"Don't be alarmed, sir," cried the colonel; "the dog won't bite you-- unless there's a hole in the hedge anywhere."The stranger took off his small straw hat with a sweep. "Ah, I am not afraid," he said, and his accent proclaimed him a Frenchman; "he is not enrage at me. May I ask, it is pairmeet to speak viz Misterre Vezzered?"I felt I must deal with this person alone, for I feared the worst; and, asking them to excuse me, I went to the hedge and faced the Frenchman with the frightful calm of despair. He was a short, stout little man, with blue cheeks, sparkling black eyes, and a vivacious walnut-coloured countenance; he wore a short black alpaca coat, and a large white cravat, with an immense oval malachite brooch in the centre of it, which I mention because I found myself staring mechanically at it during the interview.
"My name is Weatherhead," I began with the bearing of a detected pickpocket. "Can I be of any service to you?""Of a great service," he said, emphatically; "you can restore to me ze poodle vich I see zere!"Nemesis had called at last in the shape of a rival claimant. I staggered for an instant; then I said, "Oh, I think you are under a mistake; that dog is not mine.""I know it," he said; "zere 'as been leetle mistake, so if ze dog is not to you, you give him back to me, /hein/?""I tell you," I said, "that poodle belongs to the gentleman over there." And I pointed to the colonel, seeing that it was best now to bring him into the affair without delay. "You are wrong," he said, doggedly; "ze poodle is my poodle! And I was direct to you--it is your name on ze carte!" And he presented me with that fatal card which I had been foolish enough to give to Blagg as a proof of my identity. I saw it all now; the old villain hadbetrayed me, and to earn a double reward had put the real owner on my track.
I decided to call the colonel at once, and attempt to brazen it out with the help of his sincere belief in the dog.
"Eh, what's that; what's it all about?" said the colonel, bustling up, followed at intervals by the others.
The Frenchman raised his hat again. "I do not vant to make a trouble," he began, "but zere is leetle mistake. My word of honour, sare, I see my own poodle in your garden. Ven I appeal to zis gentilman to restore 'im he reffer me to you.""You must allow me to know my own dog, sir," said the colonel. "Why, I've had him from a pup. Bingo, old boy, you know your name, don't you?"But the brute ignored him altogether, and began to leap wildly at the hedge in frantic efforts to join the Frenchman. It needed no Solomon to decide /his/ ownership!
"I tell you, you 'ave got ze wrong poodle--it is my own dog, my Azor! He remember me well, you see? I lose him, it is three, four days. . . . I see a nottice zat he is found, and ven I go to ze address zey tell me, 'Oh, he is reclaim, he is gone viz a strangaire who has advertise.' Zey show me ze placard; I follow 'ere, and ven I arrive I see my poodle in ze garden before me!""But look here," said the colonel, impatiently; "it's all very well to say that, but how can you prove it? I give you /my/ word that the dog belongs to /me/! You must prove your claim, eh, Travers?""Yes," said Travers, judicially; "mere assertion is no proof; it's oath against oath at present.""Attend an instant; your poodle, was he 'ighly train, had he some talents--a dog viz tricks, eh?""No, he's not," said the colonel; "I don't like to see dogs taught to play the fool; there's none of that nonsense about /him/, sir!""Ah, remark him well, then. /Azor, mon chou, danse donc un peu/!"And, on the foreigner's whistling a lively air, that infernal poodle rose on his hind legs and danced solemnly about half-way round the garden!
We inside followed his movements with dismay.
"Why, dash it all!" cried the disgusted colonel, "he's dancing along like a d--d mountebank! But it's my Bingo, for all that!""You are not convince? You shall see more. /Azor, ici! Pour Beesmarck, Azor!/" (the poodle barked ferociously.) "/Pour Gambetta!/" (He wagged his tail and began to leap with joy.) /"Meurs pour la patrie!" And the too accomplished animal rolled over as if killed in battle!
"Where could Bingo have picked up so much French?" cried Lilian, incredulously.
"Or so much French history?" added that serpent, Travers.
"Shall I command 'im to jump, or reverse 'imself?" inquired the obliging Frenchman.
"We've seen that, thank you," said the colonel, gloomily. "Upon my word, I don't know what to think. It can't be that that's not my Bingo after all--I'll never believe it!"I tried a last desperate stroke. "Will you come round to the front?" I said to the Frenchman. "I'll let you in, and we can discuss the matter quietly." Then, as we walked back together, I asked him eagerly what he would take to abandon his claims and let the colonel think the poodle was his after all.
He was furious--he considered himself insulted; with great emotion he informed me that the dog was the pride of his life (it seems to be the mission of black poodles to serve as domestic comforts of this priceless kind!), that he would not part with him for twice his weight in gold.
"Figure," he began, as we joined the others, "zat zis gentilman 'ere 'as offer me money for ze dog! He agrees zat it is to me, you see? Ver' well, zen, zere is no more to be said!""Why, Weatherhead, have /you/ lost faith too, then?" said the colonel.
I saw it was no good; all I wanted now was to get out of it creditably and get rid of the Frenchman. "I'm sorry to say," I replied, "that I'm afraid I've been deceived by the extraordinary likeness. I don't think, on reflection, that that /is/ Bingo!""What do you think, Travers?" asked the colonel.
"Well, since you ask me," said Travers, with quite unnecessary dryness,"I never did think so."
"Nor I," said the colonel; "I thought from the first that was never my Bingo. Why, Bingo would make two of that beast!"And Lilian and her aunt both protested that they had had their doubts from the first.
"Zen you pairmeet zat I remove 'im?" said the Frenchman.
