I had lately been reading up on the subject, and had plied Mrs. Freemack with so many questions about thrusts, foils, longeing and parrying, that I do not wonder she had decided on swords as the most welcome parting gifts she could bestow on us. But she hadn't given us any foils, so I begged Thad to be careful to thrust only "in fun."
We waited until after the conductor had looked at our tickets from the window; then I gave the word, whereupon we both whipped out our glistening blades and flourished them about our heads.
"Now parry, Thad," I cried, as I brought my weapon down with a whiz; but instead of parrying, he began laying about him like a pirate with his cutlass. Of course I couldn't help laughing, although I had to jump around pretty lively to protect myself.
However, I soon made him comprehend that he must obey the rules and stand more on the defensive, and then we sat down to rest a minute before making a fresh start.
"Now, ready again!" I exclaimed; and this time things went a little more artistically, although the noise our blades made as they clashed together reminded me strongly of father and the carving-knife just before dinner at home.
Presently we both began to grow excited, and suddenly, to avoid one of my thrusts, Thad jumped up on the seat behind him. Quick as thought I sprang up on the other, and then we fought in gallant style across the chasm, which to our vivid imaginations ran red with blood or white with foaming floods. We quite forgot where we were, and shouted and danced about like a couple of Zulus.
On a sudden, ker-chink went my sword right through a little piece of looking-glass, shaped like a triangle, and set in the cushions just behind Thad.
"Now you've done it!" he cried, jumping to the floor to escape the falling fragments.
"Oh, pshaw!" I returned, "it won't take much to pay for that. I don't see what use such a little bit of a mirror is, anyway. But, hello! what are we stopping here for, I wonder?" for the train was gradually slowing down, and finally came to a stand-still in the open country.
Meanwhile, I began calculating how much such a piece of glass as I had broken ought to cost, and had just decided on two francs (forty cents), when the guard appeared at the window again, looked in, then pulled open the door with a jerk, sprang into the compartment, and pointing to the broken glass with one hand, seized me with the other, and then—but of course that was all I could understand.