Brave though St. Georges was with pistol or sword in hand, he much preferred to choose his own duels. Fortunately or unfortunately, this one was noised abroad. My father called three times at St. Georges' house without finding him at home; he called again another three times, each time leaving his card. At length he wrote such a pressing threat in pencil on the last of these cards, that, the day but one after he had undergone his operation, my father, who was in bed and nursed by Dermoncourt (the captain who had turned the guillotine of St. Maurice into faggots), received a visit from St. Georges, who, on being told that the invalid was ill in bed, was about to leave his card and withdraw, when Dermoncourt, who had heard a great deal about him, seeing a magnificent specimen of a mulatto, who stuttered in his talk, recognised St. Georges, and ran after him. "Ah! M. de St. Georges," he exclaimed, "is it you? Do not go away, I beseech you; for, ill though he is, the general is quite capable of running after you, so anxious is he to see you." St. Georges at once made up his mind what part to play. "Oh! dear good Dumas!" he cried. "I know how very much he longs to see me; and I him. We were always such great friends. Where is he? where is he?" And darting into the room he flung himself upon the bed, clasped my father in his arms and hugged him almost to suffocation. My father endeavoured to speak, but St. Georges did not give him time. "Ah!--and you wanted then to kill me, Dumas?" he said. "To kill me--me? To kill St. Georges? Is it possible? Why, you are my own son! Were St. Georges dead, no other man but you could replace him. Be quick and get up! Order me a cutlet, and let there be an end to all this nonsense." At first my father was strongly inclined to pursue the quarrel to the bitter end; but what could you say to a man who threw himself on your bed, embraced you, called you his son, and invited himself to lunch? My father held out his hand and said: "Ah! you ruffian, you may well be pleased to call me your successor instead of being the successor of the former minister of war; for I promise you I would have hung you!" "Oh! but surely you would have guillotined me," said St. Georges, laughing at the wrong side of his mouth. "Not a bit of it, not a bit of it! Only honest folk are guillotined nowadays; thieves are hung." "Now tell me frankly what were your intentions in coming to see me?" said St. Georges. "First of all to find you." "Certainly, but what next?" "Next?" "Yes." "I should have gone into the room I was told you were in, I should have shut the door behind me, I should have put the key in my pocket, and whichever of us two remained alive at the end of five minutes would have had to open it." "In that case," replied St. Georges, "you see I was very wise not to be found at home." But as at that moment the door opened to announce that lunch was ready, the discussion ended and the meal began.