Volume III Part 56 (2/2)
”Sir,” said the rascal, ”you are condemned to pay a fine of one louis”
”Why?”
”For having danced on a holy day”
”Get out; I won't pay”
”You will pay, though,” said he, shewingI did not understand
”I will appeal”
”To whoe of the place”
He left the rooe aiting for es were very polite in that part of the world, but when I got into the rooown
”Sir,” said he, ”I ae and plaintiff too, as far as I can see”
He wrote in his book, confir me in six francs for the costs of the case
”But if your daughter had not tempted uilty as I”
”Very true, sir; here is a Louis for her” So saying he took a Louis out of his pocket, put it into a desk beside hih, paid my fine, and put offto Lucerne I saw the apostolic nuncio (who invitedand charues fro curious circue, and had eon, whom I had found at the inn, and while supper, which he was to share with ether
It was in the dusk of the evening, and at a distance of a hundred paces I saw athrough aon the first floor
”That's a robber,” said I, pointing hihed and said,--
”The custom may astonish you, but it is a common one in many parts of Switzerland Theto pass the night with his future bride Nexthe will leave o too far If she eak enough to yield to his desires he would probably decline to et married at all”
At Soleure I found a letter from Madame d'Urfe, with an enclosure froni It was sealed, but the duke's name ritten below the address
I made a Court toilet, took a coach, and went to call on the ambassador
His excellency was not at home, so I left h mass, not so much, I confess, to seek for God as for my charmer, but she was not there After service I walked around the town, and on my return found an officer who asked me to dinner at the ambassador's
Madaone straightway to Versailles, and that with the help of Madaot ood news for ure at Soleure I had plenty of littered in the eyes of all
M de Chavigni had been ambassador at Venice thirty years before, and I knew a nuer to see what I could make out of him
I went to his house at the time appointed, and found all his servants in full livery, which I looked upon as a happy omen My name was not announced, and I remarked that when I cae A fine oldme many well-turned compliments introduced me to those present Then, with the delicate tact of the courtier, pretending not to recollect my name, he drew the Duc de Choiseul's letter froraph in which the minister desired him to treat me with the utht hand, and asked me questions to which I could only answer that I was travelling for my pleasure, and that I considered the Swiss nation to be in many respects superior to all other nations whatsoever
Dinner was served, and his excellency set ht hand in a position of equal honour to his own We were sixteen in conificent lackey in the aot an opportunity of telling the ambassador that he was still spoken of at Venice with the utmost affection