“In other words, there were dishes prepared with consummate art! I enjoyed among other things, a salmi of partridge, aux truffes——”
“With snipe!”
“Ah! there were snipe! that explains it; I said to myself that it had been kept just long enough!”
“And the mayonnaise of lobster?”
“And those white puddings à la purée of chestnuts!”
The two worthies passed the whole dinner in review, pausing to descant upon the dishes they had enjoyed most. This had lasted some time, when Monsieur Luminot exclaimed:
“Mon Dieu! and my duel!”
“I hoped he had forgotten it,” thought Chamoureau.
But it was after two o’clock when they went to Monsieur Remplumé’s house. The little lame man received them, coughing, spitting and sneezing as usual.
“You know about the scene that took place last evening at Monsieur de Belleville’s ball, do you not?” asked Luminot, laying his hand on the lame man’s shoulder.