“‘Then, your Grace, of these twelve bottles of which the prince royal drank, only two remain. One is in the cellar of his Majesty Louis XVI.—’
“‘And the other?’
“‘Ah, your Grace!’ said the maître d’hôtel, with a triumphant smile, for he felt that, after the long battle he had been fighting, the moment of victory was at hand, ‘the other one was stolen.’
“‘By whom, then?’
“‘By one of my friends, the late king’s butler, who was under great obligations to me.’
“‘Oh! and so he gave it to you.’
“‘Certainly, your Grace,’ said the maître d’hôtel, with pride.
“‘And what did you do with it?’
“‘I placed it carefully in my master’s cellar.’
“‘Your master? And who was your master at that time?’