Buck was a physiognomist. The countenance of Eusebe pleased him, and he invited the provincial to pay him a visit.
“You wish to study the comedy of human life? I will give you a box gratis.”
Eusebe expressed his gratitude, and, in the simple warmth of his heart, vowed to the painter eternal friendship.
“Friendship!” said the painter. “If you have brought it from the provinces, I will accept it most willingly; but at Paris we have no more friendship. The secret was lost long ago. If we cannot be friends, we will be two bons camarades.”
“Can you tell me the difference,” inquired Eusebe, “between friendship and good-fellowship?”
“Nothing can be clearer,” replied the artist, as he drew from his pocket two pieces of colored glass. “Look at these. This piece was manufactured about three hundred years ago, by a process known to the artists of the Middle Ages. The color is made a part of the glass itself. If you break it, you find the red within as well as without. Now look at the other piece. That was made only a week ago. At the first glance, it appears like the other. But break it, and you find that the red has not penetrated beyond the surface. Do you see?
“Well, this illustrates the difference between friendship and boon-companionship. Friendship permeates the heart of man; good-fellowship only gives it a superficial tint.”
“I comprehend,” said Eusebe.