TEK YEARS LATER. 39 At this moment the Vicomte de Bragelonne was an- nounced by one of the servants in the courtyard, in pre- cisely the same manner as he would have done in a room. "Come here, my dear Eaoul. What! you, too, booted and spurred? You are setting off, then?" Bragelonne approached the group of young men, and saluted them with that quiet and serious manner which was peculiar to him. His salutation was principally addressed to De Wardes, with whom he was unacquainted, and whose features, on his perceiving Eaoul, had assumed a strange sternness of expression. "1 have come, De Guiche," he said, "to ask your com- panionshij). We set off for Havre, I presume." "This is admirable — this is delightful. We shall have a capital journey. Monsieur Malicorne, Monsieur Brage- lonne— ah! Monsieur de Wardes, let me present you." The young men saluted each other in a restrained manner. Their two natures seemed, from the very beginning, dis- posed to take exception to one another. De Wardes was pliant, subtle and full of dissimulation; Eaoul was calm, grave, and upright. "Decide between us — between De Wardes and myself, Eaoul." "iJpon what subject?" "Upon the subject of noble birth." "Who can be better informed on that subject than a De Grammont?" "No compliments; it is your opinion I ask," "At least, inform me of the subject under discussion." "De Wardes asserts that the distribution of titles is abused; I, on the contrary, maintain that a title is useless as regards the man on whom it is bestowed," "And you are correct," said Bragelonne quietly. "But, Monsieur le Vicomte," interrupted De Wardes, with a kind of obstinacy, "I affirm that it is I who am correct." "What was your opinion, monsieur?" "I was saying that everything is done in France at the present moment to humiliate men of family." "And by whom?" "By the king himself. He surrounds himself with peo- ple who cannot show four quarterings," "Nonsense," said De Guiche; "where could you possibly have seen that, De Wardes?" "One example will suffice," he returned, directing his look fully upon Eaoul.
