se, of a story and a half, was plain, but spacious.
Within it was an abundance of good furniture, linen and plate. Unlike
most bachelors' houses, there was no need to apologize for anything.

At the Manoir Cheverny, therefore, Gaston Cheverny took up his abode,
with his brother and Jacques Haret as guests. Regnard showed no
disposition to live at Castle Haret, alleging that he must furnish it
and equip it from Brussels, which he proceeded to do; but I think he
meant not to leave Gaston alone so close to the chateau of Capello.
Regnard had two servants, and four horses quartered on his brother,
and he bought another horse, giving three hundred good crowns for it.
I never saw the least want of hospitality or affection for Regnard on
Gaston's part. He was as generous a soul as I ever knew.

As for Jacques Haret, he openly said he had only given up his quarters
at the chateau of Capello because he could not wear the clothes of
either Madame Riano or Mademoiselle Capello. He wore, however, both
Gaston and Regnard Cheverny's clothes, until the two brothers
presented him with a complete outfit, as the price for letting their
wardrobes alone.

I think all of us, after our adventures and disappointments and
travels, enjoyed to the full this short season of peace and rest. We
apprehended great influx of company, for which Count Saxe had, at
present, no taste. But the weather suddenly turning very harsh, the
roads became bad, and we saw but few guests. Among them was Count
Bellegarde, the young man who had been Gaston Cheverny's friend at our
first meeting. He was the same handsome, stupid, watery, no-ideaed
fellow as that night in the Temple gardens. His family had put the
notion into his head that he would do well to marry Mademoiselle
Capello. He thought that a sight of his beauty was enough to
accomplish his object. We had much diversion out of him, Jacques Haret
and the two Chevernys slyly putting him up to many follies.

Our days and evenings, however, were in general spent together without
other guests, and naturally there was a bond amongst us. The better we
came to know Madame Riano the more we saw to esteem in her, in spite
of her extraordinary pride and everlasting blowing of the trumpet of
the Kirkpatricks and her general desire to dominate the universe. And
it was easy to see, in Francezka, those same sterling qualities of
integrity, courage and generosity which distinguished Madame Riano,
and with them infinitely