Our young man gave the portable oven a kick and sent the entremets into the garden for the pigeons to eat. The proprietor stared at him with an air of dismay.
"What is the matter with monsieur? Why is he so angry?"
"Ah! you miserable pothouse keeper! You make soufflé of potatoes that have been put on your wife's burned hands!"
"You understand me perfectly; you deserve to have me give you a thrashing."
"We are going now, but I shall return to this neighborhood; and I shall remember Master Bonneau, pupil of the Boisseau Fleuri, who supplies wedding and other parties at the Epée Couronnée."
With that, Edouard left his host and rejoined the ladies, who were prepared to leave the dining-room.
"Let us go, mesdames," said Edouard, "let us leave this house at once! and consider yourselves fortunate that you did not eat the soufflé."
"I will tell you about it later; the most important thing now is to leave the house of this infernal poisoner."
Edouard took Adeline's hand, Madame Germeuil followed them, and they were about to leave the inn, when the proprietor ran after them and stopped them.
"One moment, mesdames and monsieur," said Master Bonneau, pushing his cotton cap to the back of his head, "one moment, if you please; it seems to me that before leaving a restaurant you ought to pay for your dinner."
"Our dinner! Parbleu! monsieur le traiteur, you will be decidedly clever if you prove to us that we have dined!"
"I served all that you ordered, monsieur; if you didn't eat it, that's none of my business!"
"You are laughing at us, Monsieur Bonneau, when you say that you served all that we ordered; we ordered soft boiled eggs, you gave them to us hard; we ordered cutlets, you served us a rabbit stew with a cup-and-ball in it; for wine you gave us vinegar, lamp oil to dress the salad, a fowl which I would defy an Englishman to carve, and a soufflé made of--Ah! take my advice, monsieur le traiteur, and don't be ugly, or I will have you punished for a dangerous man, and have your restaurant closed."
"My restaurant!" said Bonneau, bursting with rage; "indeed! we will see about that! Pay me at once the amount of this bill, forty francs and fifteen centimes, or I will take you before the mayor."