16 A MONTH IN THE FORESTS OF FRANCE. 



land of promise, I once more returned to the saloon 

 for something I had left there. Seated at their 

 breakfast were two or three ladies and one or two 

 gentlemen ; while, still lying in his berth, a tiger 

 watching for his prey, I beheld a " gent " — he could 

 not have been a gentleman, as the following facts 

 illustrated. Just as I entered, and apparently soon 

 after the ladies had commenced their breakfast, the 

 "gent" arose, and, undoing his braces, pulling off his 

 coat and waistcoat, baring his neck, and tucking up 

 his shirt-sleeves, bade the steward prepare the end 

 of the table for his mimic ablutions. Stopping to 

 survey him, in speechless wonder, I then saw him 

 place a very small dressing-case on the table, whence 

 he produced a toothbrush. With a leering eye to 

 the ladies — poor gent ! — in the hope that they admired, 

 did this mistaken biped proceed to dip his face into 

 the common basin (in all probability scarce wiped 

 since its use for other purposes), to wash his mouth, 

 and to resemble spouts at the eaves of houses and 

 the end of gutters, by filling his cheeks and sputter- 

 ing the contents again into the basin. Then — Heaven 

 help the mark ! — he made side twists of his features 

 while he brushed the bushes or great tufts of hair on 

 either side his face, and combed or coaxed more into 

 goatishness a would-be " Newgate fringe." During 



