Laughing Torso

BACK TO PARIS AND CELEBRITIES
He knew all the Poles in Montparnasse, who adored
him. He arrived at the Parnasse about three in the
afternoon. He ordered drinks all round and the
saucers began to pile up. He explained to my
Pole, whom I was sitting with, that he wanted to go
to the ball and wanted to pay rather less than five
hundred francs for his ticket. It is almost impossible
for a man to get in who is not a student without
having to pay an enormous sum of money. Even
if hundreds of francs are paid, very often people are
thrown out, the few clothes that they have arrived
in being torn off them. It is also necessary to know
the name of one's supposed Professor and the
" massier " of the class. This has to be learnt from
memory from one of the real students. Any woman
can get in free as they are considered the property
of the students to do anything they like with. My
Pole-was'able to obtain a ticket for fifty francs and
then the great question of costumes had to be dis-
cussed. The period, as I have said, was Greek.
No other kind of dress is permitted after the students
have decided on a certain period. My Pole was not
unlike Charlie Chaplin, and Rubenstein, although
of a distinguished and imposing appearance, did not
look very like a Greek. They decided to. go to the
Bon Marche and buy suitable material and that I
would make them clothes at the studio. I went
home and waited for them, collecting needles,
cotton, and scissors. They came back with yards
of tussore silk, with red and blue swastika patterns on
it, bunches of imitation grapes for head-dresses, and
sandals and ribbons to put round their waists. I