QUITE CLEAR.--"_Aha! mon ami_," exclaimed our friend JULES, during the recent murky weather in Town, "you ask me the difference between our Paris and your London. _Tenez_, I will tell you. Paris is always _très gai, veritablement gai_; but London is _toujours faux gai_--you see it is always fo-gay." And he meant "fog-gy." Well, he wasn't far wrong, just now. * * * * * [Illustration: "COMING EVENTS CAST THEIR SHADOWS BEFORE."] * * * * * THE TRAVELLING COMPANIONS. NO. XXI. SCENE--_The Steps of the Hotel Dandolo, about 11 A.M. PODBURY is looking expectantly down the Grand Canal, CULCHARD is leaning upon the balustrade._ _Podbury_. Yes, met BOB just now. They've gone to the Europa, but we've arranged to take a gondola together, and go about. They're to pick me up here. Ah, that looks rather like them. (_A gondola approaches, with Miss PRENDERGAST and BOB; PODBURY goes down the steps to meet them._) How are you, Miss PRENDERGAST? Here I _am_, you see. [Illustration: "I guess you want to Cologne _your_ cheeks!"] _Miss Prendergast_t (_ignoring C.'s salute_). How do you do, Mr. PODBURY? Surely you don't propose to go out in a gondola in _that_ hat! _Podb._ (_taking off a brown "pot-hat," and inspecting it_). It--it's quite _decent_. It was new when I came away! _Bob_ (_who is surly this morning_). Hang it all, 'PATIA! Do you want him to come out in a chimney-pot? Jump in, old fellow; never mind your tile? _Podb._ (_apologetically_). I had a straw one--but I sat on it. I'm awfully sorry, Miss PRENDERGAST. Look here, shall I go and see if I can buy one? _Miss P._ Not now--it doesn't signify, for once. But around hat and a gondola are really _too_ incongruous! _Podb._ Are they? A lot of the Venetians seem to wear 'em. (_He steps in._) Now what are we going to do--just potter about? _Miss P._ One hardly comes to Venice to _potter_! I thought we'd go and study the Carpaccios at the Church of the Schiavoni first--they won't take us more than an hour or so; then cross to San Giorgio Maggiore, and see the Tintorets, come back and get a general idea of the exterior of St. Mark's, and spend the afternoon at the Accademia. _Podb._ (_with a slight absence of heartiness_). Capital! And--er--lunch at the Academy, I suppose? _Miss P._ There does not happen to be a restaurant there--we shall see what time we have. I must say _I_ regard every minute of daylight spent on food here as a sinful waste. _Bob_. Now just look here, 'PATIA, if you _are_ bossing this show, you needn't go cutting us off our grub! What do _you_ say, JEM? _Podb._ (_desperately anxious to please_). Oh, I don't know that I care about lunch myself--much. [_Their voices die away on the water._