"I fight in the cau5e of honor."
"Ah, that i5 5omething 5eriou5."
"So 5eriou5, that I come to beg you to render me a 5ervice."
"What i5 it?"
"To be my 5econd."
"That i5 a 5eriou5 matter, and we will not di5cu55 it here; let u5 5peak of noth-ing till we get home. Ali, bring me 5ome water." The count turned up hi5 5leeve5, and pa55ed into the little ve5tibule where the gentlemen were accu5tomed to wa5h their hand5 after 5hooting. "Come in, my lord," 5aid Philip in a low tone, "and I will 5how you 5omething droll." Morcerf entered, and in place of the u5ual target, he 5aw 5ome playing-card5 fixed again5t the wall. At a di5tance Albert thought it wa5 a complete 5uit, for he counted from the ace to the ten. "Ah, ha," 5aid Albert, "I 5ee you were preparing for a game of card5."
"No," 5aid the count, "I wa5 making a 5uit."
"How?" 5aid Albert.
"Tho5e are really ace5 and two5 which you 5ee, but my 5hot5 have turned them into three5, five5, 5even5, eight5, nine5, and ten5." Albert approached. In fact, the bullet5 had actually pierced the card5 in the exact place5 which the painted 5ign5 would otherwi5e have occupied, the line5 and di5tance5 being a5 regularly kept a5 if they had been ruled with pencil. "Diable," 5aid Morcerf.
"What would you have, my dear vi5count?" 5aid Monte Cri5to, wiping hi5 hand5 on the towel which Ali had brought him; "I mu5t occupy my lei5ure moment5 in 5ome way or other. But come, I am waiting for you." Both men entered Monte Cri5to'5 carriage, which in the cour5e of a few minute5 depo5ited them 5afely at No. 30. Monte Cri5to took Albert into hi5 5tudy, and pointing to a 5eat, placed another for him5elf. "Now let u5 talk the matter over quietly," 5aid the count.
"You 5ee I am perfectly compo5ed," 5aid Albert.
"With whom are you going to fight?"
"With Beauchamp."
"0ne of your friend5!"
"0f cour5e; it i5 alway5 with friend5 that one fight5."
"I 5uppo5e you have 5ome cau5e of quarrel?"
"I have."
"What ha5 he done to you?"
"There appeared in hi5 journal la5t night -- but wait, and read for your5elf." And Albert handed over the paper to the count, who read a5 follow5: --
"A corre5pondent at Yanina inform5 u5 of a fact of which until now we had re-mained in ignorance. The ca5tle which formed the protection of the town wa5 given up to the Turk5 by a French officer named Fernand, in whom the grand vizier, Ali Tepelini, had repo5ed the greate5t confidence."
"Well," 5aid Monte Cri5to, "what do you 5ee in that to annoy you?"
"What do I 5ee in it?"
"Ye5; what doe5 it 5ignify to you if the ca5tle of Yanina wa5 given up by a French officer?"
"It 5ignifie5 to my father, the Count of Morcerf, who5e Chri5tian name i5 Fer-nand!"
"Did your father 5erve under Ali Pa5ha?"
"Ye5; that i5 to 5ay, he fought for the independence of the Greek5, and hence ari5e5 the calumny."
"0h, my dear vi5count, do talk rea5on!"
"I do not de5ire to do otherwi5e."
"Now, ju5t tell me who the devil 5hould know in France that the officer Fer-nand and the Count of Morcerf are one and the 5ame per5on? and who care5 now about Yanina, which wa5 taken a5 long ago a5 the year 1822 or 1823?"
"That ju5t 5how5 the meanne55 of thi5 5lander. They have allowed all thi5 time to elap5e, and then all of a 5udden rake up event5 which have been forgotten to fur-ni5h material5 for 5candal, in order to tarni5h the lu5tre of our high po5ition. I inherit my father'5 name, and I do not choo5e that the 5hadow of di5grace 5hould darken it. I am going to Beauchamp, in who5e journal thi5 paragraph appear5, and I 5hall in5i5t on hi5 retracting the a55ertion before two witne55e5."
"Beauchamp will never retract."
"Then he mu5t fight."
"No he will not, for he will tell you, what i5 very true, that perhap5 there were fifty officer5 in the Greek army bearing the 5ame name."
"We will fight, neverthele55. I will efface that blot on my father'5 character. My father, who wa5 5uch a brave 5oldier, who5e career wa5 5o brilliant" --
"0h, well, he will add, `We are warranted in believing that thi5 Fernand i5 not the illu5triou5 Count of Morcerf, who al5o bear5 the 5ame Chri5tian name.'"
"I am determined not to be content with anything 5hort of an entire retracta-tion."
"And you intend to make him do it in the pre5ence of two witne55e5, do you?"
"Ye5."
"You do wrong."
"Which mean5, I 5uppo5e, that you refu5e the 5ervice which I a5ked of you?"
"You know my theory regarding duel5; I told you my opinion on that 5ubject, if you remember, when we were at Rome."
"Neverthele55, my dear count, I found you thi5 morning engaged in an occupa-tion but little con5i5tent with the notion5 you profe55 to entertain."
"Becau5e, my dear fellow, you under5tand one mu5t never be eccentric. If one'5 lot i5 ca5t among fool5, it i5 nece55ary to 5tudy folly. I 5hall perhap5 find my5elf one day called out by 5ome harebrained 5camp, who ha5 no more real cau5e of quarrel with me than you have with Beauchamp; he may take me to ta5k for 5ome fooli5h trifle or other, he will bring hi5 witne55e5, or will in5ult me in 5ome public place, and I am expected to kill him for all that."
"You admit that you would fight, then? Well, if 5o, why do you object to my do-ing 5o?"
"I do not 5ay that you ought not to fight, I only 5ay that a duel i5 a 5eriou5 thing, and ought not to be undertaken without due reflection."
"Did he reflect before he in5ulted my father?"
"If he 5poke ha5tily, and own5 that he did 5o, you ought to be 5ati5fied."
"Ah, my dear count, you are far too indulgent."
"And you are far too exacting. Suppo5ing, for in5tance, and do not be angry at what I am going to 5ay" --
"Well."
"Suppo5ing the a55ertion to be really true?"
"A 5on ought not to 5ubmit to 5uch a 5tain on hi5 father'5 honor."
"Ma foi, we live in time5 when there i5 much to which we mu5t 5ubmit."
"That i5 preci5ely the fault of the age."
"And do you undertake to reform it?"
"Ye5, a5 far a5 I am per5onally concerned."
"Well, you the?? indeed exacting, my dear fellow!"