" And what is the interpretation of that?" asked the husband, picking himself up from the floor, The spiritualist looked very embarrassed, and said nothing. The question was repeated, and then he said, pointing to the table: " I really must leave you to judge of the meaning for yourself."
The table was lying on its back, with its drawers open, and one ot the men was lying right on top of it, in between its legs, As this fact dawned upon the company, it can easily be imagined that they were soon in fits of laughter, with the exception of the husband, who seemed to fail to see the joke.
Another story of hers is of a pretty girl, who, for the sake of a very good-looking curate, was won't to fulfil the office of Sunday-school teacher, in spite of the risk of damage to her beautiful Sunday clothes.
One day she found herself in the middle of the story Joseph and Putiphar's wife.
Taking for granted that the children did not understand it, she rashly asked one of the boys what he would have done, if he had been in Joseph's place?
" Please, Teacher, I'd have been hup'er like a knife " was the unexpected reply; whereupon the whole class rose, and began to sing the following hymn;
" Father's got the cricket-ball
And mother's got the wicket;
And when they go to bed at night
They play a game of cricket."
Since then she has attended Sundayschool no more, but prefers to spoon the curate at afternoon tea.
And now I want to tell you about rather a curious thing that has happened, only you are so delightfully innocent that 1 — 100 — scarcely know how to explain it to you.
You know that it is quite a common tiling for a man to "keep " a girl as a the mistress'* or "cocotte," on whom he lavishes money and presents, while she in return ministers in every possible way to his sensual desires!
Even in pious. London this goes on, and in St. John's Wood, and at Richmond many a dainty little house with an exquisitely dressed mistress bears witness to the genuine piety of the London County Councillors! In Paris, on the other hand, every man without exception, who can afford it, keeps one or more " cocottes " and these are to be seen driving every day in the most splendid carriages, or displaying their beautiful busts and shoulders in the most gorgeous costumes at the Theatre or Opera, Their photos are in every shop-window, their doings are freely discussed in the papers, some of which make a speciality of giving lull accounts of their midnight supper-parties, which start with all the guests most correctly and beautifully dressed, and end with their all being still beautifully undressed. Ladies of fashion discuss them quite freely pointing out to one another the frail beauties kept by their respective husbands, and imitating them not only in dress and manner, but as far as they know how, in their lascivious behaviour in the privacy of their bedroom, And now, I suppose, you will exclaim " What is the girl driving at? "
Why just at this, my dear Ethel, which I could not very well explain without leading up to it rather gently. In Paris it is getting almost as common for a beautiful girl to be "kept" by some leading society woman as by a man! Does that take your breath away, dearest? Because if so, prepare for another gasp. The fact is that the Countess has fallen completely in love with me; and though she cannot have me altogether to live with her, as she would like, Madame allows me to spend a day and a night with her every week, during which she lavishes on me the "economies of love " that she has been saving up all the week. She has had a lovely bedroom fitted up in her house especially for me, the walls and ceiling of which are covered with mirrors, interspersed with the most suggestive and voluptuous pictures. The floor is so thickly carpeted that one might sleep on it without discomfort, and is strewn everywhere with the softest and most luxurious satin cushions. The bed itself is a triumph of voluptuous elegance, and the room is filled continually with the most delicious and intoxicating perfumes. The large hanging cupboards and chest of drawers are filled with the most lovely improper costumes,transparent chemises, openwork tights, lace drawers, satin corsets, etc., in which we array ourselves when we retire there for an evening's pleasure. When I tell you that she has taken into her service the two naughty children whose performance I described in my last letter, and that their special duty is to wait on me when I am there, you can imagine that we have a most delightfully naughty time, when we are together.
I generally go to her on friday evening, and stay with her till Saturday night; When 1 arrive I find the two children waiting for me dressed as pages in " tights," and low satin bodices, with their long hair hanging almost to the waist.
They conduct me to my bedroom and dress me-a task which pleases them both immensely, but especially the boy, whose tights instantly betray the movements of his precociously developed " flute."
When I am quite undressed, they conduct me to the splendid bathroom that opens out of the bedroom, and there the Countess's own maid helps me to enjoy the delicious sensations of a hot and heavily perfumed bath. After this I am dried and massaged, by the clever maid, and my hair is carefully done up in the latest fashionable style;
I then select the costume that I am going to wear, and to give you some idea of the way we dress at these select little dinners, I will describe to you what I wore the last time I went there.
The colours I decided on were pink and black, and accordingly a chemise of the thinnest black chiffon was brought me, with big bows of pink ribbon to act as shoulderstraps, and with a trimming of the same found the " decolletage "of the neck, Black openwork silk stockings, with pink and black satin garters were finished off With very pointed shoes of pink kid with immense Louis XV heels. A pair of pink kid gloves sewn with black and reaching to the elbow completed a costume, which sounds perhaps rather gloomy, because, there seems to be a good deal more black than pink in it; but, if you ever try wearing a thin black chiffon chemise, you will find that your body supplies the pink, which the faint black of the chiffon only serves to heighten.
When I was thus arrayed the pages ran off to fetch their mistress, who was impatiently waiting in her own room. She arrived in similar costume, only the colours she wore were light-blue and a very pale shade of caf-au-lait.
In a moment we are clasped in one another's arms, the contact of our naked bodies-for chiffon is as good as nothingcausing the most delightful shivers of pleasure to run all over us as we imprint long and lascivious kisses on one another's lips, We do not however take any further liberties with each other, as the dinner is served almost immediately, at which we are waited on by the two pages, though the boy finds the sight of our beauties so entrancing that he can scarcely walk owing to the pressure of his "dolly " against the tights.
Meanwhile we excite ourselves with the highly-seasoned viands, washed down with liberal draughts of champagne, in which the pages share, until we are all in such a state of lire that we rush into each others arms in an absolute fury of sexual desire.
Then follow a series of the most voluptuous scenes that can possibly be imagined, the Countess continually discovering some new means of heightening the pleasure.
On the Saturday morning the Countess generally drives me out in her carriage, and we make a tour of the shops, in the course of which she is only too delighted to buy me anything and everything that I may take a fancy to. The result is that I have now a large collection of the loveliest hats, stockings, handkerchiefs, gloves, etc., that you can possibly imagine, and I am sure you will be perfectly enraptured when you see them. The other girls in the Lesbian Club were at first quite mad with envy of me on account of my good fortune, but as I often pass on some of the Countess's presents to them, they are beginning to get reconciled to my intimacy with her.