I say, though, what's this? The time has changed! Half a second ago, it was one, two, three, four. Now it's one, two, three! The figure--that's different too! Why, what's come to them all? Two and two, swimming round and round! Gyration and rotation at once--the planetary system! I turned to my fair partner--she turned to me--I clasped a lovely arm-full--she dropped her hand upon my shoulder--I was fairly in for it. We whirled away with the rest. First it was to German strains, soft, equable, and mellifluous. Then, with a shout from Mons. Caper, the tune suddenly changed. It now was Spanish--soft and equable no longer--a mad, galloping _capriccio_, all tingling with life, point, and mettle. She entered into the spirit of it. I soon discovered that,--so kept her up to it, till she cried "enough!" in earnest. But oh! the difference between such a partner, and a bouncer! Oh! the difference between such a partner, and a bolter! Oh! the ease, the ductility, the lightness, the perfect airiness of her step! She waltzed like a zephyr! Farewell, charming Gasconne! Farewell, bewitching partner of an hour! Farewell, too, energetic and laborious dancer, my partner's middle-aged fussy cousin! Farewell, at least, till we meet again, under somewhat altered circumstances. Before you, too, Monsieur Caper, before you, orchestral umpire! terpsichorean autocrat!--before you, on retiring for the night, I make, _en passant_, with all the company, a profound obeisance.--In short, I then and there literally fell in love with the Gascon character; and the more I saw of them afterwards, the more I liked them. On the way to my apartment that night, I fell in with Jones, who informed me, with great apparent concern, that the servant and his kit had not yet come up; and that he "was afeared the hofficer had made his dinner off of bread and cheese." CHAPTER XIII. Jones entered my room early in the morning, with the garments which had so direly suffered, the day before, by spattering mud and pelting rain. They were now perfectly presentable; and not only that, but thoroughly dry. "Well, Jones, I see you've given them a good brushing." "Wouldn't have bin of no use, sir. Took and washed 'em, sir. Done it last night, sir." "How did you get them dry, then?" "Please, sir, I had 'em down to the kitchen fire the first thing this morning, sir--before daylight, sir." "I say, Jones, how did you manage these gloves?" "Please, sir, I washed 'em and put 'em on, sir. Walked about with them on my hands till they was dry, sir." "Why did you turn out so early, man? Don't suppose we shall start before noon." "Please, sir, 'cause I wanted to git forward with my wuk, sir; 'cause to-day I wants to turn out tidy myself, sir. Got a bit of tailoring to do, sir, 'cause of the haccident off the pony, sir. Thousand pities they don't cut the soldiers' jackits longer behind, sir." "Why turn out tidy to-day in particular?"