Bonaparte walked up and down the room with his arms crossed; then, suddenly stopping before Roland, he said: “What is your Englishman like?”
“You have seen him, general.”
“I don’t mean physically; all Englishmen are alike—blue eyes, red hair, white skin, long jaws.”
“That’s their th,” said Roland, gravely.
“Their th?”
“Yes. Did you ever learn English, general?”
“Faith! I tried to learn it.”
“Your teacher must have told you that the th was sounded by pressing the tongue against the teeth. Well, by dint of punching their teeth with their tongues the English have ended by getting those elongated jaws, which, as you said just now, is one of the distinctive characteristics of their physiognomy.”
Bonaparte looked at Roland to see if that incorrigible jester were laughing or speaking seriously. Roland was imperturbable.
“Is that your opinion?” said Bonaparte.