He stammered out a few words of acknowledgement.
Seeing that her visitor cast glances at the quaint furniture, and anxious to break the confusing silence, Adèle went on: "Doubtless you had not seen a kitchen like this before Mr. ——."
"My name is Frank Mathers," interposed the young man.
"And mine is Adèle Rougeant," said she.
"Fancy, putting you in such a kitchen. We must go into the parlour directly."
"This is indeed very quaint and certainly primitive furniture. I must explain the use of——, that is if——."
"I should be greatly obliged," said Frank, "but it really is giving yourself too much trouble."
"On the contrary, it gives me pleasure. This"—pointing to a low kind of bedstead—"was the sofa of our forefathers. We call it a jonquière. It was formerly stuffed with a weed which still grows near the coast; called jonquier—hence its name. These rods were used to hang the craséaux on them. A crasé, the singular of craséaux, is a lamp of the most primitive type."
"A vessel with a beak in which some oil is poured, and in the beak is placed a wick, while underneath the vessel another one is suspended as a receptacle for the oil which falls from the upper one. Only ten years ago we still used them. I remember it quite well."
"And these are what we call 'lattes,'" she said, pointing to a wooden rack which hung suspended from the ceiling and parallel to it. "As you see, the bacon is kept there."