The waiter bowed down before him as if he were an habitue of the place.
It was not long before we fell into conversation.

I do not remember which spoke first; but we talked of Paris--or rather, I talked and he listened; for, what with the excitement and fatigue of the day, and what with the half bottle of champagne which I had magnificently ordered, I found myself gifted with a sudden flood of words, and ran on, I fear, not very discreetly.
A few civil rejoinders, a smile, a bow, an assent, a question implied rather than spoken, sufficed to draw from me the particulars of my journey.

I told everything, from my birthplace and education to my future plans and prospects; and the stranger, with a frosty humor twinkling about his eyes, listened politely.

He was himself particularly silent; but he had the art of provoking conversation while quietly enjoying his own dinner.

When this was finished, however, he leaned back in his chair, sipped his claret, and talked a little more freely.
"And so," said he, in very excellent English, "you have come to Paris to finish your studies.