"For which also let us be in gratitude."
Many times in the months that followed have I thought of the lure of
the laughing mischief in those eyes that were like beautiful blue
flowers set in crystal, and how they were to lead me on into the
strange land of men in search of those forbidden fruits. They were the
first to offer me affection, excepting perhaps my fine reporter woman
with the paper and pencil.
And from that moment on I did very much enjoy myself in conversation
with that Madam Mischief, while we together did watch the retirement
of all of the persons in the train. She had many funny remarks to make
and made me merry with them so that the hour of eleven o'clock had
arrived before we had summoned the very black male chamber-maid to
turn our seats into beds. All others were in sleep that was a
confusion of sound from everywhere and we must stand in the aisle
while the beds were being abstracted.
"Shall I take your bag into the dressing room, sah?" said the black
male chamber-maid as if to intimate that I should leave the aisle free
for his operations.
"Many thanks, yes," I answered him. "Good night, Madam, and to you
again much gratitude for the happiness of an evening," and with all
sincerity I directed Mr. Robert Carruthers to bend over her very white
hand and kiss it with much fervor that was resulted from the
loneliness of the poor Marquise of Grez and Bye, who was but a girl in
a strange and large land, although habited in trousers and coat.
"You are a dear boy," she made answer to me with an equal affection as
she disappeared into the curtains of her small room. Then I departed
to that room reserved for the disrobing of gentlemen. It was without
occupation and I opened my large bag and procured the very beautiful
silk night robing that the kind man had sold to me that afternoon. It
was in two pieces that very much resembled the costume in which
gentlemen play tennis, only more ornamented by silk embroidery and
braid and buttons. I was regarding them with joy when into the small
room came that Mr. G. Slade of Detroit. He was appareled in garments
of the same cut only of a very wide red stripe, his hair was very much
in confusion and he had a bottle in his hand in which was a liquid the
color of cognac.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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