“Duke, have you ever seen any thing like it?”
“What thing?” replied the duke, almost irritated.
“You demand what thing?”
“Yes, and I desire a reply.”
“A colonel of twenty-three years old!”
“Indeed, it is a little precocious.” And the duke smiled.
“It is a blow struck at the army.”
“Certainly.”
“A solemn lie given to common sense.”
“Evidently.”