with complaints against his officers, you know. And it looked uncommonly like sheer bravado.&rdquo; </p> <p> The two officers had arrived now at the street door of Lieut. Feraud&rsquo;s lodgings. The latter turned towards his companion. &ldquo;Lieut. D&rsquo;Hubert,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I have something to say to you, which can&rsquo;t be said very well in the street. You can&rsquo;t refuse to come up.&rdquo; </p> <p> The pretty maid had opened the door. Lieut. Feraud brushed past her brusquely, and she raised her scared and questioning eyes to Lieut. D&rsquo;Hubert, who could do nothing but shrug his shoulders slightly as he followed with marked reluctance. </p> <p> In his room Lieut. Feraud unhooked the clasp, flung his new dolman on the bed, and, folding his arms across his chest, turned to the other hussar. </p> <p> &ldquo;Do you imagine I am a man to submit tamely to injustice?&rdquo; he inquired, in a boisterous voice. </p> <p> &ldquo;Oh, do be reasonable!&rdquo; remonstrated Lieut. D&rsquo;Hubert. </p> <p> &ldquo;I am reasonable! I am perfectly reasonable!&rdquo; retorted the other with ominous restraint. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t call the general to account for his behaviour, but you are going to answer me for yours.&rdquo; </p> <p> &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t listen to this nonsense,&rdquo; murmured Lieut. D&rsquo;Hubert, making a slightly contemptuous grimace. </p> <p> &ldquo;You call this nonsense? It seems to me a perfectly plain statement. Unless you don&rsquo;t understand French.&rdquo; </p> <p> &ldquo;What on earth do you mean?&rdquo; </p> <p> &ldquo;I mean,&rdquo; screamed suddenly Lieut. Feraud, &ldquo;to cut off your ears to teach you to disturb me with the general&rsquo;s orders when I am talking to a lady!&rdquo; </p> <p> A profound silence followed this mad declaration; and through the open window Lieut. D&rsquo;Hubert heard the little birds singing sanely in the garden. He said, preserving his calm, &ldquo;Why! If you take that tone, of course I shall hold myself at your disposition whenever you are at liberty to attend to this affair; but I don&rsquo;t think you will cut my ears off.&rdquo; </p> <p> &ldquo;I am going to attend to it at once,&rdquo; declared Lieut. Feraud, with extreme truculence. &ldquo;If you are thinking of displaying your airs and graces to-night in Madame de Lionne&rsquo;s salon you are very much mistaken.&rdquo; </p> <p> &ldquo;Really!&rdquo; said Lieut. D&rsquo;Hubert, who was beginning to feel irritated, &ldquo;you are an impracticable sort of fellow. The general&rsquo;s orders to me were to put you under arrest, not to carve you into small pieces. Good-morning!&rdquo;