[Illustration: Mistress and Maid]

As may be imagined, little is spent on luxuries. Vendors of frivolities
know better than to waste time tempting those provident people. On one
occasion only did I see money parted with lightly, and in that case the
bargain appeared astounding. One Sunday morning an enterprising huckster
of gimcrack jewellery, venturing out from Paris, had set down his strong
box on the verge of the market square, and, displaying to the admiring
eyes of the country folks, ladies' and gentlemen's watches with chains
complete, in the most dazzling of aureate metal, sold them at six sous
apiece as quickly as he could hand them out.

Living is comparatively cheap in Versailles; though, as in all places
where the cost of existence is low, it must be hard to earn a livelihood
there. By far the larger proportion of the community reside in flats,
which can be rented at sums that rise in accordance with the
accommodation but are in all cases moderate. Housekeeping in a flat,
should the owner so will it, is ever conducive to economy, and life in a
French provincial town is simple and unconventional.

[Illustration: Sage and Onions]

Bread, wine, and vegetables, the staple foods of the nation, are good
and inexpensive. For 40 centimes one may purchase a bottle of _vin de
gard_, a thin tipple, doubtless; but what kind of claret could one buy
for fourpence a quart at home? _Graves_ I have seen priced at 50
centimes, _Barsac_ at 60, and _eau de vie_ is plentiful at 1 franc 20!

Fish are scarce, and beef is supposed to be dear; but when butter, eggs,
and cheese bulk so largely in the diet, the half chicken, the scrap of