I had some matters to attend to in the afternoon,
they went off together to see sights and to have a good time.

When Frank returned about dinner-time, and came up to the room where I
was writing letters, I noticed a small American-flag pin stuck in the
lapel of his coat.

"George had two," he said in answer to my question; "and he gave me this
one. He's been in Paris a year now, and he says we ought to wear them or
maybe people won't know we're Americans. But say, Uncle Jack, where do
you think I got that?" He opened a paper bundle he had under his arm and
unrolled a weather-beaten American flag.

"Where?" asked I, naturally supposing it came from George's house.

"We took it off of Lafayette's tomb."

I opened my eyes in astonishment; while he went on:

"George says the American Consul, or the American Consul-General, or
somebody, put it on the tomb last Fourth of July, for our government,
because Lafayette, don't you know, helped us in the Revolution."

"They ought to put a new flag on every year, George says," explained
Frank, seeing my amazement, "on Fourth of July morning. But the American
Consul, or whoever he is that's here now, is a new man, George thinks;
anyhow, he forgot to do it. So we bought a new flag and we did it.

"There were a lot of people at the tomb when we went there, and we
guessed they were all waiting to see the new flag put on. We waited,
too, but no soldiers or anybody came; and after a while the people all
went away. Then George said:

"'Somebody ought to put on a new flag--let's do it!'

"We went to a store on the Boulevard, and for twenty francs bought a new
flag just like this old one. George and I each paid half. There were two
women and a little girl at the tomb when we got back, and we waited
till they went away. Then we unrolled the new flag and took the old one
off the tomb.

"We thought we ought to say something when we put the new flag on, but
we didn't know what to say. George said they always made a regular
speech thanking Lafayette for helping us in the Revolution, but we
thought it didn't matter much. So we just took off our hats when we
spread out the new flag on the grave, and then we rolled up the old flag
and came away.

"We drew lots for it afterward, and I'm going to take it back home with
me.

"Somebody ought to have done it, and as we were both American boys, it
was all right, wasn't it?"

Right or wrong, the flag that travelers see on Lafayette's tomb