CHANTILLY
This plan seemed to please everybody except Lisette, who was a little
troubled to have her young ladies going around with these Chicago
people, of whom she did not quite approve.
But Patty only laughed at the anxious expression on the French girl's
face. She knew well what was passing in her mind, and she said to her
quietly: "It's all right, Lisette, they're our American friends, and I
assure you Mrs. Farrington won't mind a bit, since you are with us.
You're dragon enough to chaperon the whole State of Illinois."
It's doubtful if Lisette knew what the State of Illinois was, but she
was devoted to Patty, and waved her scruples in deference to Patty's
wishes, although she kept a stern watch on the big Van Ness boys.
But Bob and Guy behaved most decorously, and two more polite or
well-mannered young men could not have been found among the native
Parisians themselves.
Leaving the shop, they continued down the Rue de Rivoli till they
reached the Louvre.
Doris proposed their going in, and as Patty was most anxious to do so,
and Lisette saw no objection to visiting the great museum, they all
entered.
It was Patty's first glimpse of the great picture gallery, and she
began to wish she was not accompanied by the chattering crowd, that she
might wander about wherever her fancy directed. But she remembered she
would have ample opportunity for this all winter, so she willingly gave
up her own desire to please the Van Ness girls.
They cared little for pictures, but were really good historical
students, and they wanted to visit the rooms which contained curios and
relics of famous people.
So the whole crowd followed the lead of Doris and Alicia, who had
visited the Louvre before, and Patty found herself learning a great
deal from the experienced way in which the girls discussed the
exhibits. She found, too, that historical relics were more interesting
than she had supposed, and she almost sighed as she thought of the many
things she wanted to see and study during the winter.
"I hope you'll be here when we come back," Guy Van Ness said to her, as
they stood together, looking at some old miniatures.
"I hope so, too," said Patty. "When are you coming?"
"I don't know exactly; it depends on uncle's plans; but probably about
January."
"Oh, yes, we shall surely be here then, and probably living in a home
of our own. Of course, I mean a temporary home, but not a hotel. I hope
you will come to see us."
"Indeed I will. I wish we could have seen more of you this week, but
uncle has rushed us about sightseeing so fast that there was no time
for social calling."
"We saw Bert Chester and his crowd," said Patty; and then she told
about the day at Versailles.
"What a lark!" exclaimed Guy; "I wish I had been along. But you must go
somewhere with us when we're here in January, won't you?"
"I'd like to," said Patty, "but I can't promise. It all depends on the
Farringtons. I'm their guest, so of course I'm under their orders."
"Well, it won't be my fault if we don't have some fun when we come back
here," declared Guy, "and I shall do all I can to bring it about."
When they left the museum it was getting late in the afternoon, and
Lisette decreed that her young ladies must go home at once. The Van
Ness crowd raised great objection to this, but Lisette was obdurate,
and calling a cab, she ushered the girls in, and then getting in
herself, gave the order for home.
Patty couldn't help laughing at the serious way in which Lisette took
care of them, but Mrs. Farrington told her it was quite right, and she
would have been displeased had Lisette done otherwise.
"You don't quite understand, my dear," she said kindly, "the difference
between the conventions of Paris and our own New York. It may seem
foolish to you to be so carefully guarded, but I can't quite explain it
to you so you would understand it, and therefore I'm going to ask you
to obey my wishes without question, and more than that, when Lisette is
temporarily in charge of you to obey her."
"Indeed I will, dear Mrs. Farrington," said Patty heartily; "and truly
I wasn't rebelling the leastest mite. I'm more than ready to obey you,
or Lisette, either, only it struck me funny to be put into a cab, like
babies in a baby-carriage by their nursemaid."
"You're a good girl, Patty, and I don't foresee a bit of trouble in
taking care of you. To-morrow I shall feel better, and I'll go shopping
with you girls myself, and perhaps we may have time to look in at a few
other places."
So Patty danced away, quite content to take things as they came, and
sure that all the coming days were to be filled with all sorts of
novelties and pleasures.
Their purchases had been sent home, reaching there before they did
themselves, and Patty immediately fell to work on the albums, placing
the cards in the little slits which were cut in the leaves to receive
them.
The days flew by like Bandersnatches. Patty herself could not realise
what became of them. She wrote frequently to the people at home and
tried to include all of her young friends in America in her
correspondence, but it seemed to be impossible, and so finally she took
to writing long letters to Marian, and asking her to send the letters
round to the other girls after she had read them.
Mr. and Mrs. Farrington had begun their search for a furnished house
which they might rent for the winter. When they went to look at various
ones suggested to them by their agent, they did not take the girls with
them, as Mrs. Farrington said it was too serious a matter in which to
include two chattering children.
So Patty and Elise were left pretty much to their own devices while the
elder Farringtons went on these important errands.
But one bright morning when Mr. and Mrs. Farrington were preparing to
start off in the automobile for the day, Elise begged that she and
Patty might be allowed to go off on an excursion of some sort.
"Indeed, I think you ought," said Mr. Farrington kindly, "and I'll tell
you what I think would be a first-rate plan. How would you like to go
with Lisette to the Chateau of Chantilly for a day's outing? You could
go on one of those 'personally conducted tours,' in a big motor van,
with lots of other tourists."
"I think it will be lots of fun," cried Elise; "I've always wanted to
climb up on one of those moving mountains and go wabbling away."
"I, too," said Patty; "just for once I think that sort of thing would
be great fun."
"Then you must hustle to get ready," said Mr. Farrington, "for the
cavalcade sets off at ten o'clock, and I don't believe they'd wait,
even for two nice little girls like you. So run along and get your
bonnets, and be sure not to forget to remember to feed the carp."
"What is a carp?" asked Patty, as she and Elise ran away to dress.
"Fish, I think," said Elise, "but we'll probably find out when we get
there."
The girls were soon ready, and with Lisette they walked out in the
bright sunshine and along the Rue de la Paix until they came to the
corner where the personally conducted tourists were to start from.
Mr. Farrington had telephoned for tickets, so all they had to do was to
clamber into their seats. This was done by mounting a stepladder placed
at the side of the big vehicle. The seats of the van were graduated in
height, so that the back ones were as good as the front, and, indeed, a
full view of what was passing could be commanded from any position.
They had to wait until the tourists had all arrived, and then they
started off at a good speed toward the country.
"I feel as if I were riding in one of the old royal state carriages,"
said Patty, "although there isn't the slightest resemblance in the
vehicle, or the means of locomotion."
"No," said Elise, laughing; "nor in the people. I don't believe these
tourists bear much resemblance to the ladies and gentlemen who rode in
the Royal carriages. But I think it's more fun than our own car,
because we sit up so high and can see everything so well."
"And hear, too," said Patty, as they listened to the man in the front
seat, who had turned around and was announcing through a megaphone the
names of the places as they passed them.
"He seems to know his lesson pretty well," whispered Patty, "but his
French pronunciation is even worse than mine."
"Your pronunciation isn't so bad, Patty, but you haven't any vocabulary
to speak of."
"To speak with, you mean. But never you mind, miss; as soon as your
respected parents decide upon a house, and we get settled in it, I'm
going to study French like anything, and French history, too. I used to
hate these things, but times have changed since Patty came to Paris!"
"I'm glad you're so energetic, but I don't feel much like studying; I'd
rather drift around and have fun as we are doing."
"We'll have time enough for both, and you want to take some painting
lessons, don't you?"
"Yes; but seeing all the pictures I've seen since I've been here
discourages me. I used to think I was quite an artist, but I see now
that if I ever do anything really worth while, I'll have to begin all
over again and go into a drudgery drawing class."
"It won't be drudgery; you love it so, and you'll make rapid progress
if you're as desperately in earnest as all that. Do you think your
mother will decide to take that house they're going to look at to-day?"
"Yes, I think so; her mind is pretty well made up already. It must be a
lovely house, judging from what she says about it."
It was not very far to Chantilly, and when they reached there the girls
were almost sorry that the pleasant ride was ended.
The megaphone gentleman informed his personally conducted crowd that
they were to alight and eat luncheon before proceeding to the Chateau.
The hotel where they were to lunch was a quaint, old-fashioned house,
built around three sides of a garden. It was called the Hotel du
Grand-Conde, and Patty said, "I suppose we shall see and hear of
nothing but the Condes for the rest of the day. I believe the whole
interest of Chantilly centres in that Conde crowd."
"You seem to know a lot about it," said Elise banteringly.
"I've been reading up," confessed Patty, "and besides, La Grande
Mademoiselle has always been one of my favourite characters in French
history. She was a wonderful woman, and though not of the Condes, she
is mixed up in their history."
"She is an unknown quantity to me," said Elise, "but I'm willing to
learn, so tell me all you know, Patty; it won't take long."
"You'll get no instruction from me after that unflattering speech,"
retorted Patty, and then luncheon was announced, and the girls sat down
at the table reserved for them.
They were much interested in their fellow-tourists, and as most of them
were socially inclined, Patty and Elise were included in the general
conversation. As the tourists seemed to have a great deal of general
information, and as they were quite ready to impart it, the girls
picked up quite a store of knowledge, more or less accurate.
Then they left the hotel, with its quaint old gateway and carefully
kept gravel walks, and proceeded on their way to the Chateau.
It was necessary at the entrance to cross a bridge over the moat, and
here Patty discovered the reason for feeding the carp.
To begin with, the carp themselves were exceedingly old, and had been
swimming around in the same moat for hundreds of years.
"I'm not quite sure of the number of years," volunteered a Boston
tourist, to any one who might listen, "but it's either hundreds or
thousands. Anyway, the carp are dreadfully old."
"They don't look it," declared Patty, as she leaned over the railing of
the bridge and watched the frisky fish darting around like mad.
An old woman sat nearby with a bushel basket full of French rolls,
which she was willing to sell to the tourists at prices which increased
as her stock of rolls decreased. Patty and Elise bought a quantity of
the rolls and began the fun of throwing them to the fishes. It turned
out to be even more fun than they had anticipated, for the moment a
roll reached the water, scores of carp would make a mad dash for it,
and a pitched battle ensued for possession of the bread. Sometimes the
roll was torn to pieces in the fight, and sometimes a fortunate carp
would secure it and swim away, followed by all the others in angry
pursuit. Another roll flung in would, of course, divert their
attention, and the squabble would begin all over again. The fun was
largely in watching the individual peculiarities of the fishes. One
sulky old thing disdained to fight, but if given a roll all to himself
he would swim away with it, and sticking his head in a small corner of
the stone parapet, would eat it greedily, while he kept off the other
fishes by madly lashing his tail. Another brisk little fish didn't seem
to care to eat the rolls at all, but mischievously tried to prevent the
others from eating them, and played a general game of interference.
The actions of the fish were so ridiculous, and the sport so novel and
exciting, that the girls would not leave until they had bought up all
the rolls the old woman had and thrown them down to the comical carp.
The personal conductor of the tour affably waited until the moat
performance was over, and then conducted his party inside the park to
the Chateau.
Though only a toy affair compared with Versailles, Chantilly is one of
the most beautiful of the historic Chateaus of France, and is in many
respects a gem. The great paved Court of Honor shone white in the
sunlight, and the noble statues and sculptures bore witness to the art
and taste displayed in its construction.