"I tell you, my dear fellow, those oils aren't to be despised! For my part, I try every one that comes out; I must confess that they often give me a headache, but a man must risk something to retain his youth, you must agree. However, I don't think that's what they're looking at; see how they're all laughing! It must be something very amusing." "Don't you know that in Paris the merest trifle is enough to collect a hundred people?" "No matter; I want to see what it is; I like to laugh when I have an opportunity. I'll come back in a minute and tell you about it." It was impossible to keep him away; he had already crossed the gutter with an agility of which I had not deemed him capable; and there he was in the crowd, forcing his way to the front with hands and elbows. The milliners did not lose sight of him. I too was anxious to witness the effect that his silhouette produced upon him. Just as he reached the wall and stood motionless in front of his likeness, unable to believe his eyes, the little clerk, who was still among the crowd, espied him, uttered an exclamation, and, overjoyed to be able to point him out to the bystanders, called out to him: "That's a picture of you, Monsieur Raymond; it looks just like you." And all the young men repeated with him: "It's Monsieur Raymond; he comes to my aunt's!" My neighbor pulled his hat over his eyes, so that one could see nothing but the tip of his nose; he tried to fly from the spot, and hurled himself among the loungers, who took the keenest delight in barring his path, bombarding him with jests and hootings. Raymond was beside himself; he pushed so hard that he succeeded in breaking out a path; and as he strode away, the laughter from the milliner's shop completely broke his heart. He went like the wind; but his hat was so far over his eyes that he could not see where he was going, and he collided with a blind man led by a dog which carried a bowl in its mouth. The shock overturned the poor devil, who sat down on the sidewalk with an emphatic oath; the dog, seeing its master fall, dropped its bowl and sprang at Raymond; the blind man cried _thief_! because he heard his sous rolling on the ground; and Raymond swore because the dog was snapping at his legs. The crowd ran up to restore peace and put the beggar on his feet; but no one dared to approach him, because he was laying about him with his stick, thinking that he was belaboring the person who had thrown him down; while Raymond struggled with the dog, which had taken his leg as a substitute for the bowl and would not relax its grip. At last, the blind man was raised to his feet, and they succeeded in replacing the bowl between the jaws of the faithful beast that had fought so valiantly for its master. As it was necessary to compensate the poor devil, who was rubbing his posteriors and demanding his money, my neighbor was compelled to put his hand in his pocket, while everybody shouted at him: