e abbe sat down between Redegonde and the
Corticelli, and amused us all the time by his agreeable conversation.

I laughed internally when I observed how respectfully my new footman
changed his sister's plate, who appeared vain of honours to which her
brother could lay no claim. She was not kind; she whispered to me, so
that he could not hear,--

"He is a good fellow, but unfortunately he is rather stupid."

I had put in my pocket a superb gold snuff-box, richly enamelled and
adorned with a perfect likeness of myself. I had had it made at Paris,
with the intention of giving it to Madame d'Urfe, and I had not done so
because the painter had made me too young. I had filled it with some
excellent Havana snuff which M. de Chavigny had given me, and of which
Therese was very fond; I was waiting for her to ask me for a pinch before
I drew it out of my pocket.

The Abbe Gama, who had some exceedingly good snuff in an Origonela box,
sent a pinch to Therese, and she sent him her snuff in a tortoise-shell
box encrusted with gold in arabesques--an exquisite piece of workmanship.
Gama criticised Therese's snuff, while I said that I found it delicious
but that I thought I had some better myself. I took out my snuff-box, and
opening it offered her a pinch. She did not notice the portrait, but she
agreed that my snuff was vastly superior to hers.

"Well, would you like to make an exchange?" said I. "Certainly, give me
some paper."

"That is not requisite; we will exchange the snuff and the snuff-boxes."

So saying, I put Therese's box in my pocket and gave her mine shut. When
she saw the portrait, she gave a cry which puzzled everybody, and her
first motion was to kiss the portrait.

"Look," said she to Cesarino, "here is your portrait."

Cesarino looked at it in astonishment, and the box passed from hand to
hand. Everybody said that it was my portrait, taken ten years ago, and
that it might pass for a likeness of Cesarino. Therese got quite excited,
and swearing that she would never let the box out of her hands again, she
went up to her son and kissed him several times. While this was going on
I watched the Abbe Gama, and I could see that he was making internal
comments of his own on this affecting scene.

The worthy abbe went away towards the evening, telling me that he would
expect me to breakfast next morning.

I spent the rest of the day in making love to Redegonde, and Therese, who
saw that I was pleased with the gir