He wondered who she might be and what part of his native land she adorned when not gracing European capitals.

Well, this was no time for mooning.

He had arrived from London the day proceeding, and was leaving for Corfu on the morrow, and perforce he must crowd many things into this short grace of time.

He was only moderately fond of Paris as a city; the cafes and restaurants and theaters amused him, to be sure; but he was always hunting for romance here and never finding it.

The Paris of his Dumas and Leloir no longer existed.