made somewhat too plain in this country, we reflected, that a man's
stomach is of far more importance than the rest of his body. The
kitchen yonder was by far the most comfortable, the warmest, and
altogether the prettiest room in the whole house.

Augustine crossed the narrow entry just then with a smoking pot of
soup. She was followed, later, by Mere Mouchard, who bore a sole au vin
blanc, a bottle of white Burgundy, and a super-naturally ethereal
souffle. And an hour after, even the curtainless, carpetless bed
chambers above were powerless to affect the luxurious character of our
dreams.




CHAPTER III.

FROM AN INN WINDOW.


One travels a long distance, sometimes, to make the astonishing
discovery that pleasure comes with the doing of very simple things. We
had come from over the seas to find the act of leaning on a window
casement as exciting as it was satisfying. It is true that from our two
inn windows there was a delightful variety of nature and of human
nature to look out upon. From the windows overlooking the garden there
was only the horizon to bound infinity. The Atlantic, beginning with
the beach at our feet, stopped at nothing till it met the sky. The sea,
literally, was at our door; it and the Seine were next-door neighbors.
Each hour of the day these neighbors presented a different face, were