"And now, sir, that the king has expressed his gratitude to you,
for saving his court from a grave scandal, how can I fitly express
my own, at the inestimable service that you have rendered us?"

"I should say, Baron, that it will be most welcomely expressed, if
you will abstain from saying more of the matter. It is a simple
one. I went to the assistance of a woman in distress; and
succeeded, at the expense of this trifling wound, in accomplishing
her rescue. The lady happened to be your daughter, but had she
been but the daughter of some little bourgeois of Paris, carried
off by a reckless noble, it would have been the same. Much more
has been made of the matter than there was any occasion for. It
has gained for me the approbation and thanks of the king, to say
nothing of this ring, which, although I am no judge of such
matters, must be a very valuable one, or he would not have worn
it; and I have had the pleasure of rendering a service to you, and
Mademoiselle de Pointdexter. Therefore, I feel far more than duly
rewarded, for a service somewhat recklessly undertaken on the spur
of the moment."

"That may be very well, as far as it interests yourself, Monsieur
Kennedy; but not so far as I am concerned, and I fear I shall have
to remain your debtor till the end of my life. All I can say at
present is that I hope that, as soon as you can obtain leave, you
will come as a most honoured guest to my chateau. There you will
see me under happier circumstances. The life of a country seigneur
is but a poor preparation for existence in this court, where,
although there is no longer the open licentiousness that prevailed
in the king's younger days, there is yet, I believe, an equal