—He took the machine by the handle-bars and shook it hard.——
“You’ll break it!” cried I.
“I don’t care if I do,” growled he, and he gave it another shake.
—But at this crisis two women coming towards us, he inquired of them, with as good grace as he could command, the distance to Lafayette. They stood still and laughed aloud. He repeated his question; they laughed the louder. The third time he asked, they pointed to a solitary farm-house standing in the fields. He paused. I saw he was mentally pulling himself together, and I wished the women were out of harm’s way.——
“Nous—sommes—ici—dans—un—nation—de—bêtes—de—fous!” he broke out, this time in French, a pause between each word. “Oui—tous—bêtes—tous—fous—Vous—fous—aussi!”
—The women turned and ran.
I think they were right about Lafayette after all. In a few minutes we came to a good road. An auberge stood to one side, and a man at once approached us.——
We must come in, he said; it was a fête day, and we should be served with whatever we wanted.
But J—— was not to be so easily rid of his troubles.——
“Un—Français—dans—Vienne,” he explained; “nous—a—envoyer—là—bas.—Il—est—fou!”