A man was once pointed out to me whom credulity had rendered absolutely mod. At first, a person had innocently said to him, pointing to a peasant with some flax-seed in his hand, " There is a man sowing shirts." He smiled. It was then explained to him seriously and truly, that from this seed would grow a plant, which, by means of preparations, would become excellent cloth, and that from this cloth shirts would be made. This idea did not find entrance into his brain without causing a little tumult there, and the people around him continued to amuse themselves with cramming him with the most absurd ideas upon the vegetable kingdom.

One day they told him that there was in the king's garden a sausage-tree of great beauty.

"What do you mean by a sausage-tree?" asked he.

"What's a sausage tree? there's a question 1 What's an apricot-tree?" " A tree that bears apricots".

" well?"

"Well!"

" Well! why, the sausage-tree is a tree that bears sausages".

" Pooh! nonsense! Porkbutohers make sausages".

" I know very well that porkbutohers make sausages; porkbutohers make sausages, it is true; but what sort of sausages? It is just the same as little Eulalie, who lives near you; she makes flowers; but in stuffs or wools. Are you astonished that because Eulalie makes roses, that rose-bushes should produce them likewise? Eulalie makes artificial flowers".

"What i do porkbutohers then make artificial sausages?"

"Exactly so, my good friend; but the sausages of the porkbotchers are like the roses of Eulalie to nature, what the false is to the true. If you had ever eaten the fruit of the sausage-tree, you would never allow your teeth to touch the gross imitation that you have hitherto eaten." "Ah ! but, now tell me, are there really any sausage-trees?"

At this mark of wavering incredulity the friends only deigned to reply by shrugging up their shoulders, and continued to talk among themselves about the sausage-tree, without appearing to be willing to admit incredulity any longer into their conversation.

" Is it the garlick variety which is in the king's garden?" asked one.

" Yes," replied the other.

" Ah, that's the most rare of all".

" But the tree had very little fruit on it this year. You are aware that the sausage-tree originally comes from a hot climate; and the winters here try it severely; part of the blossoms were destroyed by the late frosts".

" It is a pity we cannot get one, to convince our sceptical friend here".

" I could easily get one, because I am intimate with the head gardener; but I don't think it worth the trouble to convince him; I hate these upstart minds, that are so disdainful of the beliefs of the vulgar; who aim at producing an effect by giving faith to nothing; who appear to take men for simpletons, amongst whom they form a brilliant and solitary exception".

" But," says our hero, " I ask nothing better than to believe when I am convinced by proofs".

" Proofs 1 Have I not already told you that shirts were sown and reaped? Do you not know that cotton grows upon a cotton-tree, and that sugar is the produce of a reed ? Perhaps you don't believe that"

" I ask your pardon; yes, I do".

"I will be bound you doubt that hemp is the seed of ropes, or that snuff is the seed of the ideas which we sow in our brain through the nose. Or perhaps you do not believe 'that peaches grow upon peach-trees; you prefer believing, no doubt, that porkbutchers make peaches?"

" No, I don't say that"

"Neither do you believe, I suppose, that rose-bushes produce roses; you think that all roses are made by Mademoiselle Eulalie, do you not?"

" Not at all. I know very well - "

"Yon really know nothing at all Do you know that gunpowder is the seed of death? Do you know that apples come from trees? But you say you will believe nothing without proof and will doubt next whether braces grow upon the Indian brace-tree ?" "Well, I certainly did not know that, What, do you say that braces grow upon a tree like apples?"

" I do not tell you that the tree is like an apple-tree; on the contrary, it is a fig-tree, which is called ficus elastica, because whilst cutting the braces which it produces, they draw Indian rubber from it".

"Ah! that's a different thing; I thought you were speaking of braces with metal springs." "That's the way in which you always believe. Those metal springs are artificial springs, a-wretched imitation of the ficus elastica, or brace-tree of India; so with the roses of Mademoiselle Eulalie; so with the sausages of the porkbutchers".

" Let us prove to him that braces grow upon the brace-tree. - With all my heart; here is a botanical work, look for the word Ficus.

"Ficus. Ficus rtligiosa - that's not it. Ficus bengalensis - nor that Ficus virens, ficus scabra, ficus mauritana - none of them. Ficus populifolia, ficus ulmifolia. No.

Ficus laurifolia, ficus citrifolia, ficus crassinervia, ficus ferruginea, ficus racemosa, ficus phytolaceaefolia, ficus glaucophylla, ficus scandens, ficus rubiginosa, ficus macrophyllat ficus nymphaefolia. No. Where can it be ? Ah! here it is ficus elastica"

"Well ficus clastica, does it exist? Yes or no. Answer. Can you read? What is that before you".

"Ficus elastica".

"Well, do you believe that India exists? If you do not believe that India exists, why we must show it to you on a map; besides you know what Faults d'Inde (turkeys) are? You know what Morons d'Inde (large chestnuts) are? Now here are braces produced from the ficus elastica; they are good for nothing, they grew at the greenhouse at the Jardin des Plantes. There are none good but such as are brought from India every year, just the same as they grow pine apples; all foreign fruits are in the greatest perfection in their own country. It is said the crop is excellent this year, the brace trees are loaded. Well, do you believe me now? Have you proofs enough of that?"

" Oh, yes, when you produce good reasons - "

"Well it is just the same with the sausage-tree. Is that more surprising than braces on the ficus elastica? If you are only willing to believe what you have seen, you will not believe much my good friend".

The next morning they had a large cervelas a l' ail (a large sausage seasoned with garlic) served for his breakfast.

" Well my friend, we have been fortunate enough to get one; as nothing could convince you but proofs, here it is".

They tasted the sausage and found it excellent.

"Do you imagine a vulgar porkbutcher could make anything like that?

Rien n'est beau que le vral; le vral seal est almable' (Nothing is beautiful but truth ; truth alone to lovely).

"And yet this even is not half so good as it might be; in the first place, it did not grow in it, native country, and then it is not quite ripe, but such as it is, it is quite another thing from those the porkbutcher so coarsely imitates".

"Well, but this is very astonishing".

"What is there astonishing in it ? You know very well that garlic grows in the earth. Does not nature produce pig ? Thus you admit that nature has produced the two elements with which porkbutchers make their bad garlic sausages, and you are not willing to believe that she has produced these elements united in one and the same fruit ?"

Has not nature given certain arums the odor of a leg of mutton, that has hung too long? Has she not given to the Buddies the color and the edor of the stamens of the saffron? Has she not? But you must have proofs I Monsieur believes nothing without proofs. In good sooth, my friend, I must tell you the truth, you become quite unsociable; there is no such thing as holding a conversation with you, none of the ingenuousness of friendship; everything assumes the air of a theorum, you must here proof of everything. It will not be long before you will require proof that the son shines, or that it rains. And truly, I don't know how we shall furnish you with it, etc., Ac.

This nonsense uttered with the utmost confidence by five or six men, and all directed against this poor fellow, whom they constantly accused of incredulity and Yoltairanism, whom they style a skeptic, strong minded, or M. Arouet, ended by completely turning his brain.