"No doubt about it. Friendship ends when rebellion begins," said the Duke, sententiously. Sir Robert continued blandly to argue the case, looking at me out of the tail of his eye. Faith, he enjoyed himself prodigiously, which was more than I did, for I was tasting a bad quarter of an hour. "Put it this way, sir: I have a friend who has done me many good turns. Now assume that I have but to speak the word to send him to his death. Should the word be spoken?" The Duke said dogmatically that a soldier's first duty was to work for the success of his cause regardless of private feelings. "Or turn it this way," continued Volney, "that the man is not a friend. Suppose him a rival claimant to an estate I mean to possess. Can I in honour give him up? What would you think, Mont--er--Campbell?" "Not Mont-Campbell, but Campbell," I corrected. "I will be thinking, sir, that it would be a matter for your conscience, and at all events it iss fery lucky that you do not hafe to decide it." "Still the case might arise. It's always well to be prepared," he answered, laughing. "Nonsense, Robert! What the deuce do you mean by discussing such a matter with a Highland kerne? I never saw your match for oddity," said the Duke. While he was still speaking there was a commotion in the outer room of the inn. There sounded a rap at the door, and on the echo of the knock an officer came into the room to announce the capture of a suspect. He was followed by the last man in the world I wanted to see at that moment, no other than the Campbell soldier whose place I was usurping. The fat was in the fire with a vengeance now, and though I fell back to the rear I knew it was but a question of time till his eye lit on me. The fellow began to tell his story, got nearly through before his ferret eyes circled round to me, then broke off to burst into a screed of the Gaelic as he pointed a long finger at me. The Duke flung round on me in a cold fury. "Is this true, fellow?" I came forward shrugging. "To deny were folly when the evidence is writ so plain," I said. "And who the devil are you?" "Kenneth Montagu, at your service." Cumberland ordered the room cleared, then turned on Volney a very grim face. "I'll remember this, Sir Robert. You knew him all the time. It has a bad look, I make plain to say." "'Twas none of my business. Your troopers can find enough victims for you without my pointing out any. I take the liberty of reminding your Highness that I'm not a hangman by profession," returned Volney stiffly. "You go too far, sir," answered the Duke haughtily. "I know my duty too well to allow me to be deterred from performing it by you or by anybody else. Mr. Montagu, have you any reason to give why I should not hang you for a spy?" "No reason that would have any weight with your Grace," I answered.