g between Rose _the Jade_ and the old
peasant, began to wink knowingly at the ducks, whose heads were sticking
out of the basket, and when he felt that he had fixed the attention of
his public, he began to tickle them under their bills, and spoke funnily
to them, to make the company smile.

"We have left our little pond, quack! quack! to make the acquaintance of
the little spit, qu-ack! qu-ack!"

The unfortunate creatures turned their necks away, to avoid his
caresses, and made desperate efforts to get out of their wicker prison,
and then, suddenly, all at once, uttered the most lamentable quacks of
distress. The women exploded with laughter. They leaned forward and
pushed each other, so as to see better; they were very much interested
in the ducks, and the gentleman redoubled his airs, his wits, and his
teasing.

Rosa joined in, and leaning over her neighbor's legs, she kissed the
three animals on the head, and immediately all the girls wanted to kiss
them in turn, and the gentleman took them onto his knees, made them jump
up and down and pinched them. The two peasants, who were even in greater
consternation than their poultry, rolled their eyes as if they were
possessed, without venturing to move, and their old wrinkled faces had
not a smile nor a movement.

Then the gentleman, who was a commercial traveler, offered the ladies
braces by way of a joke, and taking up one of his packages, he opened
it. It was a trick, for the parcel contained garters. There were blue
silk, pink silk, red silk, violet silk, mauve silk garters, and the
buckles were made of two gilt metal Cupids, embracing each other. The
girls uttered exclamations of delight and looked at them with that
gravity which is natural to a woman when she is hankering after a
bargain. They consulted one another by their looks or in a whisper, and
replied in the same manner, and _Madame_ was longingly handling a pair
of orange garters that were broader and more imposing looking than the
rest; really fit for the mistress of such an establishment.

The gentleman waited, for he was nourishing an idea.

"Come, my kittens," he said, "you must try them on."

There was a torrent of exclamations, and they squeezed their petticoats
between their legs, as if they thought he was going to ravish them, but
he quietly waited his time, and said: "Well, if you will not, I shall
pack them up again."

And he added cunningly: "I offer any pair they like, to those who will
t