tte
while the flame of the alcohol cast a greenish tinge over her face.
"Grog," however, was an expensive luxury in which she could not afford
to indulge after she had lost her place. Charvet told her, with a
strained laugh, that she was no longer a millionaire. She supported
herself by giving French lessons, at a very early hour in the morning,
to a young lady residing in the Rue de Miromesnil, who was perfecting
her education in secrecy, unknown even to her maid. And so now Clemence
merely ordered a glass of beer in the evenings, but this she drank, it
must be admitted, with the most philosophical composure.

The evenings in the little sanctum were now far less noisy than they had
been. Charvet would suddenly lapse into silence, pale with suppressed
rage, when the others deserted him to listen to his rival. The thought
that he had been the king of the place, had ruled the whole party with
despotic power before Florent's appearance there, gnawed at his heart,
and he felt all the regretful pangs of a dethroned monarch. If he
still came to the meetings, it was only because he could not resist the
attraction of the little room where he had spent so many happy hours in
tyrannising over Gavard and Robine. In those days even Logre's hump had
been his property, as well as Alexandre's fleshy arms and Lacaille's
gloomy face. He had done what he liked with them, stuffed his opinions
down their throats, belaboured their shoulders with his sceptre. But
now he endured much bitterness of spirit; and ended by quite ceasing
to speak, simply shrugging his shoulders and whistling disdainfully,
without condescending to combat the absurdities vented in his presence.
What exasperated him more than anything else was the gradual way in
which he had been ousted from his position of predominance without
being conscious of it. He could not see that Florent was in any way his
superior, and after hearing the latter speak for hours, in his gentle
and somewhat sad voice, he often remarked: "Why, the fellow's a parson!
He only wants a cassock!"

The others, however, to all appearance eagerly absorbed whatever the
inspector said. When Charvet saw Florent's clothes hanging from every
peg, he pretended not to know where he could put his hat so that it
would not be soiled. He swept away the papers that lay about the little
room, declaring that there was no longer any comfort for anyone in
the place since that "gentleman" had taken possession of it. He