Rollo in Rome | Page 4

court of the diligence office. The
gentleman's name was Howland. One of the ladies was his young wife,
and the other lady was her sister. The sister's name was Louise. Mr.
Howland intended to have taken the whole coupé for his party; but
when he went to the office, the day before, to take the places, he found
that one of the seats of the coupé had been engaged by a gentleman
who was travelling alone.
"How unlucky!" said Mr. Howland to himself. "We must have three
seats, and it won't do for us to be shut up in the interior, for there we
cannot see the scenery at all."
So he went home, and asked his wife what it would be best to do. "We
cannot have three seats together," said he, "unless we go up upon the
banquette."
But the bride said that she could not possibly ride on the banquette. She
could not climb up to such a high place.
Now, Mrs. Howland's real reason for not being willing to ride on the
banquette, was not the difficulty of climbing up, for at all the diligence
offices they have convenient step ladders for the use of the passengers
in getting up and down. The real reason was, she thought it was not
genteel to ride there. And in fact it is not genteel. There is no part of the
diligence where people who attach much importance to the fashion of
the thing are willing to go, except the coupé.
"And we don't want to ride in the interior," said Mr. Howland.
"No," said the bride, "that is worse than the banquette."

"Nor to wait till another day," added Mr. Howland.
"No," said Mrs. Howland. "We must go to-morrow, and we must have
the coupé. The gentleman who has engaged the third seat will give it up
to us, I am sure, when he knows that it is to oblige a lady. You can
engage the two seats in the coupé, and one more, either on the
banquette or in the interior, and then when the time comes to set out we
will get the gentleman to let us have his seat. You can pay him the
difference."
"But, Angelina," said Mr. Howland, "I should not like to ask such a
thing of the gentleman. He has taken pains to go a day or two
beforehand to engage his seat, so as to make sure of a good one, and I
don't think we ought to expect him to give it up to accommodate
strangers."
"O, he won't mind," said Mrs. Howland. "He would as lief change as
not. And if he won't, we can arrange it in some way or other."
So Mr. Howland engaged the two places in the coupé, and one on the
banquette. When the morning came, he brought his two ladies to the
diligence station in good season. He was very unwilling to ask the
gentleman to give up his seat; but his wife, who was a good deal
accustomed to have her own way, and who, besides, being now a bride,
considered herself specially entitled to indulgences, declared that if her
husband did not ask the gentleman, she would ask him herself.
"Very well," said Mr. Howland, "I will ask him then."
So Mr. Howland went to the gentleman, and asked him. He was
standing at the time, with his umbrella and walking stick in his hand,
near one of the pillars of the portico, smoking a cigar. He looked at Mr.
Howland with an expression of some surprise upon his countenance on
hearing the proposition, took one or two puffs from his cigar before
replying, and then said quietly that he preferred the seat that he had
taken in the coupé.
"It would be a very great favor to us, if you would exchange with us,"

said Mrs. Howland, who had come up with her husband, and stood near.
"We are three, and we want very much to be seated together. We will
very gladly pay the difference of the fare."
The gentleman immediately, on being thus addressed by Mrs. Howland,
took the cigar out of his mouth, raised his hat, and bowed very politely.
"Are you and this other lady the gentleman's party?" he asked.
"Yes, sir," said Mrs. Howland.
"Then I cannot possibly think of giving up my seat in the coupé,"
replied the gentleman. "I am a Russian, it is true, but I am not a bear, as
I should very justly be considered, if I were to leave a compartment in
the coach when two such beautiful ladies as you were coming into it,
especially under the influence of any such consideration as that of
saving the difference in the fare."
The gentleman said this in so frank and