well back, her lissome, finely developed body leaning slightly
forward.

Rene's hands were up before his face in a defensive position,
palms outward.

Just then a chorus of men's voices sounded in the distance. The
river house was beginning its carousal with a song. Alice let fall
her sword's point and listened.

Rene looked about for his cap.

"I must be going," he said.

Another and louder swish of the rapier made him pirouette and
dodge again with great energy.

"Don't," he cried, "that's dangerous; you'll put out my eyes; I
never saw such a girl!"

She laughed at him and kept on whipping the air dangerously near
his eyes, until she had driven him backward as far as he could
squeeze himself into a comer of the room.

Madame Roussillon came to the door from the kitchen and stood
looking in and laughing, with her hands on her hips. By this time
the rapier was making a criss-cross pattern of flashing lines
close to the young man's head while Alice, in the enjoyment of her
exercise, seemed to concentrate all the glowing rays of her beauty
in her face, her eyes dancing merrily.