M. Colbert resided in the Rue Neuve des Petits-Champs in ahouse which had belonged to Beautru. D'Artagnan's legscleared the distance in a short quarter of an hour. When hearrived at the residence of the new favorite, the court wasfull of archers and police, who came to congratulate him, orto excuse themselves according to whether he should chooseto praise or blame. The sentiment of flattery is instinctivewith people of abject condition; they have the sense of it,as the wild animal has that of hearing and smell. Thesepeople, or their leader, understood that there was apleasure to offer to M. Colbert, in rendering him an accountof the fashion in which his name had been pronounced duringthe rash enterprise of the morning. D'Artagnan made hisappearance just as the chief of the watch was giving hisreport. He stood close to the door, behind the archers. Thatofficer took Colbert on one side, in spite of his resistanceand the contraction of his bushy eyebrows. "In case," saidhe, "you really desired, monsieur, that the people should dojustice on the two traitors, it would have been wise to warnus of it; for, indeed, monsieur, in spite of our regret atdispleasing you, or thwarting your views, we had our ordersto execute."

"Triple fool!" replied Colbert, furiously shaking his hair,thick and black as a mane, "what are you telling me? What!that I could have had an idea of a riot! Are you mad ordrunk?"

"But, monsieur, they cried, `Vive Colbert!'" replied thetrembling watch.

"A handful of conspirators - - "

"No, no; a mass of people."

"Ah! indeed," said Colbert, expanding. "A mass of peoplecried, `Vive Colbert!' Are you certain of what you say,monsieur?"

"We had nothing to do but open our ears, or rather to closethem, so terrible were the cries."

"And this was from the people, the real people?"

"Certainly, monsieur; only these real people beat us."

"Oh! very well," continued Colbert, thoughtfully. "Then yousuppose it was the people alone who wished to burn thecondemned?"

"Oh! yes, monsieur."

"That is quite another thing. You strongly resisted, then?"

"We had three of our men crushed to death, monsieur!"

"But you killed nobody yourselves?"

"Monsieur, a few of the rioters were left upon the square,and one among them who was not a common man."

"Who was he?"

"A certain Menneville, upon whom the police have a long timehad an eye."

"Menneville!" cried Colbert, "what, he who killed Rue de laHuchette, a worthy man who wanted a fat fowl?"

"Yes, monsieur; the same."

"And did this Menneville also cry, `Vive Colbert'?"

"Louder than all the rest, like a madman."

Colbert's brow grew dark and wrinkled. A kind of ambitiousglory which had lighted his face was extinguished, like thelight of glow-worms we crush beneath the grass. "Then yousay," resumed the deceived intendant, "that the initiativecame from the people? Menneville was my enemy, I would havehad him hung, and he knew it well. Menneville belonged tothe Abbe Fouquet - the affair originated with Fouquet; doesnot everybody know that the condemned were his friends fromchildhood?"

"That is true," thought D'Artagnan, "and thus are all mydoubts cleared up. I repeat it, Monsieur Fouquet many becalled what they please, but he is a very gentlemanly man;"

"And," continued Colbert, "are you quite sure Menneville isdead?"

D'Artagnan thought the time was come for him to make hisappearance. "Perfectly, monsieur;" replied he, advancingsuddenly.

"Oh! is that you, monsieur?" said Colbert.

"In person," replied the musketeer with his deliberate tone;"it appears that you had in Menneville a pretty enemy."

"It was not I, monsieur, who had an enemy," replied Colbert;"it was the king."

"Double brute!" thought D'Artagnan, "to think to play thegreat man and the hypocrite with me. Well," continued he toColbert, "I am very happy to have rendered so good a serviceto the king; will you take upon you to tell his majesty,monsieur l'intendant?"

"What commission is this you give me, and what do you chargeme to tell his majesty, monsieur? Be precise, if youplease," said Colbert, in a sharp voice, tuned beforehand tohostility.

"I give you no commission," replied D'Artagnan, with thatcalmness which never abandons the banterer; "I thought itwould be easy for you to announce to his majesty that it wasI who, being there by chance, did justice upon Mennevilleand restored things to order."

Colbert opened his eyes and interrogated the chief of thewatch with a look - "Ah! it is very true," said the latter,"that this gentleman saved us."

"Why did you not tell me monsieur, that you came to relateme this?" said Colbert with envy, "everything is explained,and more favorably for you than for anybody else."

"You are in error, monsieur l'intendant, I did not at allcome for the purpose of relating that to you."

"It is an exploit, nevertheless."

"Oh!" said the musketeer carelessly, "constant habit bluntsthe mind."

"To what do I owe the honor of your visit, then?"

"Simply to this: the king ordered me to come to you."

"Ah!" said Colbert, recovering himself when he sawD'Artagnan draw a paper from his pocket; "it is to demandsome money of me?"

"Precisely, monsieur.'

"Have the goodness to wait, if you please, monsieur, till Ihave dispatched the report of the watch."

D'Artagnan turned upon his heel, insolently enough, andfinding himself face to face with Colbert, after his firstturn, he bowed to him as a harlequin would have done; then,after a second evolution, he directed his steps towards thedoor in quick time. Colbert was struck with this pointedrudeness, to which he was not accustomed. In general, men ofthe sword, when they came to his office, had such a want ofmoney, that though their feet seemed to take root in themarble, they hardly lost their patience. Was D'Artagnangoing straight to the king? Would he go and describe hisrough reception, or recount his exploit? This was a matterfor grave consideration. At all events, the moment was badlychosen to send D'Artagnan away, whether he came from theking, or on his own account. The musketeer had rendered toogreat a service, and that too recently, for it to be alreadyforgotten. Therefore Colbert thought it would be better toshake off his arrogance and call D'Artagnan back. "Ho!Monsieur d'Artagnan," cried Colbert, "what! are you leavingme thus?"

D'Artagnan turned round: "Why not?" said he, quietly, "wehave no more to say to each other, have we?"

"You have, at least, money to receive, as you have anorder?"

"Who, I? Oh! not at all, my dear Monsieur Colbert."

"But, monsieur, you have an order. And, in the same manneras you give a sword-thrust, when you are required, I, on mypart, pay when an order is presented to me. Present yours."

"It is useless, my dear Monsieur Colbert," said D'Artagnan,who inwardly enjoyed this confusion in the ideas of Colbert;"my order is paid."

"Paid, by whom?"

"By monsieur le surintendant."

Colbert grew pale.

"Explain yourself," said he, in a stifled voice - "if youare paid why do you show me that paper?"

"In consequence of the word of order of which you spoke tome so ingeniously just now, dear M. Colbert; the king toldme to take a quarter of the pension he is pleased to makeme."

"Of me?" said Colbert.

"Not exactly. The king said to me: `Go to M. Fouquet; thesuperintendent will, perhaps, have no money, then you willgo and draw it of M. Colbert.'"

The countenance of M. Colbert brightened for a moment; butit was with his unfortunate physiognomy as with a stormysky, sometimes radiant, sometimes dark as night, accordingas the lightning gleams or the cloud passes. "Eh! and wasthere any money in the superintendent's coffers?" asked he.

"Why, yes, he could not be badly off for money," repliedD'Artagnan - "it may be believed, since M. Fouquet, insteadof paying me a quarter or five thousand livres - - "

"A quarter or five thousand livres!" cried Colbert, struck,as Fouquet had been, with the generosity of the sum for asoldier's pension, "why, that would be a pension of twentythousand livres?"

"Exactly, M. Colbert. Peste! you reckon like old Pythagoras;yes, twenty thousand livres."

"Ten times the appointment of an intendant of the finances.I beg to offer you my compliments," said Colbert, with avicious smile.

"Oh!" said D'Artagnan, "the king apologized for giving me solittle; but he promised to make it more hereafter, when heshould be rich; but I must be gone, having much to do - - "

"So, then, notwithstanding the expectation of the king, thesuperintendent paid you, did he?"

"In the same manner as, in opposition to the king'sexpectation, you refused to pay me."

"I did not refuse, monsieur, I only begged you to wait. Andyou say that M. Fouquet paid you your five thousand livres?"

"Yes, as you might have done; but he did even better thanthat, M. Colbert."

"And what did he do?"

"He politely counted me down the sum-total, saying, that forthe king, his coffers were always full."

"The sum-total! M. Fouquet has given you twenty thousandlivres instead of five thousand?"

"Yes, monsieur."

"And what for?"

"In order to spare me three visits to the money-chest of thesuperintendent, so that I have the twenty thousand livres inmy pocket in good new coin. You see, then, that I am able togo away without standing in need of you, having come hereonly for form's sake." And D'Artagnan slapped his hand uponhis pocket, with a laugh which disclosed to Colbertthirty-two magnificent teeth, as white as teeth oftwenty-five years old and which seemed to say in theirlanguage: "Serve up to us thirty-two little Colberts, and wewill chew them willingly." The serpent is as brave as thelion, the hawk as courageous as the eagle, that cannot becontested. It can only be said of animals that are decidedlycowardly, and are so called, that they will be brave onlywhen they have to defend themselves. Colbert was notfrightened at the thirty-two teeth of D'Artagnan. Herecovered, and suddenly, - "Monsieur," said he, "monsieurle surintendant has done what he had no right to do."

"What do you mean by that?" replied D'Artagnan.

"I mean that your note - will you let me see your note, ifyou please?"

"Very willingly; here it is."

Colbert seized the paper with an eagerness which themusketeer did not remark without uneasiness, andparticularly without a certain degree of regret at havingtrusted him with it. "Well, monsieur, the royal order saysthis: - `At sight, I command that there be paid to M.d'Artagnan the sum of five thousand livres, forming aquarter of the pension I have made him.'"

"So, in fact, it is written," said D'Artagnan, affectingcalmness.

"Very well; the king only owed you five thousand livres; whyhas more been given to you?"

"Because there was more; and M. Fouquet was willing to giveme more; that does not concern anybody."

"It is natural," said Colbert, with a proud ease, "that youshould be ignorant of the usages of state-finance; but,monsieur, when you have a thousand livres to pay, what doyou do?"

"I never have a thousand livres to pay," replied D'Artagnan.

"Once more," said Colbert, irritated - "once more, if youhad any sum to pay, would you not pay what you ought?"

"That only proves one thing," said D'Artagnan; "and that is,that you have your particular customs in finance, and M.Fouquet has his own."

"Mine, monsieur, are the correct ones."

"I do not say they are not."

"And you have accepted what was not due to you."

D'Artagnan's eyes flashed. "What is not due to me yet, youmeant to say, M. Colbert; for if I had received what was notdue to me at all, I should have committed a theft."

Colbert made no reply to this subtlety. "You then owefifteen thousand livres to the public chest," said he,carried away by his jealous ardor.

"Then you must give me credit for them," replied D'Artagnan,with his imperceptible irony.

"Not at all, monsieur."

"Well! what will you do, then? You will not take my rouleauxfrom me, will you?"

"You must return them to my chest."

"I! Oh! Monsieur Colbert, don't reckon upon that."

"The king wants his money, monsieur."

"And I, monsieur, I want the king's money."

"That may be but you must return this."

"Not a sou. I have always understood that in matters ofcomptabilite, as you call it, a good cashier never givesback or takes back."

"Then, monsieur, we shall see what the king will say aboutit. I will show him this note, which proves that M. Fouquetnot only pays what he does not owe, but that he does noteven take care of vouchers for the sums that he has paid."

"Ah! now I understand why you have taken that paper, M.Colbert!"

Colbert did not perceive all that there was of a threateningcharacter in his name pronounced in a certain manner. "Youshall see hereafter what use I will make of it," said he,holding up the paper in his fingers.

"Oh!" said D'Artagnan, snatching the paper from him with arapid movement; "I understand it perfectly well, M. Colbert;I have no occasion to wait for that." And he crumpled up inhis pocket the paper he had so cleverly seized.

"Monsieur, monsieur!" cried Colbert, "this is violence!"

"Nonsense! You must not be particular about a soldier'smanners!" replied D'Artagnan. "I kiss your hands, my dear M.Colbert." And he went out, laughing in the face of thefuture minister.

"That man, now," muttered he, "was about to grow quitefriendly; it is a great pity I was obliged to cut hiscompany so soon."