they flung themselves on me with such violence that I was obliged to give
way, and for the most part of the night I performed my share of the work,
till they saw that I was completely exhausted. We fell asleep, and I did
not wake up till noon, and then I saw my two beauties still asleep, with
their limbs interlaced like the branches of a tree. I thought with a sigh
of the pleasures of such a sleep, and got out of bed gently for fear of
rousing them. I ordered a good dinner to be prepared, and countermanded
the horses which had been waiting several hours.

The landlord remembering what I had done for Madame Stuard guessed I was
going to do the same for the Rinaldis, and left them in peace.

When I came back I found my two Lesbians awake, and they gave me such an
amorous welcome that I felt inclined to complete the work of the night
with a lover's good morning; but I began to feel the need of husbanding
my forces, so I did nothing, and bore their sarcasms in silence till one
o'clock, when I told them to get up, as we ought to have done at five
o'clock, and here was two o'clock and breakfast not done.

"We have enjoyed ourselves," said Marcoline, "and time that is given to
enjoyment is never lost."

When they were dressed, I had coffee brought in, and I gave Irene sixteen
louis, four of which were to redeem her cloak. Her father and mother who
had just dined came in to bid us good-day, and Irene proudly gave her
father twelve Louis telling him to scold her a little less in future. He
laughed, wept, and went out, and then came back and said he found a good
way of getting to Antibes at a small cost, but they would have to go
directly, as the driver wanted to get to St. Andiol by nightfall.

"I am quite ready."

"No, dear Irene," said I, "you shall not go; you shall dine with your
friend, and your driver can wait. Make him do so, Count Rinaldi; my niece
will pay, will you not, Marcoline?"

"Certainly. I should like to dine here, and still better to put off our
departure till the next day."

Her wishes were my orders. We had a delicious supper at five o'clock, and
at eight we went to bed and spent the night in wantonness, but at five in
the morning all were ready to start. Irene, who wore her handsome cloak,
shed hot tears at parting from Marcoline, who also wept with all her
heart. Old Rinaldi, who proved himself no prophet, told me that I should
make a great fortune in England, and his daughter sighed to be in
Marco