As soon as they were fairly off, Jeanne and the baron, in spite of the uncomfortable feeling that Julien’s ill-temper had caused, began to laugh and joke about the Brisevilles’ ways and tones. The baron imitated the husband and Jeanne the wife, and the baroness, feeling a little hurt in her reverence for the aristocracy, said to them:
“You should not joke in that way. I’m sure the Brisevilles are very well-bred people, and they belong to excellent families.”
They stopped laughing for a time, out of respect for the baroness’s feelings, but every now and then Jeanne would catch her father’s eye, and then they began again. The baron would make a very stiff bow, and say in a solemn voice:
“Your château at Les Peuples must be very cold, madame, with the sea-breeze blowing on it all day long.
