It was a French dragoon. We could see the buff cover of his helmet and the red and white pennon on his lance. Then two more appeared, then ten, then twenty, and they came forward at a canter to meet us.
"It is your turn to do the talking this time," said Aurora, with a smile.
An officer came first. He was a tall young man, dark and rather pale. His chin-strap drew a shining line across his black moustache. He saluted us with his sabre and asked to see our permits.
"I must confess, monsieur," replied the Grand Duchess, "that I do not possess anything of the kind, for I don't suppose you will be satisfied with this which was given me by the German general in command at Thionville," she said, showing von Offenburg's permit.
The young officer assumed an expression denoting that the occasion was hardly suitable for trifling.
"Monsieur," continued Aurora, when she had satisfied herself at a glance that for the moment I was completely unable to say a word, "there are some things it would take too long to explain from a car to a horse in the middle of the road. These are the facts. I am the Grand Duchess of Lautenburg-Detmold. Monsieur Vignerte, my companion, is a French officer, a lieutenant like yourself. I don't know whether in France you have already taken the precaution of arresting Germans. But in Germany we have been arresting Frenchmen since yesterday. This gentleman was about to be arrested; I have brought him to you. That is all."
And, moved apparently by the look of amazement which had spread over the dragoon's face, she added:
"I should, perhaps, say, monsieur, that I am Russian by birth, so you need no longer doubt either myself or my immediate purpose."
The officer had dismounted. He bowed respectfully to Aurora, who had, like myself, just stepped out of the car.
"Lieutenant de Coigny, 11th Dragoons, of Longwy," he said.