An old lady, Madame Marion herself, now ordered the two maids to place
the chairs at one end of the salon, four rows deep, leaving between
the rows a space of about three feet. When this was done, each row
presented a front of ten chairs, all of divers species. A line of
chairs was also placed along the wall, under the windows and before
the glass door. At the other end of the salon, facing the forty
chairs, Madame Marion placed three arm-chairs behind the tea-table,
which was covered with a green cloth, on which she placed a bell.

Old Colonel Giguet arrived on this battle-field at the moment when his
sister bethought herself of filling the empty spaces on either side of
the fireplace with benches from the antechamber, disregarding the
baldness of their velvet covers which had done good service for
twenty-four years.

"We can seat seventy persons," she said to her brother triumphantly.

"God grant that we may have seventy friends!" replied the colonel.

"If, after receiving every night, for twenty-four years, the whole
society of Arcis-sur-Aube, a single one of my regular visitors fails
us on this occasion--" began the old lady, in a threatening manner.

"Pooh, pooh!" replied the colonel, interrupting his sister, "I'll name
you ten who cannot and ought not to come. First," he said, beginning
to count on his fingers, "Antonin Goulard, sub-prefect, for one;
Frederic Marest, _procureur-du-roi_, there's two; Monsieur Olivier
Vinet, his substitute, three; Monsieur Martener, examining-judge,
four; the justice of peace--"