ary means. She spared no pains, and gorged
the reverend gentleman with highly-seasoned dishes. Hare soup, ox-tails
stewed in sherry, the green fat in turtle soup, stewed mushrooms,
Jerusalem artichokes, celery, and horse-radish; hot sauces, truffles,
hashes with wine and cayenne pepper in them, curried lobsters, pies made
of cocks' combs, oysters, and the soft roe of fish; and all these dishes
were washed down by strong beer and generous wines, Scotch ale,
Burgundy, dry champagne, brandy, whiskey and gin; in a word, by that
numberless array of alcoholic drinks with which the English people love
to heat their blood.

And, as a matter of fact, the reverend gentleman's blood became very
heated, as was shown by his nose and cheeks, but in spite of this, the
powers above were inexorable, and he remained quite indifferent as
regards his wife, who was unhappy and thoughtful at the sight of that
protruding nasal appendage, which, alas! was alone in its glory.

She became thinner, and at the same time, flabbier than ever, and almost
began to lose her trust in God, when, suddenly, she had an inspiration.
Was it not, perhaps, the work of devil?

She did not care to inquire too closely into the matter, as she thought
it a very good idea, and it was this:

"Go to the Universal Exhibition in Paris, and there, perhaps, you will
discover the secret to make yourself loved."

Decidedly luck favored her, for her husband immediately gave her
permission to go, and as soon as she got into the _Esplanade des
Invalides_, she saw the Algerian dancers, and she said to herself.

"Surely this would inspire William with the desire to be the father of
the thirteenth tribe!"

But how could she manage to get him to be present at such abominable
orgies? For she could not hide from herself that it was an abominable
exhibition, and she knew how scandalized he would be at their voluptuous
movements. She had no doubt that the devil had led her there, but she
could not take her eyes off the scene, and it gave her an idea; and so
for nearly a fortnight you might have seen the poor, unattractive woman
sitting, and attentively and curiously watching the swaying hips of the
Algerian women. She was learning.

The very evening of her return to London, she rushed into her husband's
bedroom, disrobed herself in an instant, except for a thin gauze
covering, and for the first time in her life appeared before him in all
the ugliness of her semi-nudity.

"Co