ed them into the great wooden shed, where some unplaned
boards laid across boxes served as counters, Bregenz being in the throes
of the erection of a new station.

"I bet they make it plain whether its _kronen_ or _gulden_," said
Rosina's cousin as he threw his valise on top of the porter's small
mountain; "if I'd known that I was to come in connection with that vile
money system again I'd have _schiffed_ it across the lake or walked
around the northern shore before I'd ever have come this route."

By this remark he testified to a keen recollection of his Viennese
experiences and the double dealing (no pun intended) of the Austrian
shopkeeper just at the present epoch in the national finance system of
that country.

Behind the boards two uniformed officials paced up and down, and when
all was neatly ranged before them the one bestowed his attention upon
Rosina while the other turned his in among the infinity of boxes
belonging to her party. He peeped into two or three of the valises and
chalked them and all of their kind; then he demanded the opening of the
largest dress-box. Ottillie unstrapped it and undertook to satisfy his
curiosity to the fullest possible extent.

The object uppermost of all was a Russian leather writing-tablet. The
official leapt upon that at once.

"On this you must pay thirty _centimes_," he declared, grabbing it up.

"_Warum?_" said Jack. He found "_warum_" the most useful word in his
German vocabulary, because by the very nature of things it always threw
the burden of the conversation on to the shoulders of the other party.

"You cannot pretend that it is an article of wearing apparel for
madame," said the officer archly.

"I never said that it was an article of wearing apparel for any one,"
Jack retorted hotly; "I asked why I had to pay thirty _centimes_ on it.
It isn't new and it isn't dutiable, and I know that, and you know it
too."

"What is it, anyhow?" asked the man.

"It's to write on."

"Why does not madame write on paper, like everybody else?" inquired the
witty fellow.

"There's your six cents," said Jack, in great disgust; "I reckon you
take _pfennigs_, don't you?"

"Oh, yes," said the Austrian, "we take everything."

"Yes," replied the American, "so I observed in Vienna."

Then he turned away and the porter loaded up again.

They went out on the platform and were told that the train had just
gone.

"_Wo fahren Sie hin?_" asked the guard, taking pity on their