QUADRUPLE DUEL.

397

whom we have just seen fighting with Ttoccaromana.Durand, who was a brave, just, and impartial man, indig-nant at the conduct of the French officers, immediately leftthe royal box at the opera where he happened to be, andaccompanied his officers to the coffee-house. Addressinghimself to the four Neapolitans, he desired them to pointout the Frenchmen who had used the sweeping expressionsof abuse complained of. They were indicated, and happenedto be just four ; whereupon, walking up to each of them,he gave them one after the other a slap in the face, and.told them that each of his four officers would give themsatisfaction, and if after that they desired more, he wasready to supply it. The Neapolitans were FerdinandoColonna, eldest son of the Prince Colonna Stigliano; theMarquis Rivelli, Diego Pignatelli Monteleone, MarcoCaracciolo, and the Marquis Campomele. The circum-stance took place on a Sunday, and the quadruple duel wasfixed for the Wednesday following. Three of the partiesagreed to fight with small swords; Colonna, to whom Iwas second, chose the sabre. Colonna and I had oftenfenced together, and also played with the basket-hiltedstick. I had learnt a particular decoy to engage a pointthrust from my adversary which led to a risposta of fatalcertainty : we called this cut, “ La Mamalucca.”

Early on Monday morning, my friend and I began topractise with our sticks, and so continued, with scarcelyany other intermission but for meals and sleep, which Itook at his palace, not forgetting ever-and-anon to practisethe Mamalucca , from which I anticipated success. Our ad-versary was an experienced lieutenant of French light cavalry.

On the appointed day we all met in a garden at Capo diMonte, each principal being attended by two seconds, sothat together we were twenty-four men all armed andstripped for combat. In fact the seconds had much cause