Whilst he was examining her curiously, Bijou was saying to herself that "this old friend of grandmamma's" was much younger-looking than she had imagined him to be. He certainly did make a good appearance, tall and slender, with his hair quite white on his temples, whilst his fair moustache had scarcely a touch of grey. His brown eyes had a gentle expression, and his mouth, sometimes mocking, and at times even almost cruel, showed, when he smiled, the sharp, white teeth, which lighted up his whole face in a singular way. The silence was getting embarrassing, until Bijou at last broke it: "Grandmamma has not come down then yet? I expected to find her here." "She went away to dress just as you came in." "She will never be ready." M. de Clagny looked at his watch. "But dinner is to be at eight--she has plenty of time; it is not half-past seven." "Oh!" exclaimed Bijou regretfully. "If only I had known, I should not have hurried so much. I was so afraid of being late." "I'm the one to be glad that you hurried so much. I shall have you to talk to for a minute"-- "For a good half-hour at least," she said, laughing; "no one is ever in advance here--oh, never, not even the guests any more than the people of the house." "Ah, about the guests, tell me with whom I am going to dine. Your grandmamma said, 'You will dine with some friends of yours.' Now, as to friends, I cannot have many here now, considering that for the last twelve years I have not been in this part of the world. There have probably been many changes since then." "Not so many as all that; let's see, now! you will dine with the Tourvilles." "The Tourvilles? they are not dead yet?" "Those with whom you are going to dine are living. They had some parents who are dead." "Ah! that's it, is it! then young Tourville is married?" "Yes, two years ago!" "He was a disagreeable fellow! Has he made a good marriage?" "That depends! he married a young lady on the Stock Exchange." "What do you mean? a young lady on the Stock Exchange?" "Yes, her father is something there, I believe; he is very, very rich." "Is it Chaillot, the banker?" "Perhaps so, I never asked about them--they have restored Tourville, it is superb now; and they are always entertaining." "Is Madame de Tourville pretty?" "You will see her; she is very pleasant, and they say she is very intelligent; for my part, I have not discovered that." And then, as M. de Clagny smiled, she added quickly: "Because I only know her very slightly." "Well, and after the Tourvilles, who next?" "M. de Bernes." "Young Hubert, the dragoon?" "He himself." "He is the son of good friends of mine; a downright nice fellow, don't you think so?" "Don't I think what?" "That Hubert de Bernes is nice?" "Oh! I know him so slightly; he has always seemed to me--how shall I express it?--insipid, yes, insipid." "Because you intimidate him, probably? I can quite understand that, too!" "I intimidate _you_, perhaps?" she said, laughing.