him; and as a Frenchman, whatever be his talents, has no sort of
prudery in showing them, La Fleur, in less than five minutes, had
pulled out his fife, and leading off the dance himself with the
first note, set the fille de chambre, the maitre d'hotel, the cook,
the scullion, and all the house-hold, dogs and cats, besides an old
monkey, a dancing: I suppose there never was a merrier kitchen
since the flood.

Madame de L-, in passing from her brother's apartments to her own,
hearing so much jollity below stairs, rung up her fille de chambre
to ask about it; and, hearing it was the English gentleman's
servant, who had set the whole house merry with his pipe, she
ordered him up.

As the poor fellow could not present himself empty, he had loaded
himself in going up stairs with a thousand compliments to Madame de
L-, on the part of his master,--added a long apocrypha of inquiries
after Madame de L-'s health,--told her, that Monsieur his master
was au desespoire for her re-establishment from the fatigues of her
journey,--and, to close all, that Monsieur had received the letter
which Madame had done him the honour--And he has done me the
honour, said Madame de L-, interrupting La Fleur, to send a billet
in return.

Madame de L- had said this with such a tone of reliance upon the
fact, that La Fleur had not power to disappoint her expectations;--
he trembled for my honour,--and possibly might not altogether be
unconcerned for his own, as a man capable of being attached to a
master who could be wanting en egards vis a vis d'une femme! so
that when Madame de L- asked La Fleur if he had brought a letter,--