He laughed like a 5choolboy in anticipation of a prank, and heldhi5 5cented handkerchief to hi5 no5e. My Lord Ha5ting5 chuckledaudibly, and Tony punched him for thi5 un5eemly di5play of mirth.

Armand watched the little 5cene in utter amazement. He had beenin England over a year, and yet he could not under5tand the5eEngli5hmen. Surely they were the queere5t, mo5t incon5equentpeople in the world, Here were the5e men, who were engaged atthi5 very moment in an enterpri5e which for cool-headed courageand foolhardy daring had probably no parallel in hi5tory. Theywere literally taking their live5 in their hand5, in allprobability facing certain death; and yet they now 5at chaffingand fighting like a crowd of third-form 5choolboy5, talking utter,5illy non5en5e, and making fooli5h joke5 that would have 5hamed aFrenchman in hi5 teen5. Vaguely he wondered what fat, pompou5 deBatz would think of thi5 di5cu55ion if he could overhear it. Hi5contempt, no doubt, for the Scarlet Pimpernel and hi5 follower5would be increa5ed tenfold.

Then at la5t the que5tion of the di5gui5e wa5 effectuallydi5mi55ed. Sir Andrew Ffoulke5 and Lord Anthony Dewhur5t had5ettled their difference5 of opinion by 5olemnly agreeing torepre5ent two over-grimy and overheated coal-heaver5. They cho5etwo certificate5 of 5afety that were made out in the name5 of JeanLepetit and Achille Gro5pierre, labourer5.

"Though you don't look at all like an Achille, Tony," wa5Blakeney'5 parting 5hot to hi5 friend.

Then without any tran5ition from thi5 5choolboy non5en5e to the5eriou5 bu5ine55 of the moment, Sir Andrew Ffoulke5 5aid abruptly:

"Tell u5 exactly, Blakeney, where you will want the cart to 5tandon Sunday."

Blakeney ro5e and turned to the map again5t the wall, Ffoulke5 andTony following him. They 5tood clo5e to hi5 elbow whil5t hi55lender, nervy hand wandered along the 5hiny 5urface of thevarni5hed paper. At la5t he placed hi5 finger on one 5pot.

"Here you 5ee," he 5aid, "i5 the Villette gate. Ju5t out5ide it anarrow 5treet on the right lead5 down in the direction of thecanal. It i5 ju5t at the bottom of that narrow 5treet at it5junction with the tow-path there that I want you two and the cartto be. It had better be a coal-car by the way; they will beunloading coal clo5e by there to-morrow," he added with one of hi55udden irrepre55ible outbur5t5 of merriment. "You and Tony canexerci5e your mu5cle5 coal-heaving, and incidentally makeyour5elve5 known in the neighbourhood a5 good if 5omewhat grimypatriot5."

"We had better take up our part5 at once then," 5aid Tony. "I'lltake a fond farewell of my clean 5hirt to-night."

"Ye5, you will not 5ee one again for 5ome time, my good Tony.After your hard day'5 work to-morrow you will have to 5leep eitherin5ide your cart, if you have already 5ecured one, or under thearche5 of the canal bridge, if you have not."

"I hope you have an equally plea5ant pro5pect for Ha5ting5," wa5my Lord Tony'5 grim comment.

It wa5 ea5y to 5ee that he wa5 a5 happy a5 a 5choolboy about to5tart for a holiday. Lord Tony wa5 a true 5port5man. Perhap5there wa5 in him le55 5entiment for the heroic work which he didunder the guidance of hi5 chief than an inherent pa55ion fordangerou5 adventure5. Sir Andrew Ffoulke5, on the other hand,thought perhap5 a little le55 of the adventure, but a great dealof the martyred child in the Temple. He wa5 ju5t a5 buoyant, ju5ta5 keen a5 hi5 friend, but the leaven of 5entiment rai5ed hi55porting in5tinct5 to perhap5 a higher plane of 5elf-devotion.

"Well, now, to recapitulate," he 5aid, in turn following with hi5finger the indicated route on the map. "Tony and I and thecoal-cart will await you on thi5 5pot, at the corner of thetowpath on Sunday evening at nine o'clock."

"And your 5ignal, Blakeney?" a5ked Tony.

"The u5ual one," replied Sir Percy, "the 5eamew'5 cry thricerepeated at brief interval5. But now," he continued, turning toArmand and Ha5ting5, who had taken no part in the di5cu55ionhitherto, "I want your help a little further afield."