DUET 



Duel. 



Sword and Dagger Fight, a masterly representation of a sixteenth 

 century duel, from the painting by John Pettie, B.A. 



France is the country of origin of 

 the modern duel. It was forbidden 

 in civil matters as early as 1305, 

 but without effect, and in the next 

 two centuries duelling was gener- 

 ally prevalent Francis I sent a 

 challenge to Charles V of Germany, 

 and although it was not accepted, 

 this royal example was enough to 

 sanction a fashion peculiarly con- 

 genial to the national tempera- 

 ment. It grew under Charles IX 

 and became almost a mania under 

 his successors, the third and fourth 

 Henrys and Louis XIII, despite 

 more than one ordinance and edict 

 threatening penalty of death to 

 principals and seconds alike. Ros- 

 tand's picture of Cyrano de Ber- 

 gerac and his brother cadets is no 

 caricature of the young gallants of 

 that day who mistook swashbuck- 

 ling tor chivalry, and who doffed 

 cloak and drew rapier on any pre- 

 text or none. These hot-heads 

 found a quarrel everywhere, and 

 soon were not content with one 

 second apiece, while the second for 

 his part ceased to be content with 

 looking on to see fair play. In the 

 reign of Louis XIV the dukes of 

 Nemours and Beaufort fought a 

 duel in which four friends joined 

 in on each side. Three of the ten 

 were killed, including Nemours, and 

 all the other seven were wounded. 

 The duel had almost grown into a 

 battle. As in Italy, as pictured by 

 Shakespeare in Romeo and Juliet, 

 again no exaggerated caricature, 

 so in France duelling became an 

 intolerable evil. 



Despite the spectacular encounter 

 mentioned, Louis XIV has the credit 

 of doing much to suppress the prac- 

 tice, by establishing a supreme court 

 of honour, and still more by insist- 

 ing on the punishment of all who 

 disregarded the edict against it. As 

 a practice, chiefly indulged in by 



the aristocracy, the Revolutionists 

 ignored it in their legislation, and 

 during the first Republic and the 

 first Empire it almost died out. It 

 was revived, however, with the Re- 

 storation, and remains a custom 

 in France, resorted to for the most 

 part by ebullient editors and poli- 

 ticians, and not often a bloody busi- 

 ness, although as late as 1900 M. 

 Marlier, a municipal councillor, was 

 killed by M. Ferrette, a deputy, in 

 Paris. A bill to stop duelling was 

 submitted to the French Chamber 

 in 1920. 



In England duelling dates back 

 as a custom to the beginning of the 

 17th century, in the latter part of 

 which, after the Restoration, it 

 experienced a great revival. Beau 

 Fielding went out with Sir Henry 

 Colt, the member for Westminster, 

 in Feb., 1696, and wounded the 

 baronet, who, however, succeeded 

 in disarming his opponent. Lord 

 Byron killed Mr. Chaworth in 1765, 

 and the duke of York met Colonel 

 Lennox in 1789. Mr. Christie killed 

 Scott, editor of The London Maga- 

 zine, Feb. 16, 1821, and on March 

 21, 1829, the duke of Wellington 

 had a bloodless encounter with the 

 earl of Winchelsea. On July 3, 1843. 

 Colonel Fawcett died of wounds re- 

 ceived two days before in a duel 

 with his brother-in-law, Lieut. 

 Munro. The case led to action by 

 the Prince Consort with regard to 

 the military etiquette of duelling, 

 in obedience to which alone Munro 

 had gone out. In the event it was 

 ordained in the articles of war that 

 any officer who participated in a 

 duel, whether as principal or as 

 accessory, or who did not do his 

 best to prevent a duel, should be 

 cashiered, and the regulation is 

 still in force. 



In the German army, up to the 

 revolution of 1918 at least, officers 



^ DUFF 



were required to submit disputes 

 to a council of honour which ar- 

 ranged the matter if possible, and, 

 if not. supervised the conditions of 

 the encounter. The German stu- 

 dents' duels are a more or less harm- 

 less form of university amusement. 

 By English law duelling is an 

 offence amounting to murder or 

 manslaughter in the event of a 

 death, and Major Campbell was 

 hanged, in 1808, for having killed 

 Captain Boyd in the previous June. 

 In 1813, again, when Lieut. Blun- 

 dell was killed in a duel, his oppo- 

 nent, Mr. Maguire, and both the 

 seconds engaged, were convicted of 

 murder and sentenced to death. 

 In the event they were pardoned, 

 but cashiered. On Oct. 19, 1852, 

 when E. Barthelemy shot M. Cour- 

 net, an ex-officer of the French 

 navy, at Crown Farm, between 

 Windsor and Egham, both princi- 

 pals and seconds were refugees. 

 Barthelemy, notwithstanding fero- 

 cious professions of Republicanism, 

 was always suspected by other 

 French refugees of being in the pay 

 of the French police, and the cause 

 of the duel was political. 



Duet (Ital. duetto). Composition 

 for two single voices or instru- 

 ments, occasionally a double theme 

 for a single instrument. In in- 

 strumental music the expression 

 is used generally for a work for 

 two similar instruments, e.g. two 

 flutes. When written for different 

 instruments, e.g. violin and flute, 

 the more correct term is duo. 



Dufaure, JULES ARMAND STAN- 

 ISLAS (1798-1881). French advo- 

 cate and politician. Born at Sau- 

 jon, he was minister of the in- 

 terior for a short period in 1848, 

 and again in 1849. After a long 

 period of office he was minister of 

 justice, 1871-73, and again from 

 1875-76. From March 9 to Dec. 2, 

 1876, he was premier at a period 

 of particular difficulty, when feel- 

 ing ran high between the parties 

 of Church and State. Both the 

 president, Marshal MacMahon, and 

 the senate were opposed to the 

 premier's policy, and he resigned, 

 only to return to office once more 

 as premier on Sept. 14, 1877, until 

 Feb. 1, 1879. He died at Paris. 

 June 28, 1881. 



Duff, ALEXANDER (1806-78). 

 Scottish missionary. Born in Perth- 

 shire, April 26, 

 1806, he was 

 educated a t 

 S t. Andrews, 

 n 1829 he 

 went as a 

 missionary 

 to India, the 

 first sent by 



Alexander Duff. 



the Church of 



Scottish missionary Scotlfind, and 



