There was a table in the centre, at which Commissary Primorin, who had followed the fiacre in his chariot, had just seated himself.

It was the escort: the troopers surrounded the fiacre, and the whole galloped off.

One day on the Boulevard he called a fiacre, having first taken care to choose a coachman of respectable age, "Cocher, drive to the Rue Montorgueil, to the best restaurant you can find."

We found a dilapidated fiacre driven by a still more dilapidated cocher, who, for the sum of six francs, drove us to the town.

I got a fiacre at once, and drove away.

" Saying which, he hailed a passing fiacre and bade the coachman drive to the Embarcadère of the Rive Droite.

My toilet completed, I descended to the street, hired a fiacre, and drove to the restaurant where I had arranged to meet my friend.

" "Please wait one moment only;" the detective touched a bell, and briefly ordered two fiacres to the door at once.

Cournet let them get away, and then, pulling the check string, stopped the fiacre, got down leisurely, reclosed the door, quietly took forty sous from his purse, gave them to the coachman, who had not left his seat, and said to him, "Drive on.

" At Porte Maillot they took one of the flock of waiting fiacres.

Fortunately, we caught an empty fiacre in the next street and, as we were nearer the Rue du Faubourg Montmartre than the Chaussée d' Antin, Dalrymple set me down first.

He whose key-ring lacks that open sesame never really sees the city, even though he dwell in the shadow of the Sorbonne and comprehend the fiacre French of the Paris cabman.