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Read Ebook: The Man of Destiny by Shaw Bernard
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Ebook has 477 lines and 14526 words, and 10 pages
GIUSEPPE. Instantaneously, your excellency.
A LADY'S VOICE . Giusep-pe!
NAPOLEON . What's that? What's that?
GIUSEPPE . The lady, excellency.
NAPOLEON . Yes. What lady? Whose lady?
GIUSEPPE. The strange lady, excellency.
NAPOLEON. What strange lady?
GIUSEPPE . Who knows? She arrived here half an hour before you in a hired carriage belonging to the Golden Eagle at Borghetto. Actually by herself, excellency. No servants. A dressing bag and a trunk: that is all. The postillion says she left a horse--a charger, with military trappings, at the Golden Eagle.
NAPOLEON. A woman with a charger! That's extraordinary.
THE LADY'S VOICE . Giuseppe!
NAPOLEON . That's an interesting voice.
GIUSEPPE. She is an interesting lady, excellency. Coming, lady, coming.
NAPOLEON . Stop. Let her come.
VOICE. Giuseppe!!
GIUSEPPE . Let me go, excellency. It is my point of honor as an innkeeper to come when I am called. I appeal to you as a soldier.
A MAN's VOICE . Here, someone. Hello! Landlord. Where are you?
NAPOLEON . There he is at last. Go. Attend to your business: the lady is calling you.
GIUSEPPE . Certainly, excellency.
THE MAN's VOICE . Are you all asleep here?
NAPOLEON . Well, sir, here you are at last. Your instructions were that I should arrive here at six, and that I was to find you waiting for me with my mail from Paris and with despatches. It is now twenty minutes to eight. You were sent on this service as a hard rider with the fastest horse in the camp. You arrive a hundred minutes late, on foot. Where is your horse!
THE LIEUTENANT . Ah! where indeed? That's just what I should like to know, General. You don't know how fond I was of that horse.
NAPOLEON . Indeed! Where are the letters and despatches?
THE LIEUTENANT . I don't know.
NAPOLEON . You don't know!
LIEUTENANT. No more than you do, General. Now I suppose I shall be court-martialled. Well, I don't mind being court-martialled; but I tell you, General, if ever I catch that innocent looking youth, I'll spoil his beauty, the slimy little liar! I'll make a picture of him. I'll--
NAPOLEON . What innocent looking youth? Pull yourself together, sir, will you; and give an account of yourself.
LIEUTENANT . Oh, I'm all right, General: I'm perfectly ready to give an account of myself. I shall make the court-martial thoroughly understand that the fault was not mine. Advantage has been taken of the better side of my nature; and I'm not ashamed of it. But with all respect to you as my commanding officer, General, I say again that if ever I set eyes on that son of Satan, I'll--
NAPOLEON . So you said before.
LIEUTENANT . I say it again, just wait until I catch him. Just wait: that's all.
NAPOLEON. I AM waiting, sir--for your explanation.
LIEUTENANT . You'll change your tone, General, when you hear what has happened to me.
NAPOLEON. Nothing has happened to you, sir: you are alive and not disabled. Where are the papers entrusted to you?
LIEUTENANT. Nothing! Nothing!! Oho! Well, we'll see. He swore eternal brotherhood with me. Was that nothing? He said my eyes reminded him of his sister's eyes. Was that nothing? He cried--actually cried--over the story of my separation from Angelica. Was that nothing? He paid for both bottles of wine, though he only ate bread and grapes himself. Perhaps you call that nothing! He gave me his pistols and his horse and his despatches--most important despatches--and let me go away with them. Was THAT nothing?
NAPOLEON . What did he do that for?
LIEUTENANT . To show his confidence in me. And I was worthy of his confidence: I brought them all back honorably. But would you believe it?--when I trusted him with MY pistols, and MY horse, and MY despatches--
NAPOLEON . What the devil did you do that for?
LIEUTENANT. Why, to show my confidence in him, of course. And he betrayed it--abused it--never came back. The thief! the swindler! the heartless, treacherous little blackguard! You call that nothing, I suppose. But look here, General: YOU may put up with this outrage from the Austrians if you like; but speaking for myself personally, I tell you that if ever I catch--
NAPOLEON . Yes: you have said that more than once already.
LIEUTENANT . More than once! I'll say it fifty times; and what's more, I'll do it. You'll see, General. I'll show my confidence in him, so I will. I'll--
NAPOLEON. Yes, yes, sir: no doubt you will. What kind of man was he?
LIEUTENANT. Well, I should think you ought to be able to tell from his conduct the sort of man he was.
NAPOLEON. Psh! What was he like?
LIEUTENANT. Like! He's like--well, you ought to have just seen the fellow: that will give you a notion of what he was like. He won't be like it five minutes after I catch him; for I tell you that if ever--
NAPOLEON . Giuseppe! Hold your tongue, sir, if you can.
LIEUTENANT. I warn you it's no use to try to put the blame on me. How was I to know the sort of fellow he was? If you only knew how hungry and tired I am, you'd have more consideration.
GIUSEPPE . What is it, excellency?
NAPOLEON . Take this--this officer. Feed him; and put him to bed, if necessary. When he is in his right mind again, find out what has happened to him and bring me word. Consider yourself under arrest, sir.
LIEUTENANT . I was prepared for that. It takes a gentleman to understand a gentleman.
GIUSEPPE . Have you been attacked by the Austrians, lieutenant? Dear, dear, dear!
LIEUTENANT . Attacked! I could have broken his back between my finger and thumb. I wish I had, now. No: it was by appealing to the better side of my nature: that's what I can't get over. He said he'd never met a man he liked so much as me. He put his handkerchief round my neck because a gnat bit me, and my stock was chafing it. Look!
GIUSEPPE . A lady's handkerchief, excellency. Perfumed!
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