"Because, you understand, sire, he had the misfortune to catch me, and unfortunately got a sword wound."
"And the letter?"
"He had not a glimpse of it, thanks to my precautions."
"Bravo! your journey is interesting; you must tell me the details. But one thing disquiets me—if the letter was destroyed for M. de Mayenne, it is also destroyed for me. How, then, shall I know what my brother Henri wrote?"
"Sire, it exists in my memory."
"How so?"
"Sire, before destroying it I learned it by heart."
"An excellent idea, M. Chicot. You will recite it to me, will you not?"
"Willingly, sire."
"Word for word."