Belle-Rose — page 197: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

CS Ee RP eats : 4 . 7. Sy Sm aoe yrye es 5) ale ae = “4 Ww he oi “a : —* 186 A DIPLOMATIC MISSION. Bae been charged with a mission for Monsieur de Louvois. On reaching Chantilly, Belle-Rose went to see the prince ‘Ss intendant, who. counted-out to him the sum agreed upon. Having arrived at the house, accompanied by Déroute, whom he left before the door -with the horses, Belle-Rose Ge entered the garden by himself. | ‘‘Monsieur Bergame?’’ said he toa litte boy who was plucking fruit. | The little boy, who was pale and sickly looking, looked. at Belle-Rose with a cunning air. x ‘‘On whose part do you come?’’ said he, with an Italian accent. “On my own,’’ replied Belle-Rose. The little boy saluted him politely. ‘It is very well, monsieur, but Monsieur Bergame being very busy cannot receive you at present. You will have to come again. ’ “Ah! p? thought Belle-Rose, ‘‘I am in for a siege.” Aloud he said: ‘Can you not say to Monsieur Bergame that it concerns a very important affair?’’ ‘For whom, monsieur?’” said the child, with a simple air which concealed great cunning. 3 ‘“Kh, but for him!’’ exclaimed Belle-Rose. | “Pardon me, monsieur,’’ said the child, in a wheedling — tone, ‘‘but it is generally the case that strangers who desire to enter always have important affairs to treat.”’ Belle-Rose felt like seizing the little rascal by the neck — and gagging him; but there were people passing along the road, and he did not know the inmates of the house; it : was no time to employ violence. } ‘‘Come,’’ he replied, with the air of a man who makes up ~ his mind to speak, ‘‘since you wish to know all, take this louis for yourself and run to tell Monsieur Bergame that it is a question of receiving a hundred thousand livres. ’’ . At sight of the gold, the eyes of the little fellow sparkled. His fingers seized the piece like the claws of a devil-fish, and he requested. Belle-Rose to follow him. ‘‘Knavish, but avaricious!’’ thought -Belle-Rose; ‘‘one vice corrects the other.”’ The child left Belle-Rose in a hall on the ground floor, climbed the stair-way which led to the upper story, and came down again two minutes later. ‘‘Follow me, monsieur,’’ said he to Belle-Rose, ‘“Mon- sieur Bergame is up there waiting for you.”’ | The little boy introduced Belle-Rose into a square room : oe \ comicbooks com ‘ Se ee