PLAYING TRUANT 



road/ 7 The riverside, so fresh and green, and the unending 

 line of giant plane trees on the quays, as he swung along 

 to meet the sun, still low behind the Isle of Notre Dame, 

 drew him on and on. He decided only to return for 

 breakfast and Gilchrist. Then he bethought himself there 

 would be time to stroll through those populous quarters 

 which, unlike the residential districts, were still in many 

 ways the Paris of the Middle Ages. That was the Paris 

 which held for him then so potent an interest' the Paris 

 within the walls of Charles VI,- the town of Armagnacs 

 and Burgundians, which had been governed by Bedford for 

 his infant English King/ the crowded space, in short, 

 between the old Louvres and the new Bastille, which had 

 been kept in order by the tramping of English men-at-arms. 

 One inquisitive excursion led to anothernearly two 

 hours had been spent in delightful ferreting/ there was no 

 time to return home for breakfast before the Gilchrist- 

 ward ascent. Meanwhile a positively wolfish hunger had 

 begun to assert itself. The scholar " searched his pouch/' 

 This was quite in mediaeval style/ and what was decidedly 

 in the same style was the discovery of but two poor 

 deniers for all asset ! His usual pocket-money allowance 

 was then reposing on the bed-side table, far away, save 

 for these two pennies luckily forgotten in a waistcoat 

 pocket. 



This discovery was made, ruefully enough, as he was 

 looking about in the vicinity of Saint Eustache for some 

 respectable restaurateur wherein to obtain the matutinal 

 coffee. But two deniers ~- twopence, vingt centimes -~ 

 would never purchase breakfast at any table under a roof. 

 What the devil . . . ! Well, twopence in this workmen's 



g 97 



