le passing through the Faubourg St. Honore, he stopped in the
midst of a group which seemed to regard with curiosity a sign that was
being put up over a shop door. The sign was neither more nor less than
Marcel's picture, which Medicis had sold to a grocer. Only "the Passage
of the Red Sea" had undergone one more alteration, and been given one
more new name. It had received the addition of a steamboat and was
called "the Harbor of Marseilles." The curious bystanders were bestowing
on it a flattering ovation. Marcel returned home in ecstacy at his
triumph, muttering to himself, _Vox populi, voz Dei_.

CHAPTER XVII

The Toilette of the Graces

Mademoiselle Mimi, who was accustomed to sleep far into the day, woke up
one morning at ten o'clock, and was greatly surprised not to find
Rodolphe beside her, nor even in the room. The preceding night, before
falling to sleep, she had, however, seen him at his desk, preparing to
spend the night over a piece of literary work which had been ordered of
him, and in the completion of which Mimi was especially interested. In
fact, the poet had given his companion hopes that out of the fruit of
his labors he would purchase a certain summer gown, that she had noticed
one day at the "Deux Magots," a famous drapery establishment, to the
window of which Mimi's coquetry used very frequently to pay its
devotions. Hence, ever since the work in question had been begun, Mimi
had been greatly interested in its progress. She would often come up to
Rodolphe whilst he was writing, and leaning her head on his shoulder
would say to him in serious tones--

"Well, is my dress getting on?"

"There is already enough for a sleeve, so be easy," replied Rodolphe.

One night having heard Rodolphe snap his fingers, which usually meant
that he was satisfied with his work, Mimi suddenly sat up in bed and
passing her head through the curtains said, "Is my dress finished?"

"There," replied Rodolphe, showing her four large sheets of paper,
covered with closely written lines. "I have just finished the body."

"How nice," said Mimi. "Then there is only the skirt now left to do. How
many pages like that are wanted for the skirt?"

"That depends; but as you are not tall, with ten pages of fifty lines
each, and eight words to the line, we can get a decent skirt."

"I am not very tall, it is true," said Mimi seriously, "but it must not
look as if we had skimped the stuff. Dresses are worn full, and I sho