She must be very happy this evening! And you will also see how beautiful she will be." Pierre and Narcisse next began to congratulate her, but they could not remain there, the throng was ever jostling them; and the Prince and Princess, quite lost in the crush, had barely time to answer the many salutations with amiable, continuous nods.

And Celia, after conducting the two friends to Attilio, was obliged to return to her parents so as to take her place beside them as the little queen of the _fete_.
Narcisse was already slightly acquainted with Attilio, and so fresh congratulations ensued.

Then the two friends manoeuvred to find a spot where they might momentarily tarry and contemplate the spectacle which this first _salon_ presented.

It was a vast hall, hung with green velvet broidered with golden flowers, and contained a very remarkable collection of weapons and armour, breast-plates, battle-axes, and swords, almost all of which had belonged to the Buongiovannis of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.

And amidst those stern implements of war there was a lovely sedan-chair of the last century, gilded and decorated with delicate paintings.