It was easier to go down than to come up, and when they had passed out into the Place Verte, the doctor declared that he must lunch before he walked any farther. The Hotel de l'Europe faced the Park, and Paul was desirous of seeing the interior of it. They entered through an archway, there being no doors on the street. There was a spacious area, or court-yard, through which alone the house could be reached. In other respects the establishment was similar to those in the United States.

On the continent, as in England, none but working people take breakfast much before nine o'clock, and the hour varies from this time till noon. Of late years the practice in American hotels corresponds with that of European ones. In the dining-room of the Hotel de l'Europe there are many small tables, and one or two long ones, the latter being used at table d'hôte, which is served at five o'clock. A hotel bill is added, to give the reader an idea of the prices:—

"HOTEL DE L'EUROPE.

Place Verte.

Anvers.

Note à M. Smith,
Chambre No. 40, A.
Fr. Cen.
Août 4.½ Poulet et Salade,3.00
1 Thé Complet,1.50
Appartement,2.50
Bougie,.50
Service,1.00
5.1 Déjeûné et Bifstek,3.00
1 Bifstek, Pomme de Terre,1.50
——
13.00
Pour Acquit,
J. W. Barber."

"One Thé Complet" consists of simply tea and bread and butter, and as a franc is about twenty cents, its price is thirty cents. A centime is the hundredth of a franc, and fifty centimes is ten cents. If the guest adds a beefsteak and potatoes, or any other dish, to his meal, it just doubles the cost. The "bougie" is a candle, which is charged all over Europe, at from a quarter of a franc up to a franc. The traveller also pays for his soap, or provides it himself. When an "old stager" pays a franc for a candle, or a piece of soap, he rolls the part unused up in a paper and puts it into his trunk; and, if at his next stopping-place, he finds a candle in his room, he orders the waiter to remove it, and will not submit to be charged for it.

Table d'hôte is a more formal meal, and in some large hotels much parade is made over it. The bill of fare is usually very meagre compared with that of the Fifth Avenue Hotel in New York, and every dish in the programme is presented to the guest. The charge for this meal, at first-class houses outside of Paris, is usually four francs, or eighty cents.

Dr. Winstock and Paul took a seat in the Salle à manger. The student was principally anxious to know what they had to eat, and in what manner they served it, for he was of an inquiring mind, and fond of making comparisons. The most common lunch consists of cold chicken and salad, the latter being simply lettuce prepared with oil and vinegar. Paul was disappointed, for the lunch differed hardly a shade from the same thing at home. Even the gentlemanly Belgian waiter, dressed in seemly black, spoke good English, and the "demi-poulet" was wasted upon him.

"Where shall we go now, Paul?" asked the doctor, as they left the dining-room.