ith new combinations? 'Tis yourself, Leander; and there
is no question, though you have only twenty-five years, that you are the
chef of the age.'

'You are always very good to me, sir,' said Leander, bending his head
with great respect; 'and I will not deny that to be famous when you are
young is the fortune of the gods. But we must never forget that I had an
advantage which Abreu and Gaillard had not, and that I was your pupil.'

'I hope that I have not injured you,' said Papa Prevost, with an air of
proud self-content. 'What you learned from me came at least from a good
school. It is something to have served under Napoleon,' added Prevost,
with the grand air of the Imperial kitchen. 'Had it not been for
Waterloo, I should have had the cross. But the Bourbons and the cooks
of the Empire never could understand each other: They brought over an
emigrant chef, who did not comprehend the taste of the age. He wished to
bring everything back to the time of the _oeil de bouf_. When Monsieur
passed my soup of Austerlitz untasted, I knew the old family was doomed.
But we gossip. You wished to consult me?'

'I want not only your advice but your assistance. This affair of the
Duke of Bellamont requires all our energies. I hope you will accompany
me; and, indeed, we must muster all our forces. It is not to be denied
that there is a want, not only of genius, but of men, in our art. The
cooks are like the civil engineers: since the middle class have taken to
giving dinners, the demand exceeds the supply.'

'There is Andrien,' said Papa Prevost; 'you had some hopes of him?'

'He is too young; I took him to Hellingsley, and he lost his head on
the third day. I entrusted the soufflees to him, and, but for the most
desperate personal exertions, all would have been lost. It was an affair
of the bridge of Areola.'

'Ah! _mon Dieu!_ those are moments!' exclaimed Prevost. 'Gaillard and
Abreu will not serve under you, eh? And if they would, they could not be
trusted. They would betray you at the tenth hour.'

'What I want are generals of division, not commanders-in-chief. Abreu is
sufficiently _bon garcon_, but he has taken an engagement with Monsieur
de Sidonia, and is not permitted to go out.'

'With Monsieur de Sidonia! You once thought of that, my Leander. And
what is his salary?'

'Not too much; four hundred and some perquisites. It would not suit me;
besides, I will take no engagement but with a crowned head. But Abreu
likes