fact that Mr. Hinkson was drinking lemonade with his
roast mutton, and asked us how we _could_ travel with such a
combination. I remember poppa said that it was a combination that Mr.
Hinkson and Mr. Hinkson only had to deal with, but momma and I felt the
obloquy of it a good deal, though when we came to think of it we were no
more responsible for Mr. Hinkson than the Misses Bingham were. After
that, walking rapidly behind the guide, we covered centuries of French
history, illustrated by chairs and tables and fire-irons and chandeliers
and four-post beds. Momma told me afterwards that she was rather sorry
she had taken me with the guide through Madame du Barry's fascinating
Petit Trianon, the things he didn't say sounded so improper, but when I
assured her that it was only contemporary scandal that had any effect on
our morals, she said she supposed that was so, and somehow one never did
expect people who wore curled wigs and knee-breeches to behave quite
prettily. The rooms were dotted with groups of people who had come in
fiacres or by tramway, which made it difficult for the guide to impart
his information only to those who had paid for it. He generally
surmounted this by saying, "Ladies and genelmen, I want you to stick
closer than brothers. When you hear me a-talkin' don' you go turnin'
over your Baedekers and lookin' out of the window. If I didn't know a
great big sight more about Versailles than Baedeker does I wouldn't be
here makin' a clown of myself; an' I'll show you the view out of the
window all in good time. You see that lady an' two genelmen over there?
_They're_ listenin' all right enough because they don't belong to this
party an' they want to get a little information cheap price. All
right--I let 'em have it!" At which the lady and two gentlemen usually
melted away looking annoyed.

We were fascinated with the coaches of state and much impressed with the
cost of them. As momma said, it took so very _little_ imagination to
conjure up a Royal Philip inside bowing to the populace.

"What a pity we couldn't have had them over!" said poppa indiscreetly.

"Where you mean?" demanded the guide, "over to America? I know--for that
ole Chicago show! You are the five hundred American who has said that to
me this summer! Number five hundred! Nossir, we don't lend those
carriage. We don't even drive them ourself."

"No more kings and queens nowadays," remarked Mr. Hinkson, "this
century's got no use for them."