PALAIS ROYAL. 473 



he comes another time and does not then recollect his 

 miftake, of being put in mind of it. Ah, monfieur^ 

 vous etes bien fur, or, vous etes bien bon, fay the 

 gar^ons, when a man recollects it of himfelf, even 

 though they have never feen him before in their lives. 

 Yet I would never advife any one to trult fo much to 

 this politenefs as to repeat often this fort of forgetful- 

 nefs. They have a very fharp light, from long habit; 

 and, after reiterated ©millions, when the perfon required 

 fomething again, they would not fail to fay, with an 

 obliging fhrug of the fhoulders : Pardonnez moi, mon- 

 lieur ! and bring him nothing ; but proceed to no far- 

 ther explanation. I muft acknowledge that I find true 

 delicacy and complaifance in this behaviour : the cheat, 

 by this method, is not put to open fhame, and the 

 perfon cheated avoids the afperfions that a public noife 

 about fuch trifles might bring upon him. It is the 

 fame in all the other coffee-houfes, with the reftaura- 

 teurs, and the ordinary eating-houfes in Paris. 



The cofFee-houfes of the Palais Royal are mofc lively 

 and gay in the morning from nine to eleven, in the 

 afternoons from three till lix, and in the evenings from 

 eight till eleven. The contented Frenchman generally 

 makes his fupper at the coffee-houfe, which coniifts in 

 nothing more than a tumbler of limonade, or orgeat, or 

 bavaroife, to which he adds half as much water, dip- 

 ping into it a little roll or two, for each of which he 

 pays a fous. 



Paris, 



