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Article HOTEL INCIDENT IN THE RIVIERA. Page 1 of 5 Article HOTEL INCIDENT IN THE RIVIERA. Page 1 of 5 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Hotel Incident In The Riviera.
HOTEL INCIDENT IN THE RIVIERA .
No one who has sojourned for a while in the Riviera , is surprised at the crowds of foreigners that are collected from all parts of Europe into its various nooks and retreats . The English go there to escape mist and fog ; the Russians , to avoid
extreme cold ; the invalid Germans , to put a barrier betAveen themselves and the withering east Avind . Some , again , visit it for other than sanitary reasons . Monaco with its gambling attractions entices and detains some , and the mere enjoyment of a climate luxurious even in winter invites
many more . We—that is , ray wife and myself—were enjoying a few AA * eeks at one of the large hotels that are so numerousl y dotted along this coast .
We bad been staying at the Hotel du Bon Vivaut about a week , when there appeared at the table-d'hote a very striking personage . As soon as dinner was over , my Avife found herself ( by accident )
near the visitors book , and discovered that the UBAV arrival had entered himself as the Baron Monteggiana-Tavernelle . We were chiefly English at the hotel , there Avas no Italian there , and our acquaintance
Avith the national Burke was limited ; so Ave easily accepted the theory that this lengthy appellation A \* as one of the most ancient titles in the land . We were subsequently informed by the baron that
it was Sicilian , Avhich made our ignorance the more excusable . I don ' t think it Avas his title , or , at least , it AA * as not only that , Avhich made us all so charmed with him . It must have
been "his noble bearing , his perfect manners , his evident desire to please , his modest evasion of all topics bearing on his own career , and his handsome face . He appeared to be about thirty years of age .
his black hair Avas as glossy as a raven ' s plumage , and his black , flashing eyes betrayed a passionate soul , Avhile his thick moustache framed , rather than concealed , a smile that irradiated his intellectual
countenance Avith sweetness and li ght . " Such , at least , Avas the description given of him in one of my Avife ' s letters to my mother-in-laAv ; and I am glad I happened to look into that letter , as it has saved me
Hotel Incident In The Riviera.
some little trouble in attempting to describe him in words of my OAVU . The baron mixed very little Avith his own countrymen , and , as I A'entured to suggest to my Avife , seemed rather shy of
them . He never Avent to the public amusements , and declined to subscribe to the Circolo . She explained to me in reply , that he was tire only nobleman in the place , and Avas , perhaps , a little haughty
towards his compatriots of a loAver rank . He had also informed her himself , that he had selected our hotel for the express purpose of mixing Avith the English , as he Avas expecting shortly to receive a government
appointment , and for the better discharge of his prospective duties , a little knowledge of English Avas desirable . I should have mentioned before , that I only speak my OAA ' language ; but my wife can converse in Italian Avith ease and
fluency , and the baron very naturally talked with her a good deal , and occasionally condescended to speak to me by her interpretation .
Shortly after the arrival of the Baron Monteggiana-Tavernelle , we Avere further enlivened by another . This time it Avas a Russian lady , attended by her maid . There Avere no other Russians at the Hotel du
Bon Vivant , and she appeared to have come there rather from necessity than by choice , as there were no rooms A * acant in the inn usually frequented by those of her nation . She declined to enter her name
m the visitors book , and for the first tAvo or three days dined in her OAVU room , and held aloof from the rest of us . This , added to the effect produced by a stateliness , not to say grandeur , of deportment , and rich sobriety of dress , prepared us all for the
discovery which in a feAV days oozed out , that she Avas a Russian princess , a widow , AVIIO Avished to remain incognita , and to live quietly in the enjoyment of an unconventional freedom from the obligations of nobility—an enjoyment beyond her command at home .
We never tally understood how this oozed out . Her female attendant could understand nothing , aud therefore could divulge nothing . The maitre d'hotel
assured his guests that he knew no more than the rest of the world ; and , by his mysterious shruggings , his self-contradictions , and , above all , by his manner , impressed us all Avith the firm belief that
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Hotel Incident In The Riviera.
HOTEL INCIDENT IN THE RIVIERA .
No one who has sojourned for a while in the Riviera , is surprised at the crowds of foreigners that are collected from all parts of Europe into its various nooks and retreats . The English go there to escape mist and fog ; the Russians , to avoid
extreme cold ; the invalid Germans , to put a barrier betAveen themselves and the withering east Avind . Some , again , visit it for other than sanitary reasons . Monaco with its gambling attractions entices and detains some , and the mere enjoyment of a climate luxurious even in winter invites
many more . We—that is , ray wife and myself—were enjoying a few AA * eeks at one of the large hotels that are so numerousl y dotted along this coast .
We bad been staying at the Hotel du Bon Vivaut about a week , when there appeared at the table-d'hote a very striking personage . As soon as dinner was over , my Avife found herself ( by accident )
near the visitors book , and discovered that the UBAV arrival had entered himself as the Baron Monteggiana-Tavernelle . We were chiefly English at the hotel , there Avas no Italian there , and our acquaintance
Avith the national Burke was limited ; so Ave easily accepted the theory that this lengthy appellation A \* as one of the most ancient titles in the land . We were subsequently informed by the baron that
it was Sicilian , Avhich made our ignorance the more excusable . I don ' t think it Avas his title , or , at least , it AA * as not only that , Avhich made us all so charmed with him . It must have
been "his noble bearing , his perfect manners , his evident desire to please , his modest evasion of all topics bearing on his own career , and his handsome face . He appeared to be about thirty years of age .
his black hair Avas as glossy as a raven ' s plumage , and his black , flashing eyes betrayed a passionate soul , Avhile his thick moustache framed , rather than concealed , a smile that irradiated his intellectual
countenance Avith sweetness and li ght . " Such , at least , Avas the description given of him in one of my Avife ' s letters to my mother-in-laAv ; and I am glad I happened to look into that letter , as it has saved me
Hotel Incident In The Riviera.
some little trouble in attempting to describe him in words of my OAVU . The baron mixed very little Avith his own countrymen , and , as I A'entured to suggest to my Avife , seemed rather shy of
them . He never Avent to the public amusements , and declined to subscribe to the Circolo . She explained to me in reply , that he was tire only nobleman in the place , and Avas , perhaps , a little haughty
towards his compatriots of a loAver rank . He had also informed her himself , that he had selected our hotel for the express purpose of mixing Avith the English , as he Avas expecting shortly to receive a government
appointment , and for the better discharge of his prospective duties , a little knowledge of English Avas desirable . I should have mentioned before , that I only speak my OAA ' language ; but my wife can converse in Italian Avith ease and
fluency , and the baron very naturally talked with her a good deal , and occasionally condescended to speak to me by her interpretation .
Shortly after the arrival of the Baron Monteggiana-Tavernelle , we Avere further enlivened by another . This time it Avas a Russian lady , attended by her maid . There Avere no other Russians at the Hotel du
Bon Vivant , and she appeared to have come there rather from necessity than by choice , as there were no rooms A * acant in the inn usually frequented by those of her nation . She declined to enter her name
m the visitors book , and for the first tAvo or three days dined in her OAVU room , and held aloof from the rest of us . This , added to the effect produced by a stateliness , not to say grandeur , of deportment , and rich sobriety of dress , prepared us all for the
discovery which in a feAV days oozed out , that she Avas a Russian princess , a widow , AVIIO Avished to remain incognita , and to live quietly in the enjoyment of an unconventional freedom from the obligations of nobility—an enjoyment beyond her command at home .
We never tally understood how this oozed out . Her female attendant could understand nothing , aud therefore could divulge nothing . The maitre d'hotel
assured his guests that he knew no more than the rest of the world ; and , by his mysterious shruggings , his self-contradictions , and , above all , by his manner , impressed us all Avith the firm belief that