uteille de Macon 6
--
Total frs. 71

The bread and butter were included in the hors-d'oeuvres, and I may
remark that the entree and the filet de boeuf were only for one.
Durand's was the cheapest of the five restaurants which still retained
their ordinary clientele. Bignon, Voisin, the Cafes de la Paix and
Anglais were much dearer. The latter gave its patrons white bread as
late as the 16th of December.

I made up my mind, then, to go to that concert at the Cirque National,
and to as many of the entertainments as might be offered. I have rarely
seen such a crowd outside a theatre; and I doubt whether the fact of the
performance being for a charitable purpose had much to do with it,
because, if so, those who were denied admission might have handed their
money at the box-office, but they did not, they only gave the reverse of
their blessing. If charity it was, it did not want to end at home that
afternoon.

The entertainment began with a charity sermon by the Abbe Duquesnay, a
hard-working priest in one of the thickly populated quarters of Paris. I
would willingly give another ten francs to hear a similar sermon. I am
positive that the Abbe had taken Laurence Sterne for his model. I have
never heard anything so brilliant in my life. Not the slightest attempt
at thrusting religion down one's throat. A good many quotations on the
advantages of well-doing, notably that of Shakespeare, admirably
translated, probably by the speaker himself. Then the following to wind
up with: "I do not know of a single curmudgeon who has ever been
converted into what I should call 'a genuine almsgiver,' by myself, or
by my fellow-priests. When he did give, he looked upon the gift as a
loan to the Lord in virtue of that gospel precept which you all know.
Now, my good friends, allow me to give you my view of that sentence: God
is just, and no doubt He will repay the loan with interest, but after He
has settled the account, He will indict the lender before the Highest
tribunal for usury. Consequently, if you have an idea of placing your
money in that way with God as a security, you had better keep it in your
purses."

After this, the orchestra, nine-tenths of whose members are in uniform,
performs the overture to "La Muette de Portici" (Masaniello); Pasdeloup
conducting. Pasdeloup is a naturalized German, whose real name is
Wolfgang, but,