'
Madame did so, and they all went to dinner, Madame with Calton and
Kitty following with Vandeloup.
'This,' observed Calton, when they were all seated at the dinner
table, 'is the perfection of dining; for we are four, and the
guests, according to an epicure, should never be less than the
Graces nor greater than the Muses.'
And a very merry little dinner it was. All four were clever talkers,
and Vandeloup and Calton being pitted against one another, excelled
themselves; witty remarks, satirical sayings, and well-told stories
were constantly coming from their lips, and they told their stories
as their own and did not father them on Sydney Smith.
'If Sydney Smith was alive,' said Calton, in reference to this, 'he
would be astonished at the number of stories he did not tell.'
'Yes,' chimed in Vandeloup, gaily, 'and astounded at their
brilliancy.'
'After all,' said Madame, smiling, 'he's a sheet-anchor for some
people; for the best original story may fail, a dull one ascribed to
Sydney Smith must produce a laugh.'
'Why?' asked Kitty, in some wonder.
'Because,' explained Calton, gravely, 'society goes mainly by
tradition, and our grandmothers having laughed at Sydney Smith's
jokes, they must necessarily be amusing. Depend upon it, jokes can
be sanctified by time quite as much as creeds.'
'They are more amusing, at all events,' said Madame, satirically.
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