“Oh! I don’t hold her out as a prize-winner; but she makes a very modest appearance; she is very fond of a little _pays_[A] of hers, who was obliged to go into the army as a simple _tourlourou_,[B] and it would make her perfectly happy to be able to save up enough money to marry her little pays when he comes home. So she won’t listen to any of the young men who run after her every night, because she knows that they’re ne’er-do-wells, who won’t help her to set up housekeeping with her little pays.” [A] A native of the same province. [B] Infantryman. “Bravo! the young woman has excellent principles. How did you make her acquaintance? by treating her to chestnuts?” “By defending her against a young wig-maker’s apprentice, who, when he pretended to take her arm, always took hold of something else.” “Those wig-makers are sad villains. This is what the habit of making curls leads to!--What proposition have you made to this rose-bud?” “In the first place, I represented myself as a Polish noble, the Comte de Globeski.” “You sinner! to presume to take the title of count!--What next?” “I told the girl that, if she chose, I would put her in the way of making a very neat little sum. As she thought at first that I was in love with her, she answered that I was too ugly.” “That’s good, I like that outspokenness.” “I reassured her by telling her that I wasn’t talking about myself, but about a very comely young man, whom, for family reasons, we desired to become amorous of her.” “I adore family reasons! Go on.” “My pretty working-girl did not seem to have a very alert imagination; however, she almost understood. She’s an Alsatian, and her name is Chichette Chichemann. She has a slight accent, but it is not at all disagreeable and will pass for a Polish accent, especially as Polish is very like German. I have an appointment with her for this evening; we will take her to a café, and there we will agree on our movements; you will see that she is extremely pretty, and that she has a little virginlike way about her that is most deceptive. When she is dressed as a Polish countess, the young marquis must inevitably fall madly in love with her.” “We will hope so, and then we must act in all haste, for Monfréville is taking Chérubin into society now. Our real marchionesses and countesses will find the youngster very attractive; and he, in his turn, will fall in love with one of them; and if his heart is once fairly caught----” “We should be our expenses out of pocket!” “Bah! that won’t make any difference, if your damsel is really pretty; there’s always room for a new love in the human heart. At eighteen years and a half, I could have loved all four quarters of the globe.--Attention! I think the flock is coming out.”