re. "Ah! this is
something out of the way," thought the Count, and advancing he made a
bow and introduced himself.

"You are welcome, noble Count, to our revels," said one of the
gentlemen, who appeared to be the president. "But ours is a feast of
reason and the flow of soul, and we are met here to discuss works of
art, to hear read the practical effusions of our members, and to enjoy
the society of men of intellect and erudition."

"A very praiseworthy and satisfactory mode of passing time, and I am
fortunate in having fallen into such good company," remarked the Count.

The various members of the society individually welcomed him. A poet
had just read some verses he had composed, which were received with
thundering applause, one of the excellent rules of the society being
that every one was to praise the works of the rest. The artist now
exhibited his paintings; when the others had admired them to their fill,
the Count looked at them through his spectacles, and if he did make a
mistake, and suppose that a horse was a cow, or a sheep a pig, he wisely
kept his opinion to himself, merely exclaiming: "Beautiful! how true to
nature. What exquisite colouring; what elegant outlines! yet all are
equalled by the composition." As no one asked him to point out the
individual excellencies of which he spoke, he was looked upon as a
first-rate judge of art.

"Now, gentlemen, as our friend Scrubzen has not been able to-day to
complete his grand picture, I am deputed to invite you to inspect it
to-morrow, when it will be in a more forward state. We shall, I hope,
be favoured by your presence, Count Funnibos?"

"By all means," answered the Count, who was highly pleased with the
society into which he had fallen; and he parted from them to return to
the house of his hospitable entertainer. The next morning he set out to
repair to the house of which the president had given him the address.

"Several of Scrubzen's admirers have already arrived," said the
president, whom he met at the door; "and with them a distinguished
foreigner."

As the Count and the president entered, they saw at the further end of
the room a large picture on an easel representing a coast scene. On one
side stood the artist explaining the details of his painting; a number
of ladies and gentlemen were gazing at it with admiring glances; but one
figure especially attracted the attention of the Count. It was, there
could be no doubt about it, Baron Stil