ill do it, _pour les beaux yeux de Madame_."

And then, in graceful recognition of the little man's rights as owner of
the eyes in question, he bowed to Monsieur Choucru.

Madame was inexpressibly charmed. Monsieur smiled, fidgeted, and cast
longing glances towards the door.

"I have eighty dinners on hand," he began again, "and if M'sieur will
excuse me...."

"One moment more, my dear Monsieur Choucru," said Mueller, slipping his
hand affectionately through the little man's arm. "For myself, as I have
already told you, I can accept nothing--but I am bound in honor not to
neglect the interests of the journal I represent. You will of course
wish to express your sense of the compliment paid to your house by
adding your name to the subscription list of the _Petit Courier
Illustre_?"

"Oh, by--by all means--with pleasure," faltered the proprietaire.

"For how many copies, Monsieur Choucru? Shall we say--six?"

Monsieur looked at Madame. Madame nodded. Mueller took out his
pocket-book, and waited, pencil in hand.

"Eh--_parbleu_!--let it be for six, then," said Monsieur Choucru,
somewhat reluctantly.

Mueller made the entry, shut up the pocket-book, and shook hands
boisterously with his victim.

"My dear Monsieur Choucru," he said, "I cannot tell you how gratifying
this is to my feelings, or with what disinterested satisfaction I shall
make your establishment known to the Parisian public. You shall be
immortalized, my dear fellow--positively immortalized!"

"_Bien oblige, M'sieur--bien oblige_. Will you not let my wife offer you
a glass of liqueure?"

"Liqueure, _mon cher_!" exclaimed Mueller, with an outburst of frank
cordiality--"hang liqueure!--WE'LL DINE WITH YOU!"

"Monsieur shall be heartily welcome to the best dinner the _Toison d'Or_
can send up; and his friend also," said Madame, with her sweetest smile.

"Ah, Madame!"

"And M'sieur Choucru shall make you one of his famous cheese souffles.
_Tiens, mon bon_, go down and prepare a cheese souffle for two."

Mueller smote his forehead distractedly.

"For two!" he cried. "Heavens! I had forgotten my aunt and my cousin!"

Madame looked up inquiringly.

"Monsieur has forgotten something?"

"Two somethings, Madame--two somebodies! My aunt--my excellent and
admirable maternal aunt,--and my cousin. We left them sitting under a
tree by the river-side, more than half an hour ago. But the fault,
Madame, is yours."

"How, Monsieur?"

"Yes; for in your