Page:Floating City (1904).djvu/84

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58
A FLOATING CITY.

out of the cattle of the Pampas. Another, the inventor of a portable motive-powera steam horse in a watch-casewas going to exhibit his patent in New England. Another, a Frenchman from the "Rue Chapon," was carrying to America 30,000 cardboard dolls, which said "papa" with a very successful Yankee accent, and he had no doubt but that his fortune was made.

But besides these originals, there were still others whose secrets we could not guess; perhaps among them was some cashier flying from his empty cash-box, and a detective making friends with him, only waiting for the end of the passage to take him by the collar; perhaps also we might have found in this crowd clever genii, who always find people ready to believe in them, even when they advocate the affairs of "The Oceanic Company for lighting Polynesia with gas," or "The Royal Society for making incombustible coal."

But at this moment my attention was attracted by the entrance of a young couple who seemed to be under the influence of a precocious weariness.

"They are Peruvians, my dear sir," said the Doctor, "a couple married a year ago, who have been to all parts of the world for their honeymoon. They adored each other in Japan, loved in Australia, bore with one another in India, bored each other in France, quarrelled in England, and will undoubtedly separate in America."