me that she owed everything to me, while I owed nothing to her; and that
all she asked of me was to enable her to return to Montpellier.

"I have relations there," said she, "who will be glad to see me, and I
hope that my husband will let me return to him. I am the Prodigal Son,
and I hope to find in him the forgiving father."

I told her I would do my utmost to send her home in safety and comfort.

Towards the middle of December I left Dresden with Madame Blasin. My
purse only contained four hundred ducats, for I had had a run of bad luck
at play; and the journey to Leipzig had cost me altogether three hundred
ducats. I told my mistress nothing of all this, for my only thought was
how to please her.

We stayed a short while at Prague, and reached Vienna on Christmas Day.
We put up at the "Red Bull," the Countess Blasin (who had been
transformed into a milliner) in one room, and I in another, so that we
might pass for strangers while continuing our intimacy.

The next morning, as we were taking coffee together, two individuals came
into the room, and asked the rude question,--

"Who are you, madam?"

"My name is Blasin."

"Who is this gentleman?"

"You had better ask him."

"What are you doing at Vienna?"

"Taking coffee. I should have thought you could have seen that for
yourselves."

"If the gentleman is not your husband, you will leave the town within
twenty-four hours."

"The gentleman is my friend, and not my husband; and I shall leave Vienna
exactly when I choose, unless you make me go away by force."

"Very good. We are aware, sir, that you have a separate room, but that
makes no difference."

Thereupon one of the policemen entered my room, I following him.

"What do you want here?" said I.

"I am looking at your bed, and I can see you have not slept in it. That's
enough."

"The devil! What business have you here at all, and who authorizes such
disgraceful proceedings?"

He made no reply, but returned to Madame Blasin's room, where they both
ordered her to leave Vienna in the course of twenty-four hours, and then
they both left us.

"Dress yourself," said I to her, "and tell the French ambassador the
whole story. Tell him that you are a milliner, Blasin by name, and that
all you want is to go from here to Strasburg, and from there to
Montpellier."

While she was dressing I ordered a carriage and a servant to be in
attendance. She returned in an hour's time, and said the ambassador had