the Whisky was not marked on the Hotel Bill. – New Use for the Old and New Testaments. – You should love your Enemies and not swallow them. – A modest Wish.
Friend Donald resembles the Norman very closely.
Like him, he is cunning and circumspect, with the composed exterior of Puss taking a doze.
We say in France, "Answering like a Norman." That means, "to give an evasive, ambiguous answer – neither yes nor no."
They might say in England, "Answering like a Scot," to express the same idea.
Look at Donald, with the corners of his mouth drawn back, and his eyes twinkling as he nods at you and answers Ay, or shakes his head as he says Na, na; and you will be convinced that he is compromised neither by the one nor the other.
At market the resemblance is perfect.
He strolls into the stall as if he did not want anything more than a look round. He examines the goods with a most indifferent eye, turns them over and over, and finds fault with them. He seems to say to the stall-keeper:
"You certainly could not have the impudence to ask a good price for such stuff as this."
If he buys, he pays with a protest.
When he pockets cash, on the contrary, admire the rapidity of the proceeding.
I one day heard a Norman, who had just been profiting by being in town on market-day to get shaved, say to the barber, with the most innocent air in the world:
"My word, I'm very sorry not to have a penny to give you, but my wife and I have spent all our money; I have only a halfpenny left… I will owe you till next time."
Compare this Norman with the hero of the following little anecdote which the Scotch tell.
A Scot, who sold brooms, went into a Glasgow barber's shop to get shaved.
The barber bought a broom of Donald, and, after having shaved him, asked what he owed him for the broom.
"Two pence," said Donald.
"No, no," said the barber; "it's too dear. I will give you a penny, and if you are not satisfied, you can take your broom again."
Donald pocketed the penny, and asked what he had to pay for being shaved.
"A penny," replied the barber.
"Na, na," said Donald; "I will give ye a bawbee, an' if ye are no satisfied, ye can pit my beard back again."
This is Norman to the life.
The Scot pays when he has given his signature, or when there is no help for it.
It has been said that the farthing was introduced to allow the Scotch to be generous. This is calumny; for the Scot is charitable: but if collections in Scotch churches were made in bags, there might be rather a run on the small copper coin.
If you would see still another point of resemblance between the Scot and the Norman, look at them as they indulge in their little pet transgression.
When Donald orders his glass of whisky, he is always careful to say:
"Waiter, a small whisky."
The Irishman asks for a "strong whisky," straight out, like a man.
Donald is modest, he asks for his small. That is the allowance of sober folks, and the dear fellow is one of them. But just add up at the end of the evening the number of wee draps that he has on his conscience, and you will find they make a very respectable total.
Now look at the Norman taking his cups of café tricolore after dinner.
Do not imagine that he is going to take up the three bottles of brandy, rum, and kirschwasser, and pour himself out some of their contents. No, no; he would be too much afraid of exceeding the dose. He measures it into his spoon, which he holds horizontally; and, to see the precautions he takes, you would think he was a chemist preparing a doctor's prescription.
"A teaspoonful of each," he says to you; "that is my quantity."
But how they brim over, those spoonfuls! When the overflow has fallen into the cup, he shows you the full spoon, with the remark:
"One of each kind, no more."
Scotch shrewdness expresses itself in a phraseology all its own, and of which Donald alone possesses the secret. He handles the English language with the talent of the most wily diplomatist. He has a happy knack of combining irony and humour, as the following story shows:
An English author had sent his latest production to several men of letters, requesting them to kindly give him their opinion of his book. A Scotchman replied:
"Many thanks for the book which you did me the honour to send me. I will lose no time in reading it."
Quite a Norman response, only more delicate.
Scotch shrewdness has occasionally a certain smack of mild hypocrisy, which, however, does no harm to anyone.
Here are two examples of it that rather diverted me:
I was in the smoking-room of the Grand Hotel at Glasgow one evening.
Near me, sitting at a little table, were two gentlemen – unmistakably Scotch, as their accent proclaimed.
One of them calls the waiter, and orders a glass of whisky.
"What is the number of your room, sir?" asks the waiter, having put the whisky and water-jug on the table.
"No matter, waiter; don't put it on the bill. Here is the money."
"Very clever, that Caledonian," said I to myself, as I noted the wink to the waiter and the glance thrown to the other occupant of the table.
True it is, Scripta manent!
If his wife accidentally puts her hand on his hotel bill in the pocket of his coat, there is no harm done – no sign of any but the most innocent articles.
Another time I was in a Scotchman's library.
While waiting for my host, who was to rejoin me there, I had a look at his books, most of which treated of theology.
Two volumes, admirably bound, attracted my gaze. They were marked on the back – one, Old Testament, the other, New Testament. I tried to take down the first volume; but, to my surprise, the second moved with it. Were the two volumes fixed together? or were they stuck by accident? Not suspecting any mystery, I pulled hard. The Old Testament and the New Testament were in one, and came together. The handsome binding was nothing but the cover of a box of cigars. No more Testament than there is on the palm of my hand: cigars – first-rate cigars – nothing but cigars, placed there under the protection of the holy patriarchs.
I had time to put all in place again before my host came; but I was not at my ease. I was quite innocent, of course; but – I don't know why – when one has discovered a secret, one feels guilty of having taken something that belongs to another.
At last my host entered, closed the door, and, rubbing his hands, said:
"Now
