"Gentlemen," he said, "uncock your muskets, one of them may
go off by accident; and if the shot chanced to wound one of
my men, we should knock over a couple of hundreds of yours,
for which we should, indeed, be very sorry, but you even
more so; especially as such a thing is neither contemplated
by you nor by myself."

"If you did that," cried the burghers, "we should have a pop
at you, too."

"Of course you would; but suppose you killed every man Jack
of us, those whom we should have killed would not, for all
that, be less dead."

"Then leave the place to us, and you will perform the part
of a good citizen."

"First of all," said the Count, "I am not a citizen, but an
officer, which is a very different thing; and secondly, I am
not a Hollander, but a Frenchman, which is more different
still. I have to do with no one but the States, by whom I am
paid; let me see an order from them to leave the place to
you, and I shall only be too glad to wheel off in an
instant, as I am confoundedly bored here."

"Yes, yes!" cried a hundred voices; the din of which was
immediately swelled by five hundred others; "let us march to
the Town-hall; let us go and see the deputies! Come along!
come along!"