ladies. No lady could have been so difficult to please as to
complain of him, and yet Mrs. Thompson thought that he was not as
agreeable as usual. Those horrid boots and those horrid gloves gave
him such an air of holiday finery that neither could he be at his
ease wearing them, nor could she, in seeing them worn.

They were soon taken in hand by the poor woman whose privilege it
was to show the ruins. For a little distance they walked up the
path in single file; not that it was too narrow to accommodate two,
but M. Lacordaire's courage had not yet been screwed to a point
which admitted of his offering his arm to the widow. For in France,
it must be remembered, that this means more than it does in some
other countries.

Mrs. Thompson felt that all this was silly and useless. If they
were not to be dear friends this coming out feting together, those
boots and gloves and new hat were all very foolish; and if they
were, the sooner they understood each other the better. So Mrs.
Thompson, finding that the path was steep and the weather warm,
stood still for a while leaning against the wall, with a look of
considerable fatigue in her face.

"Will madame permit me the honour of offering her my arm?" said M.
Lacordaire. "The road is so extraordinarily steep for madame to
climb."

Mrs. Thompson did permit him the honour, and so they went on till
they reached the top.

The view from the summit was both extensive and grand, but neither