him about your views, he will most likely get you service."
My heart beat at the offer, I must confess; but yet, pursuing my cautious determinations, I was resolved neither to trust aubergiste nor stranger too far; and, although I awaited with some impatience for the return of the latter, I schooled myself during the whole time of his absence, lest, by too great heat, I should show my own ignorance and inexperience, and fall into some snare.
About twenty minutes before the hour appointed for dinner, the stranger again entered the hall, as I was holding one more consultation with Andriot upon what was the next step to be taken. Andriot had been greatly smitten with the stranger's appearance, and he now assured me, with so many asseverations, that good Jacques de Cannes was one of the most excellent and serviceable men in France, that it was scarcely possible to doubt that he was well informed of the fact. Indeed, he added, a moment before the stranger made his appearance, that the worthy aubergiste stood in the near connexion with himself of a second cousin. Why he had not told me this at first I do not know; but it certainly did not in any degree diminish my confidence in the good landlord, to hear that he was related to one who had served me well and faithfully for two years.
"Then I may take his word fully as to the stranger's character, Andriot?" I said; "for I'm sure your cousin would tell me no falsehood."
The youth was replying eagerly, when the stranger, as I have said, entered, and, taking off his hat, approached the place where I stood. I had now a better view of him than before, and saw that he was as powerful in body as I had been led to think was the case by the mere sight of his head and shoulders. He was graceful, too, and had the air of a gentleman, though his clothes were somewhat coarse, and displayed none of the ordinary colours affected by that rank. The scabbard of his sword, however, was of velvet, and the weapon was thrown so much back across his loins, that it was impossible for him to see the hilt. This was almost a certain sign, at that time, in France, of one who prided himself upon his birth, though the custom has now greatly changed, and we wear our swords almost straight upon the thigh.
"I am glad to find you here, young gentleman," he said; "and, if I may propose such a thing, we will ask Maître Jacques to give us our dinner in some little room apart, that we may talk over matters which may interest you to hear."
I thought of my small store of money, and of the additional expense which I might be led into; but it seemed that this was a lucky chance which had befallen me, and I determined not to throw it away. I accordingly assented, and we mounted into a chamber on the second floor, where a dinner, which, though certainly not equal to those of the chateau, was by no means bad, was soon set before us, and Maître Jacques retired to serve his ordinary guests below.
"Well, sir," said the stranger, as soon as we had helped ourselves and began, "I understand your whole situation as well as if I had heard it."
"Which you probably have," I replied, in the dry tone that I had determined to maintain.
"No, upon my honour," replied the other. "I'll tell you how it all comes about, and you shall say whether I am right or wrong. First, then, and foremost, I see a gentleman of good manners and deportment, followed by a servant carrying a valise, very much better dressed than myself, come into an inn for travellers on foot. I hear he has no horses with him, and he sits down to eat his soup and drink his wine, for which he pays three sous altogether, with a lace upon his pourpoint which cost at the very lowest twenty sous in all. From all this, one gathers that on some account or another--whether it be a duel, or whether it be any other cause--this gentleman does not wish the path he has chosen to be tracked, and perhaps is in some need, by accidental circumstances, of money or employment. The landlord of the inn tells me that he is seeking military service, and is on his way, even now, to join Condé, or the admiral, or Andelot. I therefore conclude that he is willing to serve against these butchers who have been massacring the poor Protestants throughout France. There is nothing very miraculous in all this. Am I not right?"
"In general you are," I replied; "but, let me ask, how is this to affect my acquaintance with you?"
"Why, I will tell you in a moment," replied the stranger, in the same frank tone. "I happen at this moment to be engaged in the same cause, among the soldiers of which you are seeking service. I know that every man in the monarchy is wanted; and I wish both to give you such information as may enable you to join the army with all speed, and urge you to do so without a moment's delay."
"I propose hastening towards Rochelle as fast as possible," I replied.
"Rochelle!" he exclaimed, with a laugh; "Why, my good young friend, you must have been living in some hermitage, where the news of what is passing in the world penetrates but rarely. The Protestants are no longer at Rochelle. Condé and the admiral have advanced, the Lord knows how far, up the Loire, and Andelot himself has been at blows with Martigue far beyond Saumur."
My countenance fell as he spoke; for, if my finances had been barely sufficient to carry me scantily to Rochelle, the far greater journey that lay between me and the Protestant army