ed nearer, to discover the cause of the mirth, which every moment
seemed to augment, guess my surprise to perceive among the foremost rank
of the players, my acquaintance, Mr. O'Leary, whom I at that moment
believed to be solacing himself with his meershaum at Meurice. My
astonishment at how he obtained admission to the Salon was even less than
my fear of his recognising me. At no time is it agreeable to find that
the man who is regarded as the buffo of a party turns out to be your
friend, but still less is this so, when the individual claiming
acquaintance with you presents any striking absurdity in his dress or
manner, strongly at contrast with the persons and things about him; and
thus it now happened--Mr. O'Leary's external man, as we met him on the
Calais road, with its various accompaniments of blouse-cap, spectacles,
and tobacco-pipe, were nothing very outre or remarkable, but when the
same figure presented itself among the elegans of the Parisian world,
redolent of eau de Portugal, and superb in the glories of brocade
waistcoats and velvet coats, the thing was too absurd, and I longed to
steal away before any chance should present itself of a recognition.
This, however, was impossible, as the crowd from the other table were all
gathered round us, and I was obliged to stand fast, and trust that the
excitement of the game, in which he appeared to be thoroughly occupied,
might keep his eye fixed on another quarter; I now observed that the same
scene in which I had so lately been occupied at the rouge et noir table,
was enacting here, under rather different circumstances. Mr. O'Leary was
the only player, as I had just been--not, however, because his success
absorbed all the interest of the bystanders, but that, unfortunately, his
constant want of it elicited some strong expression of discontent and
mistrust from him, which excited the loud laughter of the others; but of
which, from his great anxiety in his game, he seemed totally unconscious.

"Faites votre jeu, Messieurs," said the croupier.

"Wait a bit till I change this," said Mr. O'Leary, producing an English
sovereign; the action interpreted his wishes, and the money was converted
into coupons de jeu.

I now discovered one great cause of the mirth of the bystanders, at least
the English portion of them. Mr. O'Leary, when placing his money upon
the table, observed the singular practice of announcing aloud the amount
of his bet, which, for his own informati