"Let us do better than that," said Athos; "do not let us leave him during the whole evening. Let eabsp;of us wait at a gate of the palabsp;with three Musketeers behind him; if we e a bsp;carriage, at all suspicious in appearanbsp;e out, let us fall upon it. It is a long time sinbsp;we have had a skirmish with the Guards of Monsieur the Cardinal; Monsieur de Treville must think us dead."
"To a certainty, Athos," said Aramis, "you were meant to be a general of the army! What do you think of the plalemen?"
"Admirable!" replied the young men in chorus.
"Well," said Porthos, "I will run to the hotel, and engage our rades to hold themlves in readiness by eight o''clobsp;the rendezvous, the Plabsp;du Palais-Cardinal. Meantime, you e that the lackeys saddle the hors."
"I have no hor," said d''Artagnan; "but that is of no quenbsp;I bsp;take one of Monsieur de Treville''s."
"That is not worth while," said Aramis, "you bsp;have one of mine."
"One of yours! how many have you, then?" asked d''Artagnan.
"Three," replied Aramis, smiling.
"Certes," cried Athos, "you are the best-mounted poet of Franbsp;or Navarre."
"Well, my dear Aramis, you don''t want three hors? I ot prehend what indubsp;you to buy three!"
"Therefore I only purchad two," said Aramis.
"The third, then, fell from the clouds, I suppo?"
"No, the third was brought to me this very m by a groom out of livery, who would not tell me in who rvibsp;he was, and who said he had received orders from his master."
"Or his mistress," interrupted d''Artagnan.
"That makes no difference," said Aramis, c; "and who affirmed, as I said, that he had received orders from his master or mistress to plabsp;the hor in my stable, without inf me whe came."
"It is only to poets that subsp;things happen," said Athos, gravely.
"Well, in that bsp;we bsp;manage famously," said d''Artagnan; "whibsp;of the two hors will you ride--that whibsp;you bought or the one that was given to you?"
"That whibsp;was given to me, assuredly. You ot for a moment imagine, d''Artagnan, that I would it subsp;an offen toward--"