The Companions of Jehu, Alexandre Dumas [romance book recommendations TXT] 📗

decipher, and this is my third to-day! Here, read it if you can.”

Roland took the sheet from the secretary, and fixing his eyes on the spot indicated, read quite fluently: “Paragraph XI. The Nile, from Assouan to a distance of twelve miles north of Cairo, flows in a single stream”—“Well,” said he, interrupting himself, “that’s all plain sailing. What did you mean? The general, on the contrary, took pains when he wrote that.”

“Go on, go on,” said Bourrienne.

The young man resumed: “‘From that point, which is called’—ah! Ah!”

“There you are! Now what do you say to that?”

Roland repeated: “‘Which is called’—The devil! ‘Which is called—‘”

“Yes, ‘Which is called’—after that?”

“What will you give me, Bourrienne,” cried Roland, “if I guess it?”

“The first colonel’s commission I find signed in blank.”

“By my faith, no! I don’t want to leave the general; I’d rather have a good father than five hundred naughty children. I’ll give you the three words for nothing.”

“What! are there three words there?”

“They don’t look as if they were quite three, I admit. Now listen, and make obeisance to me: ‘From the point called Ventre della Vacca.’”

“Ha! Ventre de la Vache! Confound it! He’s illegible enough in French, but if he takes it into his head to go off in Italian, and that Corsican patois to boot! I thought I only ran the risk of going crazy, but then I should become stupid, too. Well, you’ve got it,” and he read the whole sentence consecutively: “‘The Nile, from Assouan to a distance of twelve miles north of Cairo, flows in a single stream; from that point, which is called Ventre de la Vache, it forms the branches of the Rosetta and the Damietta.’ Thank you, Roland,” and he began to write the end of the paragraph, of which the first lines were already committed to paper.

“Tell me,” said Roland; “is he still got his hobby, the dear general, of colonizing Egypt?”

“Yes; and then, as a sort of offset, a little governing in France; we will colonize from a distance.”

“Well, my dear Bourrienne, suppose you post me a little on matters in this country, so that I won’t seem to have just arrived from Timbuctoo.”

“In the first place, did you come back of your own accord, or were you recalled?”

“Recalled? I should think so!”

“By whom?”

“The general himself.”

“Special despatch?”

“Written by himself; see!”

The young man drew a paper from his pocket containing two lines, not signed, in the same handwriting as that which Bourrienne had before him. These two lines said: “‘Start. Be in Paris 16th Brumaire. I need you.”

“Yes,” said Bourrienne, “I think it will be on the eighteenth.”

“What will be on the eighteenth?”

“On my word, Roland, you ask more than I know. That man, as you are aware, is not communicative. What will take place on the 18th Brumaire? I don’t know as yet; but I’ll answer for it that something will happen.”

“Oh! you must have a suspicion!”

“I think he means to make himself Director in place of Sièyes, or perhaps president in Gohier’s stead.”

“Good! How about the Constitution of the year III.?”

“The Constitution of the year III. What about that?”

“Why, yes, a man must be forty years old to be a Director; and the general lacks just ten of them.”

“The deuce! so much the worse for the Constitution. They must violate it.”

“It is rather young yet, Bourrienne; they don’t, as a rule, violate children of seven.”

“My dear fellow, in Barras’ hands everything grows old rapidly. The little girl of seven is already an old prostitute.”

Roland shook his head.

“Well, what is it?” asked Bourrienne.

“Why, I don’t believe the general will make himself a simple Director with four colleagues. Just imagine it—five kings of France! It wouldn’t be a Directory any longer, but a four-in-hand.”

“Anyway, up to the present, that is all he has allowed any one to perceive; but you know, my dear friend, if we want to know the general’s secrets we must guess them.”

“Faith! I’m too lazy to take the trouble, Bourrienne. Besides, I’m a regular Janissary—what is to be, will be. Why the devil should I bother to form an opinion and battle for it. It’s quite wearisome enough to have to live.” And the young man enforced his favorite aphorism with a long yawn; then he added: “Do you think there will be any sword play?”

“Probably.”

“Then there will be a chance of getting killed; that’s all I want. Where is the general?”

“With Madame Bonaparte. He went to her about fifteen minutes ago. Have you let him know you are here?”

“No, I wanted to see you first. But I hear his step now.”

Just then the door was opened abruptly, and the same historical personage whom we saw playing a silent part incognito at Avignon appeared on the threshold, in the picturesque uniform of the general-in-chief of the army of Egypt, except that, being in his own house, he was bare-headed. Roland thought his eyes were more hollow and his skin more leaden than usual. But the moment he saw the young man, Bonaparte’s gloomy, or rather meditative, eye emitted a flash of joy.

“Ah, here you are, Roland!” he said. “True as steel! Called, you come. Welcome, my dear fellow.” And he offered Roland his hand. Then he asked, with an imperceptible smile, “What were you doing with Bourrienne?”

“Waiting for you, general.”

“And in the meantime gossiping like two old women.”

“I admit it, general. I was showing him my order to be here on the 16th Brumaire.”

“Did I write the 16th or the 17th?”

“Oh! the 16th, general. The 17th would have been too late.”

“Why too late?”

“Why, hang it, Bourrienne says there are to be great doings here on the 18th.”

“Capital,” muttered Bourrienne; “the scatter-brain will earn me a wigging.”

“Ah! So he told you I had planned great doings for the 18th?” Then, approaching