Gabrielle Debrives

Short of money, Rigadin appeals to his uncle. His uncle replies in a letter, advising him to overcome his shyness and propose to the daughter of a friend's family. Rigadin is very embarrassed in front of the ladies. He buys a bouquet of flowers and goes to the family's house. But they have already gone out, leaving the apartment in the care of the servants. They take advantage of this to hold a reception in the drawing room, and the maid acts as hostess. Rigadin is ushered in. Mistaking the maid for the lady of the house, he presents himself to her with his bouquet. Her manners surprise him. The maid leads him to the kitchen and dresses him in various utensils. The entire party welcomes him enthusiastically. But at that moment, the employers appear. The servants disappear, leaving Rigadin crestfallen with his uncle's letter. But after reading it, the entire family, indignant, throws him out.

Charles Prince is an inept butler, so he is fired. He goes and gets a job at a restaurant, where he discovers his former employer in a tryst with a young woman who's clearly prepared to be no better than she is, and snatches a love letter from the boss to the girl. He uses this to reinsert himself into his former home, where he drinks the master's wine, smokes the master's cigars, and insults the master's cook.

The escalope, it seems, possesses the astonishing property of erasing wrinkles. Madame Rigadin, having discovered this marvelous remedy, secretly applies a freshly cut escalope to her forehead every evening. But a good housewife must know how to use up leftovers. And that is why Rigadin sees a succulent escalope spread across her plate every day. One shouldn't overdo it, even with the best things. Rigadin is beginning to suffer from terrible indigestion from the diet his wife persists in subjecting him to, much against his will, when he one day discovers the truth. The husband's anger leads him to inflict the punishment of retaliation upon his wife.