See here, my lord duke! just look what he did to my precious,
priceless Sahagun." And Jacquemin Lampourde, with a piteous air, drew
out and exhibited the sorry remains of his trusty sword--almost weeping
over it--and calling the duke's attention to the perfectly straight and
even break.
"Your highness can see that it was a prodigious blow that snapped this
steel like a pipe-stem, and it was done with such ease and precision.
To despatch Captain Fracasse by fair means is beyond my skill, my lord
duke, and I would scorn to resort to treachery. Like all truly brave
men, he is generous. I was left entirely defenceless, and he could have
spitted me like an ortolan just by extending his arm, but he refrained;
he let me go unscathed. A miraculous display of delicacy, as well as
chivalrous generosity, from a gentleman assaulted in the gloaming on the
Pont-Neuf. I owe my life to him, and moreover, such a debt of gratitude
as I shall never be able to repay. I cannot undertake anything more
against him, my lord duke; henceforth he is sacred to me. Besides, it
would be a pity to destroy such a swordsman--good ones are rare in these
degenerate days, and growing more so every year. I don't believe he has
his equal on earth. Most men handle a sword as if it were a broomstick
nowadays, and then expect to be praised and applauded, the clumsy,
stupid fools! Now, I have given my reasons for coming to inform your
highness that I must resign the commission I had accepted.
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