Languages & literature > Adventures of Gil Blas of Santillane > Volume 3

i* The ADVENTURES of
for, in (horr, if they felt it, I imagine that their
behaviour would be lefu afiTumiog.” Addrefling my-
felf to a grave jolly perfonaee, that (food at the
door of the archbiihop’s clofet, in order to open
ahd-fliutit when there as occafion; I afked civilly,
if I could not fpeak with his grace. Wait, faid
he drily, till his grace comes out to go to mafs, and
he wilt-give yOu a moment’s audience in palling. I
armed myfelf with patience, and endeavoured to
enter into converfatidn with fome of the officers;
bnt they began to examine me from head to foot,
without deigning to fpeak one fyllable ; and then
looking at one ahot! er, finding with difdain at the
liberty which I had taken, to mingle in their dif-
c urfe. 1 was, I own, quite difconcerted at feeing
myfelf treated in this manner by valets ; and had
fcarce recolle&ed myfelf from the confufion in which
I Was, when the clofet-dtjor opened, and the arch-
bilhop appeared.
Immediately a profound fflencc prevailed among
his officers, who, all of a fudden, laid afide their
infofeftt carriage, and aifumed a refpefiful look in
prefence of their mafter. This prelate was in his
hxty-ninthyear, pretty much of the make of my un¬
cle the canon Gil Perez; that is, plump and ftiort:
he was very much bandy-legged into the bargain,
and fo bald, that he had only a fmall tuft of hair re¬
maining on the back part of his head ; for which rea-
fon, he was obliged to cover his head in a fine woolen
cap with long ears. In fpite of all that, 1 obferved
in him the air of a man of quality; doubtlefs, be-
caufe I knew him to be one. We common people
Id k upon all your great noblemen with a prepof-
fiffion that often gives them an air of greatnefs
which ngture has refufed.
The
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