The Grand Babylon Hotel

by Arnold Bennett




T. Racksole & Daughter




Chapter One THE MILLIONAIRE AND THE WAITER


'YES, sir?'

Jules, the celebrated head waiter of the Grand Babylon, was
bending formally towards the alert, middle-aged man who had just
entered the smoking-room and dropped into a basket-chair in the
corner by the conservatory. It was 7.45 on a particularly sultry June
night, and dinner was about to be served at the Grand Babylon.
Men of all sizes, ages, and nationalities, but every one alike
arrayed in faultless evening dress, were dotted about the large, dim
apartment. A faint odour of flowers came from the conservatory,
and the tinkle of a fountain. The waiters, commanded by Jules,
moved softly across the thick Oriental rugs, balancing their trays
with the dexterity of jugglers, and receiving and executing orders
with that air of profound importance of which only really
first-class waiters have the secret. The atmosphere was an