felt it.

Bent upon dazzling the eyes of potentates in the dining-room, and
outshining possible princesses, the lady was very particular about her
dress. Although the big luggage had gone on by train to some town of
more importance (in her eyes) than Avignon, she had made me keep out a
couple of gowns rather better suited for a first night of opera in Paris
than for dinner at the best of provincial hotels. She chose the smarter
of these toilettes, a black _chiffon_ velvet embroidered with golden
tiger-lilies, and filled in with black net from shoulder to throat. Then
the blue jewel-bag was opened, and a nodding diamond tiger-lily to match
the golden ones was carefully selected from a blinding array of
brilliants, to glitter in her masses of copper hair. Round her neck went
a rope of pearls that fell to the waist whose slenderness I had just,
with a mighty muscular effort, secured; but not until she had dotted a
few butterflies, bats, beetles and other scintillating insects about her
person was she satisfied with the effect. At least, she was certain to
create a sensation, as Sir Samuel proudly remarked when he walked in to
get his necktie tied by me--a habit he has adopted.

"I wonder if I ought to trust Elise with my bag?" Lady Turnour asked
him, anxiously, at last. "So far, since we've been on tour, I've carried
it over my arm everywhere, but it doesn't go very well with a costume
like this. What do you think?"

"Why, I think that Elise is a very good girl, and that your jewels will
be perfectly safe with her if you tell her to take care of the bag, and
not let it out of her sight," replied Sir Samuel, evidently embarrassed
by such a question within earshot of the said Elise.

"Perhaps I'd better have dinner in my own room, so as to guard it more
carefully?" I suggested, brightening with the inspiration.

"That's not necessary," answered her ladyship. "You can perfectly well
eat downstairs, with the bag over your arm, as I have done for the last
two days. I don't intend to pay extra for you to have your meals served
in your room on any excuse whatever."

I couldn't very well offer to pay for myself. That would have raised the
suspicion that I had hidden reasons of my own for dining in private, and
I regretted that I hadn't held my tongue. Lady Turnour ostentatiously
locked the receptacle of her jewels with its little gilded key, which
she placed in a gold chain-bag studded with rubies as large as currants;
and t