Through the avenue
of trees they could see the highway, and beyond, the river,
which had its source in the mountains ten miles eastward.
The room itself was in red, evidently a state chamber, for it
contained two canopied beds. Several fine paintings hung from
the walls, and between the two windows rose one of those pier
glasses which owe their existence to the first empire of France.
On one of the beds Maurice saw the hussar uniform. On the
dresser were razors and mugs and a pitcher of hot water.
"Ah," he said, with satisfaction.
"The boots may not fit you," said the Colonel, "but if they do
not we will manage some way."
"I shall not mind the fortnight," said Maurice. "By the way,
Colonel, I notice that French seems to prevail instead of German.
Why is that?"
"It is the common language of politeness, and servants do not
understand it. As for myself, I naturally prefer the German
tongue; it is blunt and honest and lacks the finesse of the
French, which is full of evasive words and meanings. However,
French predominates at court. Besides, heaven help the foreigner
who tries to learn all the German tongues to be found in the
empires of the Hohenzollern and Hapsburg.
Pages:
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176