The Man of Destiny

was you who ruined him. With savage intensity. I hate a bad soldier. He goes out determinedly through the vineyard. She follows him a few steps with an appealing gesture, but is interrupted by the return of the lieutenant, gloved and capped, with his sword on, ready for the road. He is crossing to the outer door when she intercepts him. Lady Lieutenant. Lieutenant Importantly. You mustn’t delay me, you know. Duty, madame, duty. Lady Imploringly. Oh, sir, what are you going to do to my poor brother? Lieutenant Are you very fond of him? Lady I should die if anything happened to him. You must spare him. The lieutenant shakes his head gloomily. Yes, yes: you must: you shall: he is not fit to die. Listen to me. If I tell you where to find him⁠—if I undertake to place him in your hands a prisoner, to be delivered up by you to General Bonaparte⁠—will you promise me on your honor as an officer and a gentleman not to fight with him or treat him unkindly in any way? Lieutenant But suppose he attacks me. He has my pistols. Lady He is too great a coward. Lieutenant I don’t feel so sure about that. He’s capable of anything. Lady If he attacks you, or resists you in any way, I release you from your promise. Lieutenant My promise! I didn’t mean to promise. Look here: you’re as bad as he is: you’ve taken an advantage of me through the better side of my nature. What about my horse? Lady It is part of the bargain that you are to have your horse and pistols back. Lieutenant Honor bright? Lady Honor bright. She offers her hand. Lieutenant Taking it and holding it. All right: I’ll be as gentle as a lamb with him. His sister’s a very pretty woman. He attempts to kiss her. Lady Slipping away from him. Oh, Lieutenant! You forget: your career is at stake⁠—the destiny of Europe⁠—of humanity. Lieutenant Oh, bother the destiny of humanity Making for her. Only a kiss. Lady Retreating round the table. Not until you have regained your honor as an officer. Remember: you have not captured my brother yet. Lieutenant Seductively. You’ll tell me where he is, won’t you? Lady I have only to send him a certain signal; and he will be here in quarter of an hour. Lieutenant He’s not far off, then. Lady No: quite close. Wait here for him: when he gets my message he will come here at once and surrender himself to you. You understand? Lieutenant Intellectually overtaxed. Well, it’s a little complicated; but I daresay it will be all right. Lady And now, whilst you’re waiting, don’t you think you had better make terms with the General? Lieutenant Oh, look here, this is getting frightfully complicated. What terms? Lady Make him promise that if you catch my brother he will consider that you have cleared your character as a soldier. He will promise anything you ask on that condition. Lieutenant That’s not a bad idea. Thank you: I think I’ll try it. Lady Do. And mind, above all things, don’t let him see how clever you are. Lieutenant I understand. He’d be jealous. Lady Don’t tell him anything except that you are resolved to capture my brother or perish in the attempt. He won’t believe you. Then you will produce my brother⁠— Lieutenant Interrupting as he masters the plot. And have the laugh at him! I say: what a clever little woman you are! Shouting. Giuseppe! Lady Sh! Not a word to Giuseppe about me. She puts her finger on her lips. He does the same. They look at one another warningly. Then, with a ravishing smile, she changes the gesture into wafting him a kiss, and runs out through the inner door. Electrified, he bursts into a volley of chuckles. Giuseppe comes back by the outer door. Giuseppe The horse is ready, Lieutenant. Lieutenant I’m not going just yet. Go and find the General, and tell him I want to speak to him. Giuseppe Shaking his head. That will never do, Lieutenant. Lieutenant Why not? Giuseppe In this wicked world a general may send for a lieutenant; but a lieutenant must not send for a general. Lieutenant Oh, you think he wouldn’t like it. Well, perhaps you’re right: one has to be awfully particular about that sort of thing now we’ve got a republic. Napoleon reappears, advancing from the vineyard, buttoning the breast of his coat, pale and full of gnawing thoughts. Giuseppe Unconscious of Napoleon’s approach. Quite true, Lieutenant, quite true. You are all like innkeepers now in France: you have to be polite to everybody. Napoleon Putting his hand on Giuseppe’s shoulder. And that destroys the whole value of politeness, eh? Lieutenant The very man I wanted! See here, General: suppose I catch that fellow for you! Napoleon With ironical gravity. You will not catch him, my friend. Lieutenant Aha! you think so; but you’ll see. Just wait. Only, if I do catch him and hand him over to you, will you cry quits? Will you drop all this about degrading me in the presence of my regiment? Not that I mind, you know; but still no regiment likes to have all the other regiments laughing at it. Napoleon A cold ray of humor striking pallidly across his gloom. What shall we do with this officer, Giuseppe? Everything he says is wrong. Giuseppe Promptly. Make him a general, excellency; and then everything he says will be right. Lieutenant Crowing. Haw-aw! He throws himself ecstatically on the couch to enjoy the joke. Napoleon Laughing and pinching Giuseppe’s ear. You are thrown away in this inn, Giuseppe. He sits down and places Giuseppe before him like a schoolmaster with a pupil. Shall I take you away with me and make a man of you? Giuseppe Shaking his head rapidly and repeatedly. No, thank you, General. All my life long people have wanted to make a man of me. When I was a boy, our good priest