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118 you not to have forgotten me! Has it been long since you saw that eccentric Lirat?"

"Why, yes, Madame, I have not seen him since the day I had the honor of meeting you at his place."

"Ah, my God, I though you two never separated at all."

"It is true," I replied, "that I see him quite often. But I have been working all these days."

As I thought I detected a note of irony in the sound of her voice, I added, to provoke her:

"What a great artist, isn't he?"

Juliette let this remark pass unanswered.

"So you are always working?" She took up the subject again. "For the rest, I am told you live like a regular recluse. Really, one sees very little of you, Monsieur Mintie!"

The conversation took a quite ordinary turn, the theatre furnishing food for nearly all of it. A remark which I made seemed to astound her, and she was rather scandalized.

"What, you don't like the theatre? Is it possible and you an artist? I am passionately fond of it. The theatre is so amusing! We are going to the Variete tonight, for the fourth time, mind you."

A feeble yelp came from behind the door.

"Ah, my God!" Juliette exclaimed, hurriedly rising. "My Spy whom I left in my room! Shall I present Spy to you, Monsieur Mintie? Don't you know Spy?"

She opened the door, drew aside the hangings, which were very wide.

"Come, Spy!" she said coaxingly. "Where have you been, Spy? Come over here, poor thing!"

And I saw a diminutive little animal, with a pointed snout, long ears, advancing, dancing on its thin paws that resembled a spider's legs and whose whole body,