“Mais, Monsieur, there are many officers and soldiers.”
That was not what he meant, J—— explained. Was there a castle or a fine church, for example?
—At this point the commercial gentlemen at the nearest table made bold to interfere. There was nothing in Cosne, they said, and were for sending us off on a castle hunt to Touraine at once. They had the map out in a trice, and during the next few minutes sent us flying from one end of it to the other.——
They will give us no rest, thought I.
—But presently one of the company asked how we liked Paris compared to London?——
“London is a great town, is it not?” said he, looking to us for support, so that we could do no less than agree with him. “But then, if you want coffee or something else to drink on the Sunday, what is to be done? Syrups are sold in the pharmacy, and the pharmacy is closed. The beer-houses are shut till one, and even after that hour, you go in, you are asked what you will have, the beer or the brandy is poured out, you drink it, and then you go at once. It is always like this, every day. You drink and you go.”
“But that it is bizarre!” said a young man opposite, who had never been in England.
“I think well that it is bizarre!” continued the other; “but you do not know what it is to live there in a family hotel. No shops are open the Sunday, and the landlady must buy everything the Saturday. What does she do? She buys a piece of rosbif. She gives it to you hot the Saturday, and cold for breakfast, dinner, and supper the Sunday; and the butcher, he never brings fresh meat the Monday, and you eat your rosbif cold again for dinner. And then you have a gooseberry tart. My God, how it sticks to your teeth! It is like this one eats in England.”
“It is not astonishing,” thought a serious, elderly gentleman on his right, “that the rich English come to France to dine.”
—At an early hour we went to the room which the landlady promised should be ours once dinner was well over.—The beds were not yet made, though mattresses and bedclothes were piled in one corner. The landlord and a lady and gentleman we had seen at the table d’hôte sat by a table. They invited us politely to be seated.——