sadly common-place, and done just as they ought. But still, ONCE,
ladies--once, a curious little incident did occur to me."

"Oh, ma'am, I entreat you--pray let us hear it!" burst from all the
ladies at once.

No. 4 had to bite her lip to preserve her gravity, and then she
turned to No. 5 -

"The fan, if you please, ma'am!"

The rule was, that the one fan was placed at the disposal of the
story-teller for the time, so No. 5 handed it to No. 4, with a
graceful bow; and No. 4 waffed it to and fro immediately, and began
her account:-

"People are so unscrupulous you see, ladies, about giving characters.
It's really shocking. For my part, I don't know what the world will
come to at last. We shall all have to be our own servants, I
suppose. People say anything about anything, that's the fact! Only
fancy, ma'am, three different ladies once recommended a cook to me as
the best soup-maker in the country. Now that sounded a very high
recommendation, for, of course, if a cook can make soups, she can do
anything--sweetmeats and those kind of things follow of themselves.
So, ma am, I took her, and had a dinner-party, and ordered two soups,
entirely that I might show off what a good cook I had got. Think
what a compliment to her, and how much obliged she ought to have
been! Well, ma'am, I ordered the two soups, as I said, one white,
and the other brown; and everything appeared to be going on in the
best possible manner, when, as I was sitting in the drawing-room