"THURSDAY.—Up at five. _Déjeûner_, and start for Paris at seven—Marquis in same _diligence_. Weather dreadfully hot. Rival diligence got the start, and _will_ keep before us all day, the French laws not allowing one coach to pass another. Dust dreadful—and worse for us than any of the rest, as we had taken our seats in front of the _voiture_, for the sake of seeing the country—and, after all, no country to see. Proposed to some _gentilhommes_ inside to change places with Ma and me; but met with a flat refusal. Begin to think French gentlemen are not much more _poli_ than English ones.—Dined at Abbeville, and arrived at Amiens late at night, very tired and ill.
"FRIDAY.—Up at five, after a sleepless night. Started at seven. Heat _comme hier_—dust _ditto_: _two_ diligences before us.—Dined, or rather _table d'hôte'd_ (which is a very different thing) at Clermont. Didn't eat an ounce all three of us, but obliged to pay five francs a-piece for our dinners—and, as we had no francs left, the people kindly consented to take English shillings instead.—Ma and I quite ill, from heat, and dust, and fasting, and one thing or another; and Pa's lumbago much worse since the heavy thunderstorm which soaked thro' his waterproof hat, and ran off his Mackintosh into his shoes, till they were all of a squash.— Seeing our distress, three French gentlemen inside kindly consented to relinquish their seats in our favour, an offer which we gladly accepted. The French are really polite, _après tout!_—10 O'CLOCK, _à la nuit!_— Arrived in Paris at the _Hotel de Lyon_, the Marquis very politely handing us out, and seeing us to our room.—Rather annoyed by Pa's coming in and kicking up a rumpus about the gentlemen who had taken our paid places on the _première banquette_, and who had left him to pay for the three insides all the way from Boulogne.—Marquis very _aimable_, and gave us all a pressing invitation to pay him a visit at his _château_ in _La Vendée_.
"SATURDAY.—The Marquis to breakfast.—With his Lordship to the _Jardin des Plantes_, where we had no sooner arrived among the lions and tigers than it began to rain cats and dogs. The noble Marquis very kind in holding the umbrella over him and me, and sending Pa to call a coach at the neighbouring coach-stand. Pa _très long-tems_ away—at last saw him coming along in the custody of two _gend'armes_, covered with mud and dirt, and bleeding profusely. Learned that poor Pa, instead of calling '_cocher_,' as he ought to have done, had called the man '_cochon_,' which, you know, means 'pig;' at which the coachman at first laughed; but Pa persisting in calling him '_cochon_,' he at last got down in a rage, and attacked Pa most furiously. I am sorry to say, poor Pa got _terriblement maltraité_. Ma has been in fits ever since, and Pa won't be able to go out for weeks. _Pour moi_, I am as ill as any one can be— nothing but the Marquis's kindness keeps me alive...."