“Not at all.  He is very young, and this will be his first duel.  He may have misunderstood your intentions.  But I gathered from him that you had said he would have to fight; that you then requested him to name a friend to whom you could send a friend of yours——­”

“This is the fact.  There was no misunderstanding.  He named you.”

“Yes; but as I said, he is an American.”

“What of that, since he will fight?”

“As a duellist yourself, no doubt a successful one, you must be aware that such matters are conducted differently in the States.”

“I know nothing of that.  I know only our own ways, which are good enough for me.”

“But my friend, being the challenged party, has the right, I believe, to choose the manner of duel.”

“That will be arranged between you and my friend, according to the choice of Mr. Laurence.”

“I must ask you to go slowly, just at this point.  In the States, it is against the duelling code to have the details arranged by the friends of the principals.  It is the principals themselves who do all that, and for the best of reasons.  But as Mr. Laurence is a boy, and you are a man, it is but right that I should speak with you for him.  You needn’t send Captain de Sales to me.  We are man to man, and in ten minutes we can have everything settled with fairness to both parties.”

“This is a new idea, Monsieur, and I confess it does not commend itself to me,” said Paolo.

“I suppose, however, you are anxious to fight?”

“Sacre bleu, but yes.  The little jackanapes called me a donkey, and he had the impudence to allude to my invention as a ‘balloon,’ adding that there was little to choose between it and my head. Ciel! Do I wish to fight?”

“Then, as you must grant him the privileges of the challenged party, I fear there is only one way of carrying this thing through.  He is patriotic to a fault, and he will fight in the American fashion or not at all.  I must say this is to the credit of his courage, as there is to me, an Englishman, something appalling about the method.  I trust that I’m not a coward, yet it would take all my nerve to face such an ordeal.  No doubt, however, with the fiery Latin races it is different.”

“I shall be glad of your explanation, Monsieur.  What is this method of which you speak?”

“There are several small variations; there are the bits of paper; there are the matches; there are the beans of different size.”

“I am more in the dark than ever.”

“My friend proposes the bits of paper.  Two are taken, exactly resembling each other, except in length.  Both are placed inside a book, with an end, say an inch long, sticking out.  You and Mr. Laurence draw simultaneously, that there can be no question of cheating.  The one who draws the long bit lives—­the other stands up to be shot, without defending himself.”

“Mon Dieu, how horrible!  I would never submit to such a barbarous test.  That is not a duel, it is murder.”