bonnet, walking a mile to the opera, with
all sorts of jingling jewels about her, beside a sedan chair in which
sat enthroned her mama. Consequently, I was not surprised at such little
sparkles in the conversation (from the young lady) as 'Oh God what a
sermon we had here, last Sunday!' 'And did you ever read such infernal
trash as Mrs. Gore's?'--and the like. Still, but for Kate and Georgy
(who were decidedly in the way, as we agreed afterwards), I should have
thought it all very funny; and, as it was, I threw the ball back again,
was mighty free and easy, made some rather broad jokes, and was highly
applauded. 'You smoke, don't you?' said the young lady, in a pause of
this kind of conversation. 'Yes,' I said, 'I generally take a cigar
after dinner when I am alone.' 'I'll give you a good 'un,' said she,
'when we go up-stairs.' Well sir, in due course we went up stairs, and
there we were joined by an American lady residing in the same hotel, who
looked like what we call in old England 'a reg'lar Bunter'--fluffy face
(rouged); considerable development of figure; one groggy eye; blue satin
dress made low with short sleeves, and shoes of the same. Also a
daughter; face likewise fluffy; figure likewise developed; dress
likewise low, with short sleeves, and shoes of the same; and one eye not
yet actually groggy, but going to be. American lady married at sixteen;
daughter sixteen now, often mistaken for sisters, &c. &c. &c. When that
was over, Lady B brought out a cigar box, and gave me a cigar, made of
negrohead she said, which would quell an elephant in six whiffs. The box
was full of cigarettes--good large ones, made of pretty strong tobacco;
I always smoke them here, and used to smoke them at Genoa, and I knew
them well. When I lighted my cigar, Lady B lighted hers, at mine; leaned
against the mantelpiece, in conversation with me; put out her stomach,
folded her arms, and with her pretty face cocked up sideways and her
cigarette smoking away like a Manchester cotton mill, laughed, and
talked, and smoked, in the most gentlemanly manner I ever beheld. Lady A
immediately lighted her cigar; American lady immediately lighted hers;
and in five minutes the room was a cloud of smoke, with us four in the
centre pulling away bravely, while American lady related stories of her
'Hookah' up stairs, and described different kinds of pipes. But even
this was not all. For presently two Frenchmen came in, with whom, and
the American lady, La