Everybody laughed, and Mr. Malt said that it wasn’t possible for Emmeline to play for money because she never could keep as much as five francs in her possession, but if she did he’d think it necessary to warn the man from Marseilles that Miss Malt knew the game.

“And she’s perfectly right,” continued her father, “in describing this illumination business as a fraud.  I don’t say it isn’t pretty enough, but it’s a fraud this way, they don’t give you any choice about paying your money for it.  Now we didn’t start boarding at this hotel, we went to the one down there on the other side of the river.  We were very much fatigued when we arrived, and every member of our party went straight to bed.  Next day—­I always call for my bills daily—­what do I find in my account but ‘Illumination de la chute de la Rhin’ one franc apiece.”

“And you hadn’t ordered anything of the kind,” said poppa.

“Ordered it?  I hadn’t even seen it!  Well, I didn’t lose my temper.  I took the document down to the office and asked to have it explained to me.  The explanation was that it cost the hotel a large sum of money.  I said I guessed it did, and it was also probably expensive to get hot and cold water laid on, but I didn’t see any mention of that in the bill, though I used the hot and cold water, and didn’t use the illumination.”

“That’s so,” said poppa.

“Well, then the fellow said it was done all on my account, or words to that effect, and that it was a beautiful illumination and worth twice the money, and as it was the rule of the hotel he’d have to trouble me for the price of it.”

“Did you oblige him?” asked poppa.

“Yes, I did.  I hated to awfully, but you never can tell where the law will land you in a foreign country, especially when you can’t converse with the judge, and I don’t expect any stranger could get justice in Schaffhausen against an hotel anyway.  But I sent for my party’s trunks, and we moved—­down there to that little thing like a castle overhanging the Falls.  It was a castle once, I believe, but it’s a deception now, for they’ve turned it into an hotel.”

“Find it comfortable there?” inquired the Senator.

“Well, I’m telling you.  Pretty comfortable.  You could sit in the garden and get as wet as you liked from the spray, and no extra charge; and if you wanted to eat apricots at the same time they only cost you a franc apiece.  So when I saw how moderate they were every way, I didn’t think I’d have any trouble about the illumination, specially as I heard that the three hotels which compose Schaffhausen subscribed to run the electric plant, and I’d already helped one hotel with its subscription.”

“When did you move in here?” asked poppa.

“I am coming to that.  Well, I saw the show that night.  I happened to be on an outside balcony when it came off, and I couldn’t help seeing it.  I wouldn’t let myself out so far as to enjoy it, for fear it might prejudice me later, but I certainly looked on.  You can’t keep your eyes shut for three-quarters of an hour for the sake of a principle valued at a franc a head.”