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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..921275b --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #60136 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/60136) diff --git a/old/60136-0.txt b/old/60136-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 2d11d81..0000000 --- a/old/60136-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,8191 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Sisters Rondoli,, by Guy de Maupassant - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll -have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using -this ebook. - - - -Title: The Sisters Rondoli, - And Other Stories - -Author: Guy de Maupassant - -Translator: Ernest Augustus Boyd - -Release Date: August 19, 2019 [EBook #60136] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SISTERS RONDOLI, *** - - - - -Produced by Laura Natal Rodrigues at Free Literature (Images -generously made available by Hathi Trust.) - - - - - -THE SISTERS RONDOLI - -AND - -OTHER STORIES - -BY - -GUY DE MAUPASSANT - -New York, Alfred A. Knopf, 1923 - - - - -CONTENTS - -THE SISTERS RONDOLI -MY LANDLADY -THE LITTLE CASK -ANDRÉ'S DISEASE -HE? -MY UNCLE SOSTHÈNE -THE ACCURSED BREAD -MADAME LUNEAU'S CASE -A WISE MAN -THE UMBRELLA -A MEETING -DECORATED! -CHÂLI -THE LEGACY - - - - -THE SISTERS RONDOLI - - - - -I - - -"No," said Pierre Jouvent, "I do not know Italy. I started to go -there twice, but each time I was stopped at the frontier and could -not manage to get any further. And yet my two attempts gave me charming -ideas of the manners of that beautiful country. Some time or other I -must visit its cities, as well as the museums and works of art with which -it abounds. I shall make another attempt as soon as possible to cross -that impregnable border. - -"You don't understand me, so I will explain myself. In 1874 I was -seized with desire to see Venice, Florence, Rome, and Naples. I got this -whim about the middle of June, then the powerful fever of spring stirs -the desire for love and adventure. I am not, as you know, a great -traveller; it appears to me a useless and tiresome business. Nights spent -in a train, the disturbed slumbers of the railway carriage, with the -attendant headache and stiffness in every limb, the sudden waking in -that rolling box, the unwashed feeling, the flying dust and smuts that -fill your eyes and hair, the taste of coal in your mouth, and the bad -dinners in draughty refreshment rooms, are, in my opinion, a horrible -way of beginning a pleasure trip. - -"After this introduction by the express, we have the miseries of the -hotel; of some great hotel full of people, and yet so empty; the strange -room, and the dubious bed! I am most particular about my bed; it is the -sanctuary of life. We intrust our nude and fatigued bodies to it that -they may be refreshed and rested between soft sheets and feathers. - -"There we spend the most delightful hours of our existence, the hours of -love and of sleep. The bed is sacred, and should be respected, venerated, -and loved by us as the best and most delightful of our earthly -possessions. - -"I cannot lift up the sheets of a hotel bed without a shiver of -disgust. What took place there the night before? What dirty, odious -people have slept in it! I begin, then, to think of all the horrible -people with whom one rubs shoulders every day, hideous hunchbacks, people -with flabby bodies, with dirty hands that make you wonder what their feet -and the rest of their bodies are like. I think of those who exhale a smell -of garlic and dirt that is loathsome. I think of the deformed and -purulent, of the perspiration emanating from the sick, and of everything -that is ugly in man. And all this, perhaps, in the bed in which I am going -to sleep! The mere idea of it makes me feel ill as I get in. - -"And then the hotel dinners--those dreary _table d'hôte_ dinners in -the midst of all sorts of extraordinary people, or else those terrible -solitary dinners at a small table in a restaurant, feebly lighted up by -a small, cheap candle under a shade. - -"Again, those terribly dull evenings in some unknown town! Do you know -anything more wretched than when it is getting dark on such an occasion? -You go about as if in a dream, looking at faces which you have never seen -before and will never see again; listening to people talking about matters -which are either quite indifferent to you or in a language that perhaps -you do not understand. You have a terrible feeling, almost as if you were -lost, and you continue to walk on, so as to avoid returning to the hotel, -where you would feel still more lost because you are _at home_, in a -home which belongs to anyone who can pay for it. At last you fall into a -chair at some well-lit café, whose gilding and lights overwhelm you a -thousand times more than the shadows in the streets. Then you feel so -abominably lonely sitting in front of the foaming bock which a hurrying -waiter has brought, that a kind of madness seizes you, the longing to go -somewhere or other, no matter where, as long as you need not remain in -front of that marble table and in the dazzling brightness. - -"And then, suddenly, you perceive that you are really alone in the -world, always and everywhere; and that in places which we know the -familiar jostlings give us the illusion only of human brotherhood. -At such moments of self-abandonment and sombre isolation in distant -cities you think broadly, clearly, and profoundly. Then one suddenly -sees the whole of life outside the vision of eternal hope, outside -the daily deceptions of daily habits and of the expectations of -happiness, of which we always dream. - -"It is only by going a long distance that we can fully understand -how near, short-lived and empty everything is; only by searching for the -unknown do we perceive how commonplace and evanescent everything is; only -by wandering over the face of the earth can we understand how small the -world is, and how very much alike everywhere. - -"How well I know, and how I hate and fear more than anything else -those haphazard walks through unknown streets. This was the reason -why, as nothing would induce me to undertake a tour in Italy by myself, -I induced my friend Paul Pavilly to accompany me. - -"You know Paul, and how woman is everything, the world, life itself, -to him. There are many men like him, to whom existence becomes poetical -and idealised by the presence of women. The earth is habitable only -because they are there; the sun shines and is warm because it lights them; -the air is soft and balmy because it blows upon their skin and ruffles the -short hair on their temples, and the moon is charming because it makes -them dream, and imparts a languorous charm to love. Every act and action -of Paul has woman for its motive; all his thoughts, all his efforts, and -hopes are centred on them. - -"A poet has branded that type of man:" - - -Je déteste surtout le barde à l'oeil humide -Qui regarde une étoile en murmurant un nom, -Et pour qui la nature immense serait vide -S'il ne portait en croupe ou Lisette ou Ninon. - -Ces gens-là sont charmants qui se donnent la peine, -Afin qu'on s'intéresse à ce pauvre univers, -D'attacher des jupons aux arbres de la plaine -Et la cornette blanche au front des coteaux verts. - -Certes ils n'ont pas compris tes musiques divines -Éternelle Nature aux frémissantes voix, -Ceux qui ne vont pas seuls par les creuses ravines -Et rêvent d'une femme au bruit que font les bois! - - -"When I mentioned Italy to Paul he at first absolutely refused to -leave Paris. I, however, began to tell him of the adventures I had on my -travels. I told him that Italian women are supposed to be charming, and I -made him hope for the most refined society at Naples, thanks to certain -letters of introduction which I had for a Signore Michel Amoroso whose -acquaintances are very useful to travellers. So at last he allowed himself -to be persuaded." - - - - -II - - -"We took the express one Thursday evening on the 26th of June. Hardly -anyone goes south at that time of the year, so that we had the carriage to -ourselves. Both of us were in a bad temper on leaving Paris, sorry for -having yielded to the temptation of this journey, and regretting cool -Marly, the beautiful Seine, and our lazy boating excursions, our -delightful evenings spent on the banks of the river waiting for -nightfall. - -"As soon as the train started Paul settled himself comfortably into a -corner, and said: 'It is most idiotic to go to this place.' As it was too -late for him to change his mind then, I answered: 'Well, you should not -have come.' - -"He did not answer, and I felt very much inclined to laugh when I saw -how furious he looked. He certainly looks like a squirrel, but then every -one of us has retained the type of some animal or other as the mark of -primal race. How many people have jaws like a bulldog, or heads like -goats, rabbits, foxes, horses, or oxen. Paul was a squirrel turned into -a man. He had its bright, quick eyes, its hair, its pointed nose, its -small, fine, supple, active body, and a certain mysterious resemblance -in his general bearing: in fact, a similarity of movements, of gestures, -and of bearing which might almost be taken for an atavism. - -"At last we both went to sleep--the noisy slumber of the railway -carriage, which is broken by horrible cramps in the arms and neck, and by -the sudden stopping of the train. - -"We woke up as we were going along the Rhone. Soon the continuous noise -of the grasshoppers came in through the window, a cry which seems to be -the voice of the warm earth, the song of Provence. It seemed to instill -into our looks, our breasts, and our souls the light and happy feeling of -the south, the smell of the parched earth, of the stony and light soil of -the olive tree with its grey-green foliage. - -"When the train stopped again a porter ran along the train calling out -'Valence' in a sonorous voice, with an accent that again gave us that -taste of Provence which the shrill note of the grasshoppers had already -imparted to us. - -"Nothing happened till we got to Marseilles, where we breakfasted, but -when we returned to our carriage we found a woman installed there. Paul, -with a delighted look at me, unconsciously gave his short moustache a -twirl, and passed his fingers like a comb through his hair, which had -become slightly disordered with the night's journey. Then he sat down -opposite the newcomer. - -"Whenever I happen to see a new face, either while travelling or in -society, I become obsessed with the desire to find out what character, -mind, and intellectual capacities are hidden beneath those features. - -"She was a young and pretty woman, a native of the south of France -certainly, with splendid eyes, beautiful, wavy black hair, which was so -thick, long, and strong that it seemed almost too heavy for her head. She -was dressed with a certain southern bad taste which made her look a little -vulgar. Her regular features had none of the grace and finish of the -refined races, of that slight delicacy which members of the aristocracy -inherit from their birth, and which is the hereditary mark of blue blood. - -"Her bracelets were too big to be of gold; she wore earrings with -white stones too big to be diamonds, and she belonged unmistakably to the -people. One would guess that she would talk too loud, and use exaggerated -gestures. - -"When the train started she remained motionless in her place, in the -attitude of a woman who was in a rage. She had not even looked at us. - -"Paul began to talk to me, evidently with an eye to effect, trying to -attract her attention, as shopkeepers expose their choice wares to catch -the notice of passers-by. She did not seem to hear. - -"'Toulon! Ten minute's wait! Refreshment room!' the porter shouted. - -"Paul motioned to me to get out, and, as soon as we were on the -platform, he said: - -"'I wonder who on earth she can be?' - -"I began to laugh. 'I am sure I don't know, and I don't in the least -care.' - -"He was quite excited. - -"'She is an uncommonly fresh and pretty girl. What eyes she has, and -how cross she looks. She must be dreadfully worried, for she takes no -notice of anything.' - -"'You will have all your trouble for nothing,' I ventured. - -"He began to lose his temper. - -"'I am not taking any trouble, my dear fellow. I think her an -extremely pretty woman, that is all. If one could only speak to her! But -I don't know how to begin. Can't you give me an idea? Can't you guess -who she is?' - -"'Upon my word, I cannot. I rather think she is some actress who is -going to rejoin her company after some love adventure.' - -"He seemed quite upset, as if I had said something insulting. - -"'What makes you think that? On the contrary, I think she looks most -respectable.' - -"'Just look at her bracelets,' I said, 'her earrings, and her whole -dress. I should not be the least surprised if she were a dancer or a -circus rider, but most likely a dancer. Her whole style smacks very much -of the theatre.' - -"He evidently did not like the idea. - -"'She is much too young, I am sure; why, she is hardly twenty.' - -"'Well,' I replied, 'there are many things which one can do before one -is twenty; dancing and reciting are among them, without counting another -business which is, perhaps, her sole occupation.' - -"'Take your seats for Nice, Ventimiglia,' the guards and porters called -out. - -"We got in; our fellow-passenger was eating an orange. She certainly -was not refined. She had spread her handkerchief on her knees, and the way -in which she tore off the peel and opened her mouth to put in the pieces, -and then spat the pips out of the window, showed that her education had -been decidedly vulgar. She seemed more unapproachable than ever, and -swallowed the fruit with an exceedingly comic air of rage. - -"Paul devoured her with his eyes, and tried to attract her attention -and excite her curiosity, but in spite of his talk and of the manner in -which he brought in well-known names, she did not pay the least attention -to him. - -"After passing Fréjus and St. Raphael, the train passes through a -veritable garden, a paradise of roses, of groves of oranges and lemons -covered with fruit and flowers at the same time. That delightful coast -from Marseilles to Genoa is a kingdom of perfumes in a land of flowers. - -"June is the time to see it, when in every narrow valley and on every -slope the most exquisite flowers are growing luxuriantly. And the roses! -fields, hedges, groves of roses! They climb up the walls, blossom on the -roofs, hang from the trees, peep out from among the bushes; they are -white, red, yellow, large and small, ordinary and quiet, with a simple -dress, or full in brilliant and heavy toilettes. Their powerful perfume -makes the air heavy and relaxing, while the still more penetrating lasting -odour of the orange blossoms sweetens the atmosphere, till it might almost -be called a sugarplum for the olfactory nerve. - -"The shore, with its brown rocks, was bathed by the motionless -Mediterranean. The hot summer sun stretched like a fiery cloth over the -mountains, over the long expanses of sand, and over the hard, set blue -sea. The train went on, through the tunnels, along the slopes, above the -water, on straight, wall-like viaducts, and a soft, vague, saltish smell -came up, a smell of drying seaweed, mingled at times with the strong, -heavy perfume of the flowers. - -"But Paul neither saw, nor looked at, nor smelled anything, for our -fellow-traveller engrossed all his attention. - -"When we got to Cannes, as he wished to speak to me, he signed to me to -get out again, and as soon as I had done so he took me by the arm. - -"'Do you know she is really charming. Just look at her eyes; and I -never saw anything like her hair.' - -"'Don't excite yourself,' I replied. 'Tackle her, if you have any -intentions that way. She does not look impregnable, I fancy, although she -appears to be a little bit grumpy.' - -"'Why don't you speak to her?' he said. 'I don't know what to say, for -I am always terribly stupid at first; I can never make advances to a woman -in the street. I follow them, go round and round them, quite close to -them, but I never know what to say at first. I only once tried to enter -into conversation with a woman in that way. As I clearly saw that she was -waiting for me to make overtures, and as I felt bound to say something, I -stammered out, "I hope you are quite well, Madame?" She laughed in my -face, and I made my escape.' - -"I promised Paul to do all I could to bring about a conversation, and -when we had taken our places again, I politely asked our neighbour: - -"'Have you any objection to the smell of tobacco, Madame?' - -"She merely replied: '_Non capisco._' - -"So she was an Italian! I felt an absurd inclination to laugh. As Paul -did not understand a word of that language, I was obliged to act as his -interpreter, so I said in Italian: - -"'I asked you, Madame, whether you had any objection to tobacco smoke?' - -"With an angry look, she replied, '_Che mi fa?_' - -"She had neither turned her head nor looked at me, and I really did -not know whether to take this What does it matter to me, for an -authorisation, a refusal, a real sign of indifference, or for a mere -'Leave me alone.' - -"'Madame,' I replied, 'if you mind the smell of tobacco in the least--' - -"She again said, '_mica_,' in a tone of voice which seemed to mean, 'I -wish to goodness you would leave me alone!' It was, however, a kind of -permission, so I said to Paul: - -"'You can smoke.' - -"He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they -try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before -them, and asked me: - -"'What did you say to her?' - -"'I asked if we might smoke, and she said we might do whatever we -liked.' - -"Whereupon I lighted my cigar. - -"'Did not she say anything more?' - -"'If you had counted her words you would have noticed that she used -exactly six, two of which gave me to understand that she knew no French, -so four remained, and a lot cannot be said in four words.' - -"Paul seemed quite unhappy, disappointed, and at sea. - -"But suddenly the Italian asked me, in that tone of discontent which -seemed habitual to her, 'Do you know at what time we shall get to -Genoa?' - -"'At eleven o'clock,' I replied. Then after a moment I went on: - -"'My friend and I are also going to Genoa, and if we can be of any -service to you, we shall be very happy. As she did not answer, I insisted: -'You are alone and if we can be of service...' But she interrupted with -such a '_mica_,' that I did not venture on another word. - -"'What did she say?' Paul asked. - -"'She said that she thought you were charming.' - -"But he was in no humour for joking, and begged me, dryly, not to make -fun of him, so I translated her question and my polite offer, which had -been so pertly rejected. - -"Then he became as agitated as a squirrel in a cage. - -"'If we only knew,' he said, 'what hotel she was going to, we would go -to the same. Try and find out, so as to have another opportunity for -making her speak.' - -"It was not particularly easy, and I did not know what pretext to -invent, anxious as I was to make the acquaintance of this unapproachable -person. - -"We passed Nice, Monaco, Mentone, and the train stopped at the frontier -for the examination of luggage. - -"Although I hate those badly brought-up people who breakfast and dine -in railway-carriages, I went and bought a quantity of good things to make -one last attack on her by their means. I felt sure that this girl must, -ordinarily, be by no means inaccessible. Something had put her out and -made her irritable, but very little would suffice, a mere word or some -agreeable offer, make her unbend, to decide her and overcome her. - -"We started again, and we three were still alone. I spread my eatables -out on the seat. I cut up the fowl, put the slices of ham neatly on a -piece of paper, and then carefully laid out our dessert, the strawberries, -plums, cherries, and cakes, close to the girl. - -"When she saw that we were going to eat she took a piece of chocolate -and two small rolls out of her pocket and began to eat them with her -beautiful sharp teeth. - -"'Ask her to have some of ours,' Paul said in a whisper. - -"'That is exactly what I want to do, but it is rather a difficult -matter.' - -"As she, however, glanced from time to time at our provisions, I felt -sure that she would still be hungry when she had finished what she had. So -as soon as her frugal meal was over, I said to her: - -"'It would be very kind of you if you would take some of this fruit.' - -"Again she said '_mica_,' but less crossly than before. - -"'Well, then,' I said, 'may I offer you a little wine? I see you have -not drunk anything. It is Italian wine, and as we are now in your own -country, we should be very pleased to see such a pretty Italian mouth -accept the offer of its French neighbours.' - -"She shook her head slightly, evidently wishing to refuse, but very -desirous of accepting, and her '_mica_' this time was almost polite. I -took the bottle, which was covered with straw in the Italian fashion, -and filling the glass I offered it to her. - -"'Please drink it,' I said, 'to bid us welcome to your country.' - -"She took the glass with her usual look, and emptied it at a draught, -like a woman tormented with thirst, and then gave it back to me without -even saying 'Thank you.' - -"Then I offered her the cherries. 'Please take some,' I said; 'we shall -be so pleased if you will.' - -"Out of her corner she looked at all the fruit spread out beside her, -and said so rapidly that I could scarcely follow her: '_A me non piacciono -ne le ciliegie ne le susine; amo soltano le fragole._' - -"'What does she say?' Paul asked. - -"'That she does not care for cherries or plums, but only for -strawberries.' - -"I put a newspaper full of wild strawberries on her lap, and she ate -them quickly, throwing them into her mouth from some distance in a -coquettish and charming manner. - -"When she had finished the little red heap which we had seen rapidly -diminishing, melting and disappearing under the rapid action of her hands, -I asked her: - -"'What may I offer you now?' - -"'I will take a little chicken,' she replied. - -"She certainly devoured half of it, tearing it to pieces with the rapid -movements of her jaws like some carnivorous animal. Then she made up her -mind to have some cherries, which she 'did not like,' then some plums, -then some little cakes. Then she said, 'I have had enough,' and sat back -in her corner. - -"I was much amused, and tried to make her eat more, pressing her, in -fact, till she suddenly got in a rage again, and flung such a furious -'_mica_' at me, that I would no longer run the risk of spoiling her -digestion. - -"I turned to my friend. 'My poor Paul,' I said, 'I am afraid we have -had our trouble for nothing.' - -"Night was coming on, one of those hot summer nights which extend their -warm shade over the burning and exhausted earth. Here and there, in -the distance by the sea, over capes and promontories bright stars began to -shine on the dark horizon, which I was, at times, almost inclined to -confound with lighthouses. - -"The scent of the orange-trees became more penetrating, and we breathed -with delight, distending our lungs to inhale it more deeply. The -balmy air was soft, delicious, almost divine. - -"Suddenly I noticed something like a shower of stars under the dense -shade of the trees along the line where it was quite dark. It might have -been taken for drops of light, leaping, flying, playing and running among -the leaves, or for small stars fallen from the skies in order to have an -excursion on the earth; but they were only fireflies dancing a strange -fiery ballet in the perfumed air. - -"One of them happened to come into our carriage and shed its -intermittent light, which seemed to be extinguished one moment and to be -burning the next. I covered the carriage-lamp with its blue shade and -watched the strange fly careering about in its fiery flight. Suddenly it -settled on the dark hair of our neighbour, who was dozing after dinner. -Paul seemed delighted, his eyes fixed on the bright, sparkling spot which -looked like a living jewel on the forehead of the sleeping woman. - -"The Italian awoke about eleven o'clock, with the bright insect still -in her hair. When I saw her move, I said: 'We are just getting to Genoa, -Madame,' and she murmured, without answering me, as if possessed by some -obstinate and embarrassing thought: - -"'What am I going to do, I wonder?' - -"And then she suddenly asked: - -"'Would you like me to come with you?' - -"I was so taken aback that I really did not understand her. - -"'With us? What do you mean?' - -"She repeated, looking more and more furious: - -"'Would you like me to go with you now, as soon as we get out of the -train?' - -"'I am quite willing; but where do you want to go to? Where shall I -take you to?' - -"She shrugged her shoulders with an air of supreme indifference. - -"'Wherever you like; what does it matter to me?' She repeated her -'_Che mi fa?_' twice. - -"'But we are going to the hotel.' - -"'Very well, let us all go to the hotel,' she said, in a contemptuous -voice. - -"I turned to Paul, and said: - -"'She wants to know if we should like her to come with us.' - -"My friend's utter surprise restored my self-possession. He stammered: - -"'With us? Where to? What for? How?' - -"'I don't know, but she made this strange proposal to me in a most -irritable voice. I told her that we were going to the hotel, and she -said: 'Very well, let us all go there!' I suppose she is without a -half-penny. She certainly has a very strange way of making -acquaintances.' - -"Paul, who was very much excited, exclaimed: - -"'I am quite agreeable. Tell her that we will take her wherever she -likes.' Then, after a moment's hesitation, he said uneasily: - -"'We must know, however, with whom she wants to go,--with you or -with me?' - -"I turned to the Italian, who did not even seem to be listening to us, -and said: - -"'We shall be very happy to take you with us, but my friend wants to -know whether you will take my arm or his?' - -"She opened her black eyes wide with vague surprise, and said, '_Che -mi fa?_' - -"I was obliged to explain myself. 'In Italy, I believe when a man looks -after a woman, fulfills all her wishes, and satisfies all her caprices, -he is called a _patito._ Which of us two will you take for your -_patito?_' - -"Without the slightest hesitation she replied: - -"'You!' - -"I turned to Paul. 'You see, my friend, she chooses me; you have no -luck.' - -"'All the better for you,' he replied, in a rage. Then, after thinking -for a few moments, he went on: - -"'Do you really care about taking this creature with you? She will spoil -our journey. What are we to do with this woman, who looks like I don't -know what? They will not take us in at any decent hotel.' - -"I, however, was just beginning to find the Italian much nicer than I -had thought her at first, and I was now very anxious to take her with us. -The idea delighted me. I already felt those little shivers which the -expectation of a night of love sends through the veins. - -"I replied, 'My dear fellow, we have accepted, and it is too late to -recede. You were the first to advise me to say 'Yes.' - -"'It is very stupid,' he growled, 'but do as you please.' - -"The train whistled, slackened speed, and we ran into the station. - -"I got out of the carriage, and offered my new companion my hand. She -jumped out lightly, and I gave her my arm, which she took with an air of -seeming repugnance. As soon as we had claimed our luggage we started off -into the town, Paul walking in complete silence, with a nervous step. - -"'To what hotel shall we go?' I asked him. 'It may be difficult to get -into the City of Paris Hotel with a woman, especially with this -Italian.' - -"Paul interrupted me: 'Yes, with an Italian who looks more like a -strumpet than a duchess. However, that is no business of mine. Do just as -you please.' - -"I was in a state of perplexity. I had written to the City of Paris to -reserve our rooms, and now I did not know what to do. - -"Two _commissionnaires_ followed us with our luggage. I continued: -'You might as well go first, and say that we are coming; and give the -landlord to understand that I have a--a friend with me, so that we should -like rooms quite by themselves for us three, so as not to be brought in -contact with other travellers. He will understand, and we will -decide according to his answer.' - -"But Paul growled, 'Thank you; such commissions and such a rôle do not -suit me by any means. I did not come here to get ready your apartments -or to minister to your pleasures.' - -"But I was insistent: 'Look here, don't, be angry. It is surely far -better to go to a good hotel than to a bad one, and it is not difficult -to ask the landlord for three separate bedrooms and a dining-room.' - -"I put a stress on _three_, and that decided him. - -"He went on first, and I saw him enter the great doorway of a fine -hotel, while I remained on the other side of the street dragging along my -Italian who did not say a word, and followed by the porters with the -luggage. - -"Paul came back at last, looking as dissatisfied as my companion. - -"'That is settled,' he said, 'and they will take us in; but there are -only two bedrooms. You must settle it as you can.' - -"I followed him, rather ashamed of going in with such a strange -companion. - -"There were two bedrooms separated by a small sitting-room. I ordered -a cold supper, and then I turned to the Italian with a perplexed look. - -"'We have only been able to get two rooms, so you must choose which -you like.' - -"She replied with her eternal '_Che mi fa?_' I thereupon took up her -little black wooden box, just like those which servants use, and took it -into the room on the right, which I had chosen for her--for us. A bit of -paper was fastened on to the box, on which was written, 'Mademoiselle -Francesca Rondoli, Genoa.' - -"'Your name is Francesca?' I asked, and she nodded her head, without -replying. - -"'We shall have supper directly,' I continued. 'Meanwhile, I daresay -you would like to freshen yourself up a bit!' - -"She answered with a '_mica_,' a phrase which she employed just as -frequently as '_Che mi fa_,' but I went on: 'It is always pleasant -after a journey.' - -"Then I suddenly remembered that she had not, perhaps, the necessary -objects, for she appeared to me in a very singular position, as if she -had just escaped from some disagreeable adventure, and I brought her my -dressing-case. - -"I put out all the little instruments for cleanliness and comfort which -it contained: a nailbrush, a new toothbrush,--for I always carry a -selection of them about with me,--my nail-scissors, a nail-file, and -sponges. I uncorked a bottle of Eau de Cologne, one of lavender-water, and -a little bottle of new-mown hay, so that she might have a choice. Then -I opened my powder-box, and put out the powder-puff, put my fine towels -over the water-jug, and placed a piece of new soap near the basin. - -"She watched my movements with a vexed look in her wide-open eyes, -without appearing either surprised or pleased by my forethought. - -"Here is all that you require, I then said; 'I will tell you when -supper is ready.' - -"When I returned to the sitting-room I found that Paul had taken -possession of the other room, and had shut himself in, so I sat down -to wait. - -"A waiter went back and forth, bringing plates and glasses. He laid the -table slowly, then put a cold fowl on it, and told me that all was ready. - -"I knocked gently at Mademoiselle Rondoli's door. 'Come in,' she said, -and when I did so I was struck by a strong, heavy smell of perfumes, as -if I were in a hairdresser's shop. - -"The Italian was sitting on her box in an attitude either of thoughtful -discontent or absent-mindedness. The towel was still folded over the -water-jug, which was quite full, and the soap, untouched and dry, was -lying beside the empty basin; but one would have thought that the young -woman had drunk half of the bottles of scent. The Eau de Cologne, however, -had been spared, as only about a third of it had gone; but to make up for -that she had used a surprising amount of lavender-water and new-mown hay. -A cloud of violet powder, a vague white mist, seemed still to be floating -in the air, from the effects of her over-powdering her face and neck. It -seemed to cover her eyelashes, eyebrows, and the hair on her temples like -snow, while her cheeks were plastered with it, and layers of it covered -her nostrils, the comers of her eyes, and her chin. - -"When she got up she exhaled such a strong odour of scent that it -almost made me feel faint. - -"When we sat down to supper I found that Paul was in a most execrable -temper, and I could get nothing out of him but words of blame and -irritation, and disagreeable compliments. - -"Mademoiselle Francesca ate like an ogre, and as soon as she had -finished her meal she threw herself upon the sofa. As for me, I saw the -decisive moment approaching for settling how we were to apportion the -rooms. I determined to take the bull by the horns, and sitting down by -the Italian I gallantly kissed her hand. - -"She half opened her tired eyes looked at me, sleepy and discontented. - -"'As we have only two bedrooms, will you allow me to share yours with -you?' - -"'Do just as you like,' she said. 'It is all the same to me. _Che mi -fa?_' - -"Her indifference vexed me. - -"'But you are sure you do not mind my being in your room with you?' -I said. - -"'It is all the same to me; do just as you like.' - -"'Should you like to go to bed at once?' - -"'Yes; I am very sleepy.' - -"She got up, yawned, gave Paul her hand, who took it with a furious -look, and I lighted her into our room. A disquieting feeling haunted me. -'Here is all you want,' I said again. - -"This time I took care to pour half the water into the basin, and to -put a towel near the soap. - -"Then I went back to Paul. As soon as I got into the room, he said, -'You have got a nice sort of a creature there!' and I answered, laughing, -'My dear friend, don't speak ill of sour grapes,' and he replied, -ill-temperedly: - -"'Just take care how this ends, my good fellow.' - -"I almost trembled with that feeling of fear which assails us after -some suspicious love escapade--that fear which spoils our pleasant -meetings, our unexpected caresses, our chance kisses. However, I put -a bold face on the matter. 'At any rate, the girl is no adventuress.' - -"But the fellow had me in his power; he had seen the shadow of my -anxiety on my face. - -"'What do you know about her? You really astonish me. You pick up an -Italian woman travelling alone in the train, and she volunteers, with -most singular cynicism, to go and be your mistress in any old hotel. You -take her with you, and then you declare that she is not a tart! And you -persuade yourself that you are not running more risk than if you were to -go and spend the night with a woman who had smallpox.' - -"He laughed with an unpleasant and angry laugh. I sat down, a prey to -uneasiness. What was I to do, for he was right after all? And a struggle -began within me, between desire and fear. - -"He went on: 'Do as you like, I have warned you, so do not complain -of the consequences.' - -"But I saw such ironical gaiety in his eyes, such a delight in his -revenge; he made fun of me so good-naturedly, that I did not hesitate any -longer. I gave him my hand, and said, 'Good night. You know the old -saying: "A victory without peril is a triumph without glory," and upon my -word, the victory is worth the danger.' - -"And with a firm step I went into Francesca's room. - -"I stopped short at the door in surprise and astonishment. She was -already asleep, quite naked on the bed. Sleep had overcome her when she -had finished undressing, and she was reposing in the charming attitude of -one of Titian's women. - -"It seemed as if she had lain down from sheer fatigue in order to take -off her stockings, for they were lying on the bed. Then she had thought of -something pleasant, no doubt, for she had waited to finish her reverie -before moving, and then, closing her eyes, she had lost consciousness. A -nightgown, embroidered about the neck such as one buys in cheap, -ready-made shops, a beginner's luxury was lying on a chair. - -"She was charming, young, firm, and fresh. - -"What is prettier than a woman asleep? The body with its soft contours, -whose every curve is a temptation, whose plump softness stirs the senses, -seems to have been created for the repose of the bed. Only when it is -lying upon the sheets does one get the full value of that undulating line -which curves in at the waist, curves out at the hips and then runs down -the charming outline of the leg, ending at the point of the foot. I was on -the point of forgetting my friend's prudent counsels, but suddenly -turning to the washstand I saw everything as I had left it, and I sat -down, anxious, and a prey to irresolution. - -"I remained thus for a long time, not able to make up my mind what to -do. Retreat was impossible, and I must either pass the night on a chair, -or go to bed myself at my own risk and peril. - -"I had no thoughts of sleeping either here or there, for my head was -too excited and my eyes too occupied. - -"I stirred incessantly, feverish, uncomfortable, enervated. Then I -began to reason with myself, certainly with a view to capitulation: 'If I -lie down that does not bind me to anything, and I shall certainly be more -comfortable on a mattress than on a chair.' - -"I undressed slowly, and then, stepping over the sleeping girl, I -stretched myself out against the wall, turning my back on temptation. - -"In this position I remained for a long time without going to sleep, -when suddenly my neighbour awoke. She opened her eyes, looked astonished, -and still discontented; then seeing that she had nothing on, she got up -and calmly put on her nightgown with as much indifference as if I had not -been present. - -"Then... I seized the opportunity, but this did not appear to disturb -her at all. She immediately went quietly to sleep again, with her head -resting on her right arm. And I began to meditate on the weakness and -folly of human nature. Then I went to sleep also. - -"She got up early, like a woman who is used to work in the morning. She -woke me up by doing so, and I watched her through my half-closed eyelids. - -"She came and went without hurrying herself, as if she were astonished -at having nothing to do. At last she went to the washstand, and in a -moment she emptied all the scent that remained in my bottles. She -certainly also used some water, but very little. - -"When she was quite dressed she sat down on her box again, and holding -one knee between her hands, seemed to be thinking. - -"Then I pretended to notice her, and said: - -"'Good morning, Francesca.' - -"Without seeming in at all a better temper than the previous night, -she murmured, 'Good morning.' - -"When I asked her whether she had slept well, she nodded 'Yes,' and -jumping out of bed, I went and kissed her. - -"She turned her face toward me like a child who is being kissed against -its will; but I took her tenderly in my arms (the wine being poured out, -I would have been very stupid not to drink any more of it). Gently I put -my lips on her large eyes, which she closed with evident distaste under my -kisses on her fresh cheeks and full lips, which she turned away. - -"'You don't seem to like being kissed, I said to her.' - -"'_Mica_' was her only answer. - -"I sat down on the trunk by her side, and, passing my arm through hers, -I said: '_Mica! mica! mica!_ in reply to everything. I shall call you -Mademoiselle _Mica_, I think.' - -"For the first time I fancied I saw the shadow of a smile on her lips, -but it passed by so quickly that I may have been mistaken. - -"'But if you never say anything but '_Mica_' I shall not know what to -do to try and please you. Let us see; what shall we do to-day?' - -"She hesitated a moment as if some fancy had flitted through her bead, -and then she said carelessly: 'It is all the same to me; whatever you -like.' - -"'Very well. Mademoiselle _Mica_, we will get a carriage and go for -a drive.' - -"'As you please, she said.' - -"Paul was waiting for us in the dining-room, looking as bored as third -parties generally do in love affairs. I assumed a delighted air, and shook -hands with him with triumphant energy. - -"'What are you thinking of doing?' he asked. - -"'First of all we will go and see a little of the town, and then we -might take a carriage, for a drive in the neighbourhood.' - -"We breakfasted in silence and then started on foot to visit the -museums. We went through the Spinola Palace, the Doria Palace, the -Marcello Durazzo, the Red and White Palaces. Francesca either looked at -nothing or merely just glanced carelessly at all the various masterpieces. -Paul followed us, growling all sorts of disagreeable things. Then we all -three took a silent drive into the country and returned to dinner. - -"The next day it was the same thing and the next day again; so on the -third Paul said to me: 'Look here, I am going to leave you; I am not going -to stop here for three weeks watching you make love to this creature.' - -"I was perplexed and annoyed, for to my great surprise I had become -singularly attached to Francesca. A man is but weak and foolish, carried -away by the merest trifle, and a coward every time that his senses are -excited or mastered. I clung to this unknown girl, silent and dissatisfied -as she always was. I liked her somewhat ill-tempered face, the -dissatisfied droop of her mouth, the weariness of her look; I liked her -fatigued movements, the contemptuous way in which she yielded to my -wishes, the very indifference of her caresses. A secret bond, that -mysterious bond of animal love, the secret attachment to a possession -which does not satiate, bound me to her. I told Paul so, quite frankly. -He treated me as if I had been a fool, and then said: - -"'Very well, take her with you.' - -"But she obstinately refused to leave Genoa, without giving any reason. -I besought, I reasoned, I promised, but all was of no avail, and so I -stayed on. - -"Paul declared that he would go by himself, and went so far as to pack -up his portmanteau; but he remained all the same. - -"Thus a fortnight passed. Francesca was always silent and irritable, -lived beside me rather than with me, responded to all my desires, all -my demands, and all my propositions with her perpetual '_Che mi fa_,' or -with her no less perpetual '_Mica._' - -"My friend got more and more furious, but my only answer was, 'You can -go if you are tired of staying. I am not detaining you.' - -"Then he called me names, overwhelmed me with reproaches, and -exclaimed: 'Where do you think I can go to now? We had three weeks at our -disposal, and here is a fortnight gone! I cannot continue my journey now; -and, in any case, I am not going to Venice, Florence, and Rome all by -myself. But you will pay for it, and more dearly than you think for, most -likely. You are not going to bring a man all the way from Paris in order -to shut him up at a hotel in Genoa with an Italian adventuress.' - -"When I told him, very calmly, to return to Paris, he exclaimed that he -was going to do so the very next day; but the next day he was still there, -still in a rage and swearing. - -"By this time we began to be known in the streets, through which we -wandered from morning till night, those narrow streets without footpaths, -which are like an immense stone labyrinth with tomb-like passages. We went -through those windy gorges, narrowed between such high walls that the sky -is hardly visible. Sometimes French people would turn round astonished at -meeting their fellow-countrymen with this bored girl in her loud clothes, -and who looked singularly out of place, not to say compromising, beside -us. - -"She used to walk along, leaning on my arm, without looking at anything. -Why did she remain with me, with us, who seemed to give her so little -pleasure? Who was she? Where did she come from? What was she doing? Had -she any plan or idea? How did she live? As an adventuress, or by chance -meetings? I tried in vain to find out and to explain it. The better I knew -her the more enigmatical she became. She was not one of those who make a -living by, and a profession of, venal love. She rather seemed to me to be -a girl of poor family who had been seduced and taken away, and then cast -aside and lost. What did she think was going to become of her, or for whom -was she waiting? She certainly did not appear to be trying to make a -conquest of me, or to get any profit out of me. - -"I tried to question her, to speak to her of her childhood and family; -but she never gave me an answer. I stayed with her, my heart unfettered -and my senses enchained, never wearied of holding this proud and -quarrelsome woman in my arms, captivated by my senses, or rather seduced, -overcome, by the youthful, healthy, powerful charm which emanated from her -sweet-smelling person and from the robust lines of her body. - -"Another week passed, and the term of my holiday was drawing to a -close, for I had to be back in Paris by July 11. By this time Paul had -come to take his part in the adventure, though still grumbling at me, -while I invented pleasures, distractions, and excursions to amuse my -mistress and my friend; and in order to do this I gave myself a large -amount of trouble. - -"One day I proposed an excursion to Santa Margarita, a charming little -town in the midst of gardens, hidden at the foot of a slope which -stretches far into the sea. We all three were following the excellent -road which goes along the foot of the mountain. Suddenly Francesca said -to me: 'I shall not be able to go with you to-morrow; I must go and see -some of my relatives.' - -"That was all; I did not ask her any questions, as I was quite sure she -would not answer me." - -"The next morning she got up very early; then as I remained in bed, -she sat down at the foot of it, and said in a constrained and hesitating -voice: - -"'If I do not come back to-night, will you come and fetch me?' - -"'Most certainly I shall,' was my reply. 'Where must I come to?' - -"Then she explained: 'You must go into Victor-Emmanuel Street, down -the Passage Falcone, and Saint Raphael Street, and go into the furniture -shop at the bottom, in a court, and there you must ask for Mme Rondoli. -That's where it is.' - -"And so she went away, leaving me rather astonished. - -"When Paul saw that I was alone he stammered out: 'Where is Francesca?' -And when I told him what had happened he exclaimed: - -"'My dear fellow, we are in luck, let us bolt; as it is, our time is -up. Two days, more or less, make no difference. Let us start at once; go -and pack up your things. Off we go!' - -"But I refused. I could not, as I told him, leave the girl in such a -manner, after having lived with her for nearly three weeks. At any rate -I ought to say good-bye to her, and make her accept a present; I certainly -had no intention of behaving badly to her. - -"But he would not listen; he pressed and worried me, but I would not -give way. - -"I remained indoors for several hours, expecting Francesca's return, -but she did not come. At last, at dinner, Paul said with a triumphant -air: 'She has thrown you over, my dear fellow; it is certainly very funny, -very funny.' - -"I must acknowledge that I was surprised and rather vexed. He laughed -in my face, and made fun of me. - -"'It is not exactly a bad way of getting rid of you, though rather -primitive. "Just wait for me, I shall be back in a moment." How long are -you going to wait? I should not wonder if you were foolish enough to go -and look for her at the address she gave you. "Does Mme Rondoli live here, -please?" I'll bet that you are longing to go there.'" - -"'Not in the least,' I protested, 'and I assure you that if she does -not come back to-morrow morning I shall start by the express at eight -o'clock. I shall have waited twenty-four hours, and that is enough; -my conscience will be quite clear.' - -"I spent an uneasy and unpleasant evening, for I really had at heart a -very tender feeling for her. I went to bed at twelve o'clock, and hardly -slept at all. I got up at six, called Paul, packed up my things, and two -hours later we started for France together." - - - - -III - - -"The next year, at just about the same period, I was seized, just as -one is with a periodical fever, with a new desire to go to Italy, and I -immediately made up my mind to carry it into effect. There is no doubt -that every really well-educated man ought to see Florence, Venice, and -Rome. There is the additional advantage of providing many subjects of -conversation in society, and of giving one an opportunity for bringing -forward artistic generalities which appear profound. This time I went -alone, and I arrived at Genoa at the same time as the year before, but -without any adventure on the road. I went to the same hotel, and actually -happened to have the same room. - -"I was scarcely in bed when the recollection of Francesca which, since -the evening before, had been floating vaguely through my mind, haunted -me with strange persistency. - -"Have you ever been obsessed by the thought of a woman, long afterwards, -on returning to the place where you loved her and she gave herself to you? -It is one of the most powerful and painful sensations I know. It seems as -if one could see her enter, smiling and holding out her arms. Her -features, elusive yet clear, are before your eyes. She passes, returns and -disappears. She tortures you like a nightmare, holds you, fills your -heart, and stirs your senses by her unreal presence. She is visible to the -eye, her perfume haunts you, the taste of her kisses is on your lips, and -the touch of her body caresses your skin. Yet, one knows one is alone, and -one is strangely tortured by the phantom one has evoked. A heavy, -heart-breaking melancholy invades you, as if you were abandoned for ever. -Everything looks depressing, filling the heart with a horrible sense of -isolation and abandonment. Never return to the house, the room, the woods, -the garden, the seat, the town, where you have held in your arms a woman -you loved. - -"I thought of her nearly the whole night, and by degrees the wish to -see her again seized me, a confused desire at first, which gradually grew -stronger and more intense. At last I made up my mind to spend the next day -in Genoa, to try and find her, and if I should not succeed to take the -evening train. - -"Early in the morning I set out on my search. I remembered the -directions she had given me when she left me, perfectly--Victor-Emmanuel -Street, the Passage Falcone, St. Raphael Street, house of the -furniture-dealer, at the bottom of the yard in a court. - -"I found it without the least difficulty, and I knocked at the door of -a somewhat dilapidated-looking dwelling. A fat woman opened it, who -must once have been very handsome, but who actually was only very dirty. -Although she was too fat, she still bore the lines of majestic beauty; -her untidy hair fell over her forehead and shoulders, and one fancied one -could see her fat body floating about in an enormous dressing-gown covered -with spots of dirt and grease. Round her neck she wore a great gilt -necklace, and on her wrists were splendid bracelets of Genoa filigree -work. - -"In rather a hostile manner she asked me what I wanted, and I replied -by requesting her to tell me whether Francesca Rondoli lived there. - -"'What do you want with her?' she asked. - -"'I had the pleasure of meeting her last year, and I should like to -see her again.' - -"The old woman looked at me suspiciously. - -"'Where did you meet her?' she asked. - -"'Why, here, in Genoa itself.' - -"'What is your name?' - -"I hesitated a moment, and then I told her. I had scarcely done so -when the Italian raised her arms as if to embrace me. 'Oh! you are the -Frenchman; how glad I am to see you! But what grief you caused the poor -child. She waited for you a month; yes, a whole month. At first she -thought you would come to fetch her. She wanted to see whether you loved -her. If you only knew how she cried when she saw that you were not coming! -She cried till she seemed to have no tears left. Then she went to the -hotel, but you had gone. She thought that most likely you were travelling -in Italy, and that you would return by Genoa to fetch her, as she would -not go with you. And she waited more than a month. Monsieur; and she was -so unhappy; so unhappy. I am her mother.' - -"I really felt a little disconcerted, but I regained my self-possession, -and asked: 'Is she here now?' - -"'No, she has gone to Paris with a painter, a delightful man, who loves -her very much, and who gives her everything that she wants. Just look at -what she sent me; they are very pretty, are they not?' - -"And she showed me, with quite southern animation, her heavy bracelets -and necklace. 'I have also,' she continued, 'earrings with stones in them, -a silk dress, and some rings; but I only wear them on grand occasions. Oh! -she is very happy, sir, very happy. She will be so pleased when I tell her -you have been here. But pray come in and sit down. You will take something -or other, surely?' - -"But I refused, as I now wished to get away by the first train; but she -took me by the arm and pulled me in, saying: - -"'Please, come in; I must tell her that you have been here.' - -"I found myself in a small, rather dark room, furnished with only a -table and a few chairs. - -"She continued: 'Oh! She is very happy now, very happy. When you met her -in the train she was very miserable, for her lover had just left her at -Marseilles, and she was coming back, poor child. But she liked you at -once, though she was still rather sad, you understand. Now she has all she -wants, and she writes and tells me everything that she does. His name is -Bellemin, and they say he is a great painter in your country. He met her -in the street here, and fell in love with her immediately. But you will -take a glass of syrup?--it is very good. Are you quite alone, this year?' - -"'Yes, I said, quite alone.' - -"I felt an increasing inclination to laugh, as my first disappointment -was dispelled by what Mother Rondoli said. I was obliged, however, to -drink a glass of her syrup. - -"'So you are quite alone?' she continued. 'How sorry I am that Francesca -is not here now; she would have been company for you all the time you -stayed. It is not very amusing to go about all by oneself, and she will be -very sorry also.' - -"Then, as I was getting up to go, she exclaimed: - -"'But would you not like Carlotta to go with you? She knows all the -walks very well. She is my second daughter, sir.' - -"No doubt she took my look of surprise for consent, for she opened the -inner door and called out up the dark stairs which I could not see: - -"'Carlotta! Carlotta! come down, quickly, my dear child.' - -"I tried to protest, but she would not listen. - -"'No; she will be very glad to go with you; she is very nice, and much -more cheerful than her sister, and she is a good girl, a very good girl, -whom I love very much.' - -"I heard the clatter of slippers on the stairs, and a tall, slender, -dark girl appeared, also with her hair hanging down, and whose youthful -figure showed unmistakably beneath an old dress of her mother. - -"The latter at once told her how matters stood. - -"'This is Francesca's Frenchman, you know, the one whom she knew last -year. He is quite alone, and has come to look for her, poor fellow; so I -told him that you would go with him to keep him company.' - -"The girl looked at me with her handsome dark eyes, and said, smiling: - -"'I have no objection, if he wishes it.' - -"I could not possibly refuse, and merely said: - -"'Of course I shall be very glad of your company.' - -"Her mother pushed her out. 'Go and get dressed directly; put on your -blue dress and your hat with the flowers, and make haste.' - -"--As soon as she had left the room the old woman explained herself: -'I have two others, but they are much younger. It costs a lot of money to -bring up four children. Luckily the eldest is off my hands at present.' - -"Then she told all about herself, about her husband, who had been an -employee on the railway, but who was dead, and she expatiated on the good -qualities of Carlotta, her second girl, who soon returned, dressed, as her -sister had been, in a striking, peculiar manner. - -"Her mother examined her from head to foot, and, after finding -everything right, she said: - -"'Now, my children, you can go.' Then, turning to the girl, she said: -'Be sure you are back by ten o'clock to-night; you know the door is -locked then.' - -"'All right, mamma; don't alarm yourself,' Carlotta replied. - -"She took my arm, and we went wandering about the streets, just as I -had done the previous year with her sister. - -"We returned to the hotel for lunch, and then I took my new friend to -Santa Margarita, just as I had done with her sister the year previously. - -"During the whole fortnight which I had at my disposal I took Carlotta -to all the places of interest in and about Genoa. She gave me no cause to -regret the other. - -"She cried when I left her, and the morning of my departure I gave her -four bracelets for her mother, besides a substantial token of my affection -for herself. - -"One of these days I intend to return to Italy, and I cannot help -remembering, with a certain amount of uneasiness, mingled with hope, that -Mme Rondoli has two more daughters." - - - - -MY LANDLADY - - -"At that time," said George Kervelen, "I was living in furnished -lodgings in the Rue des Saints-Pères. When my parents decided that I -should go to Paris to continue my law studies, there had been a long -discussion about settling everything. My allowance had been fixed at first -at two thousand five hundred francs, but my poor mother was so anxious, -that she said to my father that if I spent my money rashly I might not -have enough to eat, and then my health would suffer, and so it was settled -that a comfortable boarding-house should be found for me, and that the -amount should be paid to the proprietor himself, or herself, every month. - -"I had never left Quimper. I wanted everything that one desires at that -age and I was prepared to have a good time in every way. - -"Some of our neighbours told us of a certain Mme Kergaran, a native of -Brittany, who took in boarders, and so my father arranged matters by -letter with this respectable person, at whose house I and my luggage -arrived one evening. - -"Mme Kergaran was a woman of about forty. She was very stout, had a -voice like a drill-sergeant, and decided everything in a very abrupt and -decisive manner. Her house was narrow, with only one window opening on to -the street on each story, which rather gave it the appearance of a ladder -of windows, or better, perhaps, of a slice of a house sandwiched in -between two others. - -"The landlady lived on the first floor with her servant, the kitchen -and dining-room were on the second, and four boarders from Brittany lived -on the third and fourth, and I had two rooms on the fifth. - -"A little dark corkscrew staircase led up to these attics. All day long -Mme Kergaran was up and down these stairs like a captain on board ship. -Ten times a day she would go into each room, noisily superintending -everything, seeing that the beds were properly made, the clothes well -brushed, that the attendance was all that it should be; in a word, she -looked after her boarders like a mother, and better than a mother. - -"I soon made the acquaintance of my four fellow-countrymen. Two were -medical and two were law students, but all impartially endured the -landlady's despotic yoke. They were as frightened of her as a bey robbing -an orchard is of a rural policeman. - -"I, however, immediately felt that I wished to be independent; it is my -nature to rebel. I declared at once that I meant to come in at whatever -time I liked, for Mme Kergaran had fixed twelve o'clock at night as the -limit. On hearing this she looked at me for a few moments, and then said: - -"'It is quite impossible; I cannot have Annette called up at any hour -of the night. You can have nothing to do out-of-doors at such a time.' - -"I replied firmly that, according to the law, she was obliged to open -the door for me at any time. - -"'If you refuse,' I said, 'I shall get a policeman to witness the fact, -and go and get a bed at some hotel, at your expense, in which I shall be -fully justified. You will, therefore, be obliged either to open the door -for me or to get rid of me. Do whatever you please.' - -"I laughed in her face as I told her my conditions. She could not speak -for a moment for surprise, then she tried to negotiate, but I was firm, -and she was obliged to yield. It was agreed that I should have a latchkey, -on my solemn undertaking that no one else should know it. - -"My energy made such a wholesome impression on her that from that time -she treated me with marked favour; she was most attentive, and even -showed me a sort of rough tenderness which was not at all unpleasing. -Sometimes when I was in a jovial mood I would kiss her by surprise, if -only for the sake of getting the box on the ears which she gave me -immediately afterward. When I managed to duck my head quickly enough, her -hand would pass over me as swiftly as a ball, and I would run away -laughing, while she would call after me: - -"'Oh! you wretch, I will pay you out for that.' - -"However, we soon became real friends. - -"It was not long before I made the acquaintance of a girl who was -employed in a shop, and whom I constantly met. You know what that sort -of love affair is in Paris. One fine day, going to a lecture, you meet a -girl going to work arm-in-arm with a friend. You look at her and feel that -pleasant little shock which the eyes of some women give you. It is one of -the charming things of life, those sudden physical attractions aroused by -a chance meeting, that gentle seduction induced by contact with a woman -born to please and to be loved. Whether she is greatly loved or not makes -no difference. It is in her nature to respond to one's secret desire for -love. The first time you see her face, her mouth, her hair, her smile, -their charm penetrates you with a sweet joy, you are pervaded by a sense -of well-being, and a tenderness, as yet undefined, impels you towards this -woman whom you do not know. There seems to be in her some appeal which you -answer, an attraction that draws you, as if you knew her for a long time, -had already seen her, and knew what she is thinking. The next day at the -same time, going through the same street, you meet her again, and the -next, and the succeeding days. At last you speak, and the love affair -follows its course just like an illness. - -"Well, by the end of three weeks I was on that footing with Emma which -precedes intimacy. The fall would indeed have taken place much sooner -had I known where to bring it about. The girl lived at home, and utterly -refused to go to an hotel. I did not know how to manage, but at last I -made the desperate resolve to take her to my room some night at about -eleven o'clock, under the pretence of giving her a cup of tea. Mme -Kergaran always went to bed at ten, so that we could get in by means of -my latchkey without exciting any attention, and go down again in an hour -or two in the same way. - -"After a good deal of entreaty on my part, Emma accepted my invitation. - -"I did not spend a very pleasant day, for I was by no means easy in my -mind. I was afraid of complications, of a catastrophe, of some scandal. -At night I went into a café, and drank two cups of coffee and three or -four glasses of cognac, to give me courage, and when I heard the clock -strike half past ten, I went slowly to the place of meeting, where she -was already waiting for me. She took my arm in a coaxing manner, and we -set off slowly toward my lodgings. The nearer we got to the door the more -nervous I got, and I thought to myself: 'If only Mme Kergaran is in bed -already.' - -"I said to Emma two or three times: - -"'Above all things, don't make any noise on the stairs,' to which she -replied, laughing: - -"'Are you afraid of being heard?' - -"'No,' I said, 'but I am afraid of waking the man who sleeps in the -room next to me, who is not at all well.' - -"When I got near the house I felt as frightened as a man does who is -going to the dentist's. All the windows were dark, so no doubt everybody -was asleep, and I breathed again. I opened the door as carefully as a -thief, let my fair companion in, shut it behind me, and went upstairs on -tiptoe, holding my breath, and striking wax-matches lest the girl -should make a false step. - -"As we passed the landlady's door I felt my heart beating very quickly. -But we reached the second floor, then the third, and at last the fifth, -and got into my room. Victory! - -"However, I only dared to speak in a whisper, and took off my boots so -as not to make any noise. The tea, which I made over a spirit-lamp, was -soon drunk, and then I became pressing, till little by little, as if in -play, I, one by one, took off my companion's garments. She yielded while -resisting, blushing, confused. - -"She had absolutely nothing on except a short white petticoat when my -door suddenly opened, and Mme Kergaran appeared with a candle in her -hand, in exactly the same costume as Emma. - -"I jumped away from her and remained standing, looking at the two -women, who were looking at each other. What was going to happen? - -"My landlady said, in a lofty tone of voice which I had never heard -from her before: - -"'Monsieur Kervelen, I will not have prostitutes in my house.' - -"'But, Madame Kergaran,' I stammered, 'the young lady is a friend of -mine. She just came in to have a cup of tea.' - -"'People don't take tea in their chemises. You will please make this -person go directly.' - -"Emma, in a natural state of consternation, began to cry, and hid her -face in her petticoat, and I lost my head, not knowing what to do or say. -My landlady added, with irresistible authority: - -"'Help her to dress, and take her out at once.' - -"It was certainly the only thing I could do, so I picked up her dress -from the floor where it had collapsed in a heap like a deflated balloon, -put it over her head, and began to fasten it as best I could. She helped -me, crying all the time, hurrying and making all sorts of mistakes and -unable to find either button-holes or laces, while Mme Kergaran stood by -motionless, with the candle in her hand, looking at us with the severity -of a judge. - -"Emma now began to hurry feverishly, throwing her things on at random, -tying, pinning, lacing and fastening in a frenzy, goaded on by the -irresistible desire for flight, and without even stopping to button her -boots, she rushed past the landlady and ran downstairs. I followed her in -my slippers and half undressed, and kept repeating: 'Mademoiselle! -Mademoiselle!' - -"I felt that I ought to say something to her, but I could not find -anything. I overtook her just by the street-door, and tried to take her -into my arms, but she pushed me violently away, saying in a low, -nervous voice: - -"'Leave me alone, leave me alone!' and so ran out into the street, -closing the door behind her. - -"When I went upstairs again I found that Mme Kergaran was waiting on -the first landing. I went up slowly, expecting, and ready for, anything. - -"Her door was open, and she called me in, saying in severe voice: - -"'I want to speak to you, M. Kervelen.' - -"I went in, with my head bent. She put her candle on the mantlepiece, -and then, folding her arms over her expansive bosom, which a fine white -dressing-jacket hardly covered, she said: - -"'So, Monsieur Kervelen, you think my house is a house of ill-fame?' - -"I was not at all proud. I murmured: - -"'Oh dear, no! But, Mme Kergaran, you must not be angry; you know what -young men are.' - -"'I know,' was her answer, 'that I will not have such creatures here, -so you will understand that. I expect to have my house respected, and I -will not have it lose its reputation, you understand me? I know--' - -"She went on thus for at least twenty minutes, overwhelming me with the -good name of her house, with reasons for her indignation, and loading me -with severe reproofs. - -"Men are curious creatures. Instead of listening to her, I was looking -at her, and did not hear a word, not a word she said. She had a superb -bosom, firm, white and plump, perhaps a little too plump, but tempting -enough to send shivers down one's spine. I should never have dreamed that -anything so charming was concealed beneath the woollen dress of my -landlady. She looked ten years younger when undressed. I began to feel -queer... shall I say... moved? I suddenly found myself picking up with her -the threads of the situation she had disturbed fifteen minutes previously -in my bedroom. - -"Behind her, in the alcove, I could see her bed, with the sheets rolled -down, tossed, showing a hollow place where her body had pressed. And I -thought it must be very nice, very warm there, much warmer than in any -other bed, no doubt because of the opulent charms that rested there. - -"What could be more charming, more disturbing, than an unmade bed? This -one, even from a distance, intoxicated me, and made my flesh tingle. - -"She was still talking, but now more gently, like a gruff but -well-meaning friend, who is willing to make up and be friends. - -"'Madame Kergaran, 'I stammered, 'I... I...', and as she had stopped to -hear my reply, I seized her in my arms and began to kiss her, to devour -her, like a famished man who has been waiting for a long time. - -"She struggled, turning away her head, but without becoming really -angry, and repeated mechanically, as was her habit: 'Oh, the brute... the -brute... the bru... - -"She did not finish the word, for I had lifted her with an effort, and -was carrying her clasped to my heart. Under certain circumstances, one -acquires remarkable vigour! - -"I stumbled against the edge of the bed, and I fell on it still holding -her in my arms... It was nice and warm in her bed. - -"An hour later, the candle having gone out, my landlady got up to light -another. As she returned and slipped in by my side, her great, round leg -crushing the sheets, she said in a coaxing, satisfied, perhaps grateful -tone: 'Oh, the brute... the brute!...'" - - - - -THE LITTLE CASK - - -Maître Chicot, the innkeeper, who lived at Épreville, pulled up his -tilbury in front of Mother Magloire's farmhouse. He was a tall man of -about forty, fat and with a red face, who was generally said to be very -malicious. - -He hitched his horse up to the gatepost and went in the yard. He owned -some land adjoining that of the old woman. He had been coveting her plot -for a long while, and had tried in vain to buy it a score of times, but -she had always obstinately refused to part with it. - -"I was born here, and here I mean to die," was all she said. - -He found her peeling potatoes outside the farmhouse door. She was a -woman of about seventy-two, very thin, shrivelled and wrinkled, almost -dried-up, in fact, and much bent, but as active and untiring as a girl. -Chicot patted her on the back in a very friendly fashion, and then sat -down by her on a stool. - -"Well, Mother, you are always pretty well and hearty, I am glad to -see." - -"Nothing to complain of, considering, thank you. And how are you, -Maître Prosper?" - -"Oh! pretty well, thank you, except a few rheumatic pains occasionally; -otherwise, I should have nothing to complain of." - -"Well, I am glad of that!" - -And she said no more, while Chicot watched her going on with her work. -Her crooked, knotty fingers, hard as a lobster's claws, seized the tubers, -which were lying in a pail, as if they had been a pair of pincers, and -peeled them rapidly, cutting off long strips of skin with an old knife -which she held in the other hand, throwing the potatoes into the water -as they were done. Three daring fowls jumped one after the other into her -lap, seized a bit of peel, and then ran away as fast as their legs would -carry them with it in their beaks. - -Chicot seemed embarrassed, anxious, with something on the tip of his -tongue which he could not get out. At last he said hurriedly: - -"I say. Mother Magloire--" - -"Well, what is it?" - -"You are quite sure that you do not want to sell your farm?" - -"Certainly not; you may make up your mind to that. What I have said, -I have said, so don't bring it up again." - -"Very well; only I fancy I have thought of an arrangement that might -suit us both very well." - -"What is it?" - -"Here you are: You shall sell it to me, and keep it all the same. You -don't understand? Very well, just listen to my idea." - -The old woman left off peeling her potatoes, and her bright eyes looked -at the innkeeper attentively from under her wrinkled eyelids, as he went -on: - -"Let me explain myself: Every month I will give you a hundred and fifty -francs. You understand me, I suppose? Every month I will come and bring -you thirty crowns, and it will not make the slightest difference in your -life--not the very slightest. You will have your own home just as you have -now, will not trouble yourself about me, and will owe me nothing; all you -will have to do will be to take my money. Will that arrangement suit -you?" - -He looked at her good-humouredly, one might almost have said -benevolently, and the old woman returned his looks distrustfully, as if -she suspected a trap, and said: - -"It seems all right, as far as I am concerned, but it will not give -you the farm." - -"Never mind about that," he said, "you will remain here as long as -it pleases God Almighty to let you live; it will be your home. Only you -will sign a deed before a lawyer making it over to me after your death. -You have no children, only nephews and nieces for whom you don't care a -straw. Will that suit you? You will keep everything during your life, -and I will give you the thirty crowns a month. It is pure gain as far -as you are concerned." - -The old woman was surprised, rather uneasy, but, nevertheless, very much -tempted to agree, and answered: - -"I don't say that I will not agree to it, but I must think about it. -Come back in a week and we will talk it over again, and I will then give -you my definite answer." - -And Maître Chicot went off, as happy as a king who had conquered an -empire. - -Mother Magloire was thoughtful, and did not sleep at all that night; -in fact, for four days she was in a fever of hesitation. She felt -instinctively, that there was something underneath the offer which was -not to her advantage; but then the thought of thirty crowns a month, of -all those coins chinking in her apron, falling to her, as it were, from -the skies, without her doing anything for it, filled her with -covetousness. - -She went to the notary and told him about it. He advised her to accept -Chicot's offer, but said she ought to ask for a monthly payment of fifty -crowns instead of thirty, as her farm was worth sixty thousand francs at -the lowest calculation. - -"If you live for fifteen years longer," he said, "even then he will -only have paid forty-five thousand francs for it." - -The old woman trembled with joy at this prospect of getting fifty crowns -a month; but she was still suspicious, fearing some trick, and she -remained a long time with the lawyer asking questions without being able -to make up her mind to go. At last she gave him instructions to draw up -the deed, and returned home with her head in a whirl, just as if she had -drunk four jugs of new cider. - -When Chicot came again to receive her answer she took a lot of -persuading, and declared that she could not make up her mind to agree to -his proposal, though she was all the time on tenter-hooks lest he should -not consent to give the fifty crowns. At last, when he grew urgent, she -told him what she expected for her farm. - -He looked surprised and disappointed, and refused. - -Then, in order to convince him, she began to talk about the probable -duration of her life. - -"I am certainly not likely to live for more than five or six years -longer. I am nearly seventy-three, and far from strong, even considering -my age. The other evening I thought I was going to die, and I had to be -carried to bed." - -But Chicot was not going to be taken in. - -"Come, come, old lady, you are as strong as the church tower, and will -live till you are a hundred at least; you will be sure to see me put -underground first." - -The whole day was spent in discussing the money, and as the old woman -would not give way, the landlord consented to give the fifty crowns, and -she insisted upon having ten crowns over and above to strike the bargain. - - -Three years passed by, and the old dame did not seem to have grown a -day older. Chicot was in despair. It seemed to him as if he had been -paying that annuity for fifty years, that he had been taken in, outwitted, -and ruined. From time to time he went to see his annuitant, just as one -goes in July to see when the harvest is likely to begin. She always met -him with a cunning look, and one would have thought that she was -congratulating herself on the trick she had played him. Seeing how well -and hearty she seemed, he very soon got into his tilbury again, growling -to himself: - -"Will you never die, you old brute?" - -He did not know what to do, and felt inclined to strangle her when he -saw her. He hated her with a ferocious, cunning hatred, the hatred of a -peasant who has been robbed, and he began to cast about for means of -getting rid of her. - -One day he came to see her again, rubbing his hands as he did the first -time when he proposed the bargain, and, after having chatted for a few -minutes, he said: - -"Why do you never come and have a bit of dinner at my place when you -are in Épreville? The people are talking about it and saying that we are -not on friendly terms, and that pains me. You know it will cost you -nothing if you come, for I don't look at the price of a dinner. Come -whenever you feel inclined; I shall be very glad to see you." - -Old Mother Magloire did not need to be told twice, and the next day but -one--she was going to the town in any case, it being market-day, in her -gig, driven by her man--she, without any demur, put her trap up in Maître -Chicot's stable, and went in search of her promised dinner. - -The innkeeper was delighted, and treated her like a princess, giving her -roast fowl, black pudding, leg of mutton, and bacon and cabbage. But she -ate next to nothing. She had always been a small eater and had generally -lived on a little soup and a crust of bread-and-butter. - -Chicot was disappointed, and pressed her to eat more, but she refused. -She would drink next to nothing either, and declined any coffee, so he -asked her: - -"But surely, you will take a little drop of brandy?" - -"Well, as to that, I don't know that I will refuse." Whereupon he -shouted out: - -"Rosalie, bring the superfine brandy,--the special,--you know." - -The servant appeared, carrying a long bottle ornamented with a paper -vine-leaf, and he filled two liquor glasses. - -"Just try that; you will find it first-rate." - -The good woman drank it slowly in sips, so as to make the pleasure -last all the longer, and when she had finished her glass, draining the -last drops so as to make sure of all, she said: - -"Yes, that is first-rate!" - -Almost before she had said it, Chicot had poured her out another -glassful. She wished to refuse, but it was too late, and she drank it -very slowly, as she had done the first, and he asked her to have a third. -She objected, but he persisted. - -"It is as mild as milk, you know. I can drink ten or a dozen without -any ill effect; it goes down like sugar, and leaves no headache behind; -one would think that it evaporated on the tongue. It is the most wholesome -thing you can drink." - -She took it, for she really wanted it, but she left half the glass. - -Then Chicot, in an excess of generosity, said: - -"Look here, as it is so much to your taste, I will give you a small -keg of it, just to show that you and I are still excellent friends." Then -she took her leave, feeling slightly overcome by the effects of what she -had drunk. - -The next day the innkeeper drove into her yard, and took a little -iron-hooped keg out of his gig. He insisted on her tasting the contents, -to make sure it was the same delicious article, and, when they had -each of them drunk three more glasses, he said, as he was going away: - -"Well, you know, when it is all gone, there is more left; don't be -modest, for I shall not mind. The sooner it is finished the better pleased -I shall be." - -Four days later he came again. The old woman was outside her door -cutting up the bread for her soup. - -He went up to her, and put his face close to hers, so that he might -smell her breath; and when he smelled the alcohol he felt pleased. - -"I suppose you will give me a glass of the special?" he said. And two -or three times they drank each other's health. - -Soon, however, it began to be whispered abroad that Mother Magloire -was in the habit of getting drunk all by herself. She was picked up, -sometimes in her kitchen, sometimes in her yard, sometimes on the roads -in the neighbourhood, and was often brought home dead to the world. - -Chicot did not go near her any more, and, when people spoke to him -about her, he used to say, putting on a distressed look: - -"It is a great pity that she should have taken to drink at her age; -but when people get old there is no remedy. It will be the death of her -in the long run." - -And it certainly was the death of her. She died the next winter, about -Christmas time, having fallen down drunk in the snow. - -And when Maître Chicot inherited the farm he said: - -"It was very stupid of her; if she had not taken to drink she might -very well have lived for ten years longer." - - - - -ANDRÉ'S DISEASE - - -The lawyer's house looked on to the Square. Behind it, there was a nice, -well-kept garden, extending to the Passage des Piques, which was almost -always deserted, and from which it was separated by a wall. - -At the bottom of that garden Maître Moreau's wife had promised, for the -first time, to meet Captain Sommerive, who had been making love to her -for a long time. - -Her husband had gone to Paris for a week, so she was quite free for the -time being. The Captain had begged so hard, and had used such loving -words; she was certain that he loved her so ardently, and she felt so -isolated, so misunderstood, so neglected amid all the law business which -seemed to be her husband's sole pleasure, that she had given away her -heart without even asking herself whether she would give anything else -some day. - -Then, after some months of Platonic love, of pressing of hands, of -quick kisses stolen behind a door, the Captain had declared that he would -ask permission to exchange, and leave the town immediately, if she would -not grant him a meeting, a real meeting in the shadow of the trees, during -her husband's absence. So she had yielded to his importunity, as she had -promised. - -Just then she was waiting, close against the wall, with a beating heart, -trembling at the slightest sound, and when she heard somebody climbing up -the wall, she very nearly ran away. - -Suppose it were not he, but a thief? But no; some one called out softly, -"Mathilde!" and when she replied, "Étienne!" a man jumped on to the -path with a crash. - -It was he! What a kiss! - -For a long time they remained in each other's arms, with united lips. -But suddenly a fine rain began to fall, and the drops from the leaves fell -on to her neck and made her start. Whereupon he said: - -"Mathilde, my adored one, my darling, my angel, let us go indoors. It -is twelve o'clock, we can have nothing to fear; please let us go in." - -"No, dearest; I am too frightened. Who knows what might happen?" - -But he held her in his arms, and whispered in her ear: - -"Your servants sleep on the third floor, looking on to the Square, and -your room, on the first, looks on to the garden, so nobody can hear us. -I love you so that I wish to love you entirely, from head to foot." And -he embraced her vehemently, maddening her with his kisses. - -She resisted still, frightened and even ashamed. But he put his arms -round her, lifted her up, and carried her off through the rain, which was -by this time descending in torrents. - -The door was open; they groped their way upstairs; and when they were -in the room she bolted the door while he lit a match. - -Then she fell, half fainting, into a chair, while he kneeled down beside -her and slowly he undressed her, beginning with her shoes and stockings -in order to kiss her feet. - -At last, she said, panting: - -"No! no! Étienne, please let me remain a virtuous woman; I should be -too angry with you afterwards; and after all, it is so horrid, so common. -Cannot we love each other with a spiritual love only? Oh! Étienne!" - -With the skill of a lady's maid and the speed of a man in a hurry, he -unbuttoned, untied, unhooked and unlaced without stopping, and when she -tried to get up and run away, she suddenly emerged from her dress, her -petticoat and her underclothes as naked as a hand thrust from a muff. In -her fright she ran to the bed in order to hide herself behind the -curtains; but it was a dangerous place of refuge, and he followed her. -But in haste he took off his sword too quickly, and it fell on to the -floor with a crash. And then a prolonged, shrill child's cry came from -the next room, the door of which had remained open. - -"You have awakened André," she whispered, "and he won't be able to -go to sleep again." - -Her son was only fifteen months old and slept in a room opening out -of hers, so that she might be able to watch over him all the time. - -The Captain exclaimed ardently: - -"What does it matter, Mathilde? How I love you; you must come to me, -Mathilde." - -But she struggled and resisted in her fright. - -"No! no! Just listen how he is crying; he will wake up the nurse, and -what should we do if she were to come? We should be lost. Just listen to -me, Étienne. When he screams at night his father always takes him into -our bed, and he is quiet immediately; it is the only means of keeping him -still. Do let me take him." - -The child roared, uttering shrill screams, which pierced the thickest -walls and could be heard by passers-by in the streets. - -In his consternation the Captain got up, and Mathilde jumped out and -took the child into her bed, when he was quiet at once. - -Étienne sat astride on a chair, and rolled a cigarette, and in about -five minutes André went to sleep again. - -"I will take him back," his mother said; and she took him back very -carefully to his cradle. - -When she returned, the Captain was waiting for her with open arms, -and put his arms round her in a transport of love, while she, embracing -him more closely, said, stammering: - -"Oh! Étienne, my darling, if you only knew how I love you; how--" - -André began to cry again, and he, in a rage, exclaimed: - -"Confound it all, won't the little brat be quiet?" - -No, the little brat would not be quiet, but howled all the louder, on -the contrary. - -She thought she heard a noise downstairs; no doubt the nurse was coming, -so she jumped up and took the child into bed, and he grew quiet directly. - -Three times she put him back, and three times she had to fetch him -again, and an hour before daybreak the Captain had to go, swearing like -the proverbial trooper; and, to calm his impatience, Mathilde promised to -receive him again the next night. Of course he came, more impatient and -ardent than ever, excited by the delay. - -He took care to lay his sword carefully on the arms of a chair, he took -off his boots like a thief, and spoke so low that Mathilde could hardly -hear him. At last, he was just going to be really happy when the floor, -or some piece of furniture, or perhaps the bed itself, creaked; it sounded -as if something had broken; and in a moment a cry, feeble at first, but -which grew louder, every moment, made itself heard. André was awake -again. - -He yapped like a fox, and there was not the slightest doubt that if he -went on like that the whole house would awake; so his mother, not knowing -what to do, got up and brought him. The Captain was more furious than -ever, but did not move, and very carefully he put out his hand, took a -small piece of the child's flesh between his two fingers, no matter where -it was, the thighs or elsewhere, and pinched it. The little one struggled -and screamed in a deafening manner, but his tormentor pinched everywhere, -furiously and more vigorously. He took a piece of flesh and twisted and -turned it, and then let go, only to take hold of another piece, and -then another and another. - -The child screamed like a chicken having its throat cut, or a dog being -mercilessly beaten. His mother caressed him, kissed him, and tried to -stifle his cries by her tenderness; but André grew purple, as if he were -going into convulsions, and kicked and struggled with his little arms and -legs in an alarming manner. - -The Captain said, softly: - -"Try to take him back to his cradle; perhaps he will be quiet." - -And Mathilde went into the other room with the child in her arms. As -soon as he was out of his mother's bed he cried less loudly, and when he -was in his own he was quiet, with the exception of a few broken sobs. The -rest of the night was quiet and the Captain was happy. - -The next night the Captain came again. As he happened to speak rather -loudly, André awoke again and began to scream. His mother went and fetched -him immediately, but the Captain pinched so hard and long that the child -was nearly suffocated by its cries, its eyes turned in its head and it -foamed at the mouth. As soon as it was back in its cradle it was quiet, -and in four days André did not cry any more to come into his mother's -bed. - -On Saturday evening the lawyer returned, and took his place again at -the domestic hearth and in the conjugal chamber. As he was tired with his -journey he went to bed early; but he had not long lain down when he said -to his wife: - -"Why, how is it that André is not crying? Just go and fetch him, -Mathilde; I like to feel that he is between us." - -She got up and brought the child, but as soon as he saw that he was in -that bed, in which he had been so fond of sleeping a few days before, he -wriggled and screamed so violently in his fright that she had to take him -back to his cradle. - -M. Moreau could not get over his surprise. "What a very funny thing! -What is the matter with him this evening? I suppose he is sleepy?" - -"He has been like that all the time that you were away; I have never -been able to have him in bed with me once." - -In the morning the child woke up and began to laugh and play with his -toys. - -The lawyer, who was an affectionate man, got up, kissed his offspring, -and took him into his arms to carry him to their bed. André laughed, with -that vacant laugh of little creatures whose ideas are still vague. He -suddenly saw the bed and his mother in it, and his happy little face -puckered up, till suddenly he began to scream furiously, and struggled as -if he were going to be put to the torture. - -In his astonishment his father said: - -"There must be something the matter with the child," and mechanically -he lifted up his little nightshirt. - -He uttered a prolonged "O--o--h!" of astonishment. The child's calves, -thighs, and buttocks were covered with blue spots as big as half-pennies. - -"Just look, Mathilde!" the father exclaimed; "this is horrible!" And -the mother rushed forward in a fright. It was horrible; no doubt the -beginning of some sort of leprosy, of one of those strange affections of -the skin which doctors are often at a loss to account for. The parents -looked at one another in consternation. - -"We must send for the doctor," the father said. - -But Mathilde, pale as death, was looking at her child, who was spotted -like a leopard. Then suddenly uttering a violent cry as if she had seen -something that filled her with horror, she exclaimed: - -"Oh! the wretch!" - -M. Moreau, surprised asked: "What? Whom are you speaking about? What -wretch?" - -She reddened up to the roots of her hair and stammered: "Nothing... it -is... you see, I guess... It must be... Don't let us get the doctor. It is -surely that miserable nurse who pinches the little one to make him stop -when he cries." The notary, very angry, went to the nurse and nearly beat -her. She denied the charges, but was discharged. Her conduct was denounced -to the municipal authorities, and she could never get another situation. - - - - -HE? - - -My dear friend, you can hardly believe it? I can see why. You think I -have gone mad? It may be so, but not for the reasons which you suppose. - -Yes, I am going to get married. That's true. - -My ideas and my convictions have not changed at all. I look upon all -legalized co-habitation as utterly stupid, for I am certain that nine -husbands out of ten are cuckolds; and they get no more than their deserts -for having been idiotic enough to fetter their lives and renounce their -freedom in love, the only happy and good thing in the world, and for -having clipped the wings of fancy which continually drives us on toward -all women. You know what I mean. More than ever I feel that I am incapable -of loving one woman alone, because I shall always adore all the others too -much. I should like to have a thousand arms, a thousand mouths, and a -thousand--temperaments, to be able to strain an army of these charming -creatures in my embrace at the same moment. - -And yet I am going to get married! - -I may add that I know very little of the girl who is going to become -my wife to-morrow; I have only seen her four or five times. I know that -she is not distasteful to me, and that is enough for my purpose. She is -small, fair, and stout; so of course the day after to-morrow I shall -ardently wish for a tall, dark, thin, woman. - -She is not rich, and belongs to the middle classes. She is a girl such -as you may find by the gross, well adapted for matrimony, without any -apparent faults, and with no particularly striking qualities. People say -of her: "Mlle Lajolle is a very nice girl," and to-morrow they will say: -"What a very nice woman Madame Raymon is." She belongs, in a word, to that -immense number of girls who make very good wives for us till the moment -comes when we discover that we happen to prefer all other women to that -particular woman we have married. - -"Well," you will say to me, "what on earth do you get married for?" - -I hardly like to tell you the strange and seemingly improbable reason -that urged me on to this mad action. I am getting married in order not to -be alone. - -I don't know how to tell you or to make you understand me, but my state -of mind is so wretched that you will pity me and despise me. - -I do not want to be alone any longer at night; I want to feel that there -is some one close to me touching me, a being who can speak and say -something, no matter what it be. - -I wish to be able to awaken somebody by my side, so that I may be able -to ask some sudden question, a stupid question even, if I feel inclined, -so that I may hear a human voice, to have somebody living in my house and -feel that there is some waking soul close to me, some one whose reason is -at work--so that when I hastily light the candle I may see some human face -by my side--because--because--I am ashamed to confess it--because when I -am alone, I am afraid. - -Oh! you don't understand me yet. - -I am not afraid of any danger; if a man were to come into the room I -should kill him without trembling. I am not afraid of ghosts, nor do I -believe in the supernatural. I am not afraid of dead people, for I believe -in the total annihilation of every being that disappears from the face of -this earth. - -Well,--yes, well, then... I am afraid of myself, afraid of that -horrible sensation of incomprehensible fear, afraid of the spasms of my -terrified mind. - -You may laugh, if you like. It is terrible and incurable. I am afraid -of the walls, of the furniture, of the familiar objects, which are -animated, as far as I am concerned, by a kind of animal life. Above -all, I am afraid of my own dreadful thoughts, of my reason, which seems -as if it were about to leave me, driven away by a mysterious and invisible -anguish. - -At first I feel a vague uneasiness in my mind which causes a cold shiver -to run all over me. I look round, and of course nothing is to be seen, and -I wish there were something there, no matter what, as long as it were -something tangible: I am frightened, merely because I cannot understand my -own terror. - -If I speak, I am afraid of my own voice. 'If I walk, I am afraid of I -know not what, behind the door, behind the curtains, in the cupboard, or -under my bed, and yet all the time I know there is nothing anywhere, and -I turn round suddenly because I am afraid of what is behind me, although -there is nothing there, and I know it. - -I get agitated; I feel that my fear increases, and so I shut myself up -in my own room, get into bed, and hide under the clothes, and there, -cowering down, _rolled into a ball_, I close my eyes in despair and -remain thus for a long time, remembering that my candle is alight on the -table by my bedside, and that I ought to put it out, and yet--I dare not -do it! - -It is very terrible, is it not, to be like that? - -Formerly I felt nothing of all that; I came home quite comfortably, and -went up and down in my rooms without anything disturbing my calmness of -mind. Had anyone told me that I should be attacked by a malady--for I can -call it nothing else--of most improbable fear, such a stupid and terrible -malady as it is, I should have laughed outright. I was certainly never -afraid of opening the door in the dark; I used to go to bed slowly without -locking it, and never got up in the middle of the night to make sure that -everything was firmly closed. - -It began last year in a very strange manner, on a damp autumn evening. -When my servant had left the room, after I had dined, I asked myself what -I was going to do. I walked up and down my room for some time, feeling -tired without any reason for it, unable to work, and without enough energy -to read. A fine rain was falling, and I felt unhappy, a prey to one of -those fits of casual despondency which make us feel inclined to cry, or to -talk, no matter to whom, so as to shake off our depressing thoughts. - -I felt that I was alone and that my rooms seemed to me to be more -empty that they had ever been before. I was surrounded by a sensation of -infinite and overwhelming solitude. What was I to do? I sat down, but then -a kind of nervous impatience seized my legs, so that I got up and began to -walk about again. I was feverish, for I noticed my hands, which I had -clasped behind me, as one often does when walking slowly, almost seemed -to burn one another. Then suddenly a cold shiver ran down my back, and I -thought the damp air might have penetrated into my room, so I lit the fire -for the first time that year, and [sat down again and looked at the -flames. But soon I felt that I could not possibly remain quiet. So I got -up again and determined to go out, to pull myself together, and to seek a -friend to bear me company. I went out. I looked up three friends who were -not at home, then I went on to the boulevards to try and meet some -acquaintance or other there. - -It was wretched everywhere. The wet pavement glistened in the gaslight, -and a moist warmth, that kind of warmth that chills you with sudden -shivers, the oppressive heat of impalpable rain, lay heavily over the -streets and seemed to obscure the light from the lamps. - -I went on slowly, saying to myself, "I shall not find a soul to talk -to." - -I glanced into several cafés from the Madeleine as far as the Faubourg -Poissonnière, and saw many unhappy-looking individuals sitting at the -tables, who did not seem even to have enough energy left to finish the -refreshments they had ordered. - -For a long time I wandered aimlessly up and down, and about midnight I -started off for home; I was very calm and very tired. My concierge, -who goes to bed before eleven o'clock, opened the door at once, which was -quite unusual for him, and I thought that another lodger had no doubt -just come in. - -When I go out I always turn the key twice. Now I found it merely closed, -which surprised me; but I supposed that some letters had been brought -up for me in the course of the evening. - -I went in, and found my fire still burning so that it lighted up the -room a little. I took up a candle to fight it at the fire when looking in -front of me I noticed somebody sitting in my armchair by the fire, warming -his feet, with his back toward me. - -I was not in the slightest degree frightened. I thought very naturally -that some friend or other had come to see me. No doubt the concierge, who -knew I had gone out, had said I was coming back and had lend him his own -key. In a moment I remembered all the circumstances of my return, how the -street door had been opened immediately and that my own door was only -latched and not locked. - -I could see nothing of my friend but his head. He had evidently gone -to sleep while waiting for me, so I went up to him to rouse him. I saw him -quite clearly; his right arm was hanging down and his feet were crossed, -while his head, which was somewhat inclined to the left of the armchair, -seemed to indicate that he was asleep. "Who can it be?" I asked myself. I -could not see clearly, as the room was rather dark, so I put out my hand -to touch him on the shoulder, and it came in contact with the back of the -chair. There was nobody there; the armchair was empty. - -Merciful heaven, what a start I gave! For a moment I drew back as if -some terrible danger had suddenly appeared in my way; then I turned round -again feeling there was somebody behind me, then, impelled by some -imperious desire to look at the armchair again, I turned round once more. -I remained standing up panting with fear, so upset that I could not -collect my thoughts, and ready to drop. - -But I am naturally a cool man, and soon recovered myself. I thought: -"It is a mere hallucination, that is all," and I immediately began to -reflect about this phenomenon. Thoughts fly very quickly at such moments. - -I had been suffering from a hallucination, that was an incontestable -fact. My mind had been perfectly lucid and had acted regularly and -logically, so there was nothing the matter with the brain. It was only -my eyes that had been deceived; they had had a vision, one of those -visions which lead simple folk to believe in miracles. It was a nervous -accident to the optical apparatus, nothing more; the eyes were rather -overwrought, perhaps. - -I lit my candle, and when I stooped down to the fire in so doing, I -noticed that I was trembling, and I raised myself up with a jump, as if -somebody had touched me from behind. - -I was not comfortable by any means. - -I walked up and down a little, and hummed a tune or two. Then I -double-locked my door, and felt rather reassured; now, at any rate, nobody -could come in. - -I sat down again, and thought over my adventure for a long time; then -I went to bed, and put out my light. - -For some minutes all went well; I lay quietly on my back. Then an -irresistible desire seized me to look round the room, and I turned on to -my side. - -My fire was nearly out and the few glowing embers threw a faint light -on to the floor by the chair, where I fancied I saw the man sitting -again. - -I quickly struck a match, but I had been mistaken, for there was nothing -there; I got up, however, and hid the chair behind my bed, and tried to -get to sleep as the room was now dark. But I had not been asleep for more -than five minutes when in my dream I saw all the scene which I had -witnessed as clearly as if it were reality. I woke up with a start, and, -having lit the candle, sat up in bed, without venturing even to try and go -to sleep again. - -Twice, however, sleep overcame me for a few moments in spite of myself, -and twice I saw the same thing again, till I fancied I was going mad. -When day broke, however, I thought that I was cured, and slept peacefully -till noon. - -It was all past and gone. I had been feverish, had had nightmare; or -something. I had been ill, in a word, but yet I thought that I was a great -fool. - -I enjoyed myself thoroughly that evening; I went and dined at a -restaurant; afterward I went to the theatre, and then started home. But -as I got near the house I was seized by a strange feeling of uneasiness -once more; I was afraid of seeing him again. I was not afraid of him, not -afraid of his presence, in which I did not believe; but I was afraid of -being deceived again; I was afraid of some fresh hallucination, afraid -lest fear should take possession of me. - -For more than an hour I wandered up and down the pavement; then I -thought that I was really too foolish, and returned home. I panted so that -I could scarcely get upstairs, and remained standing on the landing -outside my door for more than ten minutes; then suddenly I took courage -and pulled myself together. I inserted my key into the lock, and went in -with a candle in my hand. I kicked open my half-open bedroom door, and -gave a frightened look toward the fireplace; there was nothing there. -A--h! - -What a relief and what a delight! What a deliverance! I walked up and -down briskly and boldly, but I was not altogether reassured, and kept -turning round with a jump; the very shadows in the corners disquieted me. - -I slept badly, and was constantly disturbed by imaginary noises, but I -did not see him; no, that was all over. - -Since that time I have been afraid of being alone at night. I feel -that the spectre is there, close to me, around me; but it has not appeared -to me again. And supposing it did, what would it matter, since I do not -believe in it and know that it is nothing? - -It still worries me, however, because I am constantly thinking of it: -his right arm hanging down and his head inclined to the left like a man -who was asleep--Enough of that, in Heaven's name! I don't want to think -about it! - -Why, however, am I so persistently possessed with this idea? His feet -were close to the fire! - -He haunts me; it is very stupid, but so it is. Who and what is HE? I -know that he does not exist except in my cowardly imagination, in my -fears, and in my anguish! There--enough of that! - -Yes, it is all very well for me to reason with myself, to brace myself -up; I cannot remain alone at home, because I know he is there. I know I -shall not see him again; he will not show himself again; that is all over. -But he is there all the same in my thoughts. He remains invisible, but -that does not prevent his being there. He is behind the doors, in the -closed wardrobe, under the bed, in every dark corner. If I open the door -or the wardrobe, if I take the candle to look under the bed and throw a -fight on the dark places, he is there no longer, but I feel that he is -behind me. I turn round, certain that I shall not see him, that I shall -never see him again; but he is, none the less, behind me. - -It is very stupid, it is dreadful; but what am I to do? I cannot help -it. - -But if there were two of us in the place, I feel certain that he would -not be there any longer, for he is there just because I am alone, simply -and solely because I am alone! - - - - -MY UNCLE SOSTHÈNE - - -My uncle Sosthène was a freethinker, like many others, a freethinker -from sheer stupidity. People are very often religious for the same reason. -The mere sight of a priest threw him into a violent rage; he would shake -his fist and grimace at him, and touch a piece of iron when the priest's -back was turned, forgetting that the latter action showed a belief after -all, the belief in the evil eye. - -Now when beliefs are unreasonable, one should either have all or none -at all. I myself am a freethinker; I revolt at all the dogmas which have -invented the fear of death, but I feel no anger toward places of worship, -be they Catholic Apostolic, Roman, Protestant, Greek, Russian, Buddhist, -Jewish, or Mohammedan. I have a peculiar manner of looking at them and -explaining them. A place of worship represents the homage paid by man to -the unknown. The more extended our thoughts and our views become, the more -the unknown diminishes, and the more places of worship will decay. I, -however, instead of incense burners, would fit them up with telescopes, -microscopes, and electrical machines; that is all. - -My uncle and I differed on nearly every point. He was a patriot, while -I was not--for, after all, patriotism is a kind of religion; it is the egg -from which wars are hatched. - -My uncle was a Freemason, and I used to declare that they are stupider -than the pious old ladies. That is my opinion, and I maintain it; if we -must have any religion at all, the old one is good enough for me. - -Those imbeciles simply imitate priests. Their symbol is a triangle -instead of a cross. They have chapels which they call lodges, and a whole -lot of different sects: the Scottish rite, the French rite, the Grand -Orient, a collection of balderdash that would make a cat laugh. - -What is their object? Mutual help to be obtained by tickling the palms -of each other's hands. I see no harm in it, for they put into practice the -Christian precept: "Do unto others as ye would they should do unto you." -The only difference consists in the tickling, but it does not seem worth -while to make such a fuss about lending a poor devil five francs. - -Convents whose duty and business it is to administer alms and help, put -the letters "J.M.J." at the head of their communications. The Masons -put three periods in a row after their signature. It is six of one and -half a dozen of the other. - -My uncle's reply used to be: - -"We are raising up a religion against a religion; Free-thought will kill -clericalism. Freemasonry is the headquarters of those who are demolishing -all deities." - -"Very well, my dear uncle," I would reply (in my heart I felt inclined -to say, "You old idiot!"); "it is just that which I am blaming you for. -Instead of destroying, you are organizing competition; it is only a case -of lowering the prices. And then, if you only admitted freethinkers among -you I could understand it, but you admit anybody. You have a number of -Catholics among you, even the leaders of the party. Pius IX is said to -have been one of you before he became Pope. If you call a society with -such an organization a bulwark against clericalism, I think it is an -extremely weak one." - -"My dear boy," my uncle would reply, with a wink, "our most formidable -actions are political; slowly and surely we are everywhere undermining -the monarchical spirit." - -Then I broke out: "Yes, you are very clever! If you tell me that -freemasonry is an election-machine, I will grant it. I will never deny -that it is used as a machine to control candidates of all shades; -if you say that it is only used to hoodwink people, to drill them to go -to the voting-urn as soldiers are sent under fire, I agree with you; if -you declare that it is indispensable to all political ambitions because -it changes all its members into electoral agents, I should say to you, -'That is as clear as daylight.' But when you tell me that it serves to -undermine the monarchical spirit, I can only laugh in your face. - -"Just consider that vast and democratic association which had Prince -Napoleon for its Grand Master under the Empire; which has the Crown Prince -for its Grand Master in Germany, the Czar's brother in Russia, and to -which the Prince of Wales and King Humbert and nearly all the royalists -of the globe belong." - -"You are quite right," my uncle said; "but all these persons are serving -our projects without knowing it." - -"And vice versa, what?" - -And I added, to myself, "pack of fools!" - -It was, however, indeed a sight to see my uncle when he had a freemason -to dinner. - -On meeting they shook hands in a mysterious manner that was irresistibly -funny; one could see that they were going through a series of secret -mysterious pressures. When I wished to put my uncle in a rage, I had only -to tell him that dogs also have a manner which savours very much of -freemasonry, when they greet one another on meeting. - -Then my uncle would take his friend into a corner to tell him something -important, and at dinner they had a peculiar way of looking at each other, -and of drinking to each other, in a manner as if to say: "We belong to it, -don't we?" - -And to think that there are millions on the face of the globe who are -amused at such monkey tricks! I would sooner be a Jesuit. - -Now in our town there really was an old Jesuit who was my uncle's pet -aversion. Every time he met him, or if he only saw him at a distance, he -used to say: "Dirty skunk!" And then, taking my arm, he would whisper to -me: - -"Look here, that fellow will play me a trick some day or other, I feel -sure of it." - -My uncle spoke quite truly, and this was how it happened, through my -fault moreover. - -It was close on Holy Week, and my uncle made up his mind to give a -dinner on Good Friday, a real dinner with chitterlings and saveloy -sausage. I resisted as much as I could, and said: - -"I shall eat meat on that day, but at home, quite by myself. Your -manifesto, as you call it, is an idiotic idea. Why should you manifest? -What does it matter to you if people do not eat any meat?" - -But my uncle would not be persuaded. He asked three of his friends to -dine with him at one of the best restaurants in the town, and as he was -going to pay the bill, I had certainly, after all, no scruples about -_manifesting._ - -At four o'clock we took a conspicuous place in the Café Pénélope, the -most frequented restaurant in the town, and my uncle in a loud voice -described the menu. - -We sat down at six o'clock, and at ten o'clock we had not finished. Five -of us had drunk eighteen bottles of fine wines, and four of champagne. -Then my uncle proposed what he was in the habit of calling: "The -archbishop's feat." Each man put six small glasses in front of him, each -of them filled with a different liqueur, and then they had all to be -emptied at one gulp, one after another, while one of the waiters counted -twenty. It was very stupid, but my uncle thought it was very suitable -to the occasion. - -At eleven o'clock he was as drunk as a fiddler, so we had to take him -home in a cab and put him to bed, and one could easily foresee that his -anti-clerical demonstration would end in a terrible fit of indigestion. - -As I was going back to my lodgings, being rather drunk myself, with a -cheerful Machiavelian drunkenness which quite satisfied all my skeptical -instincts, an idea struck me. - -I arranged my necktie, put on a look of great distress, and went and -rang loudly at the old Jesuit's door. As he was deaf he made me wait a -longish while, but at length he appeared at his window in a cotton -nightcap and asked what I wanted. - -I shouted out at the top of my voice: - -"Make haste, reverend father, and open the door; a poor, despairing, -sick man is in need of your spiritual ministrations." - -The good, kind man put on his trousers as quickly as he could and came -down without his cassock. I told him in a breathless voice that my uncle, -the freethinker, had been taken suddenly ill. Fearing it was going to be -something serious he had been seized with a sudden fear of death, and -wished to see a priest and talk to him; to have his advice and comfort, -to make up with the Church, and to confess, so as to be able to cross the -dreaded threshold at peace with himself; and I added in a mocking tone: - -"At any rate, he wishes it, and if it does him no good it can do him -no harm." - -The old Jesuit, who was startled, delighted, and almost trembling, -said to me: - -"Wait a moment, my son, I will come with you." - -But I replied: "Pardon me. Father, if I do not go with you; but my -convictions will not allow me to do so. I even refused to come and fetch -you, so I beg you not to say that you have seen me, but to declare that -you had a presentiment--a sort of revelation of his illness." - -The priest consented, and went off quickly, knocked at my uncle's door, -was soon let in, and I saw the black cassock disappear within that -stronghold of Free-thought. - -I hid under a neighbouring gateway to wait for events. Had he been well, -my uncle would have half murdered the Jesuit, but I knew that he would -be unable to move an arm, and I asked myself, gleefully, what sort of a -scene would take place between these antagonists--what fight, what -explanation would be given, and what would be the issue of this situation, -which my uncle's indignation would render more tragic still? - -I laughed till I had to hold my sides, and said to myself, half -aloud: "Oh! what a joke, what a joke!" - -Meanwhile it was getting very cold. I noticed that the Jesuit stayed -a long time, and thought: "They are having an explanation, I suppose." - -One, two, three hours passed, and still the reverend Father did not -come out. What had happened? Had my uncle died in a fit when he saw -him, or had he killed the cassocked gentleman? Perhaps they had mutually -devoured each other? This last supposition appeared very unlikely, for -I fancied that my uncle was quite incapable of swallowing a grain more -nourishment at that moment. - -At last the day dawned. I was very uneasy, and not venturing to go into -the house myself, I went to one of my friends who lived opposite. I roused -him, explained matters to him, much to his amusement and astonishment, and -took possession of his window. - -At nine o'clock he relieved me and I got a little sleep. At two -o'clock I, in my turn, replaced him. We were utterly astonished. - -At six o'clock the Jesuit left, with a very happy and satisfied look -on his face, and we saw him go away with a quiet step. - -Then, timid and ashamed, I went and knocked at my uncle's door. When -the servant opened it I did not dare to ask her any questions, but went -upstairs without saying a word. - -My uncle was lying pale, exhausted, with weary, sorrowful eyes and -heavy arms, on his bed. A little religious picture was fastened to one of -the bed-curtains with a pin. - -"Why, uncle," I said, "you in bed still? Are you not well?" - -He replied in a feeble voice: - -"Oh! my dear boy, I have been very ill; nearly dead." - -"How was that, uncle?" - -"I don't know; it was most surprising. But what is stranger still, -is that the Jesuit priest who has just left--you know, that excellent -man whom I have made such fun of--had a divine revelation of my state, -and came to see me." - -I was seized with an almost uncontrollable desire to laugh, and with -difficulty said: "Oh, really!" - -"Yes, he came. He heard a Voice telling him to get up and come to me, -because I was going to die. It was a revelation." - -I pretended to sneeze, so as not to burst out laughing; I felt inclined -to roll on the ground with amusement. - -In about a minute I managed to say, indignantly: "And you received him, -uncle, you? You, a freethinker, a freemason? You did not have him thrown -out?" - -He seemed confused, and stammered: - -"Listen a moment, it is so astonishing--so astonishing and providential! -He also spoke to me about my father; he knew him formerly." - -"Your father, uncle? But that is no reason for receiving a Jesuit." - -"I know that, but I was very ill, and he looked after me most devotedly -all night long. He was perfect; no doubt he saved my life; those men are -all more or less doctors." - -"Oh! he looked after you all night? But you said just now that he had -only been gone a very short time." - -"That is quite true; I kept him to breakfast after all his kindness. He -had it at a table by my bedside while I drank a cup of tea." - -"And he ate meat?" - -My uncle looked vexed, as if I had said something very much out of -place, and then added: - -"Don't joke, Gaston; such things are out of place at times. He has -shown me more devotion than many a relation would have done and I expect -you to respect his convictions." - -This rather upset me, but I answered, nevertheless: "Very well, uncle; -and what did you do after breakfast?" - -"We played a game of bezique, and then he repeated his breviary while -I read a little book which he happened to have in his pocket, and which -was not by any means badly written." - -"A religious book, uncle?" - -"Yes, and no, or rather--no. It is the history of their missions in -Central Africa, and is rather a book of travels and adventures. What these -men have done is very good." - -I began to feel that matters were going badly, so I got up. "Well, -good-bye, uncle," I said, "I see you are going to leave freemasonry for -religion; you are a renegade." - -He was still rather confused, and stammered: - -"Well, but religion is a sort of freemasonry." - -"When is your Jesuit coming back?" I asked. - -"I don't--I don't know exactly; to-morrow, perhaps; but it is not -certain." - -I went out, altogether overwhelmed. - -My joke turned out very badly for me! My uncle became radically -converted, and if that had been all I should not have cared so much. -Clerical or freemason, to me it is all the same; six of one and half a -dozen of the other; but the worst of it is that he has just made his -will--yes, made his will--and has disinherited me in favor of that -holy Jesuit! - - - - -THE ACCURSED BREAD - - - - -I - - -Old Taille had three daughters: Anna, the eldest, who was scarcely ever -mentioned in the family; Rose, the second girl, who was eighteen; and -Clara, the youngest, who was a girl of fifteen. - -Old Taille was a widower, and a foreman in M. Lebrument's button-factory. -He was a very upright man, very well thought of, abstemious; in fact a -sort of model workman. He lived at Havre, in the Rue d'Angoulême. - -When Anna ran away the old man flew into a fearful rage. He threatened -to kill the seducer, who was head of a department in a large draper's -establishment in that town. Then when he was told by various people that -she was keeping very steady and investing money in government securities, -that she was no gadabout, but was kept by a Monsieur Dubois, who was a -judge of the Tribunal of Commerce, the father was appeased. - -He even showed some anxiety as to how she was faring, asked some of her -old friends who had been to see her how she was getting on; and when told -that she had her own furniture, and that her mantlepiece was covered with -vases and the walls with pictures, that there were clocks and carpets -everywhere, he gave a broad, contented smile. He had been working for -thirty years to get together a wretched five or six thousand francs. His -little girl was evidently no fool. - -One fine morning the son of Touchard, the cooper at the other end of -the street, came and asked him for the hand of Rose, the second girl. The -old man's heart began to beat, for the Touchards were rich and in a good -position. He was decidedly lucky with his girls. - -The marriage was agreed upon. It was settled that it should be a grand -affair, and the wedding dinner was to be held at Sainte-Adresse, at Mother -Gusa's restaurant. It would cost a lot certainly; but never mind, it did -not matter just for once in a way. - -But one morning, just as the old man was going home to breakfast with -his two daughters, the door opened suddenly and Anna appeared. She was -loudly dressed, wore rings and a very dressy hat. She looked undeniably -pretty and nice. She threw her arms round her father's neck before he -could say a word, then fell into her sisters' arms with many tears, and -then asked for a plate, so that she might share the family soup. Old -Taille was moved to tears in his turn and said several times: - -"That is right, dear; that is right." - -Then she told them about herself. She did not wish Rose's wedding to -take place at Sainte-Adresse,--certainly not. It should take place at her -house, and would cost her father nothing. She had settled everything and -arranged everything, so it was "no good to say any more about -it,--there!" - -"Very well, my dear! very well!" the old man said, "we will leave it -so." But then he felt some doubt. Would the Touchards consent? But Rose, -the bride-elect, was surprised, and asked, "Why should they object, I -should like to know? Just leave that to me, I will talk to Philip about -it." - -She mentioned it to her intended the very same day, and he declared -that it would suit him exactly. Father and Mother Touchard were naturally -delighted at the idea of a good dinner which would cost them nothing and -said: - -"You may be quite sure that everything will be in first-rate style, as -M. Dubois is made of money." - -They asked to be allowed to bring a friend, Mme Florence, the cook on -the first floor, and Anna agreed to everything. The wedding was fixed for -the last Tuesday of the month. - - - - -II - - -After the civil formalities and the religious ceremony the wedding -party went to Anna's house. Among those whom the Tailles had brought was a -cousin of a certain age, a M. Sauvetanin, a man given to philosophical -reflections, serious, and always very self-possessed, and Mme Lamondois, -an old aunt. - -M. Sauvetanin had been told off to give Anna his arm, as they were -looked upon as the two most important and most distinguished persons -in the company. - -As soon as they had arrived at the door of Anna's house she let go her -companion's arm, and ran on ahead, saying, "I will show you the way," -while the invited guests followed more slowly. When they got upstairs, -she stood on one side to let them pass, and they rolled their eyes and -turned their heads in all directions to admire this mysterious and -luxurious dwelling. - -The table was laid in the drawing-room as the dining-room had been -thought too small. Extra knives, forks, and spoons had been hired from a -neighbouring restaurant, and decanters full of wine glittered under the -rays of the sun, which shone in through the window. - -The ladies went into the bedroom to take off their shawls and bonnets, -and Old Touchard, who was standing at the door, squinted at the low, wide -bed, and made funny signs to the men, with many a wink and nod. Old -Taille, who thought a great deal of himself, looked with fatherly pride at -his child's well-furnished rooms, and went from one to the other holding -his hat in his-hand, making a mental inventory of everything, and walking -like a verger in a church. - -Anna went backward and forward, and ran about giving orders and hurrying -on the wedding feast. Soon she appeared at the door of the dining-room, -and cried: "Come here, all of you, for a moment," and when the twelve -guests did as they were asked they saw twelve glasses of Madeira on a -small table. - -Rose and her husband had their arms round each other's waists, and were -kissing each other in every corner. M. Sauvetanin never took his eyes -off Anna; he no doubt felt that ardour, that sort of expectation which -all men, even if they are old and ugly, feel for women of easy virtue, as -if their trade, their professional duty compelled them to give a little -of themselves to every male. - -They sat down, and the wedding breakfast began; the relatives sitting -at one end of the table and the young people at the other. Mme Touchard, -the mother, presided on the right and the bride on the left. Anna looked -after everybody, saw that the glasses were kept filled and the plates well -supplied. The guests evidently felt a certain respectful embarrassment -at the sight of the sumptuousness of the rooms and at the lavish manner in -which they were treated. They all ate heartily of the good things -provided, but there were no jokes such as are prevalent at weddings of -that sort; it was all too grand, and it made them feel uncomfortable. -Old Mme Touchard, who was fond of a bit of fun, tried to enliven matters -a little, and at the beginning of the dessert she exclaimed: "I say, -Philip, do sing us something." The neighbours in their street considered -that he had the finest voice in all Havre. - -The bridegroom got up, smiled, and turning to his sister-in-law, from -politeness and gallantry, tried to think of something suitable for the -occasion, something serious and correct, to harmonize with the seriousness -of the repast. - -Anna had a satisfied look on her face, and leaned back in her chair to -listen, and all assumed looks of attention, though prepared to smile -should smiles be called for. - -The singer announced, "The Accursed Bread," and extending his right -arm, which made his coat ruck up into his neck, he began. - - -Il est un pain béni qu'à la terre économe -Il nous faut arracher d'un bras victorieux. -C'est le pain du travail, celui que l'honnête homme. -Le soir, à ses enfants, apporte tout joyeux. -Mais il en est un autre, à mine tentatrice, -Pain maudit que l'enfer pour nous damner sema, (_bis_) -Enfant, n'y touchez pas car c'est le pain du vice! -Chers enfants, gardez vous de toucher ce pain-là. (_bis_) - - -They all applauded frantically. Old Touchard declared the sentiments -excellent. The cook, who was one of the guests, twisted in her hands a -crust at which she gazed tenderly. M. Sauvetanin murmured, "Bravo!" Aunt -Lamondois had already begun to wipe away her tears with her napkin. - -The bridegroom announced: "Second verse," and launched forth with -renewed vigour: - - -Respect au malheureux qui, tout brisé par l'âge. -Nous implore en passant sur le bord du chemin. -Mais flétrissons celui qui, désertant l'ouvrage. -Alerte et bien portant, ose tendre la main. -Mendier sans besoin, c'est voler la vieillesse. -C'est voler l'ouvrier que le travail courba, (_bis_) -Honte à celui qui vit du pain de la paresse. -Chers enfants, gardez-vous de toucher ce pain-là. (_bis_) - - -They all yelled the refrain in chorus, even the two servants who -were standing against the wall. The falsetto, piercing voices of the -women put the deeper voices of the men out of tune. - -The aunt and the bride wept outright. Old Taille blew his nose with -the noise of a trombone, and old Touchard madly brandished a whole loaf -over the centre of the table. The friendly cook dropped a few silent tears -on the crust with which she was still fumbling. - -Amid the general emotion M. Sauvetanin said: - -"That is the right sort of song; very different from the usual smut." - -Anna, who was visibly affected, kissed her hand to her sister and -pointed to her husband with an affectionate nod, as if to congratulate -her. - -Intoxicated by his success, the young man continued: - - -Dans ton simple réduit, ouvrière gentille. -Tu sembles écouter la voix du tentateur. -Pauvre enfant, va, crois-moi, ne quitte pas l'aiguille. -Tes parents n'ont que toi, toi seule es leur bonheur. -Dans un luxe honteux trouveras-tu des charmes. -Lorsque, te maudissant, ton père expirera, (_bis_) -Le pain du déshonneur se pétrit dans les larmes -Chers enfants, gardez-vous de toucher ce pain-là. (_bis_) - - -No one took up the refrain about this bread, supposed to be eaten -with tears, except old Touchard and the two servants. Anna had grown -deadly pale and cast down her eyes, while the bridegroom looked from one -to the other without understanding the reason for this sudden coldness, -and the cook hastily dropped the crust as if it were poisoned. - -M. Sauvetanin said solemnly, in order to save the situation: "That last -couplet is not at all necessary;" and Old Taille, who had got red up to -his ears, looked round the table fiercely. - -Then Anna, with her eyes swimming in tears, told the servants, in the -faltering voice of a woman trying to stifle her sobs, to bring the -champagne. - -All the guests were suddenly seized with exuberant joy, and their faces -became radiant again. Old Touchard, who had seen, felt, and understood -nothing of what was going on, was still brandishing his loaf, and singing -to himself, as he showed it to the guests: - - -Chers enfants, gardez-vous de toucher ce pain-là. - - -The whole party, electrified by the sight of the bottles with their -silver foil, loudly took up the refrain: - - -Chers enfants, gardez-vous de toucher ce pain-là. - - - - -MADAME LUNEAU'S CASE - - -The fat Justice of the Peace, with one eye closed and the other -half-open, is listening with evident displeasure to the plaintiffs. Once -in a while he gives a sort of grunt that foretells his opinion, and in a -thin voice resembling that of a child, he interrupts them to ask -questions. He has just rendered judgment in the case of Monsieur Joly -against Monsieur Petitpas, the contestants having come to court on account -of the boundary line of a field which had been accidentally displaced -by Monsieur Petitpas's farmhand, while the latter was plowing. - -Now he calls the case of Hippolyte Lacour, vestryman and ironmonger, -against Madame Céleste Cesarine Luneau, widow of Anthime Isidore Luneau. - -Hippolyte Lacour is forty-five years old; he is tall and gaunt, with a -clean-shaven face like a priest, long hair, and he speaks in a slow, -singsong voice. - -Madame Luneau appears to be about forty years of age. She is built like -a prize-fighter, and her narrow and clinging dress is stretched tightly -over her portly form. Her enormous hips hold up her overflowing bosom in -front, while in the back they support the great rolls of flesh that cover -her shoulders. Her face, with strongly-cut features, rests on a short, fat -neck, and her strong voice is pitched at a key that makes the windows and -the eardrums of her auditors vibrate. She is about to become a mother and -her huge form protrudes like a mountain. - -The witnesses for the defense are waiting to be called. - -The judge begins: Hippolyte Lacour, state your complaint. - -The plaintiff speaks: Your Honour, it will be nine months on -Saint-Michael's day since the defendant came to me one evening, after I -had rung the Angelus, and began an explanation relating to her -barrenness. - -The Justice of the Peace: Kindly be more explicit. - -Hippolyte: Very well, your Honour. Well, she wanted to have a child -and desired my participation. I didn't raise any objection, and she -promised to give me one hundred francs. The thing was all cut and dried, -and now she refuses to acknowledge my claim, which I renew before your -Honour. - -The Justice: I don't understand in the least. You say that she wanted -a child! What kind of child? Did she wish to adopt one? - -Hippolyte: No, your Honour, she wanted a new one. - -The Justice: What do you mean by a new one? - -Hippolyte: I mean a newborn child, one that we were to beget as if we -were man and wife. - -The Justice: You astonish me. To what end did she make this abnormal -proposition? - -Hippolyte: Your Honour, at first I could not make out her reasons, and -was taken a little aback. But as I don't do anything without thoroughly -investigating beforehand, I called on her to explain matters to me, which -she did. You see, her husband, Anthime Isidore, whom you knew as well as -you know me, had died the week before, and his money reverted to his -family. This greatly displeased her on account of the loss it meant, so -she went to a lawyer who told her all about what might happen if a child -should be born to her after ten months. I mean by this that if she gave -birth to a child inside of the ten months following the death of Anthime -Isidore, her offspring would be considered legitimate and would entitle -her to the inheritance. She made up her mind at once to run the risk, and -came to me after church, as I have already had the honour of telling you, -seeing that I am the father of eight living children, the oldest of whom -is a grocer in Caen, department of Calvados, and legitimately married to -Victoire-Elisabeth Rabou-- - -The Justice: These details are superfluous. Go back to the subject. - -Hippolyte: I am getting there, your Honour. So she said to me: "If you -succeed, I'll give you one hundred francs as soon as I get the doctor's -report." Well, your Honour, I made ready to give entire satisfaction, and -after eight weeks or so I learned with pleasure that I had succeeded. But -when I asked her for the hundred francs she refused to pay me. I renewed -my demands several times, never getting so much as a pin. She even called -me a liar and a weakling, a libel which can be destroyed by glancing at -her. - -The Justice: Defendant, what have you to say? - -Madame Luneau: Your Honour, I say that this man is a liar. - -The Justice: How can you prove this assertion? - -Madame Luneau (red in the face, choking and stammering): How can I -prove it? What proofs have I? I haven't a single real proof that the child -isn't his. But, your Honour, it isn't his, I swear it on the head of my -dead husband. - -The Justice: Well, whose is it, then? - -Madame Luneau (stammering with rage): How do I know? How do--do I know? -Everybody's I suppose. Here are my witnesses, your Honour, they're all -here, the six of them. Now make them testify, make them testify. They'll -tell-- - -The Justice: Collect yourself, Madame Luneau, collect yourself and -reply calmly to my questions. What reasons have you to doubt that this man -is the father of the child you are carrying? - -Madame Luneau: What reasons? I have a hundred to one, a hundred? No, -two hundred, five hundred, ten thousand, a million and more reasons to -believe he isn't. After the proposal I made to him, with the promise of -one hundred francs, didn't I learn that he wasn't the father of his own -children, your Honour, not the father of one of 'em? - -Hippolyte (calmly): That's a lie. - -Madame Luneau (exasperated): A lie! A lie, is it? I think his wife has -been around with everybody around here. Call my witnesses, your Honour, -and make them testify? - -Hippolyte (calmly): It's a lie. - -Madame Luneau: It's a lie, is it? How about the red-haired ones, then? -I suppose they're yours, too? - -The Justice: Kindly refrain from personal attacks, or I shall be -obliged to call you to order. - -Madame Luneau: Well, your Honour, I had my doubts about him, and said -I to myself, two precautions are better than one, so I explained my -position to Césaire Lepic, the witness who is present. Says he to me, -"At your disposal, Madame Luneau," and he lent me his assistance in case -Hippolyte should turn out to be unreliable. But as soon as the other -witnesses heard that I wanted to make sure against any disappointment, I -could have had more than a hundred, your Honour, if I had wanted them. -That tall one over there, Lucas Chandelier, swore at the time that I -oughn't to give Hippolyte Lacour a cent, for he hadn't done more than the -rest of them who had obliged me for nothing. - -Hippolyte: What did you promise for? I expected the money, your Honour. -No mistake with me,--a promise given, a promise kept. - -Madame Luneau (beside herself): One hundred francs! One hundred francs! -One hundred francs for that, you liar! The others there didn't ask a red -cent! Look at 'em, all six of 'em! Make them testify, your Honour, they'll -tell you. (To Hippolyte.) Look at 'em, you liar! they're as good as you. -They're only six, but I could have had one, two, three, five hundred of -'em for nothing, too, you robber! - -Hippolyte: Well, even if you'd had a hundred thousand-- - -Madame Luneau: I could, if I'd wanted them. - -Hippolyte: I did my duty, so it doesn't change our agreement. - -Madame Luneau (slapping her protuberant form with both hands): Then -prove that it's you that did it, prove it, you robber! I defy you to -prove it! - -Hippolyte (calmly): Maybe I didn't do any more than anybody else. But -you promised me a hundred francs for it. What did you ask the others for, -afterwards? You had no right to. I could have done it alone. - -Madame Luneau: It is not true, robber! Call my witnesses, your Honour; -they'll answer, for certain. - -The Justice calls the witnesses in behalf of the defense. Six -individuals appeared blushing, awkward looking, with their arms swinging -at their sides. - -The Justice: Lucas Chandelier, have you any reason to suppose that you -are the father of the child Madame Luneau is carrying. - -Lucas Chandelier: Yes, sir. - -The Justice: Célestin-Pierre Sidoine, have you any reason to suppose -that you are the father of the child Madame Luneau is carrying? - -Celestin-Pierre Sidoine: Yes, sir. - -The four other witnesses testified to the same effect. - -The Justice, after having thought for a while pronounced judgment: -Whereas the plaintiff has reasons to believe himself the father of the -child which Madame Luneau desired, Lucas Chandelier, Celestin-Pierre -Sidoine, and others, have similar, if not conclusive reasons to lay -claim to the child. - -But whereas Mme Luneau had previously asked the assistance of Hippolyte -Lacour for a duly stated consideration of one hundred francs: - -And whereas one may not question the absolute good faith of Hippolyte -Lacour, though it is questionable whether he had a perfect right to enter -into such an agreement, seeing that the plaintiff is married, and -compelled by the law to remain faithful to his lawful spouse: Whereas, -farther, etc., etc. - -Therefore the Court condemns Madame Luneau to pay an indemnity of -twenty-five francs to Hippolyte Lacour for loss of time and seduction. - - - - -A WISE MAN - - -Blérot had been my friend since childhood; we had no secrets from each -other, and were united heart and soul by a brotherly intimacy and a -boundless confidence in each other. He used to tell me his most intimate -thoughts, even the smallest pangs of conscience that are very often -kept hidden from our own selves. I did the same for him. I had been the -confident of all his love affairs, as he had been with mine. - -When he told me that he was going to get married I was hurt, as though -by an act of treason. I felt that it must interfere with that cordial and -absolute affection which had united us. His wife would come between us. -The intimacy of the marriage-bed establishes a kind of complicity, a -mysterious alliance between two persons, even when they have ceased to -love each other. Man and wife are like two discreet partners who will not -let anyone else into their secrets. But that close bond which the conjugal -kiss fastens is broken quickly on the day on which the woman takes a lover. - -I remember Blérot's wedding as if it were but yesterday. I would not be -present at the signing of the marriage contract, as I have no particular -liking for such ceremonies. I only went to the civil wedding and to the -church. - -His wife, whom I had never seen before, was a tall, slight girl, with -pale hair, pale cheeks, pale hands, and eyes to match. She walked with a -slightly undulating motion, as if she were on board a ship, and seemed to -advance with a succession of long, graceful courtesies. - -Blérot seemed very much in love with her. He looked at her constantly, -and I felt a shiver of an immoderate desire for her pass through his -frame. - -I went to see him a few days later, and he said to me: - -"You do not know how happy I am; I am madly in love with her; but then -she is--she is--" He did not finish his sentence, but he put the tips -of his fingers to his lips with a gesture which signified "divine! -delicious! perfect!" and a good deal more besides. - -I asked, laughing, "What! all that?" - -"Everything that you can imagine," was his answer. - -He introduced me to her. She was very pleasant, on easy terms with me, -as was natural, and begged me to look upon their house as my own. But I -felt that he, Blérot, did not belong to me any longer. Our intimacy was -cut off definitely, and we hardly found a word to say to each other. - -I soon took my leave, and shortly afterwards went to the East, -returning by way of Russia, Germany, Sweden, and Holland, after an -absence of eighteen months from Paris. - -The morning after my arrival, as I was walking along the boulevards -to feel the air of Paris once more, I saw a pale man with sunken cheeks -coming toward me, who was as much like Blérot as it was possible for an -emaciated tubercular man to resemble a strong, ruddy, rather stout man. I -looked at him in surprise, and asked myself: "Can it possibly be he?" But -he saw me, uttered a cry, and came toward me with outstretched arms. I -opened mine and we embraced in the middle of the boulevard. - -After we had gone up and down once or twice from the Rue Drouot to the -Vaudeville Theatre, just as we were taking leave of each other,--for -he already seemed quite done up with walking,--I said to him: - -"You don't look at all well. Are you ill?" - -"I do feel rather out of sorts," was all he said. - -He looked like a man who was going to die, and I felt a flood of -affection for my dear old friend, the only real one that I had ever had. -I squeezed his hands. - -"What is the matter with you? Are you in pain?" - -"A little tired; but it is nothing." - -"What does your doctor say?" - -"He calls it anæmia, and has ordered me to eat no white meat and to take -tincture of iron." - -A suspicion flashed across me. - -"Are you happy?" I asked him. - -"Yes, very happy; my wife is charming, and I love her more than ever." - -But I noticed that he grew rather red and seemed embarrassed, as if he -was afraid of any further questions, so I took him by the arm and pushed -him into a café, which was nearly empty at that time of day. I forced him -to sit down, and looking him straight in the face, I said: - -"Look here, old fellow, just tell me the exact truth." - -"I have nothing to tell you," he stammered. - -"That is not true," I replied, firmly. "You are ill, mentally perhaps, -and you dare not reveal your secret to anyone. Something or other is doing -you harm, and I mean you to tell me what it is. Come, I am waiting for you -to begin." - -Again he got very red, stammered, and turning his head away, he said: - -"It is very idiotic--but I--I am done for!" - -As he did not go on, I said: - -"Just tell me what it is." - -"Well, I have got a wife who is killing me, that is all," he said -abruptly, almost desperately as if he had uttered a torturing thought, -as yet unrealised. - -I did not understand at first. "Does she make you unhappy? She makes -you suffer, night and day? How? What is it?" - -"No," he replied in a low voice, as if he were confessing some crime; -"I love her too much, that is all." - -I was thunderstruck at this unexpected avowal, and then I felt inclined -to laugh, but at length I managed to reply: - -"But surely, at least so it seems to me, you might manage to--to love -her a little less." - -He had got very pale again, but finally he made up his mind to speak -to me openly, as he used to do formerly. - -"No," he said, "that is impossible; and I am dying from it, I know; it -is killing me, and I am really frightened. Some days, like to-day, I feel -inclined to leave her, to go away altogether, to start for the other end -of the world, so as to live for a long time; and then, when the evening -comes, I return home in spite of myself, but slowly, and feeling -uncomfortable. I go upstairs hesitatingly and ring, and when I go in I -see her there sitting in her arm-chair, and she says, 'How late you are,' -I kiss her, and we sit down to dinner. During the meal I think: 'I will go -directly it is over, and take the train for somewhere, no matter where'; -but when we get back to the drawing-room I am so tired that I have not the -courage to get up out of my chair, and so I remain, and then--and then--I -succumb again." - -I could not help smiling again. He saw it, and said: "You may laugh, but -I assure you it is very horrible." - -"Why don't you tell your wife?" I asked him. "Unless she be a regular -monster she would understand." - -He shrugged his shoulders. "It is all very well for you to talk. I -don't tell her because I know her nature. Have you ever heard it said of -certain women, 'She has just married a third time?' Well, and that makes -you laugh as you did just now, and yet it is true. What is to be done? It -is neither her fault nor mine. She is so, because nature has made her so; -I assure you, my dear old friend, she has the temperament of a Messalina. -She does not know it, but I do; so much the worse for me. She is charming, -gentle, tender, and thinks that our conjugal intercourse, which is wearing -me out and killing me, is natural and quite moderate. She seems like an -ignorant schoolgirl, and she really is ignorant, poor child. - -"Every day I form energetic resolutions, for you must understand that I -am dying. But one look of her eyes, one of those looks in which I can read -the ardent desire of her lips, is enough for me, and I succumb at once, -saying to myself: 'This is really the end; I will have no more of her -death-giving kisses,' and then, when I have yielded again, like I have -to-day, I go out and walk and walk, thinking of death, and saying to -myself that I am lost, that all is over. - -"I am mentally so ill that I went for a walk to Père Lachaise cemetery -yesterday. I looked at all the graves, standing in a row like dominoes, -and I thought to myself: 'I shall soon be there,' and then I returned -home, quite determined to pretend to be ill, and so escape, but I could -not. - -"Oh! You don't know what it is. Ask a smoker who is poisoning himself -with nicotine whether he can give up his delicious and deadly habit. -He will tell you that he has tried a hundred times without success, and -he will, perhaps, add: 'So much the worse, but I would rather die than go -without tobacco.' That is just the case with me. When once one is in the -clutches of such a passion or such a habit, one must give oneself up to -it entirely." - -He got up and held out his hand. I felt seized with a tumult of rage, -and with hatred for this woman, this careless, charming, terrible woman; -and as he was buttoning up his coat to go away I said to him, brutally -perhaps: - -"But, in God's name, why don't you let her have lovers rather than -kill yourself like that?" - -He shrugged his shoulders without replying, and went off. - -For six months I did not see him. Every morning I expected a letter of -invitation to his funeral, but I would not go to his house from a -complicated feeling of anger against him and of contempt for that woman; -for a thousand different reasons. - -One lovely spring morning I was walking in the Champs-Elysées. It was -one of those warm afternoons which make our eyes bright and stir in us a -tumultuous feeling of happiness from the mere sense of existence. Some one -tapped me on the shoulder, and turning round I saw my old friend, looking -well, stout, and rosy. - -He gave me both hands, beaming with pleasure, and exclaimed: - -"Here you are, you erratic individual!" - -I looked at him, utterly thunderstruck. - -"Well, on my word--yes. By Jove! I congratulate you; you have indeed -changed in the last six months!" - -He flushed scarlet, and said, with an embarrassed laugh: - -"One can but do one's best." - -I looked at him so obstinately that he evidently felt uncomfortable, -so I went on: - -"So--now--you are--completely cured?" - -He stammered, hastily: - -"Yes, perfectly, thank you." Then changing his tone, "How lucky that I -should have come across you, old fellow. I hope we shall see each other -often now." - -But I would not give up my idea; I wanted to know how matters really -stood, so I asked: - -"Don't you remember what you told me six months ago? I suppose--I--eh--suppose -you resist now?" - -"Please don't talk any more about it," he replied, uneasily; "forget -that I mentioned it to you; leave me alone. But, you know, I have no -intention of letting you go; you must come and dine at my house." - -A sudden fancy took me to see for myself how matters stood, so that I -might understand all about it, and I accepted. Two hours later he -introduced me to his home. - -His wife received me in a most charming manner, and she was, as a matter -of fact, a most attractive woman. She looked guileless, distinguished and -adorably naïve. Her long hands, her neck, and cheeks were beautifully -white and delicate, and marked her breeding, and her walk was undulating -and delightful, as if her leg gave slightly at each step. - -René gave her a brotherly kiss on the forehead and said: - -"Has not Lucien come yet?" - -"Not yet," she replied, in a clear, soft voice; "you know he is almost -always rather late." - -At that moment the bell rang, and a tall man was shown in. He was dark, -with a thick beard, and looked like a society Hercules. We were introduced -to each other; his name was Lucien Delabarre. - -René and he shook hands in a most friendly manner, and then we went to -dinner. - -It was a most enjoyable meal, without the least constraint. My old -friend spoke with me constantly, in the old familiar cordial manner, just -as he used to do. It was: "You know, old fellow!"--"I say, old -fellow!"--"Just listen a moment, old fellow!" Suddenly he exclaimed: - -"You don't know how glad I am to see you again; it takes me back to old -times." - -I looked at his wife and the other man. Their attitude was perfectly -correct, though I fancied once or twice that they exchanged a rapid and -furtive look. - -As soon as dinner was over René turned to his wife, and said: - -"My dear, I have just met Pierre again, and I am going to carry him off -for a walk and a chat along the boulevards to remind us of old times. -You will excuse this bachelor spree. I am leaving Mr. Delabarre with you." - -The young woman smiled, and said to me, as she shook hands with me: - -"Don't keep him too long." - -As we went along, arm-in-arm, I could not help saying to him, for I was -determined to know how matters stood: - -"What has happened? Do tell me!" - -He, however, interrupted me roughly, and answered like a man who has -been disturbed without any reason. - -"Just look here, old fellow; leave me alone with your questions." - -Then he added, half aloud, as if talking to himself: - -"After all, it would have been too stupid to have let oneself go to -perdition like that." - -I did not press him. We walked on quickly and began to talk. All of a -sudden he whispered in my ear: - -"I say, suppose we go and see the girls! Eh?" - -I could not help laughing heartily. - -"Just as you like; come along, old man." - - - - -THE UMBRELLA - - -Madame Oreille was a very economical woman; she thoroughly knew the -value of a half-penny, and possessed a whole store-house of strict -principles with regard to the multiplication of money, so that her servant -found the greatest difficulty in making what servants call their -"market-penny," while her husband had great difficulty in getting any -pocket-money at all. They were, however, very comfortably off, and had no -children. It really pained. Mme Oreille to see any money spent; it was -like tearing at her heartstrings when she had to take any of those silver -pieces out of her pocket; and whenever she had to spend anything, no -matter how necessary it was, she slept badly the next night. - -Oreille was continually saying to his wife: - -"You really might be more liberal, as we have no children and never -spend our income." - -"You don't know what may happen," she used to reply. "It is better to -have too much than too little." - -She was a little woman of about forty, very active, rather hasty, -wrinkled, very neat and tidy, and with a very short temper. Her husband -very often used to complain of all the privations she made him endure; -some of them were particularly painful to him, as they touched his -vanity. - -He was one of the upper clerks in the War Office, and only stayed there -in obedience to his wife's wish, so as to increase their income, which -they did not nearly spend. - -For two years he had always come to the office with the same old patched -umbrella, to the great amusement of his fellow-clerks. At last he got -tired of their jokes, and insisted upon his wife buying him a new one. -She bought one for eight francs and a-half, one of those cheap things -which big stores sell as an advertisement. When the others in the office -saw the article, which was being sold in Paris by the thousand, they began -their jokes again, and Oreille had a dreadful time of it with them. The -umbrella was no good. In three months it was done for and at the office -everybody laughed. They even made a song about it, which he heard from -morning till night all over the immense building. - -Oreille was very angry, and peremptorily told his wife to get him a new -one, a good silk one, for twenty francs, and to bring him the bill, so -that he might see that it was all right. - -She bought him one for eighteen francs, and said, getting red with anger -as she gave it to her husband: - -"This will last you for five years at least." - -Oreille felt quite triumphant, and obtained a small ovation at the -office with his new acquisition. When he went home in the evening, his -wife said to him, looking at the umbrella uneasily: - -"You should not leave it fastened up with the elastic; it will very -likely cut the silk. You must take care of it, for I shall not buy you -a new one in a hurry." - -She took it, unfastened it, and then remained dumfounded, with -astonishment and rage. In the middle of the silk there was a hole as big -as a six-penny-piece, as if made with the end of a cigar. - -"What is that?" she screamed. - -Her husband replied quietly, without looking at it: - -"What is it? What do you mean?" - -She was choking with rage and could hardly get out a word. - -"You--you--have burned--your umbrella! Why--you must be--mad! Do you -wish to ruin us outright?" - -He turned round hastily, turning pale. - -"What are you talking about?" - -"I say that you have burned your umbrella. Just look here--" - -And rushing at him, as if she were going to beat him, she violently -thrust the little circular burned hole under his nose. - -He was so utterly struck dumb at the sight of it that he could only -stammer out: - -"What--what is it? How should I know? I have done nothing, I will -swear. I don't know what is the matter with the umbrella." - -"You have been playing tricks with it at the office; you have been -playing the fool and opening it, to show it off!" she screamed. - -"I only opened it once, to let them see what a nice one it was, that -is all, I declare." - -But she shook with rage, and got up one of those conjugal scenes which -make a peaceable man dread the domestic hearth more than a battlefield -where bullets are raining. - -She mended it with a piece of silk cut out of the old umbrella, which -was of a different color, and the next day Oreille went off very humbly -with the mended article in his hand. He put it into a cupboard, and -thought no more of it than of some unpleasant recollection. - -But he had scarcely got home that evening when his wife took the -umbrella from him, opened it, and nearly had a fit when she saw what had -befallen it, for the disaster was now irreparable. It was covered with -small holes, which evidently, proceeded from burns, just as if some one -had emptied the ashes from a lighted pipe on to it. It was done for, -utterly, irreparably. - -She looked at it without a word, in too great a passion to be able to -say anything. He also, when he saw the damage, remained almost dumb, in a -state of frightened consternation. - -They looked at each other; then he looked on to the floor. The next -moment she threw the useless article at his head, screaming out in a -transport of the most violent rage, for she had now recovered her voice: - -"Oh! you brute! you brute! You did it on purpose, but I will pay you -out for it. You shall not have another." - -And then the scene began again. After the storm had raged for an hour, -he, at last, was able to explain himself. He declared that he could not -understand it at all, and that it could only proceed from malice or from -vengeance. - -A ring at the bell saved him; it was a friend whom they were expecting -to dinner. - -Mme Oreille submitted the case to him. As for buying a new umbrella, -that was out of the question; her husband should not have another. The -friend very sensibly said that in that case his clothes would be spoiled, -and they were certainly worth more than the umbrella. But the little -woman, who was still in a rage, replied: - -"Very well, then, when it rains he may have the kitchen umbrella, for I -will not give him a new silk one." - -Oreille utterly rebelled at such an idea. - -"All right," he said; "then I shall resign my post. I am not going to -the office with the kitchen umbrella." - -The friend interposed: - -"Have this one re-covered; it will not cost much." - -But Mme Oreille, being in the temper that she was, said: - -"It will cost at least eight francs to re-cover it. Eight and eighteen -are twenty-six. Just fancy, twenty-six francs for an umbrella! It is utter -madness!" - -The friend, who was only a poor man of the middle classes, had an -inspiration: - -"Make your fire insurance pay for it. The companies pay for all articles -that are burned, as long as the damage has been done in your own house." - -On hearing this advice the little woman calmed down immediately, and -then, after a moment's reflection, she said to her husband: - -"To-morrow, before going to your office, you will go to the Maternelle -Insurance Company, show them the state your umbrella is in, and make them -pay for the damage." - -M. Oreille fairly jumped, he was so startled at the proposal. - -"I would not do it for my life! It is eighteen francs lost, that is -all. It will not ruin us." - -The next morning he took a walking-stick when he went out, for, luckily, -it was a fine day. - -Left at home alone, Mme Oreille could not get over the loss of her -eighteen francs by any means. She had put the umbrella on the dining-room -table, and she looked at it without being able to come to any -determination. - -Every moment she thought of the insurance company, but she did not dare -to encounter the quizzical looks of the gentlemen who might receive her, -for she was very, timid before people, and grew red at a mere nothing, -feeling embarrassed when she had to speak to strangers. - -But regret at the loss of the eighteen francs pained her as if she had -been wounded. She tried not to think of it any more, and yet every moment -the recollection of the loss struck her painfully. What was she to do, -however? Time went on, and she could not decide; but suddenly, like all -cowards, she made up her mind. - -"I will go, and we will see what will happen." - -But first of all she was obliged to prepare the umbrella so that the -disaster might be complete, and the reason of it quite evident. She took a -match from the mantelpiece, and between the ribs she burned a hole as big -as the palm of her hand. Then she rolled it up carefully, fastened it with -the elastic band, put on her bonnet and shawl, and went quickly toward the -Rue de Rivoli, where the insurance office was. - -But the nearer she got the slower she walked. What was she going to say, -and what reply would she get? - -She looked at the numbers of the houses; there were still twenty-eight. -That was all right, she had time to consider, and she walked slower and -slower. Suddenly she saw a door on which was a large brass plate with "La -Maternelle Fire Insurance Office" engraved on it. Already! She waited for -a moment, for she felt nervous and almost ashamed; then she went past, -came back, went past again, and came back again. - -At last she said to herself: - -"I must go in, however, so I may as well do it now as later." - -She could not help noticing, however, how her heart beat as she entered. -She went into an enormous room with grated wicket openings all round, -and a man behind each of them, and as a gentleman, carrying a number of -papers, passed her, she stopped him and said, timidly: - -"I beg your pardon, Monsieur, but can you tell me where I must apply -for payment for anything that has been accidentally burned?" - -He replied in a sonorous voice: - -"The first door on the left; that is the department you want." - -This frightened her still more, and she felt inclined to run away, to -make no claim, to sacrifice her eighteen francs. But the idea of that sum -revived her courage, and she went upstairs, out of breath, stopping at -almost every other step. - -She knocked at a door which she saw on the first landing, and a clear -voice said, in answer: - -"Come in!" - -She obeyed mechanically, and found herself in a large room where three -solemn gentlemen, each with a decoration in his buttonhole, were standing -talking. - -One of them asked her: "What do you want, Madame?" - -She could hardly get out her words, but stammered: "I have come--I have -come on account of an accident, something--" - -He very politely pointed out a seat to her. - -"If you will kindly sit down I will attend to you in a moment." - -And, returning to the other two, he went on with the conversation. - -"The company, gentlemen, does not consider that it is under any -obligation to you for more than four hundred thousand francs, and we can -pay no attention to your claim to the further sum of a hundred thousand, -which you wish to make us pay. Besides that, the surveyor's valuation--" - -One of the others interrupted him: - -"That is quite enough, Monsieur; the law-courts will decide between us, -and we have nothing further to do than to take our leave." And they went -out after mutual ceremonious bows. - -Oh! if she could only have gone away with them, how gladly she would -have done it; she would have run away and given up everything. But it was -too late, for the gentleman came back, and said, bowing: - -"What can I do for you, Madame?" - -She could scarcely speak, but at last she managed to say: - -"I have come--for this." - -The manager looked at the object which she held out to him in mute -astonishment. With trembling fingers she tried to undo the elastic, and -succeeded, after several attempts, and hastily opened the damaged -remains of the umbrella. - -"It looks to me to be in a very bad state of health," he said, -compassionately. - -"It cost me twenty francs," she said, with some hesitation. - -He seemed astonished. "Really! As much as that?" - -"Yes, it was a capital article, and I wanted you to see the state it -is in." - -"Very well, I see; very well. But I really do not understand what it -can have to do with me." - -She began to feel uncomfortable; perhaps this company did not pay for -such small articles, and she said: - -"But--it is burned." - -He could not deny it. - -"I see that very well," he replied. - -She remained open-mouthed, not knowing what to say next; then suddenly -forgetting that she had left out the main thing, she said hastily: - -"I am Mme Oreille; we are assured in La Maternelle, and I have come to -claim the value of this damage. I only want you to have it re-covered," -she added quickly, fearing a positive refusal. - -The manager was rather embarrassed, and said: - -"But, really, Madame, we do not sell umbrellas; we cannot undertake -such kinds of repairs." - -The little woman felt her courage reviving; she was not going to give -up without a struggle; she was not even afraid now, so she said: - -"I only want you to pay me the cost of repairing it; I can quite well -get it done myself." - -The gentleman seemed rather confused. - -"Really, Madame, it is such a very small matter! We are never asked -to give compensation for such trivial losses. You must allow that we -cannot make good pocket-handkerchiefs, gloves, brooms, slippers, all the -small articles which are every day exposed to the chances of being -burned." - -She got red, and felt inclined to fly into a rage. - -"But Monsieur, last December one of our chimneys caught fire, and caused -at least five hundred francs' damage. M. Oreille made no claim on the -company, and so it is only just that it should pay for my umbrella now." - -The manager, guessing that she was telling a lie, said, with a smile: - -"You must acknowledge, Madame, that it is very surprising that M. -Oreille should have asked no compensation for damages amounting to five -hundred francs, and should now claim five or six francs for mending an -umbrella." - -She was not the least put out, and replied: - -"I beg your pardon, Monsieur, the five hundred francs affected M. -Oreille's pocket, whereas this damage, amounting to eighteen francs, -concerns Mme Oreille's pocket only, which is a totally different matter." - -As he saw that he had no chance of getting rid of her, and that he would -only be wasting his time, he said, resignedly: - -"Will you kindly tell me how the damage was done?" - -She felt that she had won the victory, and said: - -"This is how it happened. Monsieur: In our hall there is a bronze -stick and umbrella-stand, and the other day, when I came in, I put my -umbrella into it. I must tell you that just above there is a shelf for the -candlesticks and matches. I put out my hand, took three or four matches, -and struck one, but it missed fire, so I struck another, which ignited, -but went out immediately, and a third did the same." - -The manager interrupted her, to make a joke. - -"I suppose they were Government matches, then?" - -She did not understand him, and went on: - -"Very likely. At any rate, the fourth caught fire, and I lit my candle, -and went into my room to go to bed; but in a quarter-of-an-hour I fancied -that I smelled something burning, and I have always been terribly afraid -of fire. If ever we have an accident it will not be my fault, I assure -you. I am terribly nervous since our chimney was on fire, as I told you; -so I got up, and hunted about everywhere, sniffing like a dog after game, -and at last I noticed that my umbrella was burning. Most likely a match -had fallen between the folds and burned it. You can see how it has damaged -it." - -The manager had taken his clue, and asked her: - -"What do you estimate the damage at?" - -She did not know what to say, as she was not certain what amount to put -on it, but at last she replied: - -"Perhaps you had better get it done yourself. I will leave it to you." - -He, however, naturally refused. - -"No, Madame, I cannot do that. Tell me the amount of your claim, that -is all I want to know." - -"Well!--I think that--Look here. Monsieur, I do not want to make any -money out of you, so I will tell you what we will do. I will take my -umbrella to the maker, who will re-cover it in good, durable silk, and -I will bring the bill to you. Will that suit you, Monsieur?" - -"Perfectly, Madame; we will settle it on that basis. Here is a note -for the cashier, who will repay you whatever it costs you." - -He gave Mme Oreille a slip of paper. She took it, got up, and went out, -thanking him, for she was in a hurry to escape lest he should change his -mind. - -She went briskly through the streets, looking out for a really good -umbrella-maker, and when she found a shop which appeared to be a -first-class one, she went in, and said, confidently: - -"I want this umbrella re-covered in silk, good silk. Use the very best -and strongest you have; I don't mind what it costs." - - - - -A MEETING - - -It was all an accident, a pure accident. Tired of standing, Baron -d'Étraille went--as all the Princess's rooms were open on that particular -evening--into an empty bedroom, which appeared almost dark after -coming-out of the brilliantly-lighted drawing-rooms. - -He looked round for a chair in which to doze, as he was sure his wife -would not go away before daylight. As soon as he got inside the door he -saw the big bed with its azure-and-gold hangings, in the middle of the -great room, looking like a catafalque in which love was buried, for the -Princess was no longer young. Behind it, a large bright spot looked like a -lake seen at a distance from a window. It was a big looking-glass, -discreetly covered with dark draperies that were sometimes let down, and -often opened up, and it seemed to look at the bed, which was its -accomplice. One might almost fancy that it felt regrets, and that one was -going to see in it the charming shapes of the thighs of women and the -gentle movement of arms about to embrace them. - -The Baron stood still for a moment, smiling and rather moved, on the -threshold of this chamber dedicated to love. But suddenly something -appeared in the looking-glass, as if the phantoms which he had evoked had -come up before him. A man and a woman who had been sitting on a low couch -hidden in the shade had risen, and the polished surface, reflecting their -figures, showed that they were kissing each other before separating. - -The Baron recognised his wife and the Marquis de Cervigné. He turned and -went away like a man fully master of himself, and waited till it was day -before taking away the Baronne. But he had no longer any thoughts of -sleeping. - -As soon as they were alone, he said: - -"Madame, I saw you just now in the Princess de Raynes's room. I need -say no more, for I am not fond either of reproaches, acts of violence, or -of ridicule. As I wish to avoid all such things, we shall separate without -any scandal. Our lawyers will settle your position according to my orders. -You will be free to live as you please when you are no longer under my -roof; but, as you will continue to bear my name, I must warn you that -should any scandal arise, I shall show myself inflexible." - -She tried to speak, but he stopped her, bowed, and left the room. - -He was more astonished and sad than unhappy. He had loved her dearly -during the first period of their married life; but his ardour had cooled, -and now he often had a caprice, either in a theatre or in society, though -he always preserved a certain liking for the Baronne. - -She was very young, hardly four-and-twenty, small, thin,--too thin,--and -very fair. She was a true Parisian doll: clever, spoiled, elegant, -coquettish, witty, with more charm than real beauty. He used to say -familiarly to his brother, when speaking of her: - -"My wife is charming, attractive, but--there is nothing to lay hold of. -She is like a glass of champagne that is all froth--when you have got to -the wine it is very good, but there is too little of it, unfortunately." - -He walked up and down the room in great agitation, thinking of a -thousand things. At one moment he felt in a great rage, and felt inclined -to give the Marquis a good thrashing, to horsewhip him publicly, in the -club. But he thought that would not do, it would not be the thing; _be_ -would be laughed at, and not the other, and he felt that his anger -proceeded more from wounded vanity than from a broken heart. So he went to -bed, but could not get to sleep. - -A few days afterward it was known in Paris that the Baron and Baronne -d'Étraille had agreed to an amicable separation on account of -incompatibility of temper. Nobody suspected anything, nobody laughed, and -nobody was astonished. - -The Baron, however, to avoid meeting her, travelled for a year; then he -spent the summer at the seaside, and the autumn in shooting, returning to -Paris for the winter. He did not meet his wife once. - -He did not even know what people said about her. At any rate, she took -care to save appearances, and that was all he asked for. - -He got dreadfully bored, travelled again, restored his old castle of -Villebosc--which took him two years; then for over a year he received -relays of friends there, till at last, tired of all these commonplace, -so-called pleasures, he returned to his mansion in the Rue de Lilles, -just six years after their separation. - -He was then forty-five, with a good crop of gray hair, rather stout, -and with that melancholy look of people who have been handsome, sought -after, much liked, and are deteriorating daily. - -A month after his return to Paris he took cold on coming out of his -club, and had a bad cough, so his doctor ordered him to Nice for the rest -of the winter. - -He started by the express on Monday evening. He was late, got to the -station only a very short time before the departure of the train, and had -barely time to get into a carriage, with only one other occupant, who was -sitting in a corner so wrapped in furs and cloaks that he could not even -make out whether it were a man or a woman, as nothing of the figure could -be seen. When he perceived that he could not find out, he put on his -travelling-cap, rolled himself up in his rugs, and stretched himself out -comfortably to sleep. - -He did not wake up till the day was breaking, and looked immediately at -his fellow-traveller. He had not stirred all night, and seemed still to be -sound asleep. - -M. d'Étraille made use of the opportunity to brush his hair and his -beard, and to try and freshen himself up a little generally, for a night's -travelling changes one's looks very much when one has attained a certain -age. - -A great poet has said: - - -Quand on est jeune, on a des matins triomphants! - - -Then we wake up with a cool skin, a bright eye, and glossy hair. When -one grows older one wakes up in a very different state. Dull eyes, red, -swollen cheeks, dry lips, the hair and beard all disarranged, impart an -old, fatigued, worn-out look to the face. - -The Baron opened his travelling dressing-case, made himself as tidy as -he could, and then waited. - -The engine whistled and the train stopped, and his neighbour moved. No -doubt he was awake. They started off again, and then an oblique ray of -the sun shone into the carriage just on to the sleeper, who moved again, -shook himself, and then calmly showed his face. - -It was a young, fair, pretty, stout woman, and the Baron looked at her -in amazement. He did not know what to believe. He could really have sworn -that it was his wife--but wonderfully changed for the better: -stouter--why, she had grown as stout as he was--only it suited her much -better than it did him. - -She looked at him quietly, did not seem to recognise him, and then -slowly laid aside her wraps. She had that calm assurance of a woman who -is sure of herself, the insolent audacity of a first awaking, knowing and -feeling that she was in her full beauty and freshness. - -The Baron really lost his head. Was it his wife, or somebody else who -was as like her as any sister could be? As he had not seen her for six -years he might be mistaken. - -She yawned, and he knew her by the gesture. She turned and looked at -him again, calmly, indifferently, as if she scarcely saw him, and then -looked out at the country again. - -He was upset and dreadfully perplexed, and waited, looking at her -sideways, steadfastly. - -Yes; it was certainly his wife. How could he possibly have doubted? -There could certainly not be two noses like that, and a thousand -recollections flashed through him, slight details of her body, a -beauty-spot on one of her limbs and another on her back. How often he had -kissed them! He felt the old feeling of the intoxication of love stealing -over him, and he called to mind the sweet odour of her skin, her smile -when she put her arms on to his shoulders, the soft intonations of her -voice, all her graceful, coaxing ways. - -But how she had changed and improved! It was she and yet not she. He -thought her riper, more developed, more of a woman, more seductive, more -desirable, adorably desirable. - -And this strange, unknown woman, whom he had accidentally met in a -railway-carriage belonged to him; he had only to say to her: - -"I insist upon it." - -He had formerly slept in her arms, existed only in her love, and now -he had found her again certainly, but so changed that he scarcely knew -her. It was another, and yet she at the same time. It was another who had -been born, formed, and grown since he had left her. It was she, indeed; -she whom he had possessed but whom he found with her manners modified, her -features more formed, her smile less affected, her gestures surer. There -were two women in one, mingling a great deal of what was new and unknown -with many sweet recollections of the past. There was something -extraordinary, disturbing, exciting about it--a kind of mystery of love in -which there floated a delicious confusion. It was his wife in a new body -and in new flesh which his lips had never pressed. - -And he remembered that in six or seven years everything changes in us, -only outlines can be recognised, and sometimes even they disappear. - -The blood, the hair, the skin, all change, and are reconstituted, and -when people have not seen each other for a long time they find, when they -meet, another totally different being, although it be the same and bear -the same name. - -And the heart also can change. Ideas may be modified and renewed, -so that in forty years of life we may, by gradual and constant -transformations, become four or five totally new and different beings. - -He dwelt on this thought till it troubled him; it had first taken -possession of him when he surprised her in the Princess's room. He was -not the least angry; it was not the same woman that he was looking -at--that thin, excitable little doll of those days. - -What was he to do? How should he address her? and what could he say -to her? Had she recognised him? - -The train stopped again. He got up, bowed, and said: "Berthe, do you -want anything I can bring you?" - -She looked at him from head to foot, and answered, without showing the -slightest surprise or confusion or anger, but with the most perfect -indifference: - -"I do not want anything--thank you." - -He got out and walked up and down the platform a little in order to -think, and, as it were, to recover his senses after a fall. What should -he do now? If he got into another carriage it would look as if he were -running away. Should he be gallant? That would look as if he were asking -for forgiveness. Should he speak as if he were her master? He would -look like a cad, and besides, he really had no right to do so. - -He got in again and took his place. - -During his absence she had hastily arranged her dress and hair, and was -now lying stretched out on the seat, radiant, but without showing any -emotion. - -He turned to her, and said: "My dear Berthe, since this singular chance -has brought us together after a separation of six years--a quite friendly -separation--are we to continue to look upon each other as irreconcilable -enemies? We are shut up together, tête-à-tête, which is so much the better -or so much the worse. I am not going to get into another carriage, so -don't you think it is preferable to talk as friends till the end of our -journey?" - -She answered quite calmly again: - -"Just as you please." - -Then he suddenly stopped, really not knowing what to say; but as he had -plenty of assurance, he sat down on the middle seat, and said: - -"Well, I see I must court you; so much the better. It is, however, -really a pleasure, for you are charming. You cannot imagine how you have -improved in the last six years. I do not know any woman who could give me -that delightful sensation which I experienced just now when you emerged -from your wraps. I could really have thought such a change impossible." - -Without moving her head or looking at him, she said: "I cannot say the -same with regard to you; you have certainly deteriorated a great deal." - -He got red and confused, and then, with a smile of resignation, he said: - -"You are rather hard." - -"Why?" was her reply. "I am only stating facts. I don't suppose you -intend to offer me your love? It must, therefore, be a matter of perfect -indifference to you what I think about you. But I see it is a painful -subject, so let us talk of something else. What have you been doing since -I last saw you?" - -He felt rather out of countenance, and stammered: - -"I? I have travelled, hunted, and grown old, as you see. And you?" - -She said, quite calmly: "I have always kept up appearances, as you -ordered me." - -He was very nearly saying something brutal, but he checked himself, and -kissed his wife's hand: - -"And I thank you," he said. - -She was surprised. He was indeed strong and always master of himself. - -He went on: "As you have acceded to my first request, shall we now talk -without any bitterness?" - -She made a little gesture of disdain. - -"Bitterness! I don't feel any; you are a complete stranger to me; I am -only trying to keep up a difficult conversation." - -He was still looking at her, carried away in spite of her harshness, -and he felt seized with a brutal desire, the desire of the master. - -Perceiving that she had hurt his feelings, she said: - -"How old are you now? I thought you were younger than you look." - -He grew rather pale: - -"I am forty-five;" and then he added: "I forgot to ask after Princess -de Raynes. Are you still intimate with her?" - -She looked at him as if she hated him: - -"Yes, certainly I am. She is very well, thank you." - -They remained sitting side by side, agitated and irritated. Suddenly -he said: - -"My dear Berthe, I have changed my mind. You are my wife, and I expect -you to come with me to-day. You have, I think, improved both morally -and physically, and I am going to take you back again. I am your husband -and it is my right to do so." - -She was quite taken aback, and looked at him, trying to divine his -thoughts; but his face was resolute and impenetrable. - -"I am very sorry," she said, "but I have made other engagements." - -"So much the worse for you," was his reply. "The law gives me the power, -and I mean to use it." - -They were getting to Marseilles, and the train whistled and slackened -speed. The Baronne got up, carefully rolled up her wraps, and then turning -to her husband, she said: - -"My dear Raymond, do not make a bad use of the tête-à-tête which I had -carefully prepared. I wished to take precautions, according to your -advice, so that I might have nothing to fear from you or from other -people, whatever might happen. You are going to Nice, are you not?" - -"I shall go wherever you go." - -"Not at all; just listen to me, and I am sure that you will leave me -in peace. In a few moments, when we get to the station, you will see the -Princess de Raynes and the Comtesse Henriot waiting for me with their -husbands. I wished them to see us, and to know that we had spent the night -together in the railway-carriage. Don't be alarmed; they will tell it -everywhere as a most surprising fact. - -"I told you just now that I had most carefully followed your advice -and saved appearances. Anything else does not matter, does it? Well, in -order to do so, I wished to be seen with you. You told me carefully to -avoid any scandal, and I am avoiding it, for, I am afraid--I am afraid--" - -She waited till the train had quite stopped, and as her friends ran up -to open the carriage door, she said: - -"I am afraid that I am enceinte." - -The Princess stretched out her arms to embrace her, and the Baronne -said, pointing to the Baron, who was dumb with astonishment, and trying to -get at the truth: - -"You do not recognise Raymond? He has certainly changed a good deal, -and he agreed to come with me so that I might not travel alone. We take -little trips like this occasionally, like good friends who cannot live -together. We are going to separate here; he has had enough of me -already." - -She put out her hand, which he took mechanically, and then she jumped -out on to the platform among her friends, who were waiting for her. - -The Baron hastily shut the carriage door, for he was too much disturbed -to say a word or come to any determination. He heard his wife's voice, and -their merry laughter as they went away. - -He never saw her again, nor did he ever discover whether she had told -him a lie or was speaking the truth. - - - - -DECORATED! - - -Some people are born with a predominant instinct, with some vocation or -some desire aroused, from the very moment they begin to speak or to -think. - -Ever since he was a child Monsieur Sacrement had only had one idea in -his head--to be decorated. When he was still quite a small boy he used to -wear a zinc Cross of the Legion of Honour just as other children wear a -soldier's cap, and he took his mother's hand in the street with a proud -look, sticking out his little chest with its red ribbon and metal star so -that it might show to advantage. - -His studies were not a success, and he failed in his examination for -Bachelor of Arts; so, not knowing what to do, he married a pretty girl, -for he had plenty of money of his own. - -They lived in Paris, like many rich middle-class people do, mixing with -their own particular set, without going among other people, proud of -knowing a Deputy, who might perhaps be a Minister some day, while two -heads of government departments were among their friends. - -But Monsieur Sacrement could not get rid of his one absorbing idea, and -he was very unhappy because he had not the right to wear a little bit of -coloured ribbon in his buttonhole. - -When he met any men who were decorated on the Boulevards, he looked at -them askance, with intense jealousy. Sometimes, when he had nothing -to do in the afternoon, he would count them, and say to himself: "Just let -me see how many I shall meet between the Madeleine and the Rue Drouot." - -Then he would walk slowly, looking at every coat, with a practiced eye, -for the little bit of red ribbon, and when he had got to the end of his -walk he always said the numbers out loud. "Eight officers and seventeen -knights. As many as that! It is stupid to sow the Cross broadcast in that -fashion. I wonder how many I shall meet going back?" - -And he returned slowly, unhappy when the crowd of passers-by interfered -with his seeing them. - -He knew the places where most of them were to be found. They swarmed in -the Palais Royal. Fewer were seen in the Avenue de l'Opéra than in the Rue -de la Paix, while the right side of the Boulevard was more frequented by -them than the left. - -They also seemed to prefer certain cafés and theatres. Whenever he saw -a group of white-haired old gentlemen standing together in the middle of -the pavement, interfering with the traffic, he used to say to himself: -"They are officers of the Legion of Honour," and he felt inclined to take -off his hat to them. - -He had often remarked that the officers had a different bearing from -mere knights. They carried their heads higher, and you felt that they -enjoyed greater official consideration, and a more widely-extended -importance. - -Sometimes M. Sacrement would be seized with a furious hatred for -everyone who was decorated; he felt like a Socialist towards them. Then, -when he got home, excited at meeting so many Crosses,--just like a poor -hungry wretch is on passing some dainty provision-shop,--he used to ask -in a loud voice: - -"When shall we get rid of this wretched government?" And his wife would -be surprised, and ask: - -"What is the matter with you to-day?" - -"I am indignant," he would reply, "at the injustice I see going on -around us. Oh! the Communards were certainly right!" - -After dinner he would go out again and look at the shops where all the -decorations were sold, and examine all the emblems of various shapes and -colours. He would have liked to possess them all, and to have walked -gravely at the head of a procession with his opera-hat under his arm and -his breast covered with decorations, radiant as a star, amid a buzz of -admiring whispers and a hum of respect. But, alas! he had no right to -wear any decoration whatever. - -He used to say to himself: "It is really too difficult for any man to -obtain the Legion of Honour unless he is some public functionary. Suppose -I try to get appointed an officer of the Academy!" - -But he did not know how to set about it, and spoke to his wife on the -subject, who was stupefied. - -"Officer of the Academy! What have you done to deserve it?" - -He got angry. "I know what I am talking about; I only want to know how -to set about it. You are quite stupid at times." - -She smiled. "You are quite right; I don't understand anything about it." - -An idea struck him: "Suppose you were to speak to M. Rosselin, the -Deputy, he might be able to advise me. You understand I cannot broach the -subject to him directly. It is rather difficult and delicate, but coming -from you it might seem quite natural." - -Mme Sacrement did what he asked her, and M. Rosselin promised to speak -to the Minister about it. Then Sacrement began to worry him, till the -Deputy told him he must make a formal application and put forward his -claims. - -"What were his claims?" he said. "He was not even a Bachelor of Arts." - -However, he set to work and produced a pamphlet, with the title, "The -People's Right to Instruction," but he could not finish it for want of -ideas. - -He sought for easier subjects, and began several in succession. The -first was, "The Instruction of Children by Means of the Eye." He wanted -gratuitous theatres to be established in every poor quarter of Paris for -little children. Their parents were to take them there when they were -quite young, and, by means of a magic-lantern, all the notions of human -knowledge were to be imparted to them. There were to be regular courses. -The sight would educate the mind, while the pictures would remain -impressed on the brain, and thus science would, so to say, be made -visible. What could be more simple than to teach universal history, -natural history, geography, botany, zoölogy, anatomy, etc., etc., thus? - -He had his ideas printed in tract form, and sent a copy to each Deputy, -ten to each Minister, fifty to the President of the Republic, ten to each -Parisian, and five to each provincial newspaper. - -Then he wrote on "Street Lending-Libraries." His idea was to have -little carts full of books drawn about the streets, like orange-carts are. -Every householder or lodger would have a right to ten volumes a month by -means of a half-penny subscription. - -"The people," M. Sacrement said, "will only disturb itself for the sake -of its pleasures, and since it will not go to instruction, instruction -must come to it," etc., etc. - -His essays attracted no attention, but he sent in his application, and -he got the usual formal official reply. He thought himself sure of -success, but nothing came of it. - -Then he made up his mind to apply personally. He begged for an -interview with the Minister of Public Instruction, and he was received -by a young subordinate, already very grave and important, who kept -touching the buttons of electric-bells to summon ushers, and footmen, and -officials inferior to himself. He declared to the applicant that his case -was going on quite favourably, and advised him to continue his remarkable -labours. So M. Sacrement set at it again. - -M. Rosselin, the Deputy, seemed now to take a great interest in his -success, and gave him a lot of excellent, practical advice. Rosselin was -decorated, although nobody knew exactly what he had done to deserve such -a distinction. - -He told Sacrement what new studies he ought to undertake; he introduced -him to learned Societies which took up particularly obscure points of -science, in the hope of gaining credit and honours thereby; and he even -took him under his wing at the Ministry. - -One day, when he came to lunch with his friend (for several months past -he had constantly taken his meals there), he said to him in a whisper as -he shook hands: "I have just obtained a great favour for you. The -Committee on Historical Works is going to intrust you with a commission. -There are some researches to be made in various libraries in France." - -Sacrement was so delighted that he could scarcely eat or drink, and a -week later he set out. He went from town to town, studying catalogues, -rummaging in lofts full of dusty volumes, and was a bore to all the -librarians. - -One day, happening to be at Rouen, he thought he should like to embrace -his wife, whom he had not seen for more than a week, so he took the nine -o'clock train, which would land him at home by twelve at night. - -He had his latchkey, so he went in without making any noise, delighted -at the idea of the surprise he was going to give her. She had locked -herself in. How tiresome! However, he cried out through the door: - -"Jeanne, it is I." - -She must have been very frightened, for he heard her jump out of bed -and speak to herself, as if she were in a dream. Then she went to her -dressing-room, opened and closed the door, and went quickly up and down -her room barefoot two or three times, shaking the furniture till the vases -and glasses sounded. Then at last she asked: - -"Is it you, Alexander?" - -"Yes, yes," he replied; "make haste and open the door." - -As soon as she had done so she threw herself into his arms, exclaiming: - -"Oh! what a fright! What a surprise! What a pleasure!" - -He began to undress himself methodically, as he did everything, and -from a chair he took his overcoat, which he was in the habit of hanging -up in the hall. But, suddenly, he remained motionless, struck dumb with -astonishment--there was a red ribbon in the buttonhole! - -"Why," he stammered, "this--this--this overcoat has got the rosette -in it!" - -In a second his wife threw herself on him, and, taking it from his -hands, she said: - -"No! you have made a mistake--give it to me." - -But he still held it by one of the sleeves, without letting it go, -repeating, in a half-dazed manner: - -"Oh! Why? Just explain. Whose overcoat is it? It is not mine, as it -has the Legion of Honour on it." - -She tried to take it from him, terrified, and hardly able to say: - -"Listen--listen--give it to me--I must not tell you--it is a -secret--listen to me." - -But he grew angry, and turned pale: - -"I want to know how this overcoat comes to be here? It does not belong -to me." - -Then she almost screamed at him: - -"Yes it does; listen--swear to me--well--you are decorated." - -She did not intend to joke at his expense. - -He was so overcome that he let the overcoat fall, and dropped into -an armchair. - -"I am--you say I am--decorated?" - -"Yes, but it is a secret, a great secret." - -She had put the glorious garment into a cupboard, and came to her -husband pale and trembling. - -"Yes," she continued, "it is a new overcoat that I have had made for -you. But I swore that I would not tell you anything about it, as it will -not be officially announced for a month or six weeks, and you were not to -have known till your return from your business journey. M. Rosselin -managed it for you." - -"Rosselin!" he contrived to utter in his joy; "he has obtained the -decoration for me? He--Oh!" - -And he was obliged to drink a glass of water. - -A little piece of white paper had fallen to the floor out of the pocket -of the overcoat. Sacrement picked it up; it was a visiting-card, and he -read out: - -"Rosselin--Deputy." - -"You see how it is," said his wife. - -He wept with joy, and, a week later, it was announced in the "Journal -Officiel" that M. Sacrement had been awarded the Legion of Honour on -account of his exceptional services. - - - - -CHÂLI - - -Admiral de la Vallée, who seemed to be half asleep in his armchair, -said in a voice which sounded like an old woman's: - -"I had a very singular little love adventure once; would you like to -hear it?" - -He spoke from the depths of his great armchair, with that everlasting -dry, wrinkled smile on his lips, that Voltairian smile which made people -take him for a terrible sceptic. - - - - -I - - -"I was thirty years of age and a first lieutenant in the navy, when I -was intrusted with an astronomical expedition to Central India. The -English Government provided me with all the necessary means for carrying -out my enterprise, and I was soon busied with a few followers in that -vast, strange, surprising country. - -"It would take me twenty volumes to relate that journey. I went through -wonderfully magnificent regions, was received by strangely handsome -princes, and was entertained with incredible magnificence. For two months -it seemed to me as if I were walking in a poem, that I was going about in -a fairy kingdom, on the back of imaginary elephants. In the midst of wild -forests I discovered extraordinary ruins, delicate and chiseled like -jewels, fine as lace and enormous as mountains, those fabulous, divine -monuments which are so graceful that one falls in love with their form as -with a woman, feeling a physical and sensual pleasure in looking at them. -As Victor Hugo says, 'Whilst wide-awake, I was walking in a dream.' - -"Toward the end of my journey I reached Ganhara, which was formerly one -of the most prosperous towns in Central India, but is now much decayed. -It is governed by a wealthy, arbitrary, violent, generous, and cruel -prince. His name is Rajah Maddan, a true Oriental potentate, delicate and -barbarous, affable and sanguinary, combining feminine grace with pitiless -ferocity. - -"The city lies at the bottom of a valley, on the banks of a little lake -surrounded by pagodas, which bathe their walls in the water. At a distance -the city looks like a white spot, which grows larger as one approaches it, -and by degrees you discover the domes and spires, the slender and graceful -summits of Indian monuments. - -"At about an hour's distance from the gates, I met a superbly -caparisoned elephant, surrounded by a guard of honour which the sovereign -had sent me, and I was conducted to the palace with great ceremony. - -"I should have liked to have taken the time to put on my gala uniform, -but royal impatience would not permit me to do it. He was anxious to make -my acquaintance, to know what he might expect from me. - -"I was ushered into a great hall surrounded by galleries, in the midst -of bronze-coloured soldiers in splendid uniforms, while all about were -standing men dressed in striking robes, studded with precious stones. - -"On a bench like our garden benches, without a back; I saw a shining -mass, a kind of setting sun reposing; it was the rajah who was waiting -for me, motionless, in a robe of the purest canary colour. He had some ten -or fifteen million francs' worth of diamonds on him, and by itself, on his -forehead, glistened the famous star of Delhi, which has always belonged to -the illustrious dynasty of the Pariharas of Mundore, from whom my host was -descended. - -"He was a man of about five-and-twenty, who seemed to have some negro -blood in his veins, although he belonged to the purest Hindoo race. He -had large, almost motionless, rather vague eyes, fat lips, a curly beard, -low forehead, and dazzling sharp white teeth, which he frequently showed -with a mechanical smile. He got up and gave me his hand in the English -fashion, and then made me sit down beside him on a bench which was so high -that my feet hardly touched the ground, and on which I was very -uncomfortable. - -"He immediately proposed a tiger hunt for the next day; war and hunting -were his chief occupations, and he could hardly understand how one could -care for anything else. He was evidently fully persuaded that I had only -come all that distance to amuse him a little, and to be the companion of -his pleasures. - -"As I stood greatly in need of his assistance, I tried to flatter his -tastes, and he was so pleased with me that he immediately wished to show -me how his trained boxers fought, and led the way into a kind of arena -situated within the palace. - -"At his command two naked men appeared, their hands covered with steel -claws. They immediately began to attack each other, trying to strike one -another with these sharp weapons, which left long cuts, from which the -blood flowed freely down their dark skins. - -"It lasted for a long time, till their bodies were a mass of wounds, -and the combatants were tearing each other's flesh with these pointed -blades. One of them had his jaw smashed, while the ear of the other -was split into three pieces. - -"The prince looked on with ferocious pleasure, uttered grunts of -delight, and imitated all their movements with careless gestures, crying -out constantly: - -"'Strike, strike hard!' - -"One fell down unconscious and had to be carried out of the arena, -covered with blood, while the rajah uttered a sigh of regret because it -was over so soon. - -"He turned to me to know my opinion; I was indignant, but I -congratulated him loudly. He then gave orders that I was to be conducted -to Couch-Mahal (the palace of pleasure), where I was to be lodged. - -"This palace, this jewel, was situated at the extremity of the royal -park, and one of its walls was built into the sacred lake of Vihara. It -was square, its four sides showing rows of galleries with colonnades -of most beautiful workmanship. At each angle there were light, lofty, or -low towers, standing either singly or in pairs: no two were alike, and -they looked like flowers growing out of that graceful plant of Oriental -architecture. All were surmounted by fantastic roofs, like coquettish -ladies' caps. - -"In the middle of the edifice a large dome raised its round cupola, like -a woman's bosom, up to a lovely slender belfry open to the sky. - -"The whole building was covered with sculpture from top to bottom, -with exquisite arabesques which delighted the eye, motionless processions -of delicate figures whose attitudes and gestures in stone told the story -of Indian manners and customs. - -"The rooms were lighted by windows with dentelated arches, looking on -to the gardens. On the marble floor were designs of graceful bouquets in -onyx, lapis-lazuli, and agate. - -"I had scarcely had time to finish my toilette when Haribadada, a court -dignitary who was specially charged to communicate between the prince and -me, announced his sovereign's visit. - -"The saffron-coloured rajah appeared, again shook hands with me, and -began to tell me a thousand different things, constantly asking me for my -opinion, which I had great difficulty in giving him. Then he wished to -show me the ruins of the former palace at the other extremity of the -gardens. - -"It was a real forest of stones inhabited by a large tribe of apes. On -our approach the males began to run along the walls, making the most -hideous faces at us, while the females ran away, carrying off their young -in their arms. The rajah shouted with laughter and pinched my shoulder to -draw my attention, and to testify his own delight, and sat down in the -midst of the ruins, while around us, squatting on the top of the walls, -perching on every eminence, a number of animals with white whiskers put -out their tongues and shook their fists at us. - -"When he had seen enough of this, the yellow rajah rose and began to -walk sedately on, keeping me always at his side, happy at having shown me -such things on the very day of my arrival, and reminding me that a grand -tiger hunt was to take place the next day, in my honour. - -"I was present at it, at a second, a third, at ten, twenty in -succession. We hunted all the animals which the country produces in turn: -the panther, the bear, elephant, antelope, the hippopotamus, and the -crocodile--half the beasts in creation I should say. I was disgusted at -seeing so much blood flow, and tired of this monotonous pleasure. - -"At length the prince's ardour abated and, at my urgent request, he -left me a little leisure for work, contenting himself by loading me with -costly presents. He sent me jewels, magnificent stuffs, and well-broken -animals of all sorts, which Haribadada presented to me with apparently -as grave respect as if I had been the sun himself, although he heartily -despised me at the bottom of his heart. - -"Every day a procession of servants brought me, in covered dishes, a -portion of each course that was served at the royal table. Every day he -seemed to take an extreme pleasure in getting up some new entertainment -for me--dances by the bayaderes, jugglers, reviews of the troops, and I -was obliged to pretend to be most delighted with it, so as not to hurt -his feelings when he wished to show me his wonderful country in all its -charm and splendour. - -"As soon as I was left alone for a few moments I either worked or went -to see the monkeys, whose company pleased me a great deal better than that -of their royal master. - -"One evening, however, on coming back from a walk, I found Haribadada -outside the gate of my palace. He told me in mysterious tones that a gift -from the king was waiting for me in my abode, and he said that his master -begged me to excuse him for not having sooner thought of offering me that -of which I had been deprived for such a long time. - -"After these obscure remarks the ambassador bowed and withdrew. - -"When I went in I saw six little girls standing against the wall, -motionless, side-by-side, like smelts on a skewer. The eldest was perhaps -ten and the youngest eight years old. For the first moment I could not -understand why this girls' school had taken up its abode in my rooms; -then, however, I divined the prince's delicate attention: he had made -me a present of a harem, and had chosen it very young from an excess of -generosity. There, the more unripe the fruit is, in the higher estimation -it is held. - -"For some time I remained confused, embarrassed, and ashamed in the -presence of these children, who looked at me with great grave eyes which -seemed already to divine what I might want of them. - -"I did not know what to say to them; I felt inclined to send them back; -but I could not return the presents of a prince; it would have been a -mortal insult. I was obliged, therefore, to install this troop of children -in my palace. - -"They stood motionless, looking at me, waiting for my orders, trying -to read my thoughts in my eyes. Confound such a present! How absurdly it -was in my way. At last, thinking that I must be looking rather ridiculous, -I asked the eldest her name. - -"'Châli,' she replied. - -"This little creature, with her beautiful skin, which was lightly -yellow, like old ivory, was a marvel, a perfect statue, with her face and -its long and severe lines. - -"I then asked, in order to see what she would reply, and also, perhaps, -to embarrass her: - -"'What have you come here for?' - -"She replied in her soft, harmonious voice: 'I have come to do whatever -my Lord wishes.' She was evidently quite resigned. - -"I put the same question to the youngest, who answered immediately in -her shrill voice: - -"'I am here to do whatever you ask me, my master.' - -"This one was like a little mouse, and was very taking, just as they -all were, so I took her in my arms and kissed her. The others made a -movement to go away, thinking, no doubt, that I had made my choice; but -I ordered them to stay, and sitting down in the Indian fashion, I made -them all sit round me and began to tell them fairy-tales, for I spoke -their language tolerably well. - -"They listened very attentively, and trembled, wringing their hands in -agony. Poor little things, they were not thinking any longer of the reason -why they were sent to me. - -"When I had finished my story, I called Latchmân, my confidential -servant, and made him bring sweetmeats and cakes, of which they ate enough -to make themselves ill. Then, as I began to find the adventure rather -funny, I organized games to amuse my wives. - -"One of these diversions had an enormous success. I made a bridge of my -legs and the six children ran underneath, the smallest beginning and the -tallest always knocking against them a little, because she did not stoop -enough. It made them shout with laughter, and these young voices sounding -through the low vaults of my sumptuous palace seemed to wake it up and to -people it with childlike gaiety and life. - -"Next I took great interest in seeing to the sleeping apartments of my -innocent concubines, and in the end I saw them safely locked up under the -surveillance of four female servants, whom the prince had sent me at the -same time in order to take care of my sultanas. - -"For a week I took the greatest pleasure in acting the part of a father -toward these living dolls. We had capital games of hide-and-seek and -puss-in-the-corner, which gave them the greatest pleasure. Every day I -taught them a new game, to their intense delight. - -"My house now seemed to be one class room, and my little friends, -dressed in beautiful silk stuffs, and in materials embroidered with gold -and silver, ran up and down the long galleries and the quiet rooms feebly -lighted by the day coming in through the arched windows, like little human -animals. - -"Then one evening, I know not how, the eldest, who was called Châli, and -who looked like an old ivory statuette, really became my wife. She was -an adorable little creature, timid and gentle, who soon got to love me -ardently and whom I loved strongly with some degree of shame, with -hesitation as if afraid of European morality, with reserve and scruples, -and yet with passionate tenderness. I cherished her as if I had been her -father and I caressed her like a lover." - -Excuse me ladies, I am going a little bit too far. - -"The others continued to play in the palace like a lot of happy -kittens, but Châli never left me except when I went to the prince. - -"We passed delicious hours together in the ruins of the old castle, -among the monkeys, who had become our friends. - -"She used to lie on my knees, and remain there, turning all sorts of -things over in her little sphinx's head, or perhaps not thinking of -anything, retaining that beautiful, charming, hereditary pose of that -noble and dreamy people, the hieratic pose of the sacred statues. - -"In a large brass dish I had one day brought provisions, cakes, fruits. -The apes came nearer and nearer, followed by their young ones, who were -more timid; at last they sat down round us in a circle, without daring to -come any nearer, waiting for me to distribute my delicacies. Then, almost -invariably, a male more daring than the rest would come to me with -outstretched hand, like a beggar, and I would give him something, which he -would take to his wife. All the others immediately began to utter furious -cries, cries of rage and jealousy; and I could not make the terrible -racket cease except by throwing each one his share. - -"As I was very comfortable in the ruins I had my instruments brought -there, so that I might be able to work. As soon, however, as they saw the -copper fittings on my scientific instruments, the monkeys, no doubt taking -them for some deadly engines, fled on all sides, uttering the most -piercing cries. - -"I often spent my evenings with Châli on one of the outside galleries -that looked on to the lake of Vihara. One night in silence we were looking -at the bright moon gliding over the sky, throwing a mantle of trembling -silver over the water, and, on the further shore, upon the row of small -pagodas like carved mushrooms with their stalks in the water. Taking the -thoughtful face of my little mistress between my hands, I printed a long, -soft kiss on her polished brow, on her great eyes, which were full of the -secret of that ancient and fabulous land, and on her calm lips which -opened to my caress. I felt a confused, powerful, above all a poetical, -sensation, the sensation that I possessed a whole race in this little -girl, that mysterious race from which all the others seem to have taken -their origin. - -"The prince, however, continued to load me with presents. One day he -sent me a very unexpected object, which excited a passionate admiration in -Châli. It was merely one of those cardboard boxes covered with shells -stuck on outside. In France it would have been worth forty cents, at the -most. But there it was a jewel beyond price, and no doubt was the first -that had found its way into the kingdom. I put it on a table and left it -there, wondering at the value which was set upon this trumpery article out -of a bazaar. - -"But Châli never got tired of looking at it, of admiring it -ecstatically. From time to time she would say to me, 'May I touch it?' And -when I had given her permission she raised the lid, closed it again with -the greatest precaution, touched the shells very gently, and the contact -seemed to give her real physical pleasure. - -"However, I had finished my scientific work, and it was time for me to -return. I was a long time in making up my mind, held by my tenderness for -my little friend, but at last I was obliged to fix the day of my -departure. - -"The prince got up fresh hunting excursions and fresh wrestling -matches, and after a fortnight of these pleasures I declared that I could -stay no longer, and he gave me my liberty. - -"My farewell from Châli was heartrending. She wept, lying beside me, -with her head on my breast, shaken with sobs. I did not know how to -console her; my kisses were no good. - -"All at once an idea struck me, and getting up I went and got the -shell-box, and putting it into her hands, I said, ‘That is for you; it is -yours.' - -"Then I saw her smile at first. Her whole face was lighted up with -internal joy, with that profound joy which comes when impossible dreams -are suddenly realized, and she embraced me ardently. - -"All the same, she wept bitterly when I bade her a last farewell. - -"I gave fatherly kisses and cakes to all the rest of my wives, and then -I left for home." - - - - -II - - -"Two years had passed when the chance of my duties again called me to -Bombay. Because I knew the country and the language well, I was left there -to undertake another mission, by a sequence of unforeseen circumstances. - -"I finished what I had to do as quickly as possible, and as I had a -considerable amount of spare time on my hands I determined to go and see -my friend Rajah Maddan and my dear little Châli once more, though I -expected to find her much changed. - -"The rajah received me with every demonstration of pleasure, and hardly -left me for a moment during the first day of my visit. At night, however, -when I was alone, I sent for Haribadada, and after several misleading -questions I said to him: - -"'Do you know what has become of little Châli, whom the rajah gave me?' - -"He immediately assumed a sad and troubled look, and said, in evident -embarrassment: - -"'We had better not speak of her.' - -"'Why? She was a dear little woman.' - -"'She turned out badly, sir.' - -"'What--Châli? What has become of her? Where is she?' - -"'I mean to say that she came to a bad end.' - -"'A bad end! Is she dead?' - -"'Yes. She committed a very dreadful action.' - -"I was very much distressed. I felt my heart beat; my breast was -oppressed with grief, and I insisted on knowing what she had done and what -had happened to her. - -"The man became more and more embarrassed, and murmured: 'You had -better not ask about it.' - -"'But I want to know.' - -"'She stole--' - -"'Who--Châli? What did she steal?' - -"'Something that belonged to you.' - -"'To me? What do you mean?' - -"'The day you left she stole that little box which the prince had given -you; it was found in her hands.' - -"'What box are you talking about?' - -"'The box covered with shells.' - -"'But I gave it to her.' - -"The Hindoo looked at me with stupefaction, and then replied: 'Well, -she declared with the most sacred oaths that you had given it to her, but -nobody could believe that you could have given a king's present to a -slave, and so the rajah had her punished.' - -"'How was she punished? What was done to her?' - -"'She was tied up in a sack and thrown into the lake from this window, -from the window of the room in which we are, where she had committed -the theft.' - -"I felt the most terrible grief that I ever experienced, and made a -sign to Haribadad to go away so that he might not see my tears. I spent -the night on the gallery which looked on to the lake, on the gallery where -I had so often held the poor child on my knees, and pictured to myself her -pretty little body lying decomposed in a sack in the dark waters beneath -me. - -"The next day I left again, in spite of the rajah's entreaties and -evident vexation; and I now still feel as if I had never loved any woman -but Châli." - - - - -THE LEGACY - - - - -I - - -Although it was not yet ten o'clock, the employees were pouring in -like waves through the great doorway of the Ministry of Marine, having -come in haste from every corner of Paris, for the first of the year was -approaching, the time for renewed zeal--and for promotions. A noise of -hurrying footsteps filled the vast building, which was as tortuous as a -labyrinth, and honeycombed with inextricable passages, pierced by -innumerable doors opening into the various offices. - -Each one entered his particular room, pressed the hands of his -colleagues who had already arrived, threw off his coat, put on his office -jacket, and seated himself before the table, where a pile of papers -awaited him. Then they went for news into the neighbouring offices. They -asked whether their chief had arrived, if he was in an agreeable humour, -and if the day's mail was a heavy one. - -The clerk in charge of "general matter," M. César Cachelin, an old -non-commissioned officer of the marine infantry, who had become -chief-clerk by priority of office, registered in a big book all the -documents as they were brought in by the messenger. Opposite him the -copying-clerk, old father Savon, a stupid old fellow, celebrated -throughout the whole ministry for his conjugal misfortunes, copied in a -slow hand a dispatch from the chief, sitting with his body held sidewise -and his eyes askew, in the stiff attitude of the careful copyist. - -M. Cachelin, a big man, whose short, white hair stood up like a brush -on his head, talked all the time while performing his daily work: -"Thirty-two dispatches from Toulon. That port gives us as much as any four -others put together." - -Then he asked the old man Savon the question he put to him every -morning: - -"Well, father Savon, how is Madame?" - -The old man, without stopping his work, replied: "You know very well. -Monsieur Cachelin, that subject is a most painful one to me." - -Then the chief clerk laughed as he laughed every day at hearing the -same phrase. - -The door opened and M. Maze entered. He was a handsome, dark young -fellow dressed with an exaggerated elegance, who thought his position -beneath his dignity, and his person and manners above his position. He -wore large rings, a heavy gold watch chain, a monocle (which he discarded -while at work), and he made a frequent movement of his wrists in order to -bring into view his cuffs ornamented with great shining buttons. - -At the door he asked: "Much work to-day?" M. Cachelin replied: "It is -always Toulon which keeps sending in. One can easily see that the first -of the year is at hand, from the way they are hustling down there." - -But another employee, a great joker, always in high spirits, appeared -in his turn and said laughing: - -"We are not hustling at all, are we?" Then taking out his watch he -added: "Seven minutes to ten and every man at his post! By George, what -do you think of that? and I'll wager anything that his Dignity M. Lesable -arrived at nine o'clock--at the same hour as our illustrious chief." - -The chief-clerk ceased writing, put his pen behind his ear, and leaning -his elbow on the desk said: "Oh! there is a man for you! If he does -not succeed, it will not be for want of trying." - -M. Pitolet, seating himself on the corner of the table and swinging his -leg, replied: - -"But he will succeed, papa Cachelin; he will succeed, you may be sure. I -will bet you twenty francs to a sou that he will be chief within ten -years." - -M. Maze, who rolled a cigarette while warming his calves before the -fire, said: - -"Pshaw! for my part I would rather remain all my life on a salary of -twenty-four hundred francs than wear myself to a skeleton the way he is -doing." - -Pitolet turned on his heels and said in a bantering tone: "But that -does not prevent you, my dear fellow, from being here on this twentieth -of December before ten o'clock." - -The other shrugged his shoulders with an air of indifference. "Hang it -all! I do not want everybody to walk over my head, either! Since you -come here to see the sun rise, I am going to do it, too, however much I -may deplore your officiousness. From doing that to calling the chief 'dear -master,' as Lesable does, and staying until half past six and then -carrying work home with you is a long way. Besides, I am in society and I -have other demands upon my time." - -M. Cachelin had ceased his registering and begun to dream, his eyes -fixed on vacancy. At last he asked: "Do you believe that he will get an -increase again this year?" - -Pitolet cried: "I will bet you ten to one he gets it. He is not wearing -himself out for nothing." - -And so they talked of the eternal question of promotion which for a -month had excited the whole hive of clerks from the ground floor to the -roof. - -They calculated chances, computed figures, compared their various -claims to promotion, and waxed indignant over former injustices. These -discussions lasted from morning until evening, and the next day were begun -all over again, with the same reasons, the same arguments, the same -words. - -A new clerk entered, a little, pale, sick-looking man, M. Boissel, who -lived as in a romance of Alexandre Dumas, _père._ Everything with him was -an extraordinary adventure, and he recounted every morning to his friend -Pitolet his strange encounters of the previous evening, imaginary scenes -enacted in his house, strange cries uttered in the street which caused him -to open his window at half past three in the morning. Every day he had -separated combatants, stopped runaway horses, rescued women from danger; -and although of a deplorably weak constitution he talked unceasingly, in a -slow and satisfied tone, of exploits accomplished by his strong arm. - -As soon as he understood that they were talking of Lesable he declared: -"Some day I will give that little pup his deserts; and if he ever walks -over my head. I'll give him something that will prevent him from trying -again." - -Maze, continuing to smoke, sneered: "You would do well, then, to begin -at once, for I hear on good authority that you are to be set aside this -year for Lesable." - -Boissel raised his hand. "I swear that if--" The door opened once more, -and a dapper little man wearing the side-whiskers of an officer of marine -or lawyer, and a high, stiff collar, who spoke his words rapidly as though -he could not take the time to finish what he had to say, entered quickly -with a preoccupied manner. He shook hands all around with the air of a man -who had no leisure for dallying, and approaching the chief-clerk said: "My -dear Cachelin, will you give me the Chapelou papers, rope yarn, Toulon -A. T. V., 1875?" - -The clerk rose, reached for a portfolio above his head, took out a -package of sealed documents wrapped in blue linen, and presenting them -said: "There, M. Lesable; you remember the chief took three dispatches -from their package yesterday." - -"Yes, I have them. Thanks," and the young man went out hurriedly. - -Hardly had he gone when Maze ejaculated: - -"Well! what an air! One would swear he was already chief." - -And Pitolet replied: "Patience, patience; he will be before any of us." - -M. Cachelin had not resumed his writing. A fixed thought seemed to have -taken possession of him. At last he said: "He has a fine future, that -boy!" - -But Maze murmured in a disdainful tone: "For those who think the -ministry is a career--yes. For the others it is a little--" - -Pitolet interrupted him: "Perhaps you intend to become ambassador?" - -The other made an impatient gesture. "It is not a question of me. I can -take care of myself. That has nothing to do with the fact that the -position of the head of a department will never be anything very much." - -Father Savon, the copyist, had never ceased his work. But for some -little time he had been dipping his pen in the inkstand, then wiping it -vigorously on the sponge which stood in a little glass of water on his -desk, without being able to trace a letter. The black liquid slipped along -the point of the metal and fell in round spots on the paper. The good man, -driven to despair as sheet after sheet of paper was thus spoiled, said in -a deep and sorrowful voice: - -"Here is more adulterated ink!" - -A shout of laughter came from every mouth. Cachelin shook the table with -his stomach. Maze bent double, as though he were going up the chimney -backward. Pitolet stamped and roared and waved his hands in the air, and -even Boissel was almost suffocated, although he generally looked at -these things on the tragic rather than the comic side. - -But father Savon, wiping his pen on the tail of his overcoat, said: -"There is nothing to laugh at. I have to go over my whole work two or -three times." - -He took from his box another sheet of paper, laid his wax sheet over -it, and commenced again at the beginning: "Monsieur le Ministre and dear -Colleague--" The pen now held the ink and traced the letters neatly. The -old man settled down into his oblique posture and continued his copy. - -The others had not stopped laughing. They were fairly choking. For six -months they had played the same game on the poor old fellow, who had never -detected it. It consisted in pouring several drops of oil on the damp -sponge used for wiping pens. The metal, thus becoming coated with liquid -grease, would not take the ink, and the perplexed copying-clerk would pass -hours in using boxes of pens and bottles of ink, and finally declare that -the supplies of the department were becoming perfectly worthless. - -Then the jokers would torment the old man in other ways. They put -gunpowder in his tobacco, pour drugs into his drinking water, and made -him believe that, since the Commune, the majority of articles for general -use had been adulterated by the socialists, to put the government in the -wrong and bring about a revolution. He had conceived a terrible hatred -against the anarchists, whom he believed to be concealed everywhere, and -had a mysterious fear of an unknown woman--veiled and formidable. - -A sharp ring of the bell sounded in the corridor. They well knew the -emphatic ring of their chief, M. Torchebeuf, and each one sprang toward -the door that he might regain his own compartment. - -Cachelin returned to his work. Then he laid down his pen again, and took -his head in his hands and began to think. - -He turned over in his mind an idea which had tormented him for some -time. An old non-commissioned officer of the marine infantry, retired -after receiving three wounds, one at Senegal and two at Cochin China, who -had been given a position in the ministry as an exceptional favour, he had -had to endure many miseries, many hardships, and many griefs in his long -career as an insignificant subordinate. He considered authority, official -authority, as the finest thing in the world. The head of a Department -seemed to him an exceptional being, living in a higher sphere; and the -employee of whom he heard it said: "He is a sharp one; he will get there -yet," appeared to him of another race, another nature, than himself. - -He had therefore for his colleague Lesable a high respect which -approached veneration, and he cherished the secret desire, which was never -absent from his mind, to have him marry his daughter. - -She would be rich one day, very rich. This was known throughout the -entire ministry, for his sister. Mlle Cachelin, possessed a million, a -clear, cool million, acquired through love, they said, but purified -by belated piety. - -This ancient spinster, who had led a gay life in her youth, had retired -with five hundred thousand francs, which she had more than doubled in -eighteen years, thanks to her ferocious economy and more than frugal -habits. She had lived for a long time with her brother, who was a widower -with one daughter, Coralie; but she did not contribute in the slightest -degree to the expenses of the house, guarding and accumulating her gold, -and always repeating to Cachelin: "It makes no difference, since it is all -for your daughter; but marry her quickly, for I want to see my little -nephews around me. It is she who will give me the joy of embracing -a child of our blood." - -This was well understood at the office, and suitors were not lacking -for Coralie's hand. It was said that Maze himself, the handsome Maze, the -lion of the bureau, hovered around father Cachelin with a palpable intent. -But the former sergeant, who had roamed through all latitudes, wanted a -young man with a future, a young man who would be chief, and who would be -able to make some return to him, the old clerk. Lesable suited him to a -nicety, and he cast about in his mind for a means of attaching him to -himself. - -All of a sudden he sat upright, striking his hands together. He had -found it. He well understood the weakness of each one of his colleagues. -Lesable could be approached only through his vanity, his professional -vanity. He would go to him and demand his protection as one goes to a -senator or a deputy--as one goes to a high personage. - -Not having had any promotion for five years, Cachelin considered himself -as certain to obtain one this year. He would make it appear then that -he owed it to Lesable, and would invite him to dinner as a means of -thanking him. - -As soon as his project was conceived he began to put it into execution. -He took off his office jacket, put on his coat, and, gathering up all the -registered papers which concerned the services of his colleague, he betook -himself to the office which Lesable occupied all alone, by special favour, -because of his zeal and the importance of his functions. - -The young man was writing at a great table, covered with bundles of -documents and loose papers numbered with red or blue figures. - -As soon as he saw the chief-clerk enter, he said in a familiar tone, -which also betokened consideration: "Well, my dear fellow, do you bring -me a lot of business?" - -"Yes, a good deal. And then I want to speak to you." - -"Sit down, my friend; I am listening." - -Cachelin seated himself, coughed, put on a troubled look, and finally -said in a despondent tone: - -"This is what brings me here, Monsieur Lesable. I will not beat about -the bush. I will be frank like an old soldier. I have come to demand a -service of you." - -"What is it?" - -"In few words, I wish very much to be promoted this year. I have nobody -to help me, and I have thought of you." - -Lesable reddened somewhat. He was surprised, flattered, and filled with -a pleased confusion. However, he replied: - -"But I am nobody here, my friend. I am much less than you, who are going -to be principal clerk. I can do nothing. Believe me that if--" - -Cachelin cut him short with respectful brusqueness: "Oh, nonsense. You -have the ear of the chief, and if you speak a word for me I shall get it. -Remember that in eighteen months I shall have the right to retire, and I -shall be just five hundred francs to the bad if I obtain nothing on the -first of January. I know very well that they say: 'Cachelin is all right; -his sister has a million.' It is true enough that my sister has a million, -but she doesn't give any of it away. It is also true that her fortune -is for my daughter, but my daughter and I are two different persons. I -shall be in a nice fix if, when my daughter and my son-in-law are rolling -in their carriage, I have nothing to eat. You see my position, do you not?" - -Lesable agreed. "It is true--what you say is very true. Your son-in-law -may not be well disposed toward you. Besides, one is always more at ease -when owing nothing to anybody. Well, I promise you I shall do my best; I -shall speak to the chief, place the case before him, and shall insist if -it be necessary. Count on me!" - -Cachelin rose, took the hands of his colleague, and pressing them hard -while he shook them in military fashion, stammered: "Thank you, thank -you; believe me, if ever I have the opportunity--if I can ever--" He -stopped, not being able to finish what he had begun, and went away making -the corridor resound with the rhythmical tread of an old trooper. - -But he heard from afar the sharp ring of a bell and he began to run. He -knew that ring. It was the chief, M. Torchebeuf, who wanted him. - -Eight days later Cachelin found one morning on his desk a sealed -letter, which contained the following: - - -"My dear Colleague: I am happy to announce to you that the minister, -at the instance of our director and our chief, yesterday signed your -nomination to the position of principal clerk. You will receive tomorrow -your official notification. Until then you know nothing, you understand? - -Yours ever, - -LESABLE." - - -César ran at once to the office of his young colleague, thanked him, -excused himself, offered his everlasting devotion, overwhelmed him with -his gratitude. - -It was known on the morrow that MM. Lesable and Cachelin had each been -promoted. The other employees must wait another year, receiving by way of -compensation a gratuity which varied from one hundred and fifty to three -hundred francs. - -M. Boissel declared that he would lie in wait for Lesable at the corner -of the street at midnight some night and give him a drubbing which would -leave its mark. The other clerks kept silent. - -The following Monday, on his arrival, Cachelin went to the office of -his protector, entered with solemnity, and in a ceremonious tone said: "I -hope that you will do me the honour to dine with us during the New Year -holidays. You may choose the day yourself." - -The young man, somewhat surprised, raised his head and looked his -colleague full in the face. Then he replied without removing his eyes, -that he might read the thoughts of the other: "But, my dear fellow you -see--all my evenings are promised here for some time to come." - -Cachelin insisted in a good-humoured tone: "Oh, but, I say, you will -not disappoint us by refusing, after the service that you have rendered -me. I beg you in the name of my family and in mine." - -Lesable hesitated, perplexed. He had understood well enough, but he did -not know what to reply, not having had time to reflect and to weigh the -pros and the cons. At last he thought: "I commit myself to nothing by -going to dinner," and he accepted with a satisfied air, choosing the -Saturday following. He added, smiling: "So that I shall not have -to get up too soon the next morning." - - - - -II - - -M. Cachelin lived in a small apartment on the fifth floor of a house -at the upper end of the Rue Rochechouart. There was a balcony from which -one could see all Paris, and three rooms, one for his sister, one for his -daughter, and one for himself. The dining-room served also for a parlour. - -He occupied himself during the whole week in preparing for this dinner. -The menu was discussed at great length, in order that they might have a -repast which should be at the same time home-like and elegant. The -following was finally decided upon: A consommé with eggs, shrimps and -sausage for hors d'œuvre, a lobster, a fine chicken, preserved peas, a -_pâté de joie gras_, a salad, an ice, and dessert. - -The _foie gras_ was ordered from a neighbouring pork butcher with the -injunction to furnish the best quality. The pot alone cost three francs -and a half. - -For the wine, Cachelin applied to the wine merchant at the corner who -supplied him with the red beverage with which he ordinarily quenched his -thirst. He did not want to go to a big dealer reasoning thus: "The small -dealers find few occasions to sell their best brands. On this account they -keep them a long time in their cellars, and they are therefore better." - -He came home at the earliest possible hour on Saturday to assure himself -that all was ready. The maid who opened the door for him was red as a -tomato, for she had lighted her fire at midday through fear of not being -ready in time, and had roasted her face at it all day. Emotion also -excited her. He entered the dining-room to inspect everything. In the -middle of the little room the round table made a great white spot under -the bright light of a lamp covered with a green shade. - -The four plates were almost concealed by napkins folded in the form of -an archbishop's miter by Mlle Cachelin, the aunt, and were flanked by -knives and forks of white metal. In front of each stood two glasses, one -large and one small. César found this insufficient at a glance, and he -called: "Charlotte!" - -The door at the left opened and a little old woman appeared. Older than -her brother by ten years, she had a narrow face framed with white -ringlets. She did these up in papers every night. - -Her thin voice seemed too weak for her little bent body, and she moved -with a slightly dragging step and tired gestures. - -They had said of her when she was young: "What a dear little creature!" - -She was now a shrivelled up old woman, very clean because of her early -training, headstrong, spoiled, narrow-minded, fastidious, and easily -irritated. Having become very devout, she seemed to have totally forgotten -the adventures of her past. - -She asked: "What do you want?" - -He replied: "I find that two glasses do not make much of a show. If we -could have champagne--it would not cost me more than three or four francs; -we have the glasses already, and it would entirely change the aspect of -the table." - -Mlle Charlotte replied: "I do not see the use of going to that expense. -But you are paying; it does not concern me." - -He hesitated, seeking to convince himself: - -"I assure you it would be much better. And then, with the cake it would -make things more lively." This decided him. He took his hat and went -downstairs, returning in five minutes with a bottle under his arm which -bore on a large white label, ornamented with an enormous coat of arms, -the words: "Grand vin mousseux de Champagne du Comte de Chatel-Rénovau." - -Cachelin declared: "It cost only three francs, and the man says it is -delicious." - -He took the champagne glasses from the cupboard and placed them before -each place. - -The door at the right opened. His daughter entered. She was a tall girl -with firm, rosy flesh--a handsome daughter of a strong race. She had -chestnut hair and blue eyes. A simple gown outlined her round and supple -figure; her voice was strong, almost the voice of a man, with those deep -notes which make the nerves vibrate. She cried: "Heavens! Champagne! What -luck!" clapping her hands like a child. - -Her father said to her: "I wish you to be particularly nice to this -gentleman; he has done such a lot for me." - -She began to laugh--a sonorous laugh, which said: "I know." - -The bell in the vestibule rang. The doors opened and closed and Lesable -appeared. - -He wore a black coat, a white cravat, and white gloves. He created a -stir. Cachelin sprang forward, embarrassed and delighted: "But, my dear -fellow, this is among ourselves. See me--I am in ordinary dress." - -The young man replied: "I know, you told me so; but I never go out in -the evening without my dress-coat." He saluted, his opera-hat under his -arm, a flower in his buttonhole. César presented him: "My sister, Mlle -Charlotte; my daughter Coralie, whom at home we call Cora." - -Everybody bowed. Cachelin continued: "We have no salon. It is rather -troublesome, but one gets used to it." - -Lesable replied: "It is charming." - -Then he was relieved of his hat, which he wished to hang up, and he -began immediately to draw off his gloves. - -They sat down and looked at one another across the table, and no one -said anything more until Cachelin asked: "Did the chief remain late -to-night? I left very early to help the ladies." - -Lesable replied in a careless tone: "No, we went away together, because -we were obliged to discuss the matter of the payment for the canvasses at -Brest. It is a very complicated affair, which will give us a great deal of -trouble." - -Cachelin believed he ought to bring his sister into the conversation, -and turning to her said: "It is M. Lesable who decides all the difficult -questions at the office. One might say that he was the deputy chief." -The old spinster bowed politely, saying: "Oh, I know that Monsieur has -great capabilities." - -The maid entered, pushing open the door with her knee, and holding aloft -with both hands a great soup tureen. Then the master of the house cried: -"Come--dinner! Sit there, M. Lesable, between my sister and my daughter. I -hope you are not afraid of the ladies," and the dinner began. - -Lesable made himself agreeable, with a little air of self-sufficiency, -almost of condescension, and he glanced now and then at the young girl, -astonished at her freshness, at her beautiful, appetising health. Mlle -Charlotte showed her best side, knowing the intentions of her brother, and -she took part in the conversation so long as it was confined to -commonplace topics. Cachelin was radiant; he talked and joked in a loud -voice while he poured out the wine bought an hour previous at the store on -the corner: "A glass of this little Burgundy, M. Lesable. I do not say -that it is anything remarkable, but it is good; it is from the cellar and -it is pure--I can say that much. We get it from some friends down -there." - -The young girl said nothing; a little red, a little shy, she was awed by -the presence of this man, whose thoughts she suspected. - -When the lobster appeared, César declared: "Here comes a personage whose -acquaintance I shall be glad to make." - -Lesable, smiling, told a story of a writer who had called the lobster -"the cardinal of the seas," not knowing that before being cooked the -animal was a dark greenish black. Cachelin laughed with all his might, -repeating: "Ha, ha, ha! that is first rate!" But Mlle Charlotte, becoming -serious, said sharply: - -"I do not see anything amusing in that. That gentleman was an improper -person. I understand all kinds of pleasantries, but I am opposed to -anything which casts ridicule on the clergy in my presence." - -The young man, who wished to please the old maid, profited by this -occasion to make a profession of the Catholic faith. He spoke of the bad -taste of those who treated great truths with lightness. And in conclusion -he said: "For myself I respect and venerate the religion of my fathers; I -have been brought up in it, and I will remain in it till my death." - -Cachelin laughed no longer. He rolled little crumbs of bread between -his finger and thumb while he murmured: "That's right, that's right." -Then he changed the conversation, and, with an impulse natural to those -who follow the same routine every day, he said: "Our handsome Maze--must -have been furious at not having been promoted?" - -Lesable smiled. "Well, why not? To everyone according to his deserts." -And they continued talking about the ministry, which interested everybody, -for the two women knew the employees almost as well as Cachelin himself, -through hearing them spoken of every day. - -Mlle Charlotte was particularly pleased to hear about Boissel, on -account of his romantic spirit, and the adventures he was always telling -about, while Cora was secretly interested in the handsome Maze. They had -never seen either of the men, however. - -Lesable talked about them with a superior air, as a minister might have -done in speaking of his staff. - -"Maze is not lacking in a certain kind of merit, but when one wishes -to accomplish anything it is necessary to work harder than he does. He is -fond of society and of pleasure. All that distracts the mind; he will -never advance much on this account. He will be an Assistant Secretary, -perhaps, thanks to the influence he commands, but nothing more. As for -Pitolet, he is a good clerk, I must say. He has a superficial elegance -which cannot be gainsaid, but nothing deep. There is a young man whom one -could never put at the head of an important bureau, but who can always be -utilised by an intelligent chief who would lay out his work for him." - -"And M. Boissel?" asked Mlle Charlotte. - -Lesable shrugged his shoulders: "A poor chap, a poor chap. He can see -nothing in its proper proportions, and is continually imagining wonderful -stories while half asleep. To us he is of no earthly use." - -Cachelin began to laugh. "But the best of all," he declared, "is old -father Savon." - -Then everybody laughed. - -After that they talked of the theatres and the different plays of the -year. Lesable judged the dramatic literature of the day with the same -authority, concisely classifying the authors, determining the strength -and weakness of each, with the assurance of a man who believes himself to -be infallible and universal. - -They had finished the roast. César now uncovered the pot of _foie -gras_ with the most delicate precautions, which made one imagine the -contents to be something wonderful. He said: "I do not know if this one -will be a success, but generally they are perfect. We get them from a -cousin who lives in Strasburg." - -With respectful deliberation each one ate the butcher's _pâté_ in its -little yellow pot. - -But disaster came with the ice. It was a sauce, a soup, a clear liquid -which floated in the dish. The little maid had begged the pastry cook's -boy, who brought the ice at seven o'clock, to take it out of the mold -himself, fearing that she would not know how. - -Cachelin, in despair, wished to make her carry it back again; then he -calmed himself at the thought of the Twelfth Night cake, which he divided -with great mystery as though it contained a prime secret. All fixed their -gaze on the symbolic cake, then Mlle Charlotte directed that each one -close his eyes while taking a piece. - -Who would be the king? A childish, expectant smile was on the lips of -everyone. M. Lesable uttered a little "ah" of astonishment, and showed -between his thumb and forefinger a great white bean still covered with -pastry. Cachelin began to applaud, then cried: "Choose the queen! choose -the queen!" - -The king hesitated an instant only. Would it not be a politic act to -choose Mlle Charlotte? She would be flattered, brought over, his friend -ever after! Then he reflected that it was really Mlle Cora for whom he had -been invited, and that he would seem like a ninny in choosing the aunt. He -turned toward his youthful neighbor, and handing her the royal bean said: -"Mademoiselle, will you permit me to offer it to you?" And they looked -one another in the face for the first time. - -She replied: "Thank you. Monsieur," and received the gage of -sovereignty. - -He thought: "She is enormously pretty, this girl. Her eyes are superb. -She is gay, too, if I am not mistaken!" - -A sharp detonation made the two women jump. Cachelin had just opened -the champagne, which escaped from the bottle and ran over the table-cloth. -Then the glasses were filled with the frothy stuff and the host declared: -"It is of good quality, one can see that." But as Lesable was about to -drink to prevent his glass from running over, César cried: "The king -drinks! the king drinks! the king drinks!" And Mlle Charlotte, also -excited, squeaked in her thin voice: "The king drinks! the king drinks!" - -Lesable emptied his glass with composure, and replacing it on the table -said: "You see I am not lacking in assurance." Then turning toward Mlle -Cora he said: "It is yours, Mademoiselle!" - -She wished to drink, but everybody having cried: "The queen drinks! -the queen drinks!" she blushed, began to laugh, and put the glass down -again. - -The end of the dinner was full of gaiety; the king showed himself most -attentive and gallant toward the queen. Then when they had finished the -liqueurs, Cachelin announced: - -"We will have the table cleared away now to give us more room. If it is -not raining, we can go to the balcony for a few minutes." He wanted -Lesable to see the view, although it was night. - -The glass door was thrown open. A moist, warm breeze entered. It was -mild outdoors as in the month of April. They all mounted the step which -separated the dining-room from the large balcony. They could see nothing -but a vague glimmer hovering over the great city, like the gilt halos -which they put on the heads of the saints. In some spots this light seemed -more brilliant, and Cachelin began to explain: - -"See, that is the Eden blazing down there. Look at the line of the -boulevards. Isn't it wonderful, how you can distinguish them! In the -daytime it is splendid, this view. You would have to travel a -long way before you saw anything finer!" - -Lesable was leaning on the iron balustrade, by the side of Cora, who -gazed into the void, silent, distraught, seized of a sudden with one of -those melancholy languors which sometimes oppress the soul. Mlle Charlotte -returned to the room, fearing the damp. Cachelin continued to speak, his -outstretched hand indicating the places where they would find the -Invalides, the Trocadéro, the Arc de Triomphe. - -Lesable in a low voice asked: "And you, Mlle Cora, do you like to look -at Paris from this height?" - -She gave a little shiver, as though she had been dreaming and answered: -"I? Yes, especially at night. I think of all the things which are -happening there in front of us. How many happy people and how many who -are unhappy in all these houses! If one could see everything, how many -things one might learn!" - -He came a little nearer, until their elbows and their shoulders touched: - -"By moonlight this should be like fairyland." - -She murmured: "Ah, yes, indeed. One would say it was an engraving by -Gustave Doré. What a pleasure it would be to take a long walk on these -roofs." - -Then he questioned her regarding her tastes, her dreams, her pleasures. -And she replied without embarrassment, after the manner of an intelligent, -sensible girl--one who was not more imaginative than was necessary. - -He found her full of good sense, and he said to himself that it would be -wonderfully sweet to put his arm about that firm, round figure, and to -press a score of little slow kisses, as one drinks in little sips of -excellent brandy, on that fresh cheek, near the ear, just where a ray from -the lamp fell upon it. He felt himself attracted, moved by the sensation -of the proximity of a beautiful woman, by the thirst for her ripe and -virginal flesh and by that delicate seductive influence a young girl -possesses. It seemed to him he could remain there for hours, nights, -weeks, forever, leaning towards her, feeling her near to him, thrilled -by the charm of that contact. And something like a poetic sentiment -stirred his heart in the face of that great Paris, spread out before him, -brilliant in her nocturnal life, her life of pleasure and debauchery. It -seemed to him that he dominated the enormous city, that he hovered over -it; and he thought how delicious it would be to recline every evening on -such a balcony beside a woman, to love her and be loved by her, to press -her to his breast, far above the vast city, and all the earthly loves it -contained, above all the vulgar satisfactions and common desires, near to -the stars. - -There are nights when even the least exalted souls begin to dream, and -Lesable felt as though he were spreading his wings for the first time. -Perhaps he was a little tipsy. - -Cachelin went inside to get his pipe, and came back lighting it. "I -know," he said, "that you do not smoke or I would offer you a cigarette. -There is nothing more delightful than to smoke here. If I had to live on -the ground floor I should die. We could do it if we wanted to, for the -house belongs to my sister, as well as the two neighbouring ones--the -one on the right and the one on the left. She has a nice little revenue -from these alone. They did not cost a great deal, either, when she bought -them." And turning toward the window he cried: "How much did you pay for -the ground here, Charlotte?" - -Then the thin voice of the old spinster was heard speaking. Lesable -could only hear broken fragments of the sentences: "In eighteen hundred -and sixty-three--thirty-five francs--built afterward--the three houses--a -banker--sold for at least five hundred thousand francs--" - -She talked of her fortune with the complacency of an old soldier who -reels off stories of his campaigns. She enumerated her purchases, the high -offers she had since had, the rise in values, etc. - -Lesable, immediately interested, turned about, resting now his back -against the balustrade of the balcony. But as he still caught only -tantalizing scraps of what the old woman said, he brusquely left his young -companion and went within where he might hear everything; and seating -himself beside Mademoiselle Charlotte conversed with her for a long time -on the probable increase in rents and what income should accrue from money -well placed in stocks and bonds. He left toward midnight, promising to -return. - -A month later there was nothing talked about in the whole office but -the marriage of Jacques Léopold Lesable with Mademoiselle Céleste Coralie, -Cachelin. - - - - -III - - -The young people began housekeeping on the same floor with Cachelin and -Mlle Charlotte, in an apartment similar to theirs from which the tenant -was expelled. - -A certain uneasiness, however, disturbed the mind of Lesable: the aunt -had not wished to assure her heritage to Cora by any definitive act. She -had, however, consented to swear "before God" that her will was made and -deposited with Maître Belhomme, the notary. She had promised, moreover, -that her entire fortune should revert to her niece on one sole condition. -Being pressed to reveal this condition she refused to explain herself, but -averred with a little amiable smile that it was very easy of fulfillment. - -Notwithstanding these explanations and the stubbornness of the pious old -woman, Lesable thought he ought to have further assurance; but, as the -young woman pleased him greatly, his desire triumphed over his -incertitude, and he yielded to the determined efforts of Cachelin. - -Now he was happy, notwithstanding that he was always tormented by a -doubt, and he loved his wife, who had in nowise disappointed his -expectations. His life flowed along, tranquil and monotonous. He became, -in several weeks, perfectly inured to his new position of married man, and -he continued to be the same faithful and accomplished employee as -formerly. - -A year rolled away. The first of the year came round again. He did not -receive, to his great surprise, the promotion on which he had counted. -Maze and Pitolet alone passed to the grade above, and Boissel declared -confidentially to Cachelin that he had promised himself to give his two -fellow-clerks a good thrashing at the main entrance before everybody. -But he did nothing. - -For a whole week Lesable did not sleep a wink because of the anguish -he felt at not having been promoted, despite his zeal. He had been working -like a dog; he had filled the place of the assistant-chief, M. Rabot, who -had been in the hospital of Val-de-Grâce for nine months; he had been -coming to the office at half past eight every morning, remaining until -half past six in the evening. What more could they ask? If they could not -appreciate such faithful service he would do like the others, that was -all. To everyone according to his deserts. How could M. Torchebeuf, who -had always treated him like a son, have sacrificed him thus? He wanted to -get at the bottom of the thing. He would go to the chief and have an -explanation with him. - -On Monday morning, therefore, before the arrival of his comrades, he -knocked at the door of that potentate. - -A sharp voice cried: "Come in!" He entered. - -Seated before a great table strewn with papers, his little body bent -over a writing-pad which his big head almost touched, M. Torchebeuf was -busily writing. On seeing his favorite employee he said cheerfully: "Good -morning, Lesable; you are well?" - -The young man replied: "Good morning, dear master, I am very well; and -you?" - -The chief ceased writing and turned about in his revolving chair. His -frail, slender body, clad in a black surtout of severe cut, seemed -ridiculously disproportioned to the great leather-covered chair. The -brilliant rosette of an officer of the Legion of Honour, a hundred times -too large for the small body which it decorated, burned like a live coal -upon his narrow chest. His skull was of considerable size, as though the -entire development of the individual had been at the top, after the manner -of mushrooms. - -His chin was pointed, his cheeks hollow, his eyes protruding, and his -great bulging forehead was surmounted with white hair which he wore thrown -backward. - -M. Torchebeuf said: "Sit down, my friend, and tell me what brings you -here." - -Toward all the other clerks he displayed a military brusqueness, -considering himself to be their captain, for the ministry was to him as -a great vessel, the flag-ship of all the French fleet. - -Lesable, somewhat moved, a little pale, stammered: "Dear master, I come -to ask you if I have been lacking in any way." - -"Certainly not, my dear fellow; why do you ask me such a question?" - -"Because I was a little surprised at not receiving my promotion this -year, as in former years. Allow me to finish my explanation, dear master, -and pardon my audacity. I know that I have obtained from you exceptional -favours and unlooked-for advantages. I know that promotions are only made, -as a general thing, every two or three years; but permit me to remind you -that I furnish the bureau with nearly four times the amount of work of an -ordinary employee, and at least twice as much time. If, then, you put in -the balance the result of labor and the renumeration, you will certainly -find the one far outweighs the other." - -He had carefully prepared this speech, which he judged to be excellent. - -M. Torchebeuf, surprised, hesitated before replying. At length he said -in a rather cool tone: "Although it is not admissible, on principle, that -these subjects should be discussed between chief and employee, I am -willing to reply for this once to your question regarding your very -meritorious services. - -"I proposed your name for promotion as in preceding years. The chief, -however, crossed out your name on the ground that by your marriage your -fortune was assured. You are to come into an inheritance such as your -modest colleagues can never hope to possess. Is it not, therefore, just to -take into consideration the condition of each one? You will be rich, very -rich. Three hundred francs more per year will be as nothing to you, -whereas this little increase will count for a great deal in the pockets -of the others. There, my friend, you have the reason why you remain -stationary this year." - -Lesable, irritated and covered with confusion, retired. - -That evening at dinner he was disagreeable to his wife. She, however, -was gay and pleasant as usual. Although she was of an even temper, she was -headstrong, and when she desired anything greatly she never yielded her -point. She possessed no longer for him the sensual charm of the early -days, and although he still looked upon her with the eye of desire, for -she was fresh and charming, he experienced at times that disillusion so -near to estrangement which soon comes to two beings who live a common -life. The thousand trivial or grotesque details of existence, the loose -toilettes of the morning, the common linen _robe-de-chambre_, the faded -_peignoir_, for they were not rich, and all the necessary home duties -which are seen too near at hand in a poor household--all these things -took the glamour from marriage and withered the flower of poetry which, -from a distance, is so attractive to lovers. - -Aunt Charlotte also rendered herself as disagreeable as possible. She -never went out, but stayed indoors and busied herself in everything which -concerned the two young people. She wished everything conducted in -accordance with her notions, made observations on everything, and as they -had a horrible fear of offending her, they bore it all with resignation, -but also with a suppressed and ever-increasing exasperation. - -She went through their apartment with her slow, dragging step, -constantly saying in her sharp, nasal voice: "You ought to do this; you -certainly ought to do that." - -When the husband and wife found themselves alone together, Lesable, -who was a perfect bundle of nerves, would cry out: "Your aunt is growing -intolerable. I won't stand her here any longer, do you hear? I won't stand -it!" And Cora would reply tranquilly: "What do you want me to do?" Then -flying into a passion he would say: "It is dreadful to have such a -family!" - -And she, still calm, would reply: "Yes, the family is dreadful, but the -inheritance is good, isn't it? Now don't be an imbecile. You have -as much interest as I in managing Aunt Charlotte." - -Then he would be silent, not knowing what to say. - -The aunt now harried them unceasingly on the subject of a child. She -pushed Lesable into corners and hissed in his face: "My nephew, I intend -that you shall be a father before I die. I want to see my little heir. -You cannot make me believe that Cora was not made to be a mother. It is -only necessary to look at her. When one gets married, my nephew, it is -to have a family--to send out little branches. Our holy mother, the -Church, forbids sterile marriages. I know very well that you are not rich, -and that a child causes extra expense. But after me you will want for -nothing. I want a little Lesable, do you understand? I want him." - -When, after fifteen months of marriage, her desire was not yet realized, -she began to have doubts and became very urgent; and she gave Cora in -private advice--practical advice, that of a woman who has known many -things in her time, and who has still the recollection of them on -occasion. - -But one morning she was not able to rise from her bed, feeling very -unwell. As she had never been ill before, Cachelin ran in great agitation -to the door of his son-in-law: "Run quickly for Dr. Barbette," he said, -"and you will tell the chief, won't you, that I shall not be at the office -to-day." - -Lesable passed an agonizing day, incapable of working himself, or of -giving directions to the other clerks. M. Torchebeuf, surprised, remarked: -"You are somewhat distraught to-day, M. Lesable." And Lesable answered -nervously: "I am greatly fatigued, dear master; I have passed the entire -night at the bedside of our aunt, whose condition is very serious." - -The chief replied coldly: "As M. Cachelin is with her I think that -should suffice. I cannot allow my bureau to be disorganized for the -personal reasons of my employees." - -Lesable had placed his watch on the table before him, and he waited for -five o'clock with feverish impatience. As soon as the big clock in the -grand court struck he hurried away, quitting the office, for the first -time, at the regular hour. - -He even took a cab to return home, so great was his anxiety, and he -mounted the staircase at a run. The nurse opened the door; he stammered: -"How is she?" - -"The doctor says that she is very low." - -His heart began to beat rapidly. He was greatly agitated. "Ah, indeed!" - -Could she, by any chance, be going to die? - -He did not dare to go into the sick woman's chamber now, and he asked -that Cachelin, who was watching by her side, be called. - -His father-in-law appeared immediately, opening the door with -precaution. He had on his dressing-gown and skullcap, as on the pleasant -evenings which he passed in the corner by the fire; and he murmured in a -low voice: "It's very bad, very bad. She has been unconscious since four -o'clock. She even received the viaticum this afternoon." - -Then Lesable felt a weakness descending into his legs, and he sat down. - -"Where is my wife?" - -"She is at the bedside." - -"What is it the doctor says? Tell me exactly." - -"He says it is a stroke. She may come out of it, but she may also die -to-night." - -"Do you need me? If not, I would rather not go in. It would be very -painful to me to see her in this state." - -"No, go to your own apartment. If there is anything new I will call you -at once." - -Lesable went to his own quarters. The apartment seemed to him -changed--it was larger, clearer. But, as he could not keep still, he went -out onto the balcony. - -They were then in the last days of July, and the great sun, on the point -of disappearing behind the two towers of the Trocadéro, rained fire on the -immense conglomeration of roofs. - -The sky, a brilliant shining red at the horizon, took on, higher up, -tints of pale gold, then of yellow, then of green--a delicate green -flecked with light; then it became blue—a pure and fresh blue overhead. - -The swallows passed like flashes, scarcely visible, painting against the -vermilion sky the curved and flying profile of their wings. And above the -infinite number of houses, above the far-off country, floated a -rose-tinted cloud, a vapour of fire toward which ascended, as in an -apotheosis, the points of the church-steeples and all the slender -pinnacles of the monuments. The Arc de Triomphe appeared enormous and -black against the conflagration on the horizon, and the dome of the -Invalides seemed another sun fallen from the firmament upon the roof -of a building. - -Lesable held with his two hands to the iron railing, drinking in the -air as one drinks of wine, feeling a desire to leap, to cry out, to make -violent gestures, so completely was he given over to a profound and -triumphant joy. Life seemed to him radiant, the future full of richness! -What would he do? And he began to dream. - -A noise behind him made him tremble. It was his wife. Her eyes were -red, her cheeks slightly swollen: she looked tired. She bent down her -forehead for him to kiss; then she said: "We are going to dine with papa -so that we may be near her. The nurse will not leave her while we are -eating." - -He followed her into the next apartment. - -Cachelin was already at table awaiting his daughter and his son-in-law. -A cold chicken, a potato salad, and a compote of strawberries were on the -buffet, and the soup was smoking in the plates. - -They sat down at table. Cachelin said: "These are days that I wouldn't -like to see often. They are not gay." He said this with a tone of -indifference and a sort of satisfaction in his face. He set himself to -eat with the appetite of a hungry man, finding the chicken excellent and -the potato salad most refreshing. - -But Lesable felt his stomach oppressed and his mind ill at ease. He -hardly ate at all, keeping his ear strained toward the next room, which -was as still as though no one was within it. Nor was Cora hungry, but -silent and tearful she wiped her eyes from time to time with the corner of -her napkin. Cachelin asked: "What did the chief say?" and Lesable gave the -details, which his father-in-law insisted on having to the last -particular, making him repeat everything as though he had been absent -from the ministry for a year. - -"It must have made a sensation there when it became known that she was -sick." And he began to dream of his glorious re-entry when she should -be dead, at the head of all the other clerks. He said, however, as though -in reply to a secret remorse: "It is not that I desire any evil to the -dear woman. God knows I would have her preserved for many years yet, but -it will have that effect all the same. Father Savon will even forget the -Commune on account of it." - -They were commencing to eat their strawberries, when the door of the -sick-room opened. The commotion among the diners was such that with a -common impulse all three of them sprang to their feet, terrified. The -little nurse appeared, still preserving her calm, stupid manner, and said -tranquilly: - -"She has stopped breathing." - -Cachelin, throwing his napkin among the dishes, sprang forward like a -madman; Cora followed him, her heart beating; but Lesable remained -standing near the door, spying from a distance the white spot of the bed, -scarcely visible by the light of the dying day. He saw the back of his -father-in-law as he stooped over the couch, examining but disturbing -nothing; and suddenly he heard his voice, which seemed to him to come -from afar--from very far off--the other end of the world, one of those -voices which pass through our dreams and which tell us astonishing things. -Cachelin said: "It is all over. She is dead." He saw his wife fall upon -her knees and bury her face in the bedclothes, sobbing. Then he decided to -go in, and, as Cachelin straightened himself up, the young man saw on the -whiteness of the pillow the face of Aunt Charlotte, so hollow, so rigid, -so pale, that with its closed eyes it looked like the face of waxen -figure. - -He asked in a tone of anguish: "Is it over?" - -Cachelin, who was gazing at his sister, too, turned towards Lesable, -and the two men looked at each other. - -"Yes," replied the elder, wishing to force his face into an expression -of sorrow, but the two understood one another at a glance, and without -knowing why, instinctively, they shook hands, as though each would thank -the other for a service rendered. - -Then, without losing any time, they quickly occupied themselves with -the offices required by the dead. - -Lesable undertook to fetch the doctor, and to discharge as quickly as -possible the most urgent errands. - -He took his hat and ran down the staircase, in haste to be in the -street, to be alone, to breathe, to think, to rejoice in solitude over his -good fortune. - -When he had attended to his errands, instead of returning he went across -to the boulevard, possessed with a desire to see the crowds, to mingle in -the movement of the happy life of the evening. He felt like crying out to -the passers-by: "I have fifty thousand francs a year," and he walked -along, his hands in his pockets, stopping before the show-windows, -examining the rich stuffs, the jewels, the artistic furniture, with this -joyous thought: "I can buy these for myself now." - -Suddenly he stopped in front of a mourning store and the startling -thought came into his mind: "What if she is not dead? What if they are -mistaken?" - -And he quickly turned homeward with this doubt troubling his mind. - -On entering he demanded: "Has the doctor come?" - -Cachelin replied: "Yes, he has confirmed the death, and is now writing -the certificate." - -They re-entered the death-chamber. Cora was still weeping, seated in an -armchair. She wept very gently, without noise, almost without grief now, -with that facility for tears which women have. - -As soon as they were all three alone in the room Cachelin said in a low -voice: "Now that the nurse has gone to bed, we might look around to see if -anything is concealed in the furniture." - -The two men set about the work. They emptied the drawers, rummaged -through the pockets, unfolded every scrap of paper. By midnight they had -found nothing of interest. Cora had fallen asleep, and she snored a -little, in a regular fashion. César said: "Are we going to stay here until -daybreak?" Lesable, perplexed, thought it was the proper thing. Then the -father-in-law said: "In that case let us bring in armchairs;" and they -went out to get the two big, soft easy-chairs which furnished the room of -the young married couple. - -An hour later the three relatives slept, with uneven snorings, before -the corpse, icy in its eternal immobility. - -They awakened when, at daybreak, the little nurse entered the chamber. -Cachelin immediately said, rubbing his eyes: "I have been a little drowsy -for the last half hour." - -Lesable, who was now sitting very upright, declared: "Yes, I noticed it -very plainly. As for me, I have not lost consciousness for a second; I -just closed my eyes to rest them." - -Cora went to her own room. - -Then Lesable asked with apparent indifference: - -"When do you think we should go to the notary's to find out about the -will?" - -"Why--this morning if you wish." - -"Is it necessary that Cora should accompany us?" - -"That would be better, perhaps, since she is in fact the heir." - -"In that case I shall go and tell her to get ready." - -Lesable went out with a quick step. - -The office of Maître Belhomme was just opening its doors when Cachelin, -Lesable and his wife presented themselves in deep mourning, with faces -full of woe. - -The notary at once appeared and, greeting them, bade them sit down. -Cachelin spoke up: "Monsieur, you remember me: I am the brother of Mlle -Charlotte Cachelin. These are my daughter and my son-in-law. My poor sister -died yesterday; we will bury her to-morrow. As you are the depositary -of her will, we come to ask you if she has not formulated some request -relative to her inhumation, or if you have not some communication to make -to us." - -The notary opened a drawer, took out an envelope from which he drew a -paper, and said: - -"Here, Monsieur, is a duplicate of the will, the contents of which I -will make you acquainted with immediately. The other document, exactly -similar to this, is to remain in my hands." And he read: - - -"I, the undersigned, Victorine-Charlotte Cachelin, here express my last -wishes: - -"I leave my entire fortune, amounting to about one million one hundred -and twenty thousand francs, to the children who will be born of the -marriage of my niece Céleste-Coralie Cachelin, the possession of the -income to go to the parents until the majority of the eldest of their -descendants. - -"The provisions which follow regulate the share which shall fall to -each child, and the share remaining to the parents until their death. - -"In the event of my death before my niece has an heir, all my fortune is -to remain in the hands of my notary, for the term of three years, for my -wish above expressed to be complied with if a child is born during that -time. - -"But in the case of Coralie's not obtaining from Heaven a descendant -during the three years following my death, my fortune is to be -distributed, by the hands of my notary, among the poor and the benevolent -institutions contained in the following list." - - -There followed an interminable series of names of communities, of -societies, of orders, and of instructions. - -Then Maître Belhomme politely placed the paper in the hands of -Cachelin, who stood speechless with astonishment. - -The notary thought he ought to add something by way of explanation to -his visitors. - -"Mlle Cachelin," said he, "when she did me the honour to speak to me -for the first time of her project of making her will according to this -plan, expressed to me the great desire which she had to see an heir of her -race. She replied to all my reasoning by a more and more positive -expression of her wishes, which were based, moreover, on a religious -sentiment, she holding every sterile union to be the sign of divine -malediction. I have not been able to modify her intentions in the least. -Believe me, I regret this fact exceedingly." Then he added, smiling at -Coralie: "But I do not doubt that the _desideratum_ of the deceased will -be quickly realized." - -And the three relatives went away, too bewildered to think of anything. - -Side by side they walked home, without speaking, ashamed and furious, -as though they had robbed each other. All of Cora's grief, even, had -suddenly disappeared, the ingratitude of her aunt driving away all -disposition to weep. - -At last Lesable, whose pale lips were drawn with rage, said to his -father-in-law: - -"Pass me that paper, that I may read it with my own eyes." Cachelin -handed him the document and the young man began to read. He had stopped -on the footpath and, jostled by the passers-by, he stood there scanning -the words with his piercing and practical eye. The two others waited a few -steps in front, still silent. - -Then he handed back the paper, saying: - -"There is nothing to be done. She has tricked us beautifully." - -Cachelin, who was irritated by the failure of his hopes, replied: - -"It was for you to have a child, damn it! You knew well enough that she -wanted it long ago." - -Lesable shrugged his shoulders without answering. - -On entering they found a crowd of people awaiting them, those whose -calling brings them where a corpse is. Lesable went to his room, not -wishing to be bothered, and César spoke roughly to all of them, crying out -to them to leave him in peace, demanding that they get through with it as -quickly as possible, thinking that they were very long in relieving him of -the dead. - -Cora, shut up in her room, made no sound, but after an hour Cachelin -came and rapped on the door of his son-in-law. - -"I come, my dear Léopold," said he, "to submit some reflections to you, -for it is necessary to come to some understanding. My opinion is that we -should give her a befitting funeral in order to give no hint at the -Ministry of what has happened. We will arrange about the expense. Besides, -nothing is lost. You have not been married very long, and it would be too -great a misfortune if you had no children. You must set about it, that's -all. And now to business. Will you drop in at the Ministry after a while? -I am going to address the envelopes for the death announcements." - -Lesable grudgingly agreed that his father-in-law was right, and they sat -down face to face, each at an end of a long table, to fill in the -black-bordered cards. - -Then they lunched. Cora reappeared, indifferent as though nothing of -what had passed concerned her, and she ate a good deal, having fasted the -evening before. - -As soon as the meal was finished she returned to her room. Lesable left -to go to the Ministry, and Cachelin installed himself on the balcony, his -chair tilted back, in order to enjoy a pipe. - -The broad sun of a summer day fell perpendicularly upon the multitude -of roofs, some of which were pierced with windows which blazed as with -fire and threw back the dazzling rays which the sight could not sustain. - -And Cachelin, in his shirt-sleeves, looked, with his eyes blinking under -this stream of light, upon the green hillocks far, far away beyond the -great city, beyond the dusty suburbs. He thought of how the Seine flowed -there, broad, calm, and fresh, at the foot of hills which had trees on -their slopes, and how much better it would be to be lying on one's stomach -in that greenery on the bank of the river, gazing into the water, than to -be sitting on the burning lead of his balcony. And an uneasiness oppressed -him, the tormenting thought, the grievous sensation of their disaster, of -that unfortunate, unexpected thing, so much more bitter and brutal because -the hope had been so ardent and so long-lived; and he said aloud, as -people do in time of great trouble of mind, in the uprooting of a fixed -idea: "Damned old witch!" - -Behind him in the bedroom he heard the movements of those who were -busying themselves with the preparations for the funeral, and the -continuous noise of the hammer which nailed up the coffin. He had not -looked at his sister since his visit to the lawyer. - -But little by little the warmth, the gaiety, the clear charm of this -beautiful day penetrated to his mind and his soul, and he thought that -things were not so desperate. Why should his daughter not have a child? -She had not been married two years yet! His son-in-law appeared vigorous, -well built, and in good health, although small. They would have a child, -and then besides, by Jupiter, they had to! - -Lesable furtively entered the Ministry and slunk to his room. He found -on the table a paper bearing these words: "The chief wants you." He made a -gesture of impatience. He felt a revolt against this yoke which had again -fallen on his back; then a sudden and violent desire to succeed seized -him. He would be chief in his turn, and soon; he would then go higher -still. Without removing his frock-coat he went at once to M. Torchebeuf. -He presented himself with one of those solemn faces which one assumes on -sad occasions. But there was something more--an expression of sincere and -profound sorrow, that involuntary dejection which a deep disappointment -leaves upon the features. - -The head of the chief was bent over his papers. He raised it suddenly, -and said in a sharp tone: "I have needed you all morning. Why have you -not come?" - -Lesable replied: "Dear master, we have had the misfortune to lose my -aunt. Mademoiselle Cachelin, and I have just come to ask you to attend the -funeral, which will take place to-morrow." - -The frown on the brow of M. Torchebeuf immediately disappeared, and he -replied with a touch of consideration: "That alters the case, my dear -friend. I thank you and give you the day, for you must have a great deal -to attend to." - -But Lesable, desiring to show his zeal, said: - -"Thanks, dear master, everything is finished, and I expected to remain -here until the regular hour for closing." - -And he returned to his desk. - -The news soon spread, and his fellows came from all the departments to -bring him their congratulation rather than their condolences, and also to -see how he bore himself. He endured their speeches and their looks with -the resigned appearance of an actor, and also with a tact which astonished -them. - -"He conducts himself very well," said some. - -"Well he may," added others; "he ought to be content--lucky dog!" - -Maze, more audacious than any of them, asked with the careless air -of a man of the world: "Do you know exactly the amount of the fortune?" - -Lesable replied in a perfectly disinterested tone: "No, not precisely. -The will says about twelve hundred thousand francs. I know that, as the -notary was obliged to make us acquainted immediately with certain clauses -relative to the funeral." - -It was the general opinion that Lesable would not remain in the -Ministry. With an income of sixty thousand francs one does not remain a -quill-driver. One is somebody and can be something according to one's -inclination. - -Some thought that he was aiming at the Cabinet; others believed that he -thought of the Chamber of Deputies. The chief was expecting to receive -his resignation to transmit to the head of the department. - -The entire Ministry came to the funeral, which was thought to be very -meagre. But the word was around: "It is Mlle Cachelin herself who -wished it so. It was in the will." - -On the very next day Cachelin was at his post, and Lesable, after a -week of indisposition, also returned, a little pale but assiduous and -zealous as formerly. One would have said that nothing unlooked-for had -happened to them. It was only remarked that they ostentatiously smoked -very large cigars, that they talked of consols, railways, of stocks and -shares, like men who have scrip in their pockets, and it became known, in -a short time, that they had rented a country-house in the neighbourhood -of Paris, in which to spend the summer season. - -"They are miserly like the old woman," they said. "It runs in the -family. Birds of a feather flock together. But it doesn't look well to -retain a clerkship with such a fortune." - -In a short time the matter was forgotten. They were rated and judged. - - - - -IV - - -After the burial of Aunt Charlotte, Lesable thought again of the -million, and, tormented by a rage all the more violent because it must -be kept secret, he hated all the world on account of his deplorable -ill-luck. "Why, having been married two years, have I not had a child?" he -asked himself, and the fear of seeing his household remain sterile made -his heart sink. Then, as an urchin who sees from afar the shining prize -at the end of the goal, and swears to himself to attain it, and exerts -all the vigour and tenacity necessary to reach it, so Lesable took the -desperate resolution to become a parent. So many others had, why might -not he also? Perhaps he had been negligent, careless, ignorant of -something, the consequence of complete indifference. Never having felt a -violent desire for an heir, he had never directed all his energies to -obtaining this result. He determined to concentrate all his efforts; he -would neglect nothing, and he must succeed because he so much desired to. -But when he returned home, he felt ill enough to take to his bed. The -disappointment had been too bitter and he bowed himself to the blow. - -This nervous strain brought him to such a state that the physician -judged his condition serious enough to prescribe absolute rest as well as -an interminable course of treatment. They feared brain fever. In eight -days, however, he was about again and resumed his work at the office. But -he dare not yet, he believed, approach the conjugal bed. He hesitated and -trembled as a general who is going to give battle, a battle on which -depends his future. Each evening he awaited the next day, hoping for an -access of virility and energy, a happy moment in which he might accomplish -his desire. He felt his pulse every minute, and if it was too feeble or -too rapid, he took a tonic, ate raw meat, and strengthened himself in -every possible way. As his improvement was not very rapid, Lesable -determined to pass the hot months in the country. He persuaded himself -that the country air would be a sovereign balm for his weakness, and he -assured himself of the accomplishment of the hoped-for success. He said -to his father-in-law, in a confidential tone: "When we are once in the -country my health will improve, and all will go well." That one word -"country" seemed to carry for him a mysterious significance. - -They rented a small house in the village of Bezons, and the whole -family took up their residence there. The two men started out on foot -every morning for the station of Colombes, returning in the evening. - -Cora, enchanted at living thus on the banks of the peaceful river, -would seat herself on the sward, gather flowers, and bring home great -bunches of delicate, trembling ferns. - -Every evening they all three walked along the river as far as the -tollgate of Morue, and, entering, drank a bottle of beer at the Restaurant -des Tilleuls. The river, retarded by the long file of stakes, poured -between them and leaped, bubbled, and foamed for the distance of a hundred -feet. The roaring of the falls made the ground tremble, while a fine mist -of vapour floated in the air, rising from the cascade like a light smoke, -throwing on the surroundings a delightful odour of spray and a savour -of wet earth. As night fell, a great light below and in front indicated -Paris, and Cachelin exclaimed every evening: "What a city, after all!" - -From time to time, a train, passing on the iron bridge which crossed -the end of the island, made a rolling as of thunder and suddenly -disappeared, sometimes to the left, sometimes to the right, toward -Paris or toward the sea. They returned home slowly, seating themselves on -the bank, watching the moon rise and pour on the river her soft and yellow -light, which seemed to fuse with the water, and the wrinkles of the -current moved like waves of fire. The toads uttered their short and -metallic cries. The calls of the night birds rang out on the air, and -sometimes a large, mute shadow glided on the river, troubling her calm and -luminous course. It was a band of freebooters who, throwing in suddenly -their net, drew it back without noise into their boat, dragging in its -vast and sombre mesh a shoal of shining and trembling gudgeons, like a -treasure drawn from the bottom of the sea, a living treasure of silver -fish. - -Cora, deeply moved, leaned tenderly upon the arm of her husband, whose -design she suspected, although nothing of it had been spoken between -them. It was for them like a new betrothal, a second expectation of the -kiss of love. Sometimes he would bestow a furtive caress behind her ear, -on that charming spot of tender flesh where curls the first hair. She -responded by a pressure of the hand, and they attracted while refusing -each other, incited and held back by a will more energetic, by the phantom -of the million. Cachelin, appeased by the hope which he felt around him, -was happy. He drank deeply and ate much, feeling, born in him at twilight, -the hour of poetry, that foolish tenderness which comes to the dullest -persons in certain aspects of nature: a rain of light through the -branches, a sunset behind the distant hills, with purple reflections on -the water. He declared: "As for me, in the presence of such things I -believe in God. It touches me here," and he indicated the pit of his -stomach. "I feel myself turned upside down. I feel queer. It seems to me -I have been steeped in a bath which makes me want to cry." - -As for Lesable, his health rapidly improved. He was seized with sudden -ardours, which he did not understand, and he felt a desire to run like -a young colt, to roll in the grass and neigh with delight. - -He thought the favoured time was approaching. It was a true wedding -night. Then they had a new-honeymoon full of caresses and hopes. Later -they perceived that their experiments were fruitless and their confidence -was in vain. - -But in the midst of despair Lesable did not lose courage; he continued -to make the most superhuman efforts. His wife, moved by the same desire -and trembling with the same fear, more robust too than he, encouraged him -in his attempts and stimulated his flagging ardour. They returned to Paris -in the early days of October. - -Life became hard for them again. Unkind words fell from their lips, and -Cachelin, who scented the situation, harassed them with the coarse and -venomous epigrams of an old trooper. - -And one incessant thought pursued them, tortured them, and sharpened -their mutual rancour--that of the unattainable legacy. Cora now carried -a sharp tongue, and lashed her husband. She treated him like a little boy, -a mere brat, a man of no importance. Cachelin at every meal repeated: "If -I were rich, I should have children in plenty; when one is poor it is -necessary to be reasonable." Then turning to his daughter he added: "You -must be like me; but there--" and he looked at his son-in-law -significantly, accompanying the look with a movement of the shoulders full -of contempt. - -Lesable made no reply. He felt himself to be a superior man allied to -a family of boors. - -At the Ministry they noticed the alteration in his manner, and even the -chief one day asked him: "Are you not ill? You appear to me to be somewhat -changed." - -Lesable replied: "Not at all, my dear sir. I am a little tired, perhaps, -having worked very constantly, as you may have seen." - -He counted very surely on his promotion at the end of the year, and he -had resumed, in this hope, the laborious life of a model employee. But -among the meagre bonuses that were distributed Lesable's was the smallest -of all, and Cachelin received nothing. Struck to the heart, Lesable sought -the chief, whom, for the first time, he addressed as "Monsieur." - -"Of what use is it, Monsieur, to work as I do, if I do not reap any -reward?" - -The head of Monsieur Torchebeuf appeared to bristle. - -"I have already told you. Monsieur Lesable, that I will admit of no -discussion of this nature between us. I repeat to you again that your -claim is unreasonable, your actual fortune being so great as compared -to the poverty of your colleagues--" - -Lesable could not contain himself. "But I have nothing, Monsieur. Our -aunt has left her fortune to the first child which shall be born of our -marriage. We live, my father-in-law and I, on our salaries." - -The chief was greatly surprised. "If you have no fortune to-day, you -will be rich, in any case, at some future day. It amounts to the same -thing." - -Lesable withdrew, more cast down by his failure than by the uncertainty -of Aunt Charlotte's million. - -As Cachelin came to his desk some days later the handsome Maze entered -with a smile on his lips; next Pitolet appeared, his eyes shining; then -Boissel opened the door, and advanced with an excited air, tittering and -exchanging meaning looks with the others. Old Savon continued his copying, -his clay pipe in the corner of his mouth, seated on his high chair, his -feet twisted about the rounds after the fashion of little boys. Nobody -spoke. They seemed to be waiting for something, and Cachelin continued -to register his papers, announcing in a loud voice according to his -custom: "Toulon: Furniture for the officers of the Richelieu. Lorient: -Diving apparatus for the Desaix. Brest: Samples of sails of English -manufacture." - -Lesable entered. He came now every morning for information in regard -to the affairs which concerned him, his father-in-law no longer taking the -trouble to send him instructions by the office boy. - -While he was looking amongst the papers spread out on the table of the -chief-clerk, Maze watched him from his corner, rubbing his hands, and -Pitolet, who was rolling a cigarette, seemed full of mirth he could not -control. He turned toward the copying-clerk: - -"Say now, papa Savon, you have learned many things in your time, -haven't you?" - -The old man, knowing they meant to tease him and to speak to him of -his wife, did not reply. - -Pitolet began: "You must have discovered the secret of begetting -children, since you have had several." - -The old clerk raised his head. "You know, M. Pitolet, that I do like -any joking on this subject. I have had the misfortune to marry an unworthy -woman, and when I became convinced of her faithlessness I separated from -her." - -Maze asked in an indifferent tone: "You have had several proofs of her -infidelity, have you not?" - -And the old man gravely replied: "I have." - -Pitolet put in again: "That has not prevented you from becoming the -father of three or four children, I am told." - -The poor old man, growing very red, stammered: "You are trying to -wound me. Monsieur Pitolet; but you will not succeed. My wife has had, -in fact, three children. I have reason to believe that the first born is -mine, but I deny the two others." - -Pitolet continued: "Everybody says, in truth, that the first one is -yours. That is sufficient. It is very gratifying to have a child, very -gratifying and very delightful. I wager Lesable there would be enchanted -to have one--only one, like you." - -Cachelin had stopped writing. He did not laugh, although old Savon was -his butt ordinarily, and he had poured out his stock of cruel jokes on the -subject of the old clerk's conjugal sorrows. - -Lesable had collected his papers; but feeling himself attacked he -wished to remain, held back by pride, confused and irritated, and wishing -to know who had betrayed his secret. - -Then the recollection of the confidence he had made to his chief came -back to him, and he at once understood it was necessary to express his -indignation if he did not wish to become the butt of the whole Ministry. - -Boissel marched up and down the room, all the time tittering. He -imitated the hoarse voices of the street criers, and bellowed: "The secret -of begetting children, for ten centimes--two sous! Buy the secret of -begetting children--revealed by Monsieur Savon, with many horrible -details." Everybody began to laugh except Lesable and his father-in-law, -and Pitolet, turning toward the order-clerk, said: "What is the matter -with you, Cachelin? You seem to have lost your habitual gaiety. One would -think that you do not find it amusing to believe that old Savon could have -had a child by his wife. I think it very funny. Everybody cannot do as -much." - -Lesable pretended to be deeply absorbed in his papers and to hear -nothing of what was going on about him, but he was as white as a ghost. - -Boissel took up the strain in the same mocking voice: "The utility of -heirs for getting an inheritance, ten centimes, two sous; who will buy?" - -Then Maze, who thought this was very poor sort of wit, and who -personally was enraged at Lesable having robbed him of the hope of a -fortune which he had secretly cherished, said pointedly: "What is the -matter with you, Lesable? You are very pale." - -Lesable raised his head and looked his colleague full in the face. He -hesitated a second, while his lip trembled as he tried to formulate a -bitter reply, but, unable to find the phrase he sought, he responded: -"There is nothing the matter with me. I am only astonished that you -display so much delicacy." - -Maze, who stood with his back to the fire and his hands under his -coat-tails, replied, laughing: "One does the best one can, old man. We -are like you, we do not always succeed--" - -An explosion of laughter interrupted his words. Old Savon, who now -vaguely comprehended that the clerks no longer addressed their railleries -to him, looked around with his mouth gaping and his pen suspended in the -air. And Cachelin waited, ready to come to blows with the first person who -came in his way. - -Lesable stammered: "I do not understand. In what have I not succeeded?" - -The handsome Maze dropped the tails of his coat, and began to stroke -his mustache. "I know that you ordinarily succeed in all that you -undertake. I have done wrong to speak of you. Besides, we were speaking -of old Savon's children, and not of yours, as you haven't any. Now since -you succeed in all your enterprises, it is evident that, if you do not -have children, it is because you do not want them." - -"What business is it of yours?" demanded Lesable sharply. - -At this provoking tone Maze in his turn raised his voice: "Hold on! -what do you take me for? Try to be polite, or I'll settle you!" - -Lesable trembled with anger, and losing all self-control, replied: -"Monsieur Maze, I am not, like you, a great booby, or a great coxcomb. -And I forbid you ever to speak to me again. I care neither for you nor -your kind." And he threw a look of defiance at Pitolet and Boissel. - -Maze suddenly understood that true force is in calmness and irony, but -wounded in his most vulnerable part--his vanity--he wished to strike his -enemy to the very heart, and replied in the protecting tone of a -benevolent well-wisher, but with rage in his eyes: "My dear Lesable, you -pass all bounds. But I understand your vexation. It is pitiful to lose a -fortune, and to lose it for so little, for a thing so easy, so simple. If -you wish, I will do you this service myself, for nothing, out of pure -friendship. It is only an affair of five minutes--" - -He was still speaking when Lesable hurled the inkstand of old Savon -full at his head. - -A flood of ink covered his face and metamorphosed him into a negro with -surprising rapidity. He sprang forward, rolling the whites of his eyes, -with his hands raised ready to strike. But Cachelin covered his -son-in-law, and grasping Maze by the arms pushed him aside, and, after -pounding him well, dashed him against the wall. Maze disengaged himself -with a violent effort, and rushed through the door, crying to the two men: -"You shall soon hear from me!" Pitolet and Boissel followed him. - -Boissel explained his moderation by declaring he should have killed -some one if he had taken part in the struggle. - -As soon as he entered his room Maze endeavoured to remove the stain, -but without success. The ink was violet, and was indelible and -ineffaceable. He stood before his glass furious and disconsolate, rubbing -savagely at his face with a napkin rolled in a knot. He obtained only a -richer black, mixed with red, the blood coming to the surface with the -friction. - -Boissel and Pitolet strove to advise and console him. One suggested the -application of pure olive oil, the other prescribed a bath of ammonia. The -office boy was sent to ask the advice of a chemist. He brought back a -yellow liquid and pumice stone, which was used with no result. - -Maze, disheartened, sank into a chair and declared: "Now it only -remains to settle the question of honour. Will you act as seconds for me, -and demand of Monsieur Lesable a sufficient apology, or the reparation by -arms?" - -They both at once consented, and began to discuss the steps to be -taken. They had no idea about affairs of this kind, but not wishing to -betray their ignorance, and desiring to appear correct, their advice were -timorous and conflicting. It was finally decided that they should consult -a sea captain who was attached to the Ministry to look after the coal -distribution. But he was as ignorant as they were. After some moments of -reflection, however, he advised them to go and see Lesable and ask to be -put in touch with two of his friends. - -As they proceeded to the office of their colleague, Boissel suddenly -stopped. "Is it not imperative that we should have gloves?" he asked. - -Pitolet hesitated an instant. "Perhaps it is," he replied seriously. -But in order to procure the gloves it would have been necessary to go out, -and the chief was rather severe. - -They sent the office boy to bring an assortment from the nearest -glove-store. - -To decide upon the colour was a question of time. Boissel preferred -black. Pitolet thought that shade out of place in the circumstances. At -last they chose violet. - -Seeing the two men enter gloved and solemn, Lesable raised his head -and brusquely demanded: "What do you want?" - -Pitolet replied: "Monsieur, we are charged by our friend. Monsieur -Maze, to ask of you an apology, or a reparation by arms for the insult you -have inflicted on him." - -Lesable, still greatly exasperated, cried: "What, he insults me, and -sends you to provoke me? Tell him that I despise him--that I despise all -he can say or do." - -Boissel advanced with a tragic air. "You will force us. Monsieur, to -publish in the papers an official report, which will be very disagreeable -to you." - -Pitolet maliciously added: "And which will gravely injure your honour, -and your future advancement." - -Lesable, overwhelmed, looked at them. What should he do? He sought to -gain time. "Will you wait a moment in the office of Monsieur Pitolet? -You shall have my answer in ten minutes." - -When at last alone he looked around him, seeking for some counsel, some -protection. - -A duel! He was going to fight a duel! - -He sat terrified, with a beating heart. He, a peaceful man, who had -never dreamed of such a possibility, who was not prepared for the risk, -whose courage was not equal to such a formidable event. He rose from his -chair and sat down again, his heart wildly beating, his legs sinking under -him. His anger and his strength had totally deserted him. - -But the thought of the opinion of the Ministry, the gossip the story -would make among his acquaintances, aroused his failing pride, and, not -knowing what to decide, he sought his chief to ask his advice. M. -Torchebeuf was surprised and perplexed. An armed encounter seemed to him -unnecessary, and he thought a duel would demoralise the service. He -replied: "I can give you no advice. It is a question of honour, which does -not concern me. Do you wish that I should give you a note to Commandant -Bouc? He is a competent man in such matters, and will be able to advise -you." - -Lesable accepted the offer, and saw the commandant, who even consented -to be his second; he took an under-chief for another. - -Boissel and Pitolet waited with their gloves on. They had borrowed two -chairs from another office, in order to have four seats. - -They saluted gravely and took their places, while Pitolet explained -the situation. The commandant, having listened attentively, replied: "The -case is serious, but it does not appear to me to be irreparable. -Everything depends on the intention." He was a sly old sailor, who was -enjoying himself. - -A long discussion began regarding the reciprocal apologies the -principals should make. M. Maze acknowledging not to have had the -intention to offend, M. Lesable should hasten to avow himself in the wrong -in throwing the inkstand at the head of M. Maze, and pray to be excused -for his inconsiderate violence. - -The four proxies returned to their clients. - -Maze, seated before his table, was agitated by the dread of the -possible duel, although expecting to see his adversary retreat, and -regarded his face attentively in one of those little, round tin mirrors -which the employees concealed in a drawer for the purpose of adjusting -their hair and ties before leaving in the evening. He read the letter of -apology which had been prepared by the seconds of both parties, and -declared with evident satisfaction: "That appears to me to be very -honourable; I am willing to sign it." - -Lesable, for his part, accepted without discussion the arrangement of -his seconds, and declared: "As this is the result of your mutual -consultation, I can but acquiesce." - -The four plenipotentiaries assembled. The letters were exchanged, they -saluted gravely, and so the affair terminated. An extraordinary excitement -reigned in the Ministry. The employees, carrying the news, passed from -one door to the other, and lingered to gossip about in the lobbies. When -they heard how the affair had ended, there was general disappointment. -Some one said: "Still, that will not get Lesable a baby." And the saying -took. One employee made a rhyme upon it. - -But at the moment when everything seemed adjusted, a difficulty -suggested itself to Boissel: "What would be the attitude of the two -adversaries when they found themselves face to face? Would they speak, or -would they ignore each other?" It was decided that they should meet, as if -by chance, in the office of the chief, and exchange, in the presence -of M. Torchebeuf, some words of politeness. - -This ceremony was accordingly accomplished, and Maze, having sent for -a carriage, returned home, to try to remove the stain from his face. - -Lesable and Cachelin drove home together without speaking, mutually -exasperated, each blaming the other for the disgraceful affair. - -The moment he entered the house, Lesable threw his hat violently on -the table and cried to his wife: "I have had enough of it! I have a -duel on your account now!" She looked at him in angry surprise. - -"A duel? How is that?" - -"Because Maze has insulted me on your account." - -She approached him. "On my account? How?" - -He threw himself passionately into an armchair and exclaimed: "He has -insulted me--no need to say any more about it." - -But she would know. "You must repeat to me the words he used about me." - -Lesable blushed, and then stammered: "He told me--he told me--it was -in regard to your sterility." - -She gave a start; then recoiling in fury, the paternal rudeness showing -through the woman's nature, she burst out: - -"I! I am sterile, am I? What does that clown know about it? Sterile -with you, yes; because you are not a man. But if I had married another, no -matter who, do you hear? I should have had children. Ah, you had better -talk! It has cost me dear to have married a softy like you! And what did -you reply to this good-for-nothing?" - -Lesable, frightened before this storm, stuttered: "I--I slapped his -face." - -She looked at him in astonishment. - -"And what did he do?" - -"He sent me a challenge; that was all." - -She was instantly interested, attracted, like all women, by the -dramatic element, and she asked, immediately softened, and suddenly seized -with a sort of esteem for this man who was going to risk his life for her -sake: - -"When are you going to fight him?" - -He replied tranquilly: "We are not going to fight: the matter has been -arranged by our seconds. Maze has sent me an apology." - -Transported with rage, she boxed his ears. "Ah, he insults me in your -presence, and you permit it, and refuse to fight him! It needed but this -to make you a coward." - -Enraged at this he cried: "I command you to hold your tongue. I know -better than you do how to protect my honour. To convince you, here is the -letter of M. Maze; take it and read it, and see for yourself." - -She took the letter, ran her eye over it, and divining the whole truth, -sneered: "You wrote him a letter also? You are afraid of each other. What -cowards men are! If we were in your place, we women--after all, it is I -who have been insulted, your wife, and you are willing to let it pass. -That need not astonish me, for you are not man enough to beget a child. -That explains everything. You are as impotent before women as you are -cowardly among men. Ah, I have married a nice worm!" - -She had suddenly assumed the voice and gestures of her father, the -coarse and vulgar manners of an old trooper, and the intonations of a -man. - -Standing before him, her hands on her hips, tall, strong, vigorous, her -chest protruding, her cheeks flushed, her voice deep and vibrant, she -looked at this little man seated in front of her, a trifle bald, clean -shaven except for the short side-whiskers of the lawyer, and she felt a -desire to crush, to strangle him. - -She continued: "You are capable of nothing--of nothing whatever! You -allow everybody at the Ministry, even, to be promoted over your head!" - -The door opened, and Cachelin entered, attracted by the sound of their -voices, and demanded to know what was the matter. "I told the truth to -that worm!" answered Cora. - -Lesable raised his eyes, and for the first time noticed the resemblance -between father and daughter. It seemed to him that a veil was lifted and -the pair were revealed in their true colours--the same coarse nature was -common to both; and he, a ruined man, was condemned to live between the -two forever. - -Cachelin exclaimed: "If you only could get a divorce! It is not very -satisfactory to have married a capon." - -At that word, trembling and blazing with fury, Lesable sprang up with -a bound. He rushed at his father-in-law shouting: "Get out of here! -Begone! You are in my house--do you understand?--and I order you to leave -it." He seized from the table a bottle of sedative water and brandished it -like a club. - -Cachelin, intimidated, backed out of the room, muttering: "What will he -do next, I wonder?" - -But Lesable was too angry to be easily appeased. He turned upon his -wife, who regarded this outburst in astonishment, and placing the bottle -on the table cried: "As for you--as for you--" But as words failed him to -express his rage, he was choked into silence, and stood glaring at her -with a distorted visage. - -She began to laugh. - -This mocking laughter put him beside himself, and springing upon her he -seized her by the throat with his left hand, while he boxed her ears -furiously with the right. She recoiled, terrified and suffocating, and -fell backward on the bed, while he continued to strike her. Suddenly he -raised himself, out of breath, exhausted and heartily ashamed of his -brutality; he stammered: "There--there--there--that will do!" - -But she did not move; it seemed as if he had killed her. She lay on her -back, on the side of the bed, her face concealed by her hands. - -He approached her in alarm, wondering what had happened, and expecting -her to uncover her face and look at him. She made no sign, and suspense -becoming intolerable he murmured: "Cora, Cora, speak!" But she did not -move or reply. - -What was the matter with her? What was she going to do? - -His rage had passed--fallen as suddenly as it had been aroused. He felt -that his conduct was odious, almost criminal. He had beaten his wife, his -own wife--he who was circumspect, cold, and courteous. And in the softness -his remorse awakened, he would ask her forgiveness. He threw himself on -his knees at her side and covered with kisses the cheek he had just -smitten. He softly touched the end of a finger of the hand that covered -her face. She seemed to feel nothing. He coaxed her, caressing her as one -caresses a beaten dog. She took no notice of him. "Cora, listen: I have -done wrong! Cora, hear me!" She seemed as one dead. Then he tried to take -her hand from her face. It obeyed his effort passively, and he saw an open -eye, which stared at him with a fixed and alarming gaze. - -He continued: "Listen, Cora, I was transported with fury. It was your -father who drove me to do this shameful thing. A man cannot take such an -insult as that." She made no reply, as if she heard nothing. He did not -know what to say, or what to do. He kissed her under the ear, and raising -himself he saw a tear in the corner of her eye, a great tear which rolled -slowly down her cheek, and her eyelids fluttered and closed convulsively. -He was seized with shame, deeply moved, and opening his arms he threw -himself on his wife; he removed the other hand from her face and covered -it with kisses, crying: "My poor Cora, forgive me! forgive me!" - -Still she wept, without a sound, without a sob, as one weeps from the -deepest grief. He held her pressed closely against him, caressing her and -whispering in her ear all the tender words he could command. But she -remained insensible. However, she ceased to weep. They continued thus a -long time locked in each other's arms. - -The night fell, folding in its sombre shadow the little room; and when -it was entirely dark he was emboldened to solicit her pardon in a manner -that was calculated to revive their hopes. - -When they had risen he resumed his ordinary voice and manner, as if -nothing had happened. She appeared, on the contrary, softened, and spoke -in a gentler tone than usual, regarding her husband with submissive, -almost caressing eyes, as if this unexpected correction had relaxed her -nerves and softened her heart. - -Lesable said quietly: "Your father must be tired of being alone so -long. It will soon be dinner-time; go and fetch him." - -She obeyed him. - -It was seven o'clock indeed, and the little maid announced dinner, as -Cachelin, serene and smiling, appeared with his daughter. They seated -themselves at table and talked on this evening with more cordiality -than they had done for a long time, as if something agreeable had happened -to everybody. - - - - -V - - -But their hopes, always sustained, always renewed, ended in nothing. -From month to month their expectations declined, in spite of the -persistence of Lesable and the co-operation of his wife. They were -consumed with anxiety. Each without ceasing reproached the other for their -want of success, and the husband in despair, emaciated, fatigued, had to -suffer all the vulgarity of Cachelin, who in their domestic warfare called -him "M. Lecoq," in remembrance, no doubt, of the day that he missed -receiving a bottle in his face for having called his son-in-law a capon. - -He and his daughter, whose interests were in league, enraged by the -constant thought of this great fortune so near, and yet impossible to -seize, racked their invention to humiliate and torture this impotent -man, who was the cause of all their misfortune. - -As they sat at table, Cora repeated each day: "There is very little -for dinner. If we were rich, it would be otherwise. It is not my fault." - -When Lesable set out for his office, she called from her room: "Do not -forget your umbrella or you will come back as muddy as an omnibus wheel. -It's not my fault that you are still obliged to follow the trade of a -quill-driver." - -When she went out herself, she never failed to cry: "If I had married -another man, I should have a carriage of my own." - -Every hour and on every occasion she harped on this subject. She -pricked her husband with reproaches, lashed him with insult, held him -alone guilty, and made him responsible for the loss of the fortune that -should have been hers. - -At last, one evening, losing all patience, Lesable exclaimed: "In the -dog's name, can't you hold your tongue? From first to last it is your -fault, and yours alone, do you hear, if we have not a child, because -I have already had one." - -He lied, preferring anything to this eternal reproach, to this shame -of appearing impotent. She looked at him, astonished at first, seeking -the truth in his eyes; at last comprehending, and full of disdain, -she cried: "You have a child, have you?" - -He replied with effrontery: "Yes, an illegitimate child, that I am -bringing up at Asnières." - -She answered quietly: "We will go and see it tomorrow, so that I may -find out how what he is like." - -He only blushed to the ears and stammered: "Just as you please." - -She rose the next morning at seven o'clock, very much to her husband's -astonishment. - -"Are we not going to see your child? You promised me yesterday evening. -Perhaps you haven't got it any more to-day." - -He sprang from the bed hastily. "It is not my child we are going to -see, but a physician, who will give us his opinion on your case." - -She replied in the tone of a woman who was sure of herself: "I shall -ask nothing better." - -Cachelin was instructed to inform the chief that his son-in-law was -ill, and Lesable and his wife advised by a neighbouring chemist, rang at -one o'clock exactly the office-bell of Dr. Lefilleul, author of several -works on the hygiene of generation. - -They were shown into a salon decorated in white and gold, but scantily -furnished in spite of the number of chairs and sofas. They seated -themselves and waited. Lesable was excited, trembling, and also ashamed. -Their turn came at last, and they were shown into a sort of office, where -they were received by a short, stout man of dignified and ceremonious -demeanour. - -He waited till they should explain their case, but Lesable had not -courage to utter a word, and blushed up to the roots of his hair. It -therefore devolved on his wife to speak, and with a resolute manner and -in a tranquil voice, she made known their errand. - -"Monsieur, we have come to discover the reason why we cannot have -children. A large fortune depends upon this for us." - -The consultation was long, minute, and painful. Cora alone seemed -unembarrassed, and submitted to the critical examination of the medical -expert, sustained by the great interest she had at stake. - -After having studied for nearly two hours the constitutions of the -married pair, the practitioner said: "I discover nothing either abnormal -or special. Your case is by no means an uncommon one. There is as much -divergence in constitutions as in characters. When we see so many -households out of joint through incompatibility of temper, it is not -astonishing to see others sterile through incompatibility of physique. -Madame appears to be particularly well fitted for the offices of -motherhood. Monsieur, on his side, although presenting no conformation -outside of the general rule, seems to me enfeebled, perhaps the -consequence of his ardent desire to become a parent. Will you permit me -to make an auscultation?" - -Lesable, greatly disturbed, removed his waistcoat, and the doctor glued -his ear to the thorax, and then to the back of his patient, tapping him -continuously from the throat to the stomach, and from the loins to the -nape of his neck. He discovered a slight irregularity in the action of -the heart, and even a menace to the right lung. "--It is necessary for -you to be very careful, Monsieur, very careful. This is anaemia, and comes -from exhaustion--nothing else. These conditions, although now -insignificant, may in a short time become incurable." - -Lesable turned pale with anguish and begged for a prescription. - -The doctor ordered a complicated régime consisting of iron, raw meat, -and soup, combined with exercise, rest, and a sojourn in the country -during the hot weather. He indicated, moreover, the symptoms that -proclaimed the desired fecundity, and initiated them into the secrets -which were usually practised with success in such cases. - -The consultation cost forty francs. - -When they were in the street, Cora burst out full of wrath: - -"I have discovered what my fate is to be!" - -Lesable made no reply. He was tormented by anxiety, he was recalling -and weighing each word of the physician. Had the doctor made a mistake, -or had he judged truly? He thought no more of the inheritance now, or the -desired offspring; it was a question of life or death. He seemed to hear a -whistling in his lungs, and his heart sounded as though it were beating in -his ears. In crossing the garden of the Tuileries he was overcome with -faintness and had to sit down to recover himself. His wife, as though to -humiliate him by her superior strength, remained standing in front of him, -regarding him from head to foot with pitying contempt. He breathed -heavily, exaggerating the effort by his fears, and with the fingers of his -left hand on his right wrist he counted the pulsations of the artery. - -Cora, who was stamping with impatience, cried: "When will you be ready? -It's time to stop this nonsense!" He arose with the air of a martyr, and -went on his way without uttering a word. - -When Cachelin was informed of the result of the consultation, his fury -knew no bounds. He bawled out: "We know now whose fault it is to a -certainty. Ah, well!" And he looked at his son-in-law with his ferocious -eyes as though he would devour him. - -Lesable neither listened nor heard, being totally absorbed in thoughts -of his health and the menace to his existence. Father and daughter might -say what they pleased. They were not in his skin, and as for him he meant -to preserve his skin at all hazards. He had the various prescriptions of -the physician filled, and at each meal he produced an array of bottles -with the contents of which he dosed himself regardless of the sneers of -his wife and her father. He looked at himself in the glass every instant, -placed his hand on his heart each moment to study its action, and removed -his bed to a dark room which was used as a clothes closet to put himself -beyond the reach of carnal temptation. - -He conceived for his wife a hatred mingled with contempt and disgust. All -women, moreover, appeared to him to be monsters, dangerous beasts, whose -mission it was to destroy men; and he thought no more of the will of Aunt -Charlotte, except as one recalls a past accident which might have been -fatal. - -Some months passed. There remained but one year before the fatal term. - -Cachelin had suspended in the dining-room an enormous calendar, from -which he effaced a day each morning, raging at the impotence of his -son-in-law, who was allowing this great fortune to escape week by week. -And the thought that he would have to drudge at the office all his life, -and limit his expenses to the pitiful sum of two thousand francs a year, -filled him with a passion of anger that found vent in the most violent -abuse. He could not look at Lesable without shaking with rage, with a -brutal desire to beat, to crush, to trample on him. He hated him with an -inordinate hatred. Every time he saw him open the door and enter the room, -it seemed to him that a robber had broken into the house and robbed him of -a sacred inheritance. He hated him more than his most mortal enemy, and he -despised him at the same time for his weakness, and above all for the -baseness which caused him to sacrifice their common hope of posterity to -the fear of his health. Lesable, in fact, lived as completely apart from -his wife as if no tie united them. He never approached or touched her; he -avoided even looking at her, as much through shame as through fear. - -Cachelin, every morning asked his daughter: "Well, how about your -husband? Has he made up his mind?" - -And she would reply: "No, papa." - -Each evening saw the most painful scenes take place at table. Cachelin -continually reiterated: "When a man is not a man, he had better get out -and yield his place to another." - -And Cora added: "The fact is, there are some men who are both useless -and wearisome. I do not know why they are permitted to live only to become -a burden to everyone." - -Lesable dosed himself and made no reply. At last one day his -father-in-law cried: "Say, you, if you do not change your manners now that -your health is improving, do you know what my daughter means to do?" - -The son-in-law raised his eyes, foreseeing a new outrage. Cachelin -continued: "She will take somebody else, confound you! You may consider -yourself lucky if she hasn't done so already. When a girl has married a -weakling like you, she is entitled to do anything." - -Lesable, turning livid with wrath, replied: "It is not I who prevents -her from following your good counsel." - -Cora: lowered her eyes, and Cachelin, knowing that he had said an -outrageous thing, remained silent and confused. - - - - -VI - - -At the office the two men seemed to live on good enough terms. A sort -of tacit pact was entered into between them to conceal from their -colleagues their internal warfare. They addressed each other as "my dear -Cachelin," "my dear Lesable;" they even feigned to laugh and talk together -as men who were satisfied and happy in their domestic relations. - -Lesable and Maze, for their part, comported themselves in the presence -of each other with the ceremonious politeness of adversaries who had met -in battle. - -The duel they had escaped, but whose shadow had chilled them, exacted -of them an exaggerated courtesy, a more marked consideration, and perhaps -a secret desire for reconciliation, born of the vague fear of a new -complication. Their attitude was recognised and approved as that of men -of the world, who had had an affair of honour. They saluted each other -from a distance with severe gravity, and with a flourish of hats that was -graceful and dignified. They did not speak, their pride preventing either -from making the first advances. But one day, Lesable, whom the Chief -demanded to see immediately, to show his zeal, started with a great rush -through the lobby and ran right into the stomach of an employee. It was -Maze. They recoiled before each other, and Lesable exclaimed with eager -politeness: "I hope I have not hurt you. Monsieur?" - -Maze responded: "Not at all, sir." - -From this moment they thought it expedient to exchange some phrases -when they met. Then, in the interchange of courtesies, there were little -attentions they paid each other from which arose in a short time certain -familiarities, then an intimacy tempered with reserve and restrained by a -certain hesitation; then on the strength of their increasing goodwill and -visits made to the room of each other, a comradeship was established. They -often gossiped together now of the news that found its way into the -bureau. Lesable laid aside his air of superiority, and Maze no longer -paraded his social successes. Cachelin often joined in the conversation -and watched with interest their growing friendship. Sometimes as the -handsome Maze left the apartment with head erect and square shoulders, he -turned to his son-in-law and hissed: "There goes a fine man!" One morning -when they were all four together, for old Savon never left his copying, -the chair of the old clerk, having been tampered with no doubt by some -practical joker, collapsed under him, and the good man rolled on the floor -uttering cries of affright. The three others flew to his assistance. The -order-clerk attributed this machination to the communists, and Maze -earnestly desired to see the wounded part. Cachelin and he even essayed -to take off the poor old fellow's clothes to dress the injury, they said, -but he resisted desperately, crying that he was not hurt. - -When the fun was over, Cachelin suddenly exclaimed: "I say, M. Maze, -now that we are all together, can you not do us the honour of dining with -us next Sunday? It will give pleasure to all three of us, myself, my -son-in-law, and my daughter, who has often heard your name when we speak -of the office. Shall it be yes?" - -Lesable added his entreaty, but more coldly than his father-in-law: - -"Pray come," he said; "it will give us great pleasure." - -Maze hesitated, embarrassed and smiling at the remembrance of past -events. - -Cachelin urged him: "Come, say we may expect you!" - -"Very well, then, I accept." - -Cachelin said on entering the house: "Cora, do you know that M. Maze -is coming here to dinner next Sunday?" - -Cora, surprised at first, stammered: "M. Maze? Really!" She blushed up -to her hair without knowing why. She had so often heard him spoken of, -his manners, his successes, for he was looked upon at the office as a man -who was irresistible with women, that she had long felt a desire to know -him. - -Cachelin continued rubbing his hands: "You will see that he is a real -man, and a fine fellow. He is as tall as a carbineer; he does not resemble -your husband there." - -She did not reply, confused as if they had divined her dreams of him. - -They prepared this dinner with as much solicitude as the one to which -Lesable had been formerly invited. Cachelin discussed the dishes, wishing -to have everything served in perfection; and as though a confidence -unavowed and still undetermined had risen up in his heart, he seemed more -gay, tranquilised by some secret and sure prevision. - -Through all that Sunday he watched the preparations with the utmost -solicitude, while Lesable was doing some urgent work, brought the evening -before from the office. - -It was the first week of November, and the new year was at hand. - -At seven o'clock Maze arrived, in high good humour. He entered as -though he felt very much at home, with a compliment and a great bouquet -of roses for Cora. He added, as he presented them, in the familiar tone -of a man of the world: "It seems to me, Madame, I know you already, and -that I have known you from your childhood, for many years your father has -spoken to me of you." - -Cachelin, seeing the flowers, cried: "Ah they are charming!" and his -daughter recalled that Lesable had not brought her a bouquet the day he -was introduced. The handsome clerk seemed enchanted, laughing and -bestowing on Cora the most delicate flatteries, which brought the colour -to her cheeks. - -He found her very attractive. She thought him charming and seductive. -When he had gone, Cachelin exclaimed: "Isn't he a fine fellow? What -havoc he creates! They say he can wheedle any woman!" - -Cora, less demonstrative, avowed, however, that she thought him very -agreeable, and not so much of a poseur as she had believed. - -Lesable, who seemed less sad and weary than usual, acknowledged that -he had underrated Maze on his first acquaintance. - -Maze returned at intervals, which gradually grew shorter. He delighted -everybody. They petted and coddled him. Cora prepared for him the dishes -he liked, and the intimacy of the three men soon became so great that they -were seldom seen apart. - -The new friend took the whole family to the theatre in boxes procured -through the press. They returned on foot, through the streets thronged -with people, to the door of Lesable's apartments, Maze and Cora walking -before, keeping step, hip to hip, swinging with the same movement, the -same rhythm, like two beings created to walk side by side through life. -They spoke to each other in a low tone, laughing softly together, and -seemed to understand each other instinctively: sometimes the young -woman would turn her head and throw behind her a glance at her husband -and father. - -Cachelin followed them with a look of benevolent regard, and often, -forgetting that he spoke to his son-in-law, he declared: "They have the -same physique exactly. It is a pleasure to see them together." - -Lesable replied quietly: "Yes, they are about the same figure." He was -happy now in the consciousness that his heart was beating more vigorously, -that his lungs acted more freely, and that his health had improved in -every respect; his rancour against his father-in-law, whose cruel taunts -had now entirely ceased, vanished little by little. - -The first day of January he was promoted to the chief clerkship. His -joy was so excessive over his happy event that on returning home he -embraced his wife for the first time in six months. She appeared -embarrassed, as if he had done something improper, and she looked at Maze, -who had called to present to her his devotion and respect on the first day -of the year. He also had an embarrassed air, and turned toward the window -like a man who does not wish to see. - -But Cachelin very soon resumed his brutalities, and began to harass his -son-in-law with his coarse jests. - -Sometimes he even attacked Maze, as though he blamed him also for the -catastrophe suspended over them--the inevitable date of which approached -nearer every minute. - -Cora alone appeared composed, entirely happy and radiant. She had -forgotten, it seemed, the threatening nearness of the term. - -March had come. AH hope seemed lost, for it would be three years on -the twentieth of July since Aunt Charlotte's death. - -An early spring had advanced the vegetation, and Maze proposed to his -friends one Sunday to make an excursion to the banks of the Seine, to -gather the violets in the shady places. They set out by a morning train -and got off at Maisons-Laffitte. A breath of winter still lingered among -the bare branches, but the turf was green and lustrous, flecked with -flowers of white and blue, and the fruit-trees on the hillsides seemed -garlanded with roses as their bare branches showed through the clustering -blossoms. The Seine, thick and muddy from the late rains, flowed slowly -between its banks gnawed by the frosts of winter; and all the country, -steeped in vapour, exhaled a savour of sweet humidity under the warmth of -the first days of spring. - -They wandered in the park. Cachelin, more glum than usual, tapped his -cane on the gravelled walk, thinking bitterly of their misfortune, so soon -to be irremediable Lesable, morose also, feared to wet his feet in the -grass, while his wife and Maze were gathering flowers to make a bouquet. -Cora for several days had seemed suffering, and looked weary and pale. She -was soon tired and wished to return for luncheon. They came upon a little -restaurant near an old ruined mill, and the traditional repast of a -Parisian picnic party was soon served under a green arbour, on a little -table covered with two napkins, and quite near the banks of the river. -They had fried gudgeons, roast beef cooked with potatoes, and they had -come to the salad of fresh green lettuce, when Cora rose brusquely and ran -toward the river, pressing her napkin with both hands to her mouth. - -Lesable, uneasy, wondered what could be the matter. Maze disconcerted, -blushed, and stammered, "I do not know--she was well a moment since." - -Cachelin appeared frightened, and remained seated, with his fork in the -air, a leaf of salad suspended at the end. Then he rose, trying to see -his daughter. Bending forward, he perceived her leaning against a tree -and seeming very ill. A swift suspicion flashed through his mind, and he -fell back into his seat and regarded with an embarrassed air the two men, -both of whom seemed now equally confused. He looked at them with anxious -eyes, no longer daring to speak, wild with anguish and hope. - -A quarter of an hour passed in utter silence. Then Cora reappeared, a -little pale and walking slowly. No one questioned her; each seemed to -divine a happy event, difficult to speak of. They burned to know, but -feared also to hear, the truth. Cachelin alone had the courage to ask: -"You are better now?" And she replied: "Yes, thank you; there is not much -the matter; but we will return early, as I have a light headache." When -they set out she took the arm of her husband as if to signify something -mysterious she had not yet dared to avow. - -They separated at the station of Saint-Lazare. Maze, making a pretext -of some business affair which he had just remembered, bade them adieu, -after having shaken hands with all of them. As soon as Cachelin was alone -with his daughter and his son-in-law, he asked: "What was the matter -with you at breakfast?" - -But Cora, did not reply at first; after hesitating for a moment she -said: "It was nothing much; a little sickness of the stomach was all." -She walked with a languid step, but with a smile on her lips. - -Lesable was ill at ease, his mind distracted; haunted with confused and -contradictory ideas, angry, feeling an unavowable shame, cherishing a -cowardly jealousy, he was like those sleepers who close their eyes in the -morning that they may not see the ray of light which glides between the -curtains and strikes the bed like a brilliant shaft. - -As soon as he entered the house, he shut himself in his own room, -pretending to be occupied with some unfinished work. Then Cachelin, -placing his hands on his daughter's shoulders, exclaimed: "You -are pregnant, aren't you?" - -She stammered: "Yes, I think so. Two months." - -Before she had finished speaking, he bounded with joy, then began to -dance the cancan around her, an old recollection of his garrison days. -He lifted his leg and leaped like a young kid in spite of his great -paunch, and made the whole apartment shake with his gambols. The furniture -jostled, the glasses on the buffet rattled, and the chandelier oscillated -like the lamp of a ship. - -He took his beloved daughter in his arms and embraced her frantically. -Then tapping her lightly on the shoulder he cried: "Ah, it is done, then, -at last! Have you told your husband?" - -She murmured, suddenly intimidated: "No,--not yet--I--I--was waiting--" - -But Cachelin exclaimed: "Good, very good. You find it awkward. I will -run and tell him myself." And he rushed to the apartment of his -son-in-law. On seeing him enter, Lesable, who was doing nothing, rose and -looked inquiringly at Cachelin, who left him no time for conjecture, but -cried: "Do you know your wife is in the family way?" - -The husband was stricken speechless, his countenance changed, and the -blood surged to the roots of his hair: "What? How? Cora? you say--" he -faltered when he recovered his voice. - -"I say that she is pregnant; do you understand? Now is our chance!" - -In his joy he took Lesable's hands and pressed and shook them, as if -to felicitate him, to thank him, and cried: "Ah, at last it is true, it -is true! it is true! Think of the fortune we shall have!" and unable to -contain himself longer, he caught his son-in-law in his arms and embraced -him, crying: "More than a million! think of it! more than a million!" and -he began to dance more violently than ever. - -"But come, she is waiting for you, come and embrace her, at least," and -taking him by the shoulders he pushed Lesable before him, and threw him -like a ball into the apartment where Cora stood anxiously waiting and -listening. - -The moment she saw her husband, she recoiled, stifled with a sudden -emotion. He stood before her, pale and severe. He had the air of a judge, -and she of a culprit. At last he said: "It seems that you are pregnant." - -She stammered in a trembling voice: "Yes, that seems to be the case." - -But Cachelin seized each of them by the neck, and, bringing them face -to face, cried: "Now kiss each other, by George! It is a fitting -occasion." - -And after releasing them, he capered about like a schoolboy, shouting: -"Victory, victory, we have won our case! I say, Léopold, we must purchase -a country house; there, at least, you will certainly recover your health." -At this idea Lesable trembled. His father-in-law continued: "We will -invite M. Torchebeuf and his wife to visit us, and as the under-chief is -at the end of his term you may take his place. That is the way to bring it -about." - -Lesable was now beginning to regard things from Cachelin's standpoint, -and he saw himself receiving his chief at a beautiful country place on -the banks of the river, dressed in coat of white twill, with a Panama hat -on his head. - -Something sweet entered into his heart with this hope, something warm -and good seemed to melt within him, rendering him light of heart and -healthier in feeling. He smiled, still without speaking. - -Cachelin, intoxicated with joy, transported at the thought of his fine -prospects, continued: - -"Who knows, we may gain some political influence. Perhaps you will be -deputy. At all events, we can see the society of the neighbourhood, and -enjoy some luxuries. And you shall have a little pony to convey you every -morning to the station." - -These images of luxury, of elegance and prosperity aroused the drooping -spirits of Lesable. The thought that he could be driven in his own -carriage, like the rich people he had so often envied, filled him with -satisfaction, and he could not refrain from exclaiming: "Ah, that will be -delightful indeed." - -Cora, seeing him won over, smiled tenderly and gratefully, and -Cachelin, who saw no obstacles now in the way of indulgence, declared: -"We will dine at the restaurant, to celebrate the happy event." - -When they reached home, the two men were a little tipsy, and Lesable, -who saw double and whose ideas were all topsy-turvy, could not find his -bedroom. He made his way by mistake, or forgetfulness, into the long -vacant bed of his wife. And all night long it seemed to him that the bed -oscillated like a boat, rolling and pitching as though it would upset. He -was even a little seasick. - -He was surprised on awaking to find Cora in his arms. She opened her -eyes with a smile and kissed him with a sudden effusion of gratitude and -affection. Then she said to him, in that caressing voice which women -employ in their cajoleries: "If you wish to be very nice, you will not -go to your office to-day. There is no need to be so punctual now that we -are going to be rich, and we will make a little visit to the country, all -by ourselves." - -Lesable was content to remain quiet, with the feeling for self-indulgence -which follows an evening of excess, and the warmth of the bed was -grateful. He felt the drowsy wish to lie a long time, to do nothing more -but to live in tranquil idleness. An unusual sloth paralyzed his soul and -subdued his body, and one vague, happy, and continuous thought never left -him--"He was going to be rich, independent." - -But suddenly a fear seized him, and he whispered softly, as if he -thought the walls might hear him: "Are you very sure you are pregnant, -after all?" - -She reassured him at once. "Oh, yes! I am certain of it. I could not be -mistaken." - -And, as if still doubting, he traced the outline of her figure with his -hand, and feeling convinced declared: "Yes, it is true--but you will not -be brought to bed before the date. They will contest our right on that -account, perhaps." - -At this supposition she grew angry. - -"Oh, no indeed, they are not going to trick us now after so much misery, -so much trouble, and so many efforts. Oh, no, indeed!" She was overwhelmed -with indignation. "Let us go at once to the notary," she said. - -But his advice was to get a physician's certificate first, and they -presented themselves again to Dr. Lefilleul. - -He recognized them immediately, and exclaimed: - -"Ah well, have you succeeded?" - -They both blushed up to their ears, and Cora a little shamefacedly -stammered: "I believe we have, doctor." - -The doctor rubbed his hands, crying: "I expected it, I expected it. -The means I recommended to you never fail; at least, only from some -radical incapacity of one of the parties." - -When he had made an examination of the young wife, he declared: "It -is true, bravo!" and he wrote on a sheet of paper: - -"I, the undersigned, doctor of medicine, of the Faculty of Paris, -certify that Madame Léopold Lesable, née Cachelin, presents all the -symptoms of pregnancy, dating from over three months." - -Then, turning toward Lesable: "And you," he said, "how is that chest -and that heart?" and having made an auscultation, he declared that the -patient was entirely cured. They set out happy and joyous, arm in arm, -with elastic steps. But on the route Léopold had an idea. "We had better -go home before we see the lawyer, and rearrange your dress; you'll put two -or three towels under your belt it will draw attention to it and that will -be better; he will not believe then that we are trying to gain time." - -They returned home, and he himself undressed his wife in order to -adjust the deception. Ten consecutive times Lesable changed the position -of the towels, and stepped back some paces to get the proper effect, -wishing to obtain an absolutely perfect resemblance. Satisfied with the -result at last, they set out again, and walked proudly through the -streets, Lesable carrying himself with the air of one whose virility was -established and patent to all the world. - -The notary received them kindly. Then he listened to their explanation, -ran his eye over the certificate, and, as Lesable insisted, "For the rest, -Monsieur, it is only necessary to glance for a second," he threw a -convinced look on the tell-tale figure of the young woman. - -There was a moment of anxious suspense, when the man of law declared: -"Assuredly, whether the infant is born or to be born, it exists, it lives; -so we will suspend the execution of the testament till the confinement of -Madame." - -After leaving the office of the notary, they embraced each other on the -stairway, so exuberant was their joy. - - - - -VII - - -From the moment of this happy discovery, the three relatives lived in -the most perfect accord. They were good-humoured, reasonable, and kind. -Cachelin had recovered all his old gaiety, and Cora loaded her husband -with attentions. Lesable also seemed like another man, and more gay than -he had ever been in his life. Maze came less often, and seemed ill at ease -in the family circle; they received him kindly, but with less warmth than -formerly, for happiness is egotistical and excludes strangers. - -Cachelin himself seemed to feel a certain secret hostility against the -handsome clerk whom some months before he had introduced so eagerly into -his household. It was he who announced to this friend the pregnancy of -Cora. He said to him brusquely: "You know my daughter is pregnant!" - -Maze, feigning surprise, replied: "Ah, indeed! you ought to be very -happy." - -Cachelin responded with a "Humph!" for he perceived that his colleague, -on the contrary, did not appear to be delighted. Men care but little to -see in this state (whether or not the cause lies with them) women in whom -they are interested. - -Every Sunday, however, Maze continued to dine with the family, but it -was no longer pleasant to spend the evenings with them, albeit no serious -difference had arisen; and this strange embarrassment increased from week -to week. One evening, just after Maze had gone, Cachelin cried with an -air of annoyance: "That fellow is beginning to weary me to death!" - -Lesable replied: "The fact is, he does not improve on acquaintance." -Cora lowered her eyes. She did not give her opinion. She always seemed -embarrassed in the presence of the handsome Maze, who, on his side, -appeared almost ashamed when he found himself near her. He no longer -smiled on looking at her as formerly, no longer asked her and her husband -to accompany him to the theatre, and the intimacy, which till lately had -been so cordial, seemed to have become but an irksome burden. - -One Thursday, when her husband came home to dinner, Cora kissed him -with more coquetry than usual and whispered in his ear: - -"Perhaps you are going to scold me now?" - -"Why should I?" he inquired. - -"Well, because--M. Maze came to see me a little while ago, and, as I -do not wish to be gossiped about on his account, I begged him never to -come when you were not at home. He seemed a little hurt." - -Lesable, very much surprised, demanded: - -"Very well, what did he say to that?" - -"Oh! he did not say much, but it did not please me all the same, and -then I asked him to cease his visits entirely. You know very well that it -is you and papa who brought him here--I was not consulted at all about -it--and I feared you would be displeased because I had dismissed him." - -A grateful joy beamed from the face of her husband. - -"You did right, perfectly right, and I even thank you for it." - -She went on, in order to establish the understanding between the two -men, which she had arranged in advance: "At the office you must conduct -yourself as though nothing had happened, and speak to him as you have been -in the habit of doing; but he is not to come here any more." - -Taking his wife tenderly in his arms, Lesable impressed long kisses on -her eyelids and on her cheeks. "You are an angel! You are an angel!" he -repeated, and he felt pressing against his stomach the already lusty -child. - - - - -VIII - - -Nothing of importance happened up to the date of Cora's confinement, -which occurred on the last day of September. The child, being a daughter, -was called Désirée. As they wished to make the christening an imposing -event, it was decided to postpone the ceremony until they were settled in -the new country house which they were going to buy. - -They chose a beautiful estate at Asnières, on the hills that overlook -the Seine. Great changes had taken place during the winter. As soon as the -legacy was secured, Cachelin asked for his pension, which was granted, and -he left the office. He employed his leisure moments in cutting, with the -aid of a little scroll-saw, the covers of cigar-boxes. He made clocks, -caskets, jardinières, and all sorts of odd little pieces of furniture. He -had a passion for this work, the taste for which had come to him on seeing -a peripatetic merchant working thus with sheets of wood on the Avenue de -l'Opéra; and each day he obliged everybody to admire some new design both -complicated and puerile. He was amazed at his own work, and kept on -saying: "It is astonishing what one can accomplish!" - -The assistant-chief, M. Rabot, being dead at last, Lesable fulfilled -the duties of his place, although he did not receive the title, for -sufficient time had not elapsed since his last promotion. - -Cora had become a wholly different woman, more refined, more elegant, -instinctively divining all the transformations that wealth imposes. On -New Year's Day she made a visit to the wife of her husband's chief, a -commonplace person, who remained a provincial, notwithstanding a residence -of thirty-five years in Paris, and she put so much grace and seductiveness -into her prayer that Mme Torchebeuf should stand godmother to her child -that the good woman consented. Grandpapa Cachelin was the godfather. - -The ceremony took place on a brilliant Sunday in June. All the -employees of the office were invited to witness it, except the handsome -Maze, who was seen no more in the Cachelin circle. - -At nine o'clock Lesable waited at the railway station for the train -from Paris, while a groom, in livery covered with great gilt buttons, held -by the bridle a plump pony hitched to a brand-new phaeton. - -The engine whistled, then appeared, dragging its train of cars, which -soon discharged their freight of passengers. - -M. Torchebeuf descended from a first-class carriage with his wife, in -a magnificent toilette, while Pitolet and Boissel got out of a -second-class carriage. They had not dared to invite old Savon, but it was -understood that they were to meet him by chance in the afternoon and bring -him to dinner with the consent of the chief. - -Lesable hurried to meet his superior, who advanced slowly, the lapel -of his frock-coat ornamented with a decoration that resembled a full-blown -red rose. His enormous head, surmounted by a large hat that seemed to -crush his small body, gave him the appearance of a phenomenon, and his -wife, if she had stood on tiptoe, could have looked over his head without -any trouble. - -Léopold, radiant, bowed and thanked his guests. He seated them in the -phaeton, then running toward his two colleagues, who were walking modestly -behind, he pressed their hands, regretting that his phaeton was too small -to accommodate them also. "Follow the quay," he directed, "and you will -reach my door--'Villa Désirée,' the fourth one after the turn. Make -haste!" - -And mounting the phaeton, he took the reins and drove off, while the -groom leaped lightly to the little seat behind. - -The ceremony was very brilliant, and afterwards they returned for -luncheon. Each one found under his napkin a present proportioned to his -station. The godmother received a bracelet of solid gold, her husband a -scarf-pin of rubies, Boissel a pocket book of Russian leather, and Pitolet -a superb meerschaum pipe. "It was Désirée," they said, "who offered these -presents to her new friends." - -Mme Torchebeuf, blushing with confusion and pleasure, placed on her fat -arm the brilliant circle, and, as the chief wore a narrow black cravat, -which would not receive the pin, he stuck the jewel in the lapel of his -frock-coat, under the Legion of Honour, as if it had been another -decoration of an inferior order. - -Outside the window the shining band of the river was seen, curving -toward Suresnes, its banks shaded with trees. The sun fell in a rain on -the water, making it seems a river of fire. The beginning of the repast -was rather solemn, being made formal by the presence of M. and Mme -Torchebeuf. After a while, however, things began to go better. Cachelin -threw out some heavy jokes, which he felt would be permitted him since he -was rich, and everyone laughed at them. If Pitolet or Boissel had uttered -them, the guests would certainly have been shocked. - -At dessert, the infant was brought in and received a kiss from each of -the company. Smothered in a cloud of snowy lace, the baby looked at the -guests with its blue eyes void of intelligence or expression, and rolled -its bald head from side to side with an air of newly awakened interest. - -Pitolet, amid the confusion of voices, whispered in the ear of Boissel: -"It looks like a little Mazette." - -The joke went round the Ministry next day. - -At two o'clock the health of the newly christened baby was drunk, and -Cachelin proposed to show his guests over the property, and then to take -them for a walk on the banks of the Seine. - -They moved in a slow procession from room to room, from the cellar to -the garret; then they examined the garden tree by tree, plant by plant; -after which, separating into two parties, they set out for a walk. - -Cachelin, who did not feel at home in the company of ladies, drew -Boissel and Pitolet into a café on the bank of the river, while Mesdames -Torchebeuf and Lesable, with their husbands, walked in the opposite -direction, these refined ladies not being able to mingle with the common -Sunday herd. - -They walked slowly along the path, followed by the two men, who talked -gravely of the affairs of the office. On the river the boats were -continually passing, propelled by long strokes of the oars in the hands of -jolly fellows, the muscles of whose bare arms rolled under the sunburned -skin. Women, reclining on black or white fur rugs, managed the tillers, -drowsing under the hot sun, holding open over their heads, like enormous -flowers floating on the surface of the water, umbrellas of red, yellow, -and blue silk. Cries from one boat to the other, calls, and shouts, and a -remote murmur of human voices lower down, confused and continuous, -indicated where the swarming crowds were enjoying a holiday. - -Long files of fishermen stood motionless all along the river, while the -swimmers, almost naked, standing in heavy fishing boats, plunged in -headforemost, climbed back upon the boats and leaped into the water -again. - -Mme Torchebeuf looked on in surprise. - -Cora said to her: "It is like this every Sunday; it spoils this charming -country for me." - -A canoe moved softly by. Two women rowed, while two men were stretched -in the bottom of the boat. One of the women, turning her head towards -the shore, cried: - -"Hello! hello! you respectable women! I have a man for sale, very -cheap! Do you want him?" - -Cora turned away contemptuously and taking the arm of her companion -said: "We cannot remain here; let us go. What infamous creatures!" - -They moved away as M. Torchebeuf was saying to Lesable: "It is settled -for the first of January. The head of the Department has positively -promised me." - -"I don't know how to thank you, dear master," Lesable replied. - -When they reached home they found Cachelin, Pitolet, and Boissel -laughing immoderately and almost carrying old Savon, whom they jokingly -declared they had found on the beach in the company of a girl. - -The frightened old man was crying: "It is not true, no, it is not true. -It is not right to say that, M. Cachelin, it is not kind." - -And Cachelin, choking with laughter, cried: "Ah, you old rogue, did you -not call her your 'sweet goose quill'? We caught you, you rascal!" - -Then the ladies, too, began to laugh at the dismay of the poor old man. - -Cachelin continued: "With M. Torchebeuf's permission, we will keep him -prisoner as a punishment and make him dine with us." - -The chief good-humouredly consented, and they continued to laugh about -the lady abandoned by the old man, who protested all the time, annoyed -at this mischievous farce. - -The subject was the occasion of inexhaustible wit throughout the evening, -which sometimes even bordered on the obscene. - -Cora and Mme Torchebeuf, seated under a tent on the lawn, watched the -reflections of the setting sun, which threw upon the leaves a purple -glow. - -Not a breath stirred the branches, a serene and infinite peace fell -from the calm and flaming heavens. - -Some boats still passed, more slowly, drifting with the tide. - -Cora remarked: "It appears that poor M. Savon married a bad woman." - -Mme Torchebeuf, who was familiar with everything of the office, replied: - -"Yes, she was an orphan, very much too young for him, and deceived him -with a worthless fellow, and she ended in running away with him." - -Then the fat lady added: "I say he was a worthless fellow, but I know -nothing about it. It is reported that they loved one another very much. -In any case, old Savon is not very seductive." - -Mme Lesable replied gravely: - -"That is no excuse; the poor man is much to be pitied. Our next door -neighbour, M. Barbou, has had the same experience. His wife fell in love -with a sort of painter who passed his summers here, and she has gone -abroad with him. I do not understand how women can fall so low. To my -mind it seems a special chastisement should be meted out to those wicked -creatures who bring shame upon their families." - -At the end of the alley the nurse appeared, carrying the little Désirée -wrapped in her laces. The child, all rosy in the red gold of the evening -light, was coming towards the two women. She stared at the fiery sky with -the same pale and astonished eyes with which she regarded their faces. - -All the men who were talking at a distance drew near, and Cachelin, -seizing his little granddaughter, tossed her aloft in his arms as if he -would carry her to the skies. Her figure was outlined against the -brilliant line of the horizon, while her long white robe almost touched -the ground; and the grand-father cried: "Look! isn't this the best thing -in the world, after all, father Savon?" - -But the old man made no reply, having nothing to say, or perhaps thinking -too many things. - -A servant opened the door and announced: "Madame is served!" - - - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's The Sisters Rondoli,, by Guy de Maupassant - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SISTERS RONDOLI, *** - -***** This file should be named 60136-0.txt or 60136-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/0/1/3/60136/ - -Produced by Laura Natal Rodrigues at Free Literature (Images -generously made available by Hathi Trust.) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll -have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using -this ebook. - - - -Title: The Sisters Rondoli, - And Other Stories - -Author: Guy de Maupassant - -Translator: Ernest Augustus Boyd - -Release Date: August 19, 2019 [EBook #60136] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SISTERS RONDOLI, *** - - - - -Produced by Laura Natal Rodrigues at Free Literature (Images -generously made available by Hathi Trust.) - - - - - - -</pre> - - -<h2>THE SISTERS RONDOLI</h2> - -<h3>AND</h3> - -<h2>OTHER STORIES</h2> - -<h3>BY</h3> - -<h2>GUY DE MAUPASSANT</h2> - -<h4>Translated and Edited</h4> - -<h4>By Ernest Boyd</h4> - -<h4>New York, Alfred A. Knopf, 1923</h4> - - - - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 500px;"> -<img src="images/rondoli_cover.jpg" width="500" alt="" /> -</div> - - -<hr class="chap" /> - - -<p style="margin-left: 10%; font-weight: bold;"> -<a id="CONTENTS"></a>CONTENTS</p> - - -<p style="margin-left: 10%; font-size: 0.8em;"> -<br /> -<a href="#THE_SISTERS_RONDOLI">THE SISTERS RONDOLI</a><br /> -<a href="#MY_LANDLADY">MY LANDLADY</a><br /> -<a href="#THE_LITTLE_CASK">THE LITTLE CASK</a><br /> -<a href="#ANDRES_DISEASE">ANDRÉ'S DISEASE</a><br /> -<a href="#HE">HE?</a><br /> -<a href="#MY_UNCLE_SOSTHENE">MY UNCLE SOSTHÈNE</a><br /> -<a href="#THE_ACCURSED_BREAD">THE ACCURSED BREAD</a><br /> -<a href="#MADAME_LUNEAUS_CASE">MADAME LUNEAU'S CASE</a><br /> -<a href="#A_WISE_MAN">A WISE MAN</a><br /> -<a href="#THE_UMBRELLA">THE UMBRELLA</a><br /> -<a href="#A_MEETING">A MEETING</a><br /> -<a href="#DECORATED">DECORATED!</a><br /> -<a href="#CHALI">CHÂLI</a><br /> -<a href="#THE_LEGACY">THE LEGACY</a><br /></p> - - - - -<hr class="r5" /> - - - - - -<h4><a id="THE_SISTERS_RONDOLI"></a>THE SISTERS RONDOLI</h4> - - - - -<h5>I</h5> - - -<p>"No," said Pierre Jouvent, "I do not know Italy. I started to go -there twice, but each time I was stopped at the frontier and could -not manage to get any further. And yet my two attempts gave me charming -ideas of the manners of that beautiful country. Some time or other I -must visit its cities, as well as the museums and works of art with which -it abounds. I shall make another attempt as soon as possible to cross -that impregnable border.</p> - -<p>"You don't understand me, so I will explain myself. In 1874 I was -seized with desire to see Venice, Florence, Rome, and Naples. I got this -whim about the middle of June, then the powerful fever of spring stirs -the desire for love and adventure. I am not, as you know, a great -traveller; it appears to me a useless and tiresome business. Nights spent -in a train, the disturbed slumbers of the railway carriage, with the -attendant headache and stiffness in every limb, the sudden waking in -that rolling box, the unwashed feeling, the flying dust and smuts that -fill your eyes and hair, the taste of coal in your mouth, and the bad -dinners in draughty refreshment rooms, are, in my opinion, a horrible -way of beginning a pleasure trip.</p> - -<p>"After this introduction by the express, we have the miseries of the -hotel; of some great hotel full of people, and yet so empty; the strange -room, and the dubious bed! I am most particular about my bed; it is the -sanctuary of life. We intrust our nude and fatigued bodies to it that -they may be refreshed and rested between soft sheets and feathers.</p> - -<p>"There we spend the most delightful hours of our existence, the hours of -love and of sleep. The bed is sacred, and should be respected, venerated, -and loved by us as the best and most delightful of our earthly -possessions.</p> - -<p>"I cannot lift up the sheets of a hotel bed without a shiver of -disgust. What took place there the night before? What dirty, odious -people have slept in it! I begin, then, to think of all the horrible -people with whom one rubs shoulders every day, hideous hunchbacks, people -with flabby bodies, with dirty hands that make you wonder what their feet -and the rest of their bodies are like. I think of those who exhale a smell -of garlic and dirt that is loathsome. I think of the deformed and -purulent, of the perspiration emanating from the sick, and of everything -that is ugly in man. And all this, perhaps, in the bed in which I am going -to sleep! The mere idea of it makes me feel ill as I get in.</p> - -<p>"And then the hotel dinners—those dreary <i>table d'hôte</i> -dinners in the midst of all sorts of extraordinary people, or else those -terrible solitary dinners at a small table in a restaurant, feebly lighted -up by a small, cheap candle under a shade.</p> - -<p>"Again, those terribly dull evenings in some unknown town! Do you know -anything more wretched than when it is getting dark on such an occasion? -You go about as if in a dream, looking at faces which you have never seen -before and will never see again; listening to people talking about matters -which are either quite indifferent to you or in a language that perhaps -you do not understand. You have a terrible feeling, almost as if you were -lost, and you continue to walk on, so as to avoid returning to the hotel, -where you would feel still more lost because you are <i>at home</i>, in a -home which belongs to anyone who can pay for it. At last you fall into a -chair at some well-lit café, whose gilding and lights overwhelm you a -thousand times more than the shadows in the streets. Then you feel so -abominably lonely sitting in front of the foaming bock which a hurrying -waiter has brought, that a kind of madness seizes you, the longing to go -somewhere or other, no matter where, as long as you need not remain in -front of that marble table and in the dazzling brightness.</p> - -<p>"And then, suddenly, you perceive that you are really alone in the -world, always and everywhere; and that in places which we know the -familiar jostlings give us the illusion only of human brotherhood. -At such moments of self-abandonment and sombre isolation in distant -cities you think broadly, clearly, and profoundly. Then one suddenly -sees the whole of life outside the vision of eternal hope, outside -the daily deceptions of daily habits and of the expectations of -happiness, of which we always dream.</p> - -<p>"It is only by going a long distance that we can fully understand -how near, short-lived and empty everything is; only by searching for the -unknown do we perceive how commonplace and evanescent everything is; only -by wandering over the face of the earth can we understand how small the -world is, and how very much alike everywhere.</p> - -<p>"How well I know, and how I hate and fear more than anything else -those haphazard walks through unknown streets. This was the reason -why, as nothing would induce me to undertake a tour in Italy by myself, -I induced my friend Paul Pavilly to accompany me.</p> - -<p>"You know Paul, and how woman is everything, the world, life itself, -to him. There are many men like him, to whom existence becomes poetical -and idealised by the presence of women. The earth is habitable only -because they are there; the sun shines and is warm because it lights them; -the air is soft and balmy because it blows upon their skin and ruffles the -short hair on their temples, and the moon is charming because it makes -them dream, and imparts a languorous charm to love. Every act and action -of Paul has woman for its motive; all his thoughts, all his efforts, and -hopes are centred on them.</p> - -<p>"A poet has branded that type of man:"</p> - - -<p><span style="margin-left: 1em;">Je déteste surtout le barde à l'oeil humide</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Qui regarde une étoile en murmurant un nom,</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Et pour qui la nature immense serait vide</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">S'il ne portait en croupe ou Lisette ou Ninon.</span><br /> -<br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Ces gens-là sont charmants qui se donnent la peine,</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Afin qu'on s'intéresse à ce pauvre univers,</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">D'attacher des jupons aux arbres de la plaine</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Et la cornette blanche au front des coteaux verts.</span><br /> -<br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Certes ils n'ont pas compris tes musiques divines</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Éternelle Nature aux frémissantes voix,</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Ceux qui ne vont pas seuls par les creuses ravines</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Et rêvent d'une femme au bruit que font les bois!</span></p> - - -<p>"When I mentioned Italy to Paul he at first absolutely refused to -leave Paris. I, however, began to tell him of the adventures I had on my -travels. I told him that Italian women are supposed to be charming, and I -made him hope for the most refined society at Naples, thanks to certain -letters of introduction which I had for a Signore Michel Amoroso whose -acquaintances are very useful to travellers. So at last he allowed himself -to be persuaded."</p> - - - - -<h5>II</h5> - - -<p>"We took the express one Thursday evening on the 26th of June. Hardly -anyone goes south at that time of the year, so that we had the carriage to -ourselves. Both of us were in a bad temper on leaving Paris, sorry for -having yielded to the temptation of this journey, and regretting cool -Marly, the beautiful Seine, and our lazy boating excursions, our -delightful evenings spent on the banks of the river waiting for -nightfall.</p> - -<p>"As soon as the train started Paul settled himself comfortably into a -corner, and said: 'It is most idiotic to go to this place.' As it was too -late for him to change his mind then, I answered: 'Well, you should not -have come.'</p> - -<p>"He did not answer, and I felt very much inclined to laugh when I saw -how furious he looked. He certainly looks like a squirrel, but then every -one of us has retained the type of some animal or other as the mark of -primal race. How many people have jaws like a bulldog, or heads like -goats, rabbits, foxes, horses, or oxen. Paul was a squirrel turned into -a man. He had its bright, quick eyes, its hair, its pointed nose, its -small, fine, supple, active body, and a certain mysterious resemblance -in his general bearing: in fact, a similarity of movements, of gestures, -and of bearing which might almost be taken for an atavism.</p> - -<p>"At last we both went to sleep—the noisy slumber of the railway -carriage, which is broken by horrible cramps in the arms and neck, and by -the sudden stopping of the train.</p> - -<p>"We woke up as we were going along the Rhone. Soon the continuous noise -of the grasshoppers came in through the window, a cry which seems to be -the voice of the warm earth, the song of Provence. It seemed to instill -into our looks, our breasts, and our souls the light and happy feeling of -the south, the smell of the parched earth, of the stony and light soil of -the olive tree with its grey-green foliage.</p> - -<p>"When the train stopped again a porter ran along the train calling out -'Valence' in a sonorous voice, with an accent that again gave us that -taste of Provence which the shrill note of the grasshoppers had already -imparted to us.</p> - -<p>"Nothing happened till we got to Marseilles, where we breakfasted, but -when we returned to our carriage we found a woman installed there. Paul, -with a delighted look at me, unconsciously gave his short moustache a -twirl, and passed his fingers like a comb through his hair, which had -become slightly disordered with the night's journey. Then he sat down -opposite the newcomer.</p> - -<p>"Whenever I happen to see a new face, either while travelling or in -society, I become obsessed with the desire to find out what character, -mind, and intellectual capacities are hidden beneath those features.</p> - -<p>"She was a young and pretty woman, a native of the south of France -certainly, with splendid eyes, beautiful, wavy black hair, which was so -thick, long, and strong that it seemed almost too heavy for her head. She -was dressed with a certain southern bad taste which made her look a little -vulgar. Her regular features had none of the grace and finish of the -refined races, of that slight delicacy which members of the aristocracy -inherit from their birth, and which is the hereditary mark of blue -blood.</p> - -<p>"Her bracelets were too big to be of gold; she wore earrings with -white stones too big to be diamonds, and she belonged unmistakably to the -people. One would guess that she would talk too loud, and use exaggerated -gestures.</p> - -<p>"When the train started she remained motionless in her place, in the -attitude of a woman who was in a rage. She had not even looked at us.</p> - -<p>"Paul began to talk to me, evidently with an eye to effect, trying to -attract her attention, as shopkeepers expose their choice wares to catch -the notice of passers-by. She did not seem to hear.</p> - -<p>"'Toulon! Ten minute's wait! Refreshment room!' the porter shouted.</p> - -<p>"Paul motioned to me to get out, and, as soon as we were on the -platform, he said:</p> - -<p>"'I wonder who on earth she can be?'</p> - -<p>"I began to laugh. 'I am sure I don't know, and I don't in the least -care.'</p> - -<p>"He was quite excited.</p> - -<p>"'She is an uncommonly fresh and pretty girl. What eyes she has, and -how cross she looks. She must be dreadfully worried, for she takes no -notice of anything.'</p> - -<p>"'You will have all your trouble for nothing,' I ventured.</p> - -<p>"He began to lose his temper.</p> - -<p>"'I am not taking any trouble, my dear fellow. I think her an -extremely pretty woman, that is all. If one could only speak to her! But -I don't know how to begin. Can't you give me an idea? Can't you guess -who she is?'</p> - -<p>"'Upon my word, I cannot. I rather think she is some actress who is -going to rejoin her company after some love adventure.'</p> - -<p>"He seemed quite upset, as if I had said something insulting.</p> - -<p>"'What makes you think that? On the contrary, I think she looks most -respectable.'</p> - -<p>"'Just look at her bracelets,' I said, 'her earrings, and her whole -dress. I should not be the least surprised if she were a dancer or a -circus rider, but most likely a dancer. Her whole style smacks very much -of the theatre.'</p> - -<p>"He evidently did not like the idea.</p> - -<p>"'She is much too young, I am sure; why, she is hardly twenty.'</p> - -<p>"'Well,' I replied, 'there are many things which one can do before one -is twenty; dancing and reciting are among them, without counting another -business which is, perhaps, her sole occupation.'</p> - -<p>"'Take your seats for Nice, Ventimiglia,' the guards and porters called -out.</p> - -<p>"We got in; our fellow-passenger was eating an orange. She certainly -was not refined. She had spread her handkerchief on her knees, and the way -in which she tore off the peel and opened her mouth to put in the pieces, -and then spat the pips out of the window, showed that her education had -been decidedly vulgar. She seemed more unapproachable than ever, and -swallowed the fruit with an exceedingly comic air of rage.</p> - -<p>"Paul devoured her with his eyes, and tried to attract her attention -and excite her curiosity, but in spite of his talk and of the manner in -which he brought in well-known names, she did not pay the least attention -to him.</p> - -<p>"After passing Fréjus and St. Raphael, the train passes through a -veritable garden, a paradise of roses, of groves of oranges and lemons -covered with fruit and flowers at the same time. That delightful coast -from Marseilles to Genoa is a kingdom of perfumes in a land of -flowers.</p> - -<p>"June is the time to see it, when in every narrow valley and on every -slope the most exquisite flowers are growing luxuriantly. And the roses! -fields, hedges, groves of roses! They climb up the walls, blossom on the -roofs, hang from the trees, peep out from among the bushes; they are -white, red, yellow, large and small, ordinary and quiet, with a simple -dress, or full in brilliant and heavy toilettes. Their powerful perfume -makes the air heavy and relaxing, while the still more penetrating lasting -odour of the orange blossoms sweetens the atmosphere, till it might almost -be called a sugarplum for the olfactory nerve.</p> - -<p>"The shore, with its brown rocks, was bathed by the motionless -Mediterranean. The hot summer sun stretched like a fiery cloth over the -mountains, over the long expanses of sand, and over the hard, set blue -sea. The train went on, through the tunnels, along the slopes, above the -water, on straight, wall-like viaducts, and a soft, vague, saltish smell -came up, a smell of drying seaweed, mingled at times with the strong, -heavy perfume of the flowers.</p> - -<p>"But Paul neither saw, nor looked at, nor smelled anything, for our -fellow-traveller engrossed all his attention.</p> - -<p>"When we got to Cannes, as he wished to speak to me, he signed to me to -get out again, and as soon as I had done so he took me by the arm.</p> - -<p>"'Do you know she is really charming. Just look at her eyes; and I -never saw anything like her hair.'</p> - -<p>"'Don't excite yourself,' I replied. 'Tackle her, if you have any -intentions that way. She does not look impregnable, I fancy, although she -appears to be a little bit grumpy.'</p> - -<p>"'Why don't you speak to her?' he said. 'I don't know what to say, for -I am always terribly stupid at first; I can never make advances to a woman -in the street. I follow them, go round and round them, quite close to -them, but I never know what to say at first. I only once tried to enter -into conversation with a woman in that way. As I clearly saw that she was -waiting for me to make overtures, and as I felt bound to say something, I -stammered out, "I hope you are quite well, Madame?" She laughed in my -face, and I made my escape.'</p> - -<p>"I promised Paul to do all I could to bring about a conversation, and -when we had taken our places again, I politely asked our neighbour:</p> - -<p>"'Have you any objection to the smell of tobacco, Madame?'</p> - -<p>"She merely replied: '<i>Non capisco.</i>'</p> - -<p>"So she was an Italian! I felt an absurd inclination to laugh. As Paul -did not understand a word of that language, I was obliged to act as his -interpreter, so I said in Italian:</p> - -<p>"'I asked you, Madame, whether you had any objection to tobacco -smoke?'</p> - -<p>"With an angry look, she replied, '<i>Che mi fa?</i>'</p> - -<p>"She had neither turned her head nor looked at me, and I really did -not know whether to take this What does it matter to me, for an -authorisation, a refusal, a real sign of indifference, or for a mere -'Leave me alone.'</p> - -<p>"'Madame,' I replied, 'if you mind the smell of tobacco in the -least—'</p> - -<p>"She again said, '<i>mica</i>,' in a tone of voice which seemed to -mean, 'I wish to goodness you would leave me alone!' It was, however, a -kind of permission, so I said to Paul:</p> - -<p>"'You can smoke.'</p> - -<p>"He looked at me in that curious sort of way that people have when they -try to understand others who are talking in a strange language before -them, and asked me:</p> - -<p>"'What did you say to her?'</p> - -<p>"'I asked if we might smoke, and she said we might do whatever we -liked.'</p> - -<p>"Whereupon I lighted my cigar.</p> - -<p>"'Did not she say anything more?'</p> - -<p>"'If you had counted her words you would have noticed that she used -exactly six, two of which gave me to understand that she knew no French, -so four remained, and a lot cannot be said in four words.'</p> - -<p>"Paul seemed quite unhappy, disappointed, and at sea.</p> - -<p>"But suddenly the Italian asked me, in that tone of discontent which -seemed habitual to her, 'Do you know at what time we shall get to -Genoa?'</p> - -<p>"'At eleven o'clock,' I replied. Then after a moment I went on:</p> - -<p>"'My friend and I are also going to Genoa, and if we can be of any -service to you, we shall be very happy. As she did not answer, I insisted: -'You are alone and if we can be of service...' But she interrupted with -such a '<i>mica</i>,' that I did not venture on another word.</p> - -<p>"'What did she say?' Paul asked.</p> - -<p>"'She said that she thought you were charming.'</p> - -<p>"But he was in no humour for joking, and begged me, dryly, not to make -fun of him, so I translated her question and my polite offer, which had -been so pertly rejected.</p> - -<p>"Then he became as agitated as a squirrel in a cage.</p> - -<p>"'If we only knew,' he said, 'what hotel she was going to, we would go -to the same. Try and find out, so as to have another opportunity for -making her speak.'</p> - -<p>"It was not particularly easy, and I did not know what pretext to -invent, anxious as I was to make the acquaintance of this unapproachable -person.</p> - -<p>"We passed Nice, Monaco, Mentone, and the train stopped at the frontier -for the examination of luggage.</p> - -<p>"Although I hate those badly brought-up people who breakfast and dine -in railway-carriages, I went and bought a quantity of good things to make -one last attack on her by their means. I felt sure that this girl must, -ordinarily, be by no means inaccessible. Something had put her out and -made her irritable, but very little would suffice, a mere word or some -agreeable offer, make her unbend, to decide her and overcome her.</p> - -<p>"We started again, and we three were still alone. I spread my eatables -out on the seat. I cut up the fowl, put the slices of ham neatly on a -piece of paper, and then carefully laid out our dessert, the strawberries, -plums, cherries, and cakes, close to the girl.</p> - -<p>"When she saw that we were going to eat she took a piece of chocolate -and two small rolls out of her pocket and began to eat them with her -beautiful sharp teeth.</p> - -<p>"'Ask her to have some of ours,' Paul said in a whisper.</p> - -<p>"'That is exactly what I want to do, but it is rather a difficult -matter.'</p> - -<p>"As she, however, glanced from time to time at our provisions, I felt -sure that she would still be hungry when she had finished what she had. So -as soon as her frugal meal was over, I said to her:</p> - -<p>"'It would be very kind of you if you would take some of this -fruit.'</p> - -<p>"Again she said '<i>mica</i>,' but less crossly than before.</p> - -<p>"'Well, then,' I said, 'may I offer you a little wine? I see you have -not drunk anything. It is Italian wine, and as we are now in your own -country, we should be very pleased to see such a pretty Italian mouth -accept the offer of its French neighbours.'</p> - -<p>"She shook her head slightly, evidently wishing to refuse, but very -desirous of accepting, and her '<i>mica</i>' this time was almost polite. -I took the bottle, which was covered with straw in the Italian fashion, -and filling the glass I offered it to her.</p> - -<p>"'Please drink it,' I said, 'to bid us welcome to your country.'</p> - -<p>"She took the glass with her usual look, and emptied it at a draught, -like a woman tormented with thirst, and then gave it back to me without -even saying 'Thank you.'</p> - -<p>"Then I offered her the cherries. 'Please take some,' I said; 'we shall -be so pleased if you will.'</p> - -<p>"Out of her corner she looked at all the fruit spread out beside her, -and said so rapidly that I could scarcely follow her: '<i>A me non -piacciono ne le ciliegie ne le susine; amo soltano le fragole.</i>'</p> - -<p>"'What does she say?' Paul asked.</p> - -<p>"'That she does not care for cherries or plums, but only for -strawberries.'</p> - -<p>"I put a newspaper full of wild strawberries on her lap, and she ate -them quickly, throwing them into her mouth from some distance in a -coquettish and charming manner.</p> - -<p>"When she had finished the little red heap which we had seen rapidly -diminishing, melting and disappearing under the rapid action of her hands, -I asked her:</p> - -<p>"'What may I offer you now?'</p> - -<p>"'I will take a little chicken,' she replied.</p> - -<p>"She certainly devoured half of it, tearing it to pieces with the rapid -movements of her jaws like some carnivorous animal. Then she made up her -mind to have some cherries, which she 'did not like,' then some plums, -then some little cakes. Then she said, 'I have had enough,' and sat back -in her corner.</p> - -<p>"I was much amused, and tried to make her eat more, pressing her, in -fact, till she suddenly got in a rage again, and flung such a furious -'<i>mica</i>' at me, that I would no longer run the risk of spoiling her -digestion.</p> - -<p>"I turned to my friend. 'My poor Paul,' I said, 'I am afraid we have -had our trouble for nothing.'</p> - -<p>"Night was coming on, one of those hot summer nights which extend their -warm shade over the burning and exhausted earth. Here and there, in -the distance by the sea, over capes and promontories bright stars began to -shine on the dark horizon, which I was, at times, almost inclined to -confound with lighthouses.</p> - -<p>"The scent of the orange-trees became more penetrating, and we breathed -with delight, distending our lungs to inhale it more deeply. The -balmy air was soft, delicious, almost divine.</p> - -<p>"Suddenly I noticed something like a shower of stars under the dense -shade of the trees along the line where it was quite dark. It might have -been taken for drops of light, leaping, flying, playing and running among -the leaves, or for small stars fallen from the skies in order to have an -excursion on the earth; but they were only fireflies dancing a strange -fiery ballet in the perfumed air.</p> - -<p>"One of them happened to come into our carriage and shed its -intermittent light, which seemed to be extinguished one moment and to be -burning the next. I covered the carriage-lamp with its blue shade and -watched the strange fly careering about in its fiery flight. Suddenly it -settled on the dark hair of our neighbour, who was dozing after dinner. -Paul seemed delighted, his eyes fixed on the bright, sparkling spot which -looked like a living jewel on the forehead of the sleeping woman.</p> - -<p>"The Italian awoke about eleven o'clock, with the bright insect still -in her hair. When I saw her move, I said: 'We are just getting to Genoa, -Madame,' and she murmured, without answering me, as if possessed by some -obstinate and embarrassing thought:</p> - -<p>"'What am I going to do, I wonder?'</p> - -<p>"And then she suddenly asked:</p> - -<p>"'Would you like me to come with you?'</p> - -<p>"I was so taken aback that I really did not understand her.</p> - -<p>"'With us? What do you mean?'</p> - -<p>"She repeated, looking more and more furious:</p> - -<p>"'Would you like me to go with you now, as soon as we get out of the -train?'</p> - -<p>"'I am quite willing; but where do you want to go to? Where shall I -take you to?'</p> - -<p>"She shrugged her shoulders with an air of supreme indifference.</p> - -<p>"'Wherever you like; what does it matter to me?' She repeated her -'<i>Che mi fa?</i>' twice.</p> - -<p>"'But we are going to the hotel.'</p> - -<p>"'Very well, let us all go to the hotel,' she said, in a contemptuous -voice.</p> - -<p>"I turned to Paul, and said:</p> - -<p>"'She wants to know if we should like her to come with us.'</p> - -<p>"My friend's utter surprise restored my self-possession. He -stammered:</p> - -<p>"'With us? Where to? What for? How?'</p> - -<p>"'I don't know, but she made this strange proposal to me in a most -irritable voice. I told her that we were going to the hotel, and she -said: 'Very well, let us all go there!' I suppose she is without a -half-penny. She certainly has a very strange way of making -acquaintances.'</p> - -<p>"Paul, who was very much excited, exclaimed:</p> - -<p>"'I am quite agreeable. Tell her that we will take her wherever she -likes.' Then, after a moment's hesitation, he said uneasily:</p> - -<p>"'We must know, however, with whom she wants to go,—with you or -with me?'</p> - -<p>"I turned to the Italian, who did not even seem to be listening to us, -and said:</p> - -<p>"'We shall be very happy to take you with us, but my friend wants to -know whether you will take my arm or his?'</p> - -<p>"She opened her black eyes wide with vague surprise, and said, '<i>Che -mi fa?</i>'</p> - -<p>"I was obliged to explain myself. 'In Italy, I believe when a man looks -after a woman, fulfills all her wishes, and satisfies all her caprices, -he is called a <i>patito.</i> Which of us two will you take for your -<i>patito?</i>'</p> - -<p>"Without the slightest hesitation she replied:</p> - -<p>"'You!'</p> - -<p>"I turned to Paul. 'You see, my friend, she chooses me; you have no -luck.'</p> - -<p>"'All the better for you,' he replied, in a rage. Then, after thinking -for a few moments, he went on:</p> - -<p>"'Do you really care about taking this creature with you? She will spoil -our journey. What are we to do with this woman, who looks like I don't -know what? They will not take us in at any decent hotel.'</p> - -<p>"I, however, was just beginning to find the Italian much nicer than I -had thought her at first, and I was now very anxious to take her with us. -The idea delighted me. I already felt those little shivers which the -expectation of a night of love sends through the veins.</p> - -<p>"I replied, 'My dear fellow, we have accepted, and it is too late to -recede. You were the first to advise me to say 'Yes.'</p> - -<p>"'It is very stupid,' he growled, 'but do as you please.'</p> - -<p>"The train whistled, slackened speed, and we ran into the station.</p> - -<p>"I got out of the carriage, and offered my new companion my hand. She -jumped out lightly, and I gave her my arm, which she took with an air of -seeming repugnance. As soon as we had claimed our luggage we started off -into the town, Paul walking in complete silence, with a nervous step.</p> - -<p>"'To what hotel shall we go?' I asked him. 'It may be difficult to get -into the City of Paris Hotel with a woman, especially with this -Italian.'</p> - -<p>"Paul interrupted me: 'Yes, with an Italian who looks more like a -strumpet than a duchess. However, that is no business of mine. Do just as -you please.'</p> - -<p>"I was in a state of perplexity. I had written to the City of Paris to -reserve our rooms, and now I did not know what to do.</p> - -<p>"Two <i>commissionnaires</i> followed us with our luggage. I continued: -'You might as well go first, and say that we are coming; and give the -landlord to understand that I have a—a friend with me, so that we -should like rooms quite by themselves for us three, so as not to be -brought in contact with other travellers. He will understand, and we will -decide according to his answer.'</p> - -<p>"But Paul growled, 'Thank you; such commissions and such a rôle do not -suit me by any means. I did not come here to get ready your apartments -or to minister to your pleasures.'</p> - -<p>"But I was insistent: 'Look here, don't, be angry. It is surely far -better to go to a good hotel than to a bad one, and it is not difficult -to ask the landlord for three separate bedrooms and a dining-room.'</p> - -<p>"I put a stress on <i>three</i>, and that decided him.</p> - -<p>"He went on first, and I saw him enter the great doorway of a fine -hotel, while I remained on the other side of the street dragging along my -Italian who did not say a word, and followed by the porters with the -luggage.</p> - -<p>"Paul came back at last, looking as dissatisfied as my companion.</p> - -<p>"'That is settled,' he said, 'and they will take us in; but there are -only two bedrooms. You must settle it as you can.'</p> - -<p>"I followed him, rather ashamed of going in with such a strange -companion.</p> - -<p>"There were two bedrooms separated by a small sitting-room. I ordered -a cold supper, and then I turned to the Italian with a perplexed look.</p> - -<p>"'We have only been able to get two rooms, so you must choose which -you like.'</p> - -<p>"She replied with her eternal '<i>Che mi fa?</i>' I thereupon took up -her little black wooden box, just like those which servants use, and took -it into the room on the right, which I had chosen for her—for us. A -bit of paper was fastened on to the box, on which was written, -'Mademoiselle Francesca Rondoli, Genoa.'</p> - -<p>"'Your name is Francesca?' I asked, and she nodded her head, without -replying.</p> - -<p>"'We shall have supper directly,' I continued. 'Meanwhile, I daresay -you would like to freshen yourself up a bit!'</p> - -<p>"She answered with a '<i>mica</i>,' a phrase which she employed just as -frequently as '<i>Che mi fa</i>,' but I went on: 'It is always pleasant -after a journey.'</p> - -<p>"Then I suddenly remembered that she had not, perhaps, the necessary -objects, for she appeared to me in a very singular position, as if she -had just escaped from some disagreeable adventure, and I brought her my -dressing-case.</p> - -<p>"I put out all the little instruments for cleanliness and comfort which -it contained: a nailbrush, a new toothbrush,—for I always carry a -selection of them about with me,—my nail-scissors, a nail-file, and -sponges. I uncorked a bottle of Eau de Cologne, one of lavender-water, and -a little bottle of new-mown hay, so that she might have a choice. Then -I opened my powder-box, and put out the powder-puff, put my fine towels -over the water-jug, and placed a piece of new soap near the basin.</p> - -<p>"She watched my movements with a vexed look in her wide-open eyes, -without appearing either surprised or pleased by my forethought.</p> - -<p>"Here is all that you require, I then said; 'I will tell you when -supper is ready.'</p> - -<p>"When I returned to the sitting-room I found that Paul had taken -possession of the other room, and had shut himself in, so I sat down -to wait.</p> - -<p>"A waiter went back and forth, bringing plates and glasses. He laid the -table slowly, then put a cold fowl on it, and told me that all was -ready.</p> - -<p>"I knocked gently at Mademoiselle Rondoli's door. 'Come in,' she said, -and when I did so I was struck by a strong, heavy smell of perfumes, as -if I were in a hairdresser's shop.</p> - -<p>"The Italian was sitting on her box in an attitude either of thoughtful -discontent or absent-mindedness. The towel was still folded over the -water-jug, which was quite full, and the soap, untouched and dry, was -lying beside the empty basin; but one would have thought that the young -woman had drunk half of the bottles of scent. The Eau de Cologne, however, -had been spared, as only about a third of it had gone; but to make up for -that she had used a surprising amount of lavender-water and new-mown hay. -A cloud of violet powder, a vague white mist, seemed still to be floating -in the air, from the effects of her over-powdering her face and neck. It -seemed to cover her eyelashes, eyebrows, and the hair on her temples like -snow, while her cheeks were plastered with it, and layers of it covered -her nostrils, the comers of her eyes, and her chin.</p> - -<p>"When she got up she exhaled such a strong odour of scent that it -almost made me feel faint.</p> - -<p>"When we sat down to supper I found that Paul was in a most execrable -temper, and I could get nothing out of him but words of blame and -irritation, and disagreeable compliments.</p> - -<p>"Mademoiselle Francesca ate like an ogre, and as soon as she had -finished her meal she threw herself upon the sofa. As for me, I saw the -decisive moment approaching for settling how we were to apportion the -rooms. I determined to take the bull by the horns, and sitting down by -the Italian I gallantly kissed her hand.</p> - -<p>"She half opened her tired eyes looked at me, sleepy and -discontented.</p> - -<p>"'As we have only two bedrooms, will you allow me to share yours with -you?'</p> - -<p>"'Do just as you like,' she said. 'It is all the same to me. <i>Che mi -fa?</i>'</p> - -<p>"Her indifference vexed me.</p> - -<p>"'But you are sure you do not mind my being in your room with you?' -I said.</p> - -<p>"'It is all the same to me; do just as you like.'</p> - -<p>"'Should you like to go to bed at once?'</p> - -<p>"'Yes; I am very sleepy.'</p> - -<p>"She got up, yawned, gave Paul her hand, who took it with a furious -look, and I lighted her into our room. A disquieting feeling haunted me. -'Here is all you want,' I said again.</p> - -<p>"This time I took care to pour half the water into the basin, and to -put a towel near the soap.</p> - -<p>"Then I went back to Paul. As soon as I got into the room, he said, -'You have got a nice sort of a creature there!' and I answered, laughing, -'My dear friend, don't speak ill of sour grapes,' and he replied, -ill-temperedly:</p> - -<p>"'Just take care how this ends, my good fellow.'</p> - -<p>"I almost trembled with that feeling of fear which assails us after -some suspicious love escapade—that fear which spoils our pleasant -meetings, our unexpected caresses, our chance kisses. However, I put -a bold face on the matter. 'At any rate, the girl is no adventuress.'</p> - -<p>"But the fellow had me in his power; he had seen the shadow of my -anxiety on my face.</p> - -<p>"'What do you know about her? You really astonish me. You pick up an -Italian woman travelling alone in the train, and she volunteers, with -most singular cynicism, to go and be your mistress in any old hotel. You -take her with you, and then you declare that she is not a tart! And you -persuade yourself that you are not running more risk than if you were to -go and spend the night with a woman who had smallpox.'</p> - -<p>"He laughed with an unpleasant and angry laugh. I sat down, a prey to -uneasiness. What was I to do, for he was right after all? And a struggle -began within me, between desire and fear.</p> - -<p>"He went on: 'Do as you like, I have warned you, so do not complain -of the consequences.'</p> - -<p>"But I saw such ironical gaiety in his eyes, such a delight in his -revenge; he made fun of me so good-naturedly, that I did not hesitate any -longer. I gave him my hand, and said, 'Good night. You know the old -saying: "A victory without peril is a triumph without glory," and upon my -word, the victory is worth the danger.'</p> - -<p>"And with a firm step I went into Francesca's room.</p> - -<p>"I stopped short at the door in surprise and astonishment. She was -already asleep, quite naked on the bed. Sleep had overcome her when she -had finished undressing, and she was reposing in the charming attitude of -one of Titian's women.</p> - -<p>"It seemed as if she had lain down from sheer fatigue in order to take -off her stockings, for they were lying on the bed. Then she had thought of -something pleasant, no doubt, for she had waited to finish her reverie -before moving, and then, closing her eyes, she had lost consciousness. A -nightgown, embroidered about the neck such as one buys in cheap, -ready-made shops, a beginner's luxury was lying on a chair.</p> - -<p>"She was charming, young, firm, and fresh.</p> - -<p>"What is prettier than a woman asleep? The body with its soft contours, -whose every curve is a temptation, whose plump softness stirs the senses, -seems to have been created for the repose of the bed. Only when it is -lying upon the sheets does one get the full value of that undulating line -which curves in at the waist, curves out at the hips and then runs down -the charming outline of the leg, ending at the point of the foot. I was on -the point of forgetting my friend's prudent counsels, but suddenly -turning to the washstand I saw everything as I had left it, and I sat -down, anxious, and a prey to irresolution.</p> - -<p>"I remained thus for a long time, not able to make up my mind what to -do. Retreat was impossible, and I must either pass the night on a chair, -or go to bed myself at my own risk and peril.</p> - -<p>"I had no thoughts of sleeping either here or there, for my head was -too excited and my eyes too occupied.</p> - -<p>"I stirred incessantly, feverish, uncomfortable, enervated. Then I -began to reason with myself, certainly with a view to capitulation: 'If I -lie down that does not bind me to anything, and I shall certainly be more -comfortable on a mattress than on a chair.'</p> - -<p>"I undressed slowly, and then, stepping over the sleeping girl, I -stretched myself out against the wall, turning my back on temptation.</p> - -<p>"In this position I remained for a long time without going to sleep, -when suddenly my neighbour awoke. She opened her eyes, looked astonished, -and still discontented; then seeing that she had nothing on, she got up -and calmly put on her nightgown with as much indifference as if I had not -been present.</p> - -<p>"Then... I seized the opportunity, but this did not appear to disturb -her at all. She immediately went quietly to sleep again, with her head -resting on her right arm. And I began to meditate on the weakness and -folly of human nature. Then I went to sleep also.</p> - -<p>"She got up early, like a woman who is used to work in the morning. She -woke me up by doing so, and I watched her through my half-closed -eyelids.</p> - -<p>"She came and went without hurrying herself, as if she were astonished -at having nothing to do. At last she went to the washstand, and in a -moment she emptied all the scent that remained in my bottles. She -certainly also used some water, but very little.</p> - -<p>"When she was quite dressed she sat down on her box again, and holding -one knee between her hands, seemed to be thinking.</p> - -<p>"Then I pretended to notice her, and said:</p> - -<p>"'Good morning, Francesca.'</p> - -<p>"Without seeming in at all a better temper than the previous night, -she murmured, 'Good morning.'</p> - -<p>"When I asked her whether she had slept well, she nodded 'Yes,' and -jumping out of bed, I went and kissed her.</p> - -<p>"She turned her face toward me like a child who is being kissed against -its will; but I took her tenderly in my arms (the wine being poured out, -I would have been very stupid not to drink any more of it). Gently I put -my lips on her large eyes, which she closed with evident distaste under my -kisses on her fresh cheeks and full lips, which she turned away.</p> - -<p>"'You don't seem to like being kissed, I said to her.'</p> - -<p>"'<i>Mica</i>' was her only answer.</p> - -<p>"I sat down on the trunk by her side, and, passing my arm through hers, -I said: '<i>Mica! mica! mica!</i> in reply to everything. I shall call you -Mademoiselle <i>Mica</i>, I think.'</p> - -<p>"For the first time I fancied I saw the shadow of a smile on her lips, -but it passed by so quickly that I may have been mistaken.</p> - -<p>"'But if you never say anything but '<i>Mica</i>' I shall not know what -to do to try and please you. Let us see; what shall we do to-day?'</p> - -<p>"She hesitated a moment as if some fancy had flitted through her bead, -and then she said carelessly: 'It is all the same to me; whatever you -like.'</p> - -<p>"'Very well. Mademoiselle <i>Mica</i>, we will get a carriage and go -for a drive.'</p> - -<p>"'As you please, she said.'</p> - -<p>"Paul was waiting for us in the dining-room, looking as bored as third -parties generally do in love affairs. I assumed a delighted air, and shook -hands with him with triumphant energy.</p> - -<p>"'What are you thinking of doing?' he asked.</p> - -<p>"'First of all we will go and see a little of the town, and then we -might take a carriage, for a drive in the neighbourhood.'</p> - -<p>"We breakfasted in silence and then started on foot to visit the -museums. We went through the Spinola Palace, the Doria Palace, the -Marcello Durazzo, the Red and White Palaces. Francesca either looked at -nothing or merely just glanced carelessly at all the various masterpieces. -Paul followed us, growling all sorts of disagreeable things. Then we all -three took a silent drive into the country and returned to dinner.</p> - -<p>"The next day it was the same thing and the next day again; so on the -third Paul said to me: 'Look here, I am going to leave you; I am not going -to stop here for three weeks watching you make love to this creature.'</p> - -<p>"I was perplexed and annoyed, for to my great surprise I had become -singularly attached to Francesca. A man is but weak and foolish, carried -away by the merest trifle, and a coward every time that his senses are -excited or mastered. I clung to this unknown girl, silent and dissatisfied -as she always was. I liked her somewhat ill-tempered face, the -dissatisfied droop of her mouth, the weariness of her look; I liked her -fatigued movements, the contemptuous way in which she yielded to my -wishes, the very indifference of her caresses. A secret bond, that -mysterious bond of animal love, the secret attachment to a possession -which does not satiate, bound me to her. I told Paul so, quite frankly. -He treated me as if I had been a fool, and then said:</p> - -<p>"'Very well, take her with you.'</p> - -<p>"But she obstinately refused to leave Genoa, without giving any reason. -I besought, I reasoned, I promised, but all was of no avail, and so I -stayed on.</p> - -<p>"Paul declared that he would go by himself, and went so far as to pack -up his portmanteau; but he remained all the same.</p> - -<p>"Thus a fortnight passed. Francesca was always silent and irritable, -lived beside me rather than with me, responded to all my desires, all -my demands, and all my propositions with her perpetual '<i>Che mi fa</i>,' -or with her no less perpetual '<i>Mica.</i>'</p> - -<p>"My friend got more and more furious, but my only answer was, 'You can -go if you are tired of staying. I am not detaining you.'</p> - -<p>"Then he called me names, overwhelmed me with reproaches, and -exclaimed: 'Where do you think I can go to now? We had three weeks at our -disposal, and here is a fortnight gone! I cannot continue my journey now; -and, in any case, I am not going to Venice, Florence, and Rome all by -myself. But you will pay for it, and more dearly than you think for, most -likely. You are not going to bring a man all the way from Paris in order -to shut him up at a hotel in Genoa with an Italian adventuress.'</p> - -<p>"When I told him, very calmly, to return to Paris, he exclaimed that he -was going to do so the very next day; but the next day he was still there, -still in a rage and swearing.</p> - -<p>"By this time we began to be known in the streets, through which we -wandered from morning till night, those narrow streets without footpaths, -which are like an immense stone labyrinth with tomb-like passages. We went -through those windy gorges, narrowed between such high walls that the sky -is hardly visible. Sometimes French people would turn round astonished at -meeting their fellow-countrymen with this bored girl in her loud clothes, -and who looked singularly out of place, not to say compromising, beside -us.</p> - -<p>"She used to walk along, leaning on my arm, without looking at anything. -Why did she remain with me, with us, who seemed to give her so little -pleasure? Who was she? Where did she come from? What was she doing? Had -she any plan or idea? How did she live? As an adventuress, or by chance -meetings? I tried in vain to find out and to explain it. The better I knew -her the more enigmatical she became. She was not one of those who make a -living by, and a profession of, venal love. She rather seemed to me to be -a girl of poor family who had been seduced and taken away, and then cast -aside and lost. What did she think was going to become of her, or for whom -was she waiting? She certainly did not appear to be trying to make a -conquest of me, or to get any profit out of me.</p> - -<p>"I tried to question her, to speak to her of her childhood and family; -but she never gave me an answer. I stayed with her, my heart unfettered -and my senses enchained, never wearied of holding this proud and -quarrelsome woman in my arms, captivated by my senses, or rather seduced, -overcome, by the youthful, healthy, powerful charm which emanated from her -sweet-smelling person and from the robust lines of her body.</p> - -<p>"Another week passed, and the term of my holiday was drawing to a -close, for I had to be back in Paris by July 11. By this time Paul had -come to take his part in the adventure, though still grumbling at me, -while I invented pleasures, distractions, and excursions to amuse my -mistress and my friend; and in order to do this I gave myself a large -amount of trouble.</p> - -<p>"One day I proposed an excursion to Santa Margarita, a charming little -town in the midst of gardens, hidden at the foot of a slope which -stretches far into the sea. We all three were following the excellent -road which goes along the foot of the mountain. Suddenly Francesca said -to me: 'I shall not be able to go with you to-morrow; I must go and see -some of my relatives.'</p> - -<p>"That was all; I did not ask her any questions, as I was quite sure she -would not answer me."</p> - -<p>"The next morning she got up very early; then as I remained in bed, -she sat down at the foot of it, and said in a constrained and hesitating -voice:</p> - -<p>"'If I do not come back to-night, will you come and fetch me?'</p> - -<p>"'Most certainly I shall,' was my reply. 'Where must I come to?'</p> - -<p>"Then she explained: 'You must go into Victor-Emmanuel Street, down -the Passage Falcone, and Saint Raphael Street, and go into the furniture -shop at the bottom, in a court, and there you must ask for Mme Rondoli. -That's where it is.'</p> - -<p>"And so she went away, leaving me rather astonished.</p> - -<p>"When Paul saw that I was alone he stammered out: 'Where is Francesca?' -And when I told him what had happened he exclaimed:</p> - -<p>"'My dear fellow, we are in luck, let us bolt; as it is, our time is -up. Two days, more or less, make no difference. Let us start at once; go -and pack up your things. Off we go!'</p> - -<p>"But I refused. I could not, as I told him, leave the girl in such a -manner, after having lived with her for nearly three weeks. At any rate -I ought to say good-bye to her, and make her accept a present; I certainly -had no intention of behaving badly to her.</p> - -<p>"But he would not listen; he pressed and worried me, but I would not -give way.</p> - -<p>"I remained indoors for several hours, expecting Francesca's return, -but she did not come. At last, at dinner, Paul said with a triumphant -air: 'She has thrown you over, my dear fellow; it is certainly very funny, -very funny.'</p> - -<p>"I must acknowledge that I was surprised and rather vexed. He laughed -in my face, and made fun of me.</p> - -<p>"'It is not exactly a bad way of getting rid of you, though rather -primitive. "Just wait for me, I shall be back in a moment." How long are -you going to wait? I should not wonder if you were foolish enough to go -and look for her at the address she gave you. "Does Mme Rondoli live here, -please?" I'll bet that you are longing to go there.'</p> - -<p>"'Not in the least,' I protested, 'and I assure you that if she does -not come back to-morrow morning I shall start by the express at eight -o'clock. I shall have waited twenty-four hours, and that is enough; -my conscience will be quite clear.'</p> - -<p>"I spent an uneasy and unpleasant evening, for I really had at heart a -very tender feeling for her. I went to bed at twelve o'clock, and hardly -slept at all. I got up at six, called Paul, packed up my things, and two -hours later we started for France together."</p> - - - - -<h5>III</h5> - - -<p>"The next year, at just about the same period, I was seized, just as -one is with a periodical fever, with a new desire to go to Italy, and I -immediately made up my mind to carry it into effect. There is no doubt -that every really well-educated man ought to see Florence, Venice, and -Rome. There is the additional advantage of providing many subjects of -conversation in society, and of giving one an opportunity for bringing -forward artistic generalities which appear profound. This time I went -alone, and I arrived at Genoa at the same time as the year before, but -without any adventure on the road. I went to the same hotel, and actually -happened to have the same room.</p> - -<p>"I was scarcely in bed when the recollection of Francesca which, since -the evening before, had been floating vaguely through my mind, haunted -me with strange persistency.</p> - -<p>"Have you ever been obsessed by the thought of a woman, long afterwards, -on returning to the place where you loved her and she gave herself to you? -It is one of the most powerful and painful sensations I know. It seems as -if one could see her enter, smiling and holding out her arms. Her -features, elusive yet clear, are before your eyes. She passes, returns and -disappears. She tortures you like a nightmare, holds you, fills your -heart, and stirs your senses by her unreal presence. She is visible to the -eye, her perfume haunts you, the taste of her kisses is on your lips, and -the touch of her body caresses your skin. Yet, one knows one is alone, and -one is strangely tortured by the phantom one has evoked. A heavy, -heart-breaking melancholy invades you, as if you were abandoned for ever. -Everything looks depressing, filling the heart with a horrible sense of -isolation and abandonment. Never return to the house, the room, the woods, -the garden, the seat, the town, where you have held in your arms a woman -you loved.</p> - -<p>"I thought of her nearly the whole night, and by degrees the wish to -see her again seized me, a confused desire at first, which gradually grew -stronger and more intense. At last I made up my mind to spend the next day -in Genoa, to try and find her, and if I should not succeed to take the -evening train.</p> - -<p>"Early in the morning I set out on my search. I remembered the -directions she had given me when she left me, perfectly—Victor-Emmanuel -Street, the Passage Falcone, St. Raphael Street, house of the -furniture-dealer, at the bottom of the yard in a court.</p> - -<p>"I found it without the least difficulty, and I knocked at the door of -a somewhat dilapidated-looking dwelling. A fat woman opened it, who -must once have been very handsome, but who actually was only very dirty. -Although she was too fat, she still bore the lines of majestic beauty; -her untidy hair fell over her forehead and shoulders, and one fancied one -could see her fat body floating about in an enormous dressing-gown covered -with spots of dirt and grease. Round her neck she wore a great gilt -necklace, and on her wrists were splendid bracelets of Genoa filigree -work.</p> - -<p>"In rather a hostile manner she asked me what I wanted, and I replied -by requesting her to tell me whether Francesca Rondoli lived there.</p> - -<p>"'What do you want with her?' she asked.</p> - -<p>"'I had the pleasure of meeting her last year, and I should like to -see her again.'</p> - -<p>"The old woman looked at me suspiciously.</p> - -<p>"'Where did you meet her?' she asked.</p> - -<p>"'Why, here, in Genoa itself.'</p> - -<p>"'What is your name?'</p> - -<p>"I hesitated a moment, and then I told her. I had scarcely done so -when the Italian raised her arms as if to embrace me. 'Oh! you are the -Frenchman; how glad I am to see you! But what grief you caused the poor -child. She waited for you a month; yes, a whole month. At first she -thought you would come to fetch her. She wanted to see whether you loved -her. If you only knew how she cried when she saw that you were not coming! -She cried till she seemed to have no tears left. Then she went to the -hotel, but you had gone. She thought that most likely you were travelling -in Italy, and that you would return by Genoa to fetch her, as she would -not go with you. And she waited more than a month. Monsieur; and she was -so unhappy; so unhappy. I am her mother.'</p> - -<p>"I really felt a little disconcerted, but I regained my self-possession, -and asked: 'Is she here now?'</p> - -<p>"'No, she has gone to Paris with a painter, a delightful man, who loves -her very much, and who gives her everything that she wants. Just look at -what she sent me; they are very pretty, are they not?'</p> - -<p>"And she showed me, with quite southern animation, her heavy bracelets -and necklace. 'I have also,' she continued, 'earrings with stones in them, -a silk dress, and some rings; but I only wear them on grand occasions. Oh! -she is very happy, sir, very happy. She will be so pleased when I tell her -you have been here. But pray come in and sit down. You will take something -or other, surely?'</p> - -<p>"But I refused, as I now wished to get away by the first train; but she -took me by the arm and pulled me in, saying:</p> - -<p>"'Please, come in; I must tell her that you have been here.'</p> - -<p>"I found myself in a small, rather dark room, furnished with only a -table and a few chairs.</p> - -<p>"She continued: 'Oh! She is very happy now, very happy. When you met her -in the train she was very miserable, for her lover had just left her at -Marseilles, and she was coming back, poor child. But she liked you at -once, though she was still rather sad, you understand. Now she has all she -wants, and she writes and tells me everything that she does. His name is -Bellemin, and they say he is a great painter in your country. He met her -in the street here, and fell in love with her immediately. But you will -take a glass of syrup?—it is very good. Are you quite alone, this -year?'</p> - -<p>"'Yes, I said, quite alone.'</p> - -<p>"I felt an increasing inclination to laugh, as my first disappointment -was dispelled by what Mother Rondoli said. I was obliged, however, to -drink a glass of her syrup.</p> - -<p>"'So you are quite alone?' she continued. 'How sorry I am that Francesca -is not here now; she would have been company for you all the time you -stayed. It is not very amusing to go about all by oneself, and she will be -very sorry also.'</p> - -<p>"Then, as I was getting up to go, she exclaimed:</p> - -<p>"'But would you not like Carlotta to go with you? She knows all the -walks very well. She is my second daughter, sir.'</p> - -<p>"No doubt she took my look of surprise for consent, for she opened the -inner door and called out up the dark stairs which I could not see:</p> - -<p>"'Carlotta! Carlotta! come down, quickly, my dear child.'</p> - -<p>"I tried to protest, but she would not listen.</p> - -<p>"'No; she will be very glad to go with you; she is very nice, and much -more cheerful than her sister, and she is a good girl, a very good girl, -whom I love very much.'</p> - -<p>"I heard the clatter of slippers on the stairs, and a tall, slender, -dark girl appeared, also with her hair hanging down, and whose youthful -figure showed unmistakably beneath an old dress of her mother.</p> - -<p>"The latter at once told her how matters stood.</p> - -<p>"'This is Francesca's Frenchman, you know, the one whom she knew last -year. He is quite alone, and has come to look for her, poor fellow; so I -told him that you would go with him to keep him company.'</p> - -<p>"The girl looked at me with her handsome dark eyes, and said, -smiling:</p> - -<p>"'I have no objection, if he wishes it.'</p> - -<p>"I could not possibly refuse, and merely said:</p> - -<p>"'Of course I shall be very glad of your company.'</p> - -<p>"Her mother pushed her out. 'Go and get dressed directly; put on your -blue dress and your hat with the flowers, and make haste.'</p> - -<p>"—As soon as she had left the room the old woman explained -herself: 'I have two others, but they are much younger. It costs a lot of -money to bring up four children. Luckily the eldest is off my hands at -present.'</p> - -<p>"Then she told all about herself, about her husband, who had been an -employee on the railway, but who was dead, and she expatiated on the good -qualities of Carlotta, her second girl, who soon returned, dressed, as her -sister had been, in a striking, peculiar manner.</p> - -<p>"Her mother examined her from head to foot, and, after finding -everything right, she said:</p> - -<p>"'Now, my children, you can go.' Then, turning to the girl, she said: -'Be sure you are back by ten o'clock to-night; you know the door is -locked then.'</p> - -<p>"'All right, mamma; don't alarm yourself,' Carlotta replied.</p> - -<p>"She took my arm, and we went wandering about the streets, just as I -had done the previous year with her sister.</p> - -<p>"We returned to the hotel for lunch, and then I took my new friend to -Santa Margarita, just as I had done with her sister the year -previously.</p> - -<p>"During the whole fortnight which I had at my disposal I took Carlotta -to all the places of interest in and about Genoa. She gave me no cause to -regret the other.</p> - -<p>"She cried when I left her, and the morning of my departure I gave her -four bracelets for her mother, besides a substantial token of my affection -for herself.</p> - -<p>"One of these days I intend to return to Italy, and I cannot help -remembering, with a certain amount of uneasiness, mingled with hope, that -Mme Rondoli has two more daughters."</p> - - - - -<hr class="r5" /> - - - - -<h4><a id="MY_LANDLADY"></a>MY LANDLADY</h4> - - -<p>"At that time," said George Kervelen, "I was living in furnished -lodgings in the Rue des Saints-Pères. When my parents decided that I -should go to Paris to continue my law studies, there had been a long -discussion about settling everything. My allowance had been fixed at first -at two thousand five hundred francs, but my poor mother was so anxious, -that she said to my father that if I spent my money rashly I might not -have enough to eat, and then my health would suffer, and so it was settled -that a comfortable boarding-house should be found for me, and that the -amount should be paid to the proprietor himself, or herself, every -month.</p> - -<p>"I had never left Quimper. I wanted everything that one desires at that -age and I was prepared to have a good time in every way.</p> - -<p>"Some of our neighbours told us of a certain Mme Kergaran, a native of -Brittany, who took in boarders, and so my father arranged matters by -letter with this respectable person, at whose house I and my luggage -arrived one evening.</p> - -<p>"Mme Kergaran was a woman of about forty. She was very stout, had a -voice like a drill-sergeant, and decided everything in a very abrupt and -decisive manner. Her house was narrow, with only one window opening on to -the street on each story, which rather gave it the appearance of a ladder -of windows, or better, perhaps, of a slice of a house sandwiched in -between two others.</p> - -<p>"The landlady lived on the first floor with her servant, the kitchen -and dining-room were on the second, and four boarders from Brittany lived -on the third and fourth, and I had two rooms on the fifth.</p> - -<p>"A little dark corkscrew staircase led up to these attics. All day long -Mme Kergaran was up and down these stairs like a captain on board ship. -Ten times a day she would go into each room, noisily superintending -everything, seeing that the beds were properly made, the clothes well -brushed, that the attendance was all that it should be; in a word, she -looked after her boarders like a mother, and better than a mother.</p> - -<p>"I soon made the acquaintance of my four fellow-countrymen. Two were -medical and two were law students, but all impartially endured the -landlady's despotic yoke. They were as frightened of her as a bey robbing -an orchard is of a rural policeman.</p> - -<p>"I, however, immediately felt that I wished to be independent; it is my -nature to rebel. I declared at once that I meant to come in at whatever -time I liked, for Mme Kergaran had fixed twelve o'clock at night as the -limit. On hearing this she looked at me for a few moments, and then -said:</p> - -<p>"'It is quite impossible; I cannot have Annette called up at any hour -of the night. You can have nothing to do out-of-doors at such a time.'</p> - -<p>"I replied firmly that, according to the law, she was obliged to open -the door for me at any time.</p> - -<p>"'If you refuse,' I said, 'I shall get a policeman to witness the fact, -and go and get a bed at some hotel, at your expense, in which I shall be -fully justified. You will, therefore, be obliged either to open the door -for me or to get rid of me. Do whatever you please.'</p> - -<p>"I laughed in her face as I told her my conditions. She could not speak -for a moment for surprise, then she tried to negotiate, but I was firm, -and she was obliged to yield. It was agreed that I should have a latchkey, -on my solemn undertaking that no one else should know it.</p> - -<p>"My energy made such a wholesome impression on her that from that time -she treated me with marked favour; she was most attentive, and even -showed me a sort of rough tenderness which was not at all unpleasing. -Sometimes when I was in a jovial mood I would kiss her by surprise, if -only for the sake of getting the box on the ears which she gave me -immediately afterward. When I managed to duck my head quickly enough, her -hand would pass over me as swiftly as a ball, and I would run away -laughing, while she would call after me:</p> - -<p>"'Oh! you wretch, I will pay you out for that.'</p> - -<p>"However, we soon became real friends.</p> - -<p>"It was not long before I made the acquaintance of a girl who was -employed in a shop, and whom I constantly met. You know what that sort -of love affair is in Paris. One fine day, going to a lecture, you meet a -girl going to work arm-in-arm with a friend. You look at her and feel that -pleasant little shock which the eyes of some women give you. It is one of -the charming things of life, those sudden physical attractions aroused by -a chance meeting, that gentle seduction induced by contact with a woman -born to please and to be loved. Whether she is greatly loved or not makes -no difference. It is in her nature to respond to one's secret desire for -love. The first time you see her face, her mouth, her hair, her smile, -their charm penetrates you with a sweet joy, you are pervaded by a sense -of well-being, and a tenderness, as yet undefined, impels you towards this -woman whom you do not know. There seems to be in her some appeal which you -answer, an attraction that draws you, as if you knew her for a long time, -had already seen her, and knew what she is thinking. The next day at the -same time, going through the same street, you meet her again, and the -next, and the succeeding days. At last you speak, and the love affair -follows its course just like an illness.</p> - -<p>"Well, by the end of three weeks I was on that footing with Emma which -precedes intimacy. The fall would indeed have taken place much sooner -had I known where to bring it about. The girl lived at home, and utterly -refused to go to an hotel. I did not know how to manage, but at last I -made the desperate resolve to take her to my room some night at about -eleven o'clock, under the pretence of giving her a cup of tea. Mme -Kergaran always went to bed at ten, so that we could get in by means of -my latchkey without exciting any attention, and go down again in an hour -or two in the same way.</p> - -<p>"After a good deal of entreaty on my part, Emma accepted my -invitation.</p> - -<p>"I did not spend a very pleasant day, for I was by no means easy in my -mind. I was afraid of complications, of a catastrophe, of some scandal. -At night I went into a café, and drank two cups of coffee and three or -four glasses of cognac, to give me courage, and when I heard the clock -strike half past ten, I went slowly to the place of meeting, where she -was already waiting for me. She took my arm in a coaxing manner, and we -set off slowly toward my lodgings. The nearer we got to the door the more -nervous I got, and I thought to myself: 'If only Mme Kergaran is in bed -already.'</p> - -<p>"I said to Emma two or three times:</p> - -<p>"'Above all things, don't make any noise on the stairs,' to which she -replied, laughing:</p> - -<p>"'Are you afraid of being heard?'</p> - -<p>"'No,' I said, 'but I am afraid of waking the man who sleeps in the -room next to me, who is not at all well.'</p> - -<p>"When I got near the house I felt as frightened as a man does who is -going to the dentist's. All the windows were dark, so no doubt everybody -was asleep, and I breathed again. I opened the door as carefully as a -thief, let my fair companion in, shut it behind me, and went upstairs on -tiptoe, holding my breath, and striking wax-matches lest the girl -should make a false step.</p> - -<p>"As we passed the landlady's door I felt my heart beating very quickly. -But we reached the second floor, then the third, and at last the fifth, -and got into my room. Victory!</p> - -<p>"However, I only dared to speak in a whisper, and took off my boots so -as not to make any noise. The tea, which I made over a spirit-lamp, was -soon drunk, and then I became pressing, till little by little, as if in -play, I, one by one, took off my companion's garments. She yielded while -resisting, blushing, confused.</p> - -<p>"She had absolutely nothing on except a short white petticoat when my -door suddenly opened, and Mme Kergaran appeared with a candle in her -hand, in exactly the same costume as Emma.</p> - -<p>"I jumped away from her and remained standing, looking at the two -women, who were looking at each other. What was going to happen?</p> - -<p>"My landlady said, in a lofty tone of voice which I had never heard -from her before:</p> - -<p>"'Monsieur Kervelen, I will not have prostitutes in my house.'</p> - -<p>"'But, Madame Kergaran,' I stammered, 'the young lady is a friend of -mine. She just came in to have a cup of tea.'</p> - -<p>"'People don't take tea in their chemises. You will please make this -person go directly.'</p> - -<p>"Emma, in a natural state of consternation, began to cry, and hid her -face in her petticoat, and I lost my head, not knowing what to do or say. -My landlady added, with irresistible authority:</p> - -<p>"'Help her to dress, and take her out at once.'</p> - -<p>"It was certainly the only thing I could do, so I picked up her dress -from the floor where it had collapsed in a heap like a deflated balloon, -put it over her head, and began to fasten it as best I could. She helped -me, crying all the time, hurrying and making all sorts of mistakes and -unable to find either button-holes or laces, while Mme Kergaran stood by -motionless, with the candle in her hand, looking at us with the severity -of a judge.</p> - -<p>"Emma now began to hurry feverishly, throwing her things on at random, -tying, pinning, lacing and fastening in a frenzy, goaded on by the -irresistible desire for flight, and without even stopping to button her -boots, she rushed past the landlady and ran downstairs. I followed her in -my slippers and half undressed, and kept repeating: 'Mademoiselle! -Mademoiselle!'</p> - -<p>"I felt that I ought to say something to her, but I could not find -anything. I overtook her just by the street-door, and tried to take her -into my arms, but she pushed me violently away, saying in a low, -nervous voice:</p> - -<p>"'Leave me alone, leave me alone!' and so ran out into the street, -closing the door behind her.</p> - -<p>"When I went upstairs again I found that Mme Kergaran was waiting on -the first landing. I went up slowly, expecting, and ready for, -anything.</p> - -<p>"Her door was open, and she called me in, saying in severe voice:</p> - -<p>"'I want to speak to you, M. Kervelen.'</p> - -<p>"I went in, with my head bent. She put her candle on the mantlepiece, -and then, folding her arms over her expansive bosom, which a fine white -dressing-jacket hardly covered, she said:</p> - -<p>"'So, Monsieur Kervelen, you think my house is a house of -ill-fame?'</p> - -<p>"I was not at all proud. I murmured:</p> - -<p>"'Oh dear, no! But, Mme Kergaran, you must not be angry; you know what -young men are.'</p> - -<p>"'I know,' was her answer, 'that I will not have such creatures here, -so you will understand that. I expect to have my house respected, and I -will not have it lose its reputation, you understand me? I -know—'</p> - -<p>"She went on thus for at least twenty minutes, overwhelming me with the -good name of her house, with reasons for her indignation, and loading me -with severe reproofs.</p> - -<p>"Men are curious creatures. Instead of listening to her, I was looking -at her, and did not hear a word, not a word she said. She had a superb -bosom, firm, white and plump, perhaps a little too plump, but tempting -enough to send shivers down one's spine. I should never have dreamed that -anything so charming was concealed beneath the woollen dress of my -landlady. She looked ten years younger when undressed. I began to feel -queer... shall I say... moved? I suddenly found myself picking up with her -the threads of the situation she had disturbed fifteen minutes previously -in my bedroom.</p> - -<p>"Behind her, in the alcove, I could see her bed, with the sheets rolled -down, tossed, showing a hollow place where her body had pressed. And I -thought it must be very nice, very warm there, much warmer than in any -other bed, no doubt because of the opulent charms that rested there.</p> - -<p>"What could be more charming, more disturbing, than an unmade bed? This -one, even from a distance, intoxicated me, and made my flesh tingle.</p> - -<p>"She was still talking, but now more gently, like a gruff but -well-meaning friend, who is willing to make up and be friends.</p> - -<p>"'Madame Kergaran, 'I stammered, 'I... I...', and as she had stopped to -hear my reply, I seized her in my arms and began to kiss her, to devour -her, like a famished man who has been waiting for a long time.</p> - -<p>"She struggled, turning away her head, but without becoming really -angry, and repeated mechanically, as was her habit: 'Oh, the brute... the -brute... the bru...</p> - -<p>"She did not finish the word, for I had lifted her with an effort, and -was carrying her clasped to my heart. Under certain circumstances, one -acquires remarkable vigour!</p> - -<p>"I stumbled against the edge of the bed, and I fell on it still holding -her in my arms... It was nice and warm in her bed.</p> - -<p>"An hour later, the candle having gone out, my landlady got up to light -another. As she returned and slipped in by my side, her great, round leg -crushing the sheets, she said in a coaxing, satisfied, perhaps grateful -tone: 'Oh, the brute... the brute!...'"</p> - - - - -<hr class="r5" /> - - - - -<h4><a id="THE_LITTLE_CASK"></a>THE LITTLE CASK</h4> - - -<p>Maître Chicot, the innkeeper, who lived at Épreville, pulled up his -tilbury in front of Mother Magloire's farmhouse. He was a tall man of -about forty, fat and with a red face, who was generally said to be very -malicious.</p> - -<p>He hitched his horse up to the gatepost and went in the yard. He owned -some land adjoining that of the old woman. He had been coveting her plot -for a long while, and had tried in vain to buy it a score of times, but -she had always obstinately refused to part with it.</p> - -<p>"I was born here, and here I mean to die," was all she said.</p> - -<p>He found her peeling potatoes outside the farmhouse door. She was a -woman of about seventy-two, very thin, shrivelled and wrinkled, almost -dried-up, in fact, and much bent, but as active and untiring as a girl. -Chicot patted her on the back in a very friendly fashion, and then sat -down by her on a stool.</p> - -<p>"Well, Mother, you are always pretty well and hearty, I am glad to -see."</p> - -<p>"Nothing to complain of, considering, thank you. And how are you, -Maître Prosper?"</p> - -<p>"Oh! pretty well, thank you, except a few rheumatic pains occasionally; -otherwise, I should have nothing to complain of."</p> - -<p>"Well, I am glad of that!"</p> - -<p>And she said no more, while Chicot watched her going on with her work. -Her crooked, knotty fingers, hard as a lobster's claws, seized the tubers, -which were lying in a pail, as if they had been a pair of pincers, and -peeled them rapidly, cutting off long strips of skin with an old knife -which she held in the other hand, throwing the potatoes into the water -as they were done. Three daring fowls jumped one after the other into her -lap, seized a bit of peel, and then ran away as fast as their legs would -carry them with it in their beaks.</p> - -<p>Chicot seemed embarrassed, anxious, with something on the tip of his -tongue which he could not get out. At last he said hurriedly:</p> - -<p>"I say. Mother Magloire—"</p> - -<p>"Well, what is it?"</p> - -<p>"You are quite sure that you do not want to sell your farm?"</p> - -<p>"Certainly not; you may make up your mind to that. What I have said, -I have said, so don't bring it up again."</p> - -<p>"Very well; only I fancy I have thought of an arrangement that might -suit us both very well."</p> - -<p>"What is it?"</p> - -<p>"Here you are: You shall sell it to me, and keep it all the same. You -don't understand? Very well, just listen to my idea."</p> - -<p>The old woman left off peeling her potatoes, and her bright eyes looked -at the innkeeper attentively from under her wrinkled eyelids, as he went -on:</p> - -<p>"Let me explain myself: Every month I will give you a hundred and fifty -francs. You understand me, I suppose? Every month I will come and bring -you thirty crowns, and it will not make the slightest difference in your -life—not the very slightest. You will have your own home just as you have -now, will not trouble yourself about me, and will owe me nothing; all you -will have to do will be to take my money. Will that arrangement suit -you?"</p> - -<p>He looked at her good-humouredly, one might almost have said -benevolently, and the old woman returned his looks distrustfully, as if -she suspected a trap, and said:</p> - -<p>"It seems all right, as far as I am concerned, but it will not give -you the farm."</p> - -<p>"Never mind about that," he said, "you will remain here as long as -it pleases God Almighty to let you live; it will be your home. Only you -will sign a deed before a lawyer making it over to me after your death. -You have no children, only nephews and nieces for whom you don't care a -straw. Will that suit you? You will keep everything during your life, -and I will give you the thirty crowns a month. It is pure gain as far -as you are concerned."</p> - -<p>The old woman was surprised, rather uneasy, but, nevertheless, very much -tempted to agree, and answered:</p> - -<p>"I don't say that I will not agree to it, but I must think about it. -Come back in a week and we will talk it over again, and I will then give -you my definite answer."</p> - -<p>And Maître Chicot went off, as happy as a king who had conquered an -empire.</p> - -<p>Mother Magloire was thoughtful, and did not sleep at all that night; -in fact, for four days she was in a fever of hesitation. She felt -instinctively, that there was something underneath the offer which was -not to her advantage; but then the thought of thirty crowns a month, of -all those coins chinking in her apron, falling to her, as it were, from -the skies, without her doing anything for it, filled her with -covetousness.</p> - -<p>She went to the notary and told him about it. He advised her to accept -Chicot's offer, but said she ought to ask for a monthly payment of fifty -crowns instead of thirty, as her farm was worth sixty thousand francs at -the lowest calculation.</p> - -<p>"If you live for fifteen years longer," he said, "even then he will -only have paid forty-five thousand francs for it."</p> - -<p>The old woman trembled with joy at this prospect of getting fifty crowns -a month; but she was still suspicious, fearing some trick, and she -remained a long time with the lawyer asking questions without being able -to make up her mind to go. At last she gave him instructions to draw up -the deed, and returned home with her head in a whirl, just as if she had -drunk four jugs of new cider.</p> - -<p>When Chicot came again to receive her answer she took a lot of -persuading, and declared that she could not make up her mind to agree to -his proposal, though she was all the time on tenter-hooks lest he should -not consent to give the fifty crowns. At last, when he grew urgent, she -told him what she expected for her farm.</p> - -<p>He looked surprised and disappointed, and refused.</p> - -<p>Then, in order to convince him, she began to talk about the probable -duration of her life.</p> - -<p>"I am certainly not likely to live for more than five or six years -longer. I am nearly seventy-three, and far from strong, even considering -my age. The other evening I thought I was going to die, and I had to be -carried to bed."</p> - -<p>But Chicot was not going to be taken in.</p> - -<p>"Come, come, old lady, you are as strong as the church tower, and will -live till you are a hundred at least; you will be sure to see me put -underground first."</p> - -<p>The whole day was spent in discussing the money, and as the old woman -would not give way, the landlord consented to give the fifty crowns, and -she insisted upon having ten crowns over and above to strike the -bargain.</p> - - -<p>Three years passed by, and the old dame did not seem to have grown a -day older. Chicot was in despair. It seemed to him as if he had been -paying that annuity for fifty years, that he had been taken in, outwitted, -and ruined. From time to time he went to see his annuitant, just as one -goes in July to see when the harvest is likely to begin. She always met -him with a cunning look, and one would have thought that she was -congratulating herself on the trick she had played him. Seeing how well -and hearty she seemed, he very soon got into his tilbury again, growling -to himself:</p> - -<p>"Will you never die, you old brute?"</p> - -<p>He did not know what to do, and felt inclined to strangle her when he -saw her. He hated her with a ferocious, cunning hatred, the hatred of a -peasant who has been robbed, and he began to cast about for means of -getting rid of her.</p> - -<p>One day he came to see her again, rubbing his hands as he did the first -time when he proposed the bargain, and, after having chatted for a few -minutes, he said:</p> - -<p>"Why do you never come and have a bit of dinner at my place when you -are in Épreville? The people are talking about it and saying that we are -not on friendly terms, and that pains me. You know it will cost you -nothing if you come, for I don't look at the price of a dinner. Come -whenever you feel inclined; I shall be very glad to see you."</p> - -<p>Old Mother Magloire did not need to be told twice, and the next day but -one—she was going to the town in any case, it being market-day, in her -gig, driven by her man—she, without any demur, put her trap up in -Maître Chicot's stable, and went in search of her promised dinner.</p> - -<p>The innkeeper was delighted, and treated her like a princess, giving her -roast fowl, black pudding, leg of mutton, and bacon and cabbage. But she -ate next to nothing. She had always been a small eater and had generally -lived on a little soup and a crust of bread-and-butter.</p> - -<p>Chicot was disappointed, and pressed her to eat more, but she refused. -She would drink next to nothing either, and declined any coffee, so he -asked her:</p> - -<p>"But surely, you will take a little drop of brandy?"</p> - -<p>"Well, as to that, I don't know that I will refuse." Whereupon he -shouted out:</p> - -<p>"Rosalie, bring the superfine brandy,—the special,—you -know."</p> - -<p>The servant appeared, carrying a long bottle ornamented with a paper -vine-leaf, and he filled two liquor glasses.</p> - -<p>"Just try that; you will find it first-rate."</p> - -<p>The good woman drank it slowly in sips, so as to make the pleasure -last all the longer, and when she had finished her glass, draining the -last drops so as to make sure of all, she said:</p> - -<p>"Yes, that is first-rate!"</p> - -<p>Almost before she had said it, Chicot had poured her out another -glassful. She wished to refuse, but it was too late, and she drank it -very slowly, as she had done the first, and he asked her to have a third. -She objected, but he persisted.</p> - -<p>"It is as mild as milk, you know. I can drink ten or a dozen without -any ill effect; it goes down like sugar, and leaves no headache behind; -one would think that it evaporated on the tongue. It is the most wholesome -thing you can drink."</p> - -<p>She took it, for she really wanted it, but she left half the glass.</p> - -<p>Then Chicot, in an excess of generosity, said:</p> - -<p>"Look here, as it is so much to your taste, I will give you a small -keg of it, just to show that you and I are still excellent friends." Then -she took her leave, feeling slightly overcome by the effects of what she -had drunk.</p> - -<p>The next day the innkeeper drove into her yard, and took a little -iron-hooped keg out of his gig. He insisted on her tasting the contents, -to make sure it was the same delicious article, and, when they had -each of them drunk three more glasses, he said, as he was going away:</p> - -<p>"Well, you know, when it is all gone, there is more left; don't be -modest, for I shall not mind. The sooner it is finished the better pleased -I shall be."</p> - -<p>Four days later he came again. The old woman was outside her door -cutting up the bread for her soup.</p> - -<p>He went up to her, and put his face close to hers, so that he might -smell her breath; and when he smelled the alcohol he felt pleased.</p> - -<p>"I suppose you will give me a glass of the special?" he said. And two -or three times they drank each other's health.</p> - -<p>Soon, however, it began to be whispered abroad that Mother Magloire -was in the habit of getting drunk all by herself. She was picked up, -sometimes in her kitchen, sometimes in her yard, sometimes on the roads -in the neighbourhood, and was often brought home dead to the world.</p> - -<p>Chicot did not go near her any more, and, when people spoke to him -about her, he used to say, putting on a distressed look:</p> - -<p>"It is a great pity that she should have taken to drink at her age; -but when people get old there is no remedy. It will be the death of her -in the long run."</p> - -<p>And it certainly was the death of her. She died the next winter, about -Christmas time, having fallen down drunk in the snow.</p> - -<p>And when Maître Chicot inherited the farm he said:</p> - -<p>"It was very stupid of her; if she had not taken to drink she might -very well have lived for ten years longer."</p> - - - - -<hr class="r5" /> - - - - -<h4><a id="ANDRES_DISEASE"></a>ANDRÉ'S DISEASE</h4> - - -<p>The lawyer's house looked on to the Square. Behind it, there was a nice, -well-kept garden, extending to the Passage des Piques, which was almost -always deserted, and from which it was separated by a wall.</p> - -<p>At the bottom of that garden Maître Moreau's wife had promised, for the -first time, to meet Captain Sommerive, who had been making love to her -for a long time.</p> - -<p>Her husband had gone to Paris for a week, so she was quite free for the -time being. The Captain had begged so hard, and had used such loving -words; she was certain that he loved her so ardently, and she felt so -isolated, so misunderstood, so neglected amid all the law business which -seemed to be her husband's sole pleasure, that she had given away her -heart without even asking herself whether she would give anything else -some day.</p> - -<p>Then, after some months of Platonic love, of pressing of hands, of -quick kisses stolen behind a door, the Captain had declared that he would -ask permission to exchange, and leave the town immediately, if she would -not grant him a meeting, a real meeting in the shadow of the trees, during -her husband's absence. So she had yielded to his importunity, as she had -promised.</p> - -<p>Just then she was waiting, close against the wall, with a beating heart, -trembling at the slightest sound, and when she heard somebody climbing up -the wall, she very nearly ran away.</p> - -<p>Suppose it were not he, but a thief? But no; some one called out softly, -"Mathilde!" and when she replied, "Étienne!" a man jumped on to the -path with a crash.</p> - -<p>It was he! What a kiss!</p> - -<p>For a long time they remained in each other's arms, with united lips. -But suddenly a fine rain began to fall, and the drops from the leaves fell -on to her neck and made her start. Whereupon he said:</p> - -<p>"Mathilde, my adored one, my darling, my angel, let us go indoors. It -is twelve o'clock, we can have nothing to fear; please let us go in."</p> - -<p>"No, dearest; I am too frightened. Who knows what might happen?"</p> - -<p>But he held her in his arms, and whispered in her ear:</p> - -<p>"Your servants sleep on the third floor, looking on to the Square, and -your room, on the first, looks on to the garden, so nobody can hear us. -I love you so that I wish to love you entirely, from head to foot." And -he embraced her vehemently, maddening her with his kisses.</p> - -<p>She resisted still, frightened and even ashamed. But he put his arms -round her, lifted her up, and carried her off through the rain, which was -by this time descending in torrents.</p> - -<p>The door was open; they groped their way upstairs; and when they were -in the room she bolted the door while he lit a match.</p> - -<p>Then she fell, half fainting, into a chair, while he kneeled down beside -her and slowly he undressed her, beginning with her shoes and stockings -in order to kiss her feet.</p> - -<p>At last, she said, panting:</p> - -<p>"No! no! Étienne, please let me remain a virtuous woman; I should be -too angry with you afterwards; and after all, it is so horrid, so common. -Cannot we love each other with a spiritual love only? Oh! Étienne!"</p> - -<p>With the skill of a lady's maid and the speed of a man in a hurry, he -unbuttoned, untied, unhooked and unlaced without stopping, and when she -tried to get up and run away, she suddenly emerged from her dress, her -petticoat and her underclothes as naked as a hand thrust from a muff. In -her fright she ran to the bed in order to hide herself behind the -curtains; but it was a dangerous place of refuge, and he followed her. -But in haste he took off his sword too quickly, and it fell on to the -floor with a crash. And then a prolonged, shrill child's cry came from -the next room, the door of which had remained open.</p> - -<p>"You have awakened André," she whispered, "and he won't be able to -go to sleep again."</p> - -<p>Her son was only fifteen months old and slept in a room opening out -of hers, so that she might be able to watch over him all the time.</p> - -<p>The Captain exclaimed ardently:</p> - -<p>"What does it matter, Mathilde? How I love you; you must come to me, -Mathilde."</p> - -<p>But she struggled and resisted in her fright.</p> - -<p>"No! no! Just listen how he is crying; he will wake up the nurse, and -what should we do if she were to come? We should be lost. Just listen to -me, Étienne. When he screams at night his father always takes him into -our bed, and he is quiet immediately; it is the only means of keeping him -still. Do let me take him."</p> - -<p>The child roared, uttering shrill screams, which pierced the thickest -walls and could be heard by passers-by in the streets.</p> - -<p>In his consternation the Captain got up, and Mathilde jumped out and -took the child into her bed, when he was quiet at once.</p> - -<p>Étienne sat astride on a chair, and rolled a cigarette, and in about -five minutes André went to sleep again.</p> - -<p>"I will take him back," his mother said; and she took him back very -carefully to his cradle.</p> - -<p>When she returned, the Captain was waiting for her with open arms, -and put his arms round her in a transport of love, while she, embracing -him more closely, said, stammering:</p> - -<p>"Oh! Étienne, my darling, if you only knew how I love you; -how—"</p> - -<p>André began to cry again, and he, in a rage, exclaimed:</p> - -<p>"Confound it all, won't the little brat be quiet?"</p> - -<p>No, the little brat would not be quiet, but howled all the louder, on -the contrary.</p> - -<p>She thought she heard a noise downstairs; no doubt the nurse was -coming, so she jumped up and took the child into bed, and he grew quiet -directly.</p> - -<p>Three times she put him back, and three times she had to fetch him -again, and an hour before daybreak the Captain had to go, swearing like -the proverbial trooper; and, to calm his impatience, Mathilde promised to -receive him again the next night. Of course he came, more impatient and -ardent than ever, excited by the delay.</p> - -<p>He took care to lay his sword carefully on the arms of a chair, he took -off his boots like a thief, and spoke so low that Mathilde could hardly -hear him. At last, he was just going to be really happy when the floor, -or some piece of furniture, or perhaps the bed itself, creaked; it sounded -as if something had broken; and in a moment a cry, feeble at first, but -which grew louder, every moment, made itself heard. André was awake -again.</p> - -<p>He yapped like a fox, and there was not the slightest doubt that if he -went on like that the whole house would awake; so his mother, not knowing -what to do, got up and brought him. The Captain was more furious than -ever, but did not move, and very carefully he put out his hand, took a -small piece of the child's flesh between his two fingers, no matter where -it was, the thighs or elsewhere, and pinched it. The little one struggled -and screamed in a deafening manner, but his tormentor pinched everywhere, -furiously and more vigorously. He took a piece of flesh and twisted and -turned it, and then let go, only to take hold of another piece, and -then another and another.</p> - -<p>The child screamed like a chicken having its throat cut, or a dog being -mercilessly beaten. His mother caressed him, kissed him, and tried to -stifle his cries by her tenderness; but André grew purple, as if he were -going into convulsions, and kicked and struggled with his little arms and -legs in an alarming manner.</p> - -<p>The Captain said, softly:</p> - -<p>"Try to take him back to his cradle; perhaps he will be quiet."</p> - -<p>And Mathilde went into the other room with the child in her arms. As -soon as he was out of his mother's bed he cried less loudly, and when he -was in his own he was quiet, with the exception of a few broken sobs. The -rest of the night was quiet and the Captain was happy.</p> - -<p>The next night the Captain came again. As he happened to speak rather -loudly, André awoke again and began to scream. His mother went and fetched -him immediately, but the Captain pinched so hard and long that the child -was nearly suffocated by its cries, its eyes turned in its head and it -foamed at the mouth. As soon as it was back in its cradle it was quiet, -and in four days André did not cry any more to come into his mother's -bed.</p> - -<p>On Saturday evening the lawyer returned, and took his place again at -the domestic hearth and in the conjugal chamber. As he was tired with his -journey he went to bed early; but he had not long lain down when he said -to his wife:</p> - -<p>"Why, how is it that André is not crying? Just go and fetch him, -Mathilde; I like to feel that he is between us."</p> - -<p>She got up and brought the child, but as soon as he saw that he was in -that bed, in which he had been so fond of sleeping a few days before, he -wriggled and screamed so violently in his fright that she had to take him -back to his cradle.</p> - -<p>M. Moreau could not get over his surprise. "What a very funny thing! -What is the matter with him this evening? I suppose he is sleepy?"</p> - -<p>"He has been like that all the time that you were away; I have never -been able to have him in bed with me once."</p> - -<p>In the morning the child woke up and began to laugh and play with his -toys.</p> - -<p>The lawyer, who was an affectionate man, got up, kissed his offspring, -and took him into his arms to carry him to their bed. André laughed, with -that vacant laugh of little creatures whose ideas are still vague. He -suddenly saw the bed and his mother in it, and his happy little face -puckered up, till suddenly he began to scream furiously, and struggled as -if he were going to be put to the torture.</p> - -<p>In his astonishment his father said:</p> - -<p>"There must be something the matter with the child," and mechanically -he lifted up his little nightshirt.</p> - -<p>He uttered a prolonged "O—o—h!" of astonishment. The -child's calves, thighs, and buttocks were covered with blue spots as big -as half-pennies.</p> - -<p>"Just look, Mathilde!" the father exclaimed; "this is horrible!" And -the mother rushed forward in a fright. It was horrible; no doubt the -beginning of some sort of leprosy, of one of those strange affections of -the skin which doctors are often at a loss to account for. The parents -looked at one another in consternation.</p> - -<p>"We must send for the doctor," the father said.</p> - -<p>But Mathilde, pale as death, was looking at her child, who was spotted -like a leopard. Then suddenly uttering a violent cry as if she had seen -something that filled her with horror, she exclaimed:</p> - -<p>"Oh! the wretch!"</p> - -<p>M. Moreau, surprised asked: "What? Whom are you speaking about? What -wretch?"</p> - -<p>She reddened up to the roots of her hair and stammered: "Nothing... it -is... you see, I guess... It must be... Don't let us get the doctor. It is -surely that miserable nurse who pinches the little one to make him stop -when he cries." The notary, very angry, went to the nurse and nearly beat -her. She denied the charges, but was discharged. Her conduct was denounced -to the municipal authorities, and she could never get another -situation.</p> - - - - -<hr class="r5" /> - - - - -<h4><a id="HE"></a>HE?</h4> - - -<p>My dear friend, you can hardly believe it? I can see why. You think I -have gone mad? It may be so, but not for the reasons which you suppose.</p> - -<p>Yes, I am going to get married. That's true.</p> - -<p>My ideas and my convictions have not changed at all. I look upon all -legalized co-habitation as utterly stupid, for I am certain that nine -husbands out of ten are cuckolds; and they get no more than their deserts -for having been idiotic enough to fetter their lives and renounce their -freedom in love, the only happy and good thing in the world, and for -having clipped the wings of fancy which continually drives us on toward -all women. You know what I mean. More than ever I feel that I am incapable -of loving one woman alone, because I shall always adore all the others too -much. I should like to have a thousand arms, a thousand mouths, and a -thousand—temperaments, to be able to strain an army of these -charming creatures in my embrace at the same moment.</p> - -<p>And yet I am going to get married!</p> - -<p>I may add that I know very little of the girl who is going to become -my wife to-morrow; I have only seen her four or five times. I know that -she is not distasteful to me, and that is enough for my purpose. She is -small, fair, and stout; so of course the day after to-morrow I shall -ardently wish for a tall, dark, thin, woman.</p> - -<p>She is not rich, and belongs to the middle classes. She is a girl such -as you may find by the gross, well adapted for matrimony, without any -apparent faults, and with no particularly striking qualities. People say -of her: "Mlle Lajolle is a very nice girl," and to-morrow they will say: -"What a very nice woman Madame Raymon is." She belongs, in a word, to that -immense number of girls who make very good wives for us till the moment -comes when we discover that we happen to prefer all other women to that -particular woman we have married.</p> - -<p>"Well," you will say to me, "what on earth do you get married for?"</p> - -<p>I hardly like to tell you the strange and seemingly improbable reason -that urged me on to this mad action. I am getting married in order not to -be alone.</p> - -<p>I don't know how to tell you or to make you understand me, but my state -of mind is so wretched that you will pity me and despise me.</p> - -<p>I do not want to be alone any longer at night; I want to feel that there -is some one close to me touching me, a being who can speak and say -something, no matter what it be.</p> - -<p>I wish to be able to awaken somebody by my side, so that I may be able -to ask some sudden question, a stupid question even, if I feel inclined, -so that I may hear a human voice, to have somebody living in my house and -feel that there is some waking soul close to me, some one whose reason is -at work—so that when I hastily light the candle I may see some human -face by my side—because—because—I am ashamed to confess -it—because when I am alone, I am afraid.</p> - -<p>Oh! you don't understand me yet.</p> - -<p>I am not afraid of any danger; if a man were to come into the room I -should kill him without trembling. I am not afraid of ghosts, nor do I -believe in the supernatural. I am not afraid of dead people, for I believe -in the total annihilation of every being that disappears from the face of -this earth.</p> - -<p>Well,—yes, well, then... I am afraid of myself, afraid of that -horrible sensation of incomprehensible fear, afraid of the spasms of my -terrified mind.</p> - -<p>You may laugh, if you like. It is terrible and incurable. I am afraid -of the walls, of the furniture, of the familiar objects, which are -animated, as far as I am concerned, by a kind of animal life. Above -all, I am afraid of my own dreadful thoughts, of my reason, which seems -as if it were about to leave me, driven away by a mysterious and invisible -anguish.</p> - -<p>At first I feel a vague uneasiness in my mind which causes a cold shiver -to run all over me. I look round, and of course nothing is to be seen, and -I wish there were something there, no matter what, as long as it were -something tangible: I am frightened, merely because I cannot understand my -own terror.</p> - -<p>If I speak, I am afraid of my own voice. 'If I walk, I am afraid of I -know not what, behind the door, behind the curtains, in the cupboard, or -under my bed, and yet all the time I know there is nothing anywhere, and -I turn round suddenly because I am afraid of what is behind me, although -there is nothing there, and I know it.</p> - -<p>I get agitated; I feel that my fear increases, and so I shut myself up -in my own room, get into bed, and hide under the clothes, and there, -cowering down, <i>rolled into a ball</i>, I close my eyes in despair and -remain thus for a long time, remembering that my candle is alight on the -table by my bedside, and that I ought to put it out, and yet—I dare -not do it!</p> - -<p>It is very terrible, is it not, to be like that?</p> - -<p>Formerly I felt nothing of all that; I came home quite comfortably, and -went up and down in my rooms without anything disturbing my calmness of -mind. Had anyone told me that I should be attacked by a malady—for -I can call it nothing else—of most improbable fear, such a stupid -and terrible malady as it is, I should have laughed outright. I was -certainly never afraid of opening the door in the dark; I used to go to -bed slowly without locking it, and never got up in the middle of the night -to make sure that everything was firmly closed.</p> - -<p>It began last year in a very strange manner, on a damp autumn evening. -When my servant had left the room, after I had dined, I asked myself what -I was going to do. I walked up and down my room for some time, feeling -tired without any reason for it, unable to work, and without enough energy -to read. A fine rain was falling, and I felt unhappy, a prey to one of -those fits of casual despondency which make us feel inclined to cry, or to -talk, no matter to whom, so as to shake off our depressing thoughts.</p> - -<p>I felt that I was alone and that my rooms seemed to me to be more -empty that they had ever been before. I was surrounded by a sensation of -infinite and overwhelming solitude. What was I to do? I sat down, but then -a kind of nervous impatience seized my legs, so that I got up and began to -walk about again. I was feverish, for I noticed my hands, which I had -clasped behind me, as one often does when walking slowly, almost seemed -to burn one another. Then suddenly a cold shiver ran down my back, and I -thought the damp air might have penetrated into my room, so I lit the fire -for the first time that year, and [sat down again and looked at the -flames. But soon I felt that I could not possibly remain quiet. So I got -up again and determined to go out, to pull myself together, and to seek a -friend to bear me company. I went out. I looked up three friends who were -not at home, then I went on to the boulevards to try and meet some -acquaintance or other there.</p> - -<p>It was wretched everywhere. The wet pavement glistened in the gaslight, -and a moist warmth, that kind of warmth that chills you with sudden -shivers, the oppressive heat of impalpable rain, lay heavily over the -streets and seemed to obscure the light from the lamps.</p> - -<p>I went on slowly, saying to myself, "I shall not find a soul to talk -to."</p> - -<p>I glanced into several cafés from the Madeleine as far as the Faubourg -Poissonnière, and saw many unhappy-looking individuals sitting at the -tables, who did not seem even to have enough energy left to finish the -refreshments they had ordered.</p> - -<p>For a long time I wandered aimlessly up and down, and about midnight I -started off for home; I was very calm and very tired. My concierge, -who goes to bed before eleven o'clock, opened the door at once, which was -quite unusual for him, and I thought that another lodger had no doubt -just come in.</p> - -<p>When I go out I always turn the key twice. Now I found it merely closed, -which surprised me; but I supposed that some letters had been brought -up for me in the course of the evening.</p> - -<p>I went in, and found my fire still burning so that it lighted up the -room a little. I took up a candle to fight it at the fire when looking in -front of me I noticed somebody sitting in my armchair by the fire, warming -his feet, with his back toward me.</p> - -<p>I was not in the slightest degree frightened. I thought very naturally -that some friend or other had come to see me. No doubt the concierge, who -knew I had gone out, had said I was coming back and had lend him his own -key. In a moment I remembered all the circumstances of my return, how the -street door had been opened immediately and that my own door was only -latched and not locked.</p> - -<p>I could see nothing of my friend but his head. He had evidently gone -to sleep while waiting for me, so I went up to him to rouse him. I saw him -quite clearly; his right arm was hanging down and his feet were crossed, -while his head, which was somewhat inclined to the left of the armchair, -seemed to indicate that he was asleep. "Who can it be?" I asked myself. I -could not see clearly, as the room was rather dark, so I put out my hand -to touch him on the shoulder, and it came in contact with the back of the -chair. There was nobody there; the armchair was empty.</p> - -<p>Merciful heaven, what a start I gave! For a moment I drew back as if -some terrible danger had suddenly appeared in my way; then I turned round -again feeling there was somebody behind me, then, impelled by some -imperious desire to look at the armchair again, I turned round once more. -I remained standing up panting with fear, so upset that I could not -collect my thoughts, and ready to drop.</p> - -<p>But I am naturally a cool man, and soon recovered myself. I thought: -"It is a mere hallucination, that is all," and I immediately began to -reflect about this phenomenon. Thoughts fly very quickly at such -moments.</p> - -<p>I had been suffering from a hallucination, that was an incontestable -fact. My mind had been perfectly lucid and had acted regularly and -logically, so there was nothing the matter with the brain. It was only -my eyes that had been deceived; they had had a vision, one of those -visions which lead simple folk to believe in miracles. It was a nervous -accident to the optical apparatus, nothing more; the eyes were rather -overwrought, perhaps.</p> - -<p>I lit my candle, and when I stooped down to the fire in so doing, I -noticed that I was trembling, and I raised myself up with a jump, as if -somebody had touched me from behind.</p> - -<p>I was not comfortable by any means.</p> - -<p>I walked up and down a little, and hummed a tune or two. Then I -double-locked my door, and felt rather reassured; now, at any rate, nobody -could come in.</p> - -<p>I sat down again, and thought over my adventure for a long time; then -I went to bed, and put out my light.</p> - -<p>For some minutes all went well; I lay quietly on my back. Then an -irresistible desire seized me to look round the room, and I turned on to -my side.</p> - -<p>My fire was nearly out and the few glowing embers threw a faint light -on to the floor by the chair, where I fancied I saw the man sitting -again.</p> - -<p>I quickly struck a match, but I had been mistaken, for there was nothing -there; I got up, however, and hid the chair behind my bed, and tried to -get to sleep as the room was now dark. But I had not been asleep for more -than five minutes when in my dream I saw all the scene which I had -witnessed as clearly as if it were reality. I woke up with a start, and, -having lit the candle, sat up in bed, without venturing even to try and go -to sleep again.</p> - -<p>Twice, however, sleep overcame me for a few moments in spite of myself, -and twice I saw the same thing again, till I fancied I was going mad. -When day broke, however, I thought that I was cured, and slept peacefully -till noon.</p> - -<p>It was all past and gone. I had been feverish, had had nightmare; or -something. I had been ill, in a word, but yet I thought that I was a great -fool.</p> - -<p>I enjoyed myself thoroughly that evening; I went and dined at a -restaurant; afterward I went to the theatre, and then started home. But -as I got near the house I was seized by a strange feeling of uneasiness -once more; I was afraid of seeing him again. I was not afraid of him, not -afraid of his presence, in which I did not believe; but I was afraid of -being deceived again; I was afraid of some fresh hallucination, afraid -lest fear should take possession of me.</p> - -<p>For more than an hour I wandered up and down the pavement; then I -thought that I was really too foolish, and returned home. I panted so that -I could scarcely get upstairs, and remained standing on the landing -outside my door for more than ten minutes; then suddenly I took courage -and pulled myself together. I inserted my key into the lock, and went in -with a candle in my hand. I kicked open my half-open bedroom door, and -gave a frightened look toward the fireplace; there was nothing there. -A—h!</p> - -<p>What a relief and what a delight! What a deliverance! I walked up and -down briskly and boldly, but I was not altogether reassured, and kept -turning round with a jump; the very shadows in the corners disquieted -me.</p> - -<p>I slept badly, and was constantly disturbed by imaginary noises, but I -did not see him; no, that was all over.</p> - -<p>Since that time I have been afraid of being alone at night. I feel -that the spectre is there, close to me, around me; but it has not appeared -to me again. And supposing it did, what would it matter, since I do not -believe in it and know that it is nothing?</p> - -<p>It still worries me, however, because I am constantly thinking of it: -his right arm hanging down and his head inclined to the left like a man -who was asleep—Enough of that, in Heaven's name! I don't want to -think about it!</p> - -<p>Why, however, am I so persistently possessed with this idea? His feet -were close to the fire!</p> - -<p>He haunts me; it is very stupid, but so it is. Who and what is HE? I -know that he does not exist except in my cowardly imagination, in my -fears, and in my anguish! There—enough of that!</p> - -<p>Yes, it is all very well for me to reason with myself, to brace myself -up; I cannot remain alone at home, because I know he is there. I know I -shall not see him again; he will not show himself again; that is all over. -But he is there all the same in my thoughts. He remains invisible, but -that does not prevent his being there. He is behind the doors, in the -closed wardrobe, under the bed, in every dark corner. If I open the door -or the wardrobe, if I take the candle to look under the bed and throw a -fight on the dark places, he is there no longer, but I feel that he is -behind me. I turn round, certain that I shall not see him, that I shall -never see him again; but he is, none the less, behind me.</p> - -<p>It is very stupid, it is dreadful; but what am I to do? I cannot help -it.</p> - -<p>But if there were two of us in the place, I feel certain that he would -not be there any longer, for he is there just because I am alone, simply -and solely because I am alone!</p> - - - - -<hr class="r5" /> - - - - -<h4><a id="MY_UNCLE_SOSTHENE"></a>MY UNCLE SOSTHÈNE</h4> - - -<p>My uncle Sosthène was a freethinker, like many others, a freethinker -from sheer stupidity. People are very often religious for the same reason. -The mere sight of a priest threw him into a violent rage; he would shake -his fist and grimace at him, and touch a piece of iron when the priest's -back was turned, forgetting that the latter action showed a belief after -all, the belief in the evil eye.</p> - -<p>Now when beliefs are unreasonable, one should either have all or none -at all. I myself am a freethinker; I revolt at all the dogmas which have -invented the fear of death, but I feel no anger toward places of worship, -be they Catholic Apostolic, Roman, Protestant, Greek, Russian, Buddhist, -Jewish, or Mohammedan. I have a peculiar manner of looking at them and -explaining them. A place of worship represents the homage paid by man to -the unknown. The more extended our thoughts and our views become, the more -the unknown diminishes, and the more places of worship will decay. I, -however, instead of incense burners, would fit them up with telescopes, -microscopes, and electrical machines; that is all.</p> - -<p>My uncle and I differed on nearly every point. He was a patriot, while -I was not—for, after all, patriotism is a kind of religion; it is the egg -from which wars are hatched.</p> - -<p>My uncle was a Freemason, and I used to declare that they are stupider -than the pious old ladies. That is my opinion, and I maintain it; if we -must have any religion at all, the old one is good enough for me.</p> - -<p>Those imbeciles simply imitate priests. Their symbol is a triangle -instead of a cross. They have chapels which they call lodges, and a whole -lot of different sects: the Scottish rite, the French rite, the Grand -Orient, a collection of balderdash that would make a cat laugh.</p> - -<p>What is their object? Mutual help to be obtained by tickling the palms -of each other's hands. I see no harm in it, for they put into practice the -Christian precept: "Do unto others as ye would they should do unto you." -The only difference consists in the tickling, but it does not seem worth -while to make such a fuss about lending a poor devil five francs.</p> - -<p>Convents whose duty and business it is to administer alms and help, put -the letters "J.M.J." at the head of their communications. The Masons -put three periods in a row after their signature. It is six of one and -half a dozen of the other.</p> - -<p>My uncle's reply used to be:</p> - -<p>"We are raising up a religion against a religion; Free-thought will kill -clericalism. Freemasonry is the headquarters of those who are demolishing -all deities."</p> - -<p>"Very well, my dear uncle," I would reply (in my heart I felt inclined -to say, "You old idiot!"); "it is just that which I am blaming you for. -Instead of destroying, you are organizing competition; it is only a case -of lowering the prices. And then, if you only admitted freethinkers among -you I could understand it, but you admit anybody. You have a number of -Catholics among you, even the leaders of the party. Pius IX is said to -have been one of you before he became Pope. If you call a society with -such an organization a bulwark against clericalism, I think it is an -extremely weak one."</p> - -<p>"My dear boy," my uncle would reply, with a wink, "our most formidable -actions are political; slowly and surely we are everywhere undermining -the monarchical spirit."</p> - -<p>Then I broke out: "Yes, you are very clever! If you tell me that -freemasonry is an election-machine, I will grant it. I will never deny -that it is used as a machine to control candidates of all shades; -if you say that it is only used to hoodwink people, to drill them to go -to the voting-urn as soldiers are sent under fire, I agree with you; if -you declare that it is indispensable to all political ambitions because -it changes all its members into electoral agents, I should say to you, -'That is as clear as daylight.' But when you tell me that it serves to -undermine the monarchical spirit, I can only laugh in your face.</p> - -<p>"Just consider that vast and democratic association which had Prince -Napoleon for its Grand Master under the Empire; which has the Crown Prince -for its Grand Master in Germany, the Czar's brother in Russia, and to -which the Prince of Wales and King Humbert and nearly all the royalists -of the globe belong."</p> - -<p>"You are quite right," my uncle said; "but all these persons are serving -our projects without knowing it."</p> - -<p>"And vice versa, what?"</p> - -<p>And I added, to myself, "pack of fools!"</p> - -<p>It was, however, indeed a sight to see my uncle when he had a freemason -to dinner.</p> - -<p>On meeting they shook hands in a mysterious manner that was -irresistibly funny; one could see that they were going through a series of -secret mysterious pressures. When I wished to put my uncle in a rage, I -had only to tell him that dogs also have a manner which savours very much -of freemasonry, when they greet one another on meeting.</p> - -<p>Then my uncle would take his friend into a corner to tell him something -important, and at dinner they had a peculiar way of looking at each other, -and of drinking to each other, in a manner as if to say: "We belong to it, -don't we?"</p> - -<p>And to think that there are millions on the face of the globe who are -amused at such monkey tricks! I would sooner be a Jesuit.</p> - -<p>Now in our town there really was an old Jesuit who was my uncle's pet -aversion. Every time he met him, or if he only saw him at a distance, he -used to say: "Dirty skunk!" And then, taking my arm, he would whisper to -me:</p> - -<p>"Look here, that fellow will play me a trick some day or other, I feel -sure of it."</p> - -<p>My uncle spoke quite truly, and this was how it happened, through my -fault moreover.</p> - -<p>It was close on Holy Week, and my uncle made up his mind to give a -dinner on Good Friday, a real dinner with chitterlings and saveloy -sausage. I resisted as much as I could, and said:</p> - -<p>"I shall eat meat on that day, but at home, quite by myself. Your -manifesto, as you call it, is an idiotic idea. Why should you manifest? -What does it matter to you if people do not eat any meat?"</p> - -<p>But my uncle would not be persuaded. He asked three of his friends to -dine with him at one of the best restaurants in the town, and as he was -going to pay the bill, I had certainly, after all, no scruples about -<i>manifesting.</i></p> - -<p>At four o'clock we took a conspicuous place in the Café Pénélope, the -most frequented restaurant in the town, and my uncle in a loud voice -described the menu.</p> - -<p>We sat down at six o'clock, and at ten o'clock we had not finished. -Five of us had drunk eighteen bottles of fine wines, and four of -champagne. Then my uncle proposed what he was in the habit of calling: -"The archbishop's feat." Each man put six small glasses in front of him, -each of them filled with a different liqueur, and then they had all to be -emptied at one gulp, one after another, while one of the waiters counted -twenty. It was very stupid, but my uncle thought it was very suitable -to the occasion.</p> - -<p>At eleven o'clock he was as drunk as a fiddler, so we had to take him -home in a cab and put him to bed, and one could easily foresee that his -anti-clerical demonstration would end in a terrible fit of indigestion.</p> - -<p>As I was going back to my lodgings, being rather drunk myself, with a -cheerful Machiavelian drunkenness which quite satisfied all my skeptical -instincts, an idea struck me.</p> - -<p>I arranged my necktie, put on a look of great distress, and went and -rang loudly at the old Jesuit's door. As he was deaf he made me wait a -longish while, but at length he appeared at his window in a cotton -nightcap and asked what I wanted.</p> - -<p>I shouted out at the top of my voice:</p> - -<p>"Make haste, reverend father, and open the door; a poor, despairing, -sick man is in need of your spiritual ministrations."</p> - -<p>The good, kind man put on his trousers as quickly as he could and came -down without his cassock. I told him in a breathless voice that my uncle, -the freethinker, had been taken suddenly ill. Fearing it was going to be -something serious he had been seized with a sudden fear of death, and -wished to see a priest and talk to him; to have his advice and comfort, -to make up with the Church, and to confess, so as to be able to cross the -dreaded threshold at peace with himself; and I added in a mocking -tone:</p> - -<p>"At any rate, he wishes it, and if it does him no good it can do him -no harm."</p> - -<p>The old Jesuit, who was startled, delighted, and almost trembling, -said to me:</p> - -<p>"Wait a moment, my son, I will come with you."</p> - -<p>But I replied: "Pardon me. Father, if I do not go with you; but my -convictions will not allow me to do so. I even refused to come and fetch -you, so I beg you not to say that you have seen me, but to declare that -you had a presentiment—a sort of revelation of his illness."</p> - -<p>The priest consented, and went off quickly, knocked at my uncle's door, -was soon let in, and I saw the black cassock disappear within that -stronghold of Free-thought.</p> - -<p>I hid under a neighbouring gateway to wait for events. Had he been well, -my uncle would have half murdered the Jesuit, but I knew that he would -be unable to move an arm, and I asked myself, gleefully, what sort of a -scene would take place between these antagonists—what fight, what -explanation would be given, and what would be the issue of this situation, -which my uncle's indignation would render more tragic still?</p> - -<p>I laughed till I had to hold my sides, and said to myself, half -aloud: "Oh! what a joke, what a joke!"</p> - -<p>Meanwhile it was getting very cold. I noticed that the Jesuit stayed -a long time, and thought: "They are having an explanation, I suppose."</p> - -<p>One, two, three hours passed, and still the reverend Father did not -come out. What had happened? Had my uncle died in a fit when he saw -him, or had he killed the cassocked gentleman? Perhaps they had mutually -devoured each other? This last supposition appeared very unlikely, for -I fancied that my uncle was quite incapable of swallowing a grain more -nourishment at that moment.</p> - -<p>At last the day dawned. I was very uneasy, and not venturing to go into -the house myself, I went to one of my friends who lived opposite. I roused -him, explained matters to him, much to his amusement and astonishment, and -took possession of his window.</p> - -<p>At nine o'clock he relieved me and I got a little sleep. At two -o'clock I, in my turn, replaced him. We were utterly astonished.</p> - -<p>At six o'clock the Jesuit left, with a very happy and satisfied look -on his face, and we saw him go away with a quiet step.</p> - -<p>Then, timid and ashamed, I went and knocked at my uncle's door. When -the servant opened it I did not dare to ask her any questions, but went -upstairs without saying a word.</p> - -<p>My uncle was lying pale, exhausted, with weary, sorrowful eyes and -heavy arms, on his bed. A little religious picture was fastened to one of -the bed-curtains with a pin.</p> - -<p>"Why, uncle," I said, "you in bed still? Are you not well?"</p> - -<p>He replied in a feeble voice:</p> - -<p>"Oh! my dear boy, I have been very ill; nearly dead."</p> - -<p>"How was that, uncle?"</p> - -<p>"I don't know; it was most surprising. But what is stranger still, -is that the Jesuit priest who has just left—you know, that excellent -man whom I have made such fun of—had a divine revelation of my -state, and came to see me."</p> - -<p>I was seized with an almost uncontrollable desire to laugh, and with -difficulty said: "Oh, really!"</p> - -<p>"Yes, he came. He heard a Voice telling him to get up and come to me, -because I was going to die. It was a revelation."</p> - -<p>I pretended to sneeze, so as not to burst out laughing; I felt inclined -to roll on the ground with amusement.</p> - -<p>In about a minute I managed to say, indignantly: "And you received him, -uncle, you? You, a freethinker, a freemason? You did not have him thrown -out?"</p> - -<p>He seemed confused, and stammered:</p> - -<p>"Listen a moment, it is so astonishing—so astonishing and -providential! He also spoke to me about my father; he knew him -formerly."</p> - -<p>"Your father, uncle? But that is no reason for receiving a Jesuit."</p> - -<p>"I know that, but I was very ill, and he looked after me most devotedly -all night long. He was perfect; no doubt he saved my life; those men are -all more or less doctors."</p> - -<p>"Oh! he looked after you all night? But you said just now that he had -only been gone a very short time."</p> - -<p>"That is quite true; I kept him to breakfast after all his kindness. He -had it at a table by my bedside while I drank a cup of tea."</p> - -<p>"And he ate meat?"</p> - -<p>My uncle looked vexed, as if I had said something very much out of -place, and then added:</p> - -<p>"Don't joke, Gaston; such things are out of place at times. He has -shown me more devotion than many a relation would have done and I expect -you to respect his convictions."</p> - -<p>This rather upset me, but I answered, nevertheless: "Very well, uncle; -and what did you do after breakfast?"</p> - -<p>"We played a game of bezique, and then he repeated his breviary while -I read a little book which he happened to have in his pocket, and which -was not by any means badly written."</p> - -<p>"A religious book, uncle?"</p> - -<p>"Yes, and no, or rather—no. It is the history of their missions in -Central Africa, and is rather a book of travels and adventures. What these -men have done is very good."</p> - -<p>I began to feel that matters were going badly, so I got up. "Well, -good-bye, uncle," I said, "I see you are going to leave freemasonry for -religion; you are a renegade."</p> - -<p>He was still rather confused, and stammered:</p> - -<p>"Well, but religion is a sort of freemasonry."</p> - -<p>"When is your Jesuit coming back?" I asked.</p> - -<p>"I don't—I don't know exactly; to-morrow, perhaps; but it is not -certain."</p> - -<p>I went out, altogether overwhelmed.</p> - -<p>My joke turned out very badly for me! My uncle became radically -converted, and if that had been all I should not have cared so much. -Clerical or freemason, to me it is all the same; six of one and half a -dozen of the other; but the worst of it is that he has just made his -will—yes, made his will—and has disinherited me in favor of -that holy Jesuit!</p> - - - - -<hr class="r5" /> - - - - -<h4><a id="THE_ACCURSED_BREAD"></a>THE ACCURSED BREAD</h4> - - - - -<h5>I</h5> - - -<p>Old Taille had three daughters: Anna, the eldest, who was scarcely ever -mentioned in the family; Rose, the second girl, who was eighteen; and -Clara, the youngest, who was a girl of fifteen.</p> - -<p>Old Taille was a widower, and a foreman in M. Lebrument's -button-factory. He was a very upright man, very well thought of, -abstemious; in fact a sort of model workman. He lived at Havre, in the -Rue d'Angoulême.</p> - -<p>When Anna ran away the old man flew into a fearful rage. He threatened -to kill the seducer, who was head of a department in a large draper's -establishment in that town. Then when he was told by various people that -she was keeping very steady and investing money in government securities, -that she was no gadabout, but was kept by a Monsieur Dubois, who was a -judge of the Tribunal of Commerce, the father was appeased.</p> - -<p>He even showed some anxiety as to how she was faring, asked some of her -old friends who had been to see her how she was getting on; and when told -that she had her own furniture, and that her mantlepiece was covered with -vases and the walls with pictures, that there were clocks and carpets -everywhere, he gave a broad, contented smile. He had been working for -thirty years to get together a wretched five or six thousand francs. His -little girl was evidently no fool.</p> - -<p>One fine morning the son of Touchard, the cooper at the other end of -the street, came and asked him for the hand of Rose, the second girl. The -old man's heart began to beat, for the Touchards were rich and in a good -position. He was decidedly lucky with his girls.</p> - -<p>The marriage was agreed upon. It was settled that it should be a grand -affair, and the wedding dinner was to be held at Sainte-Adresse, at Mother -Gusa's restaurant. It would cost a lot certainly; but never mind, it did -not matter just for once in a way.</p> - -<p>But one morning, just as the old man was going home to breakfast with -his two daughters, the door opened suddenly and Anna appeared. She was -loudly dressed, wore rings and a very dressy hat. She looked undeniably -pretty and nice. She threw her arms round her father's neck before he -could say a word, then fell into her sisters' arms with many tears, and -then asked for a plate, so that she might share the family soup. Old -Taille was moved to tears in his turn and said several times:</p> - -<p>"That is right, dear; that is right."</p> - -<p>Then she told them about herself. She did not wish Rose's wedding to -take place at Sainte-Adresse,—certainly not. It should take place at -her house, and would cost her father nothing. She had settled everything -and arranged everything, so it was "no good to say any more about -it,—there!"</p> - -<p>"Very well, my dear! very well!" the old man said, "we will leave it -so." But then he felt some doubt. Would the Touchards consent? But Rose, -the bride-elect, was surprised, and asked, "Why should they object, I -should like to know? Just leave that to me, I will talk to Philip about -it."</p> - -<p>She mentioned it to her intended the very same day, and he declared -that it would suit him exactly. Father and Mother Touchard were naturally -delighted at the idea of a good dinner which would cost them nothing and -said:</p> - -<p>"You may be quite sure that everything will be in first-rate style, as -M. Dubois is made of money."</p> - -<p>They asked to be allowed to bring a friend, Mme Florence, the cook on -the first floor, and Anna agreed to everything. The wedding was fixed for -the last Tuesday of the month.</p> - - - - -<h5>II</h5> - - -<p>After the civil formalities and the religious ceremony the wedding -party went to Anna's house. Among those whom the Tailles had brought was a -cousin of a certain age, a M. Sauvetanin, a man given to philosophical -reflections, serious, and always very self-possessed, and Mme Lamondois, -an old aunt.</p> - -<p>M. Sauvetanin had been told off to give Anna his arm, as they were -looked upon as the two most important and most distinguished persons -in the company.</p> - -<p>As soon as they had arrived at the door of Anna's house she let go her -companion's arm, and ran on ahead, saying, "I will show you the way," -while the invited guests followed more slowly. When they got upstairs, -she stood on one side to let them pass, and they rolled their eyes and -turned their heads in all directions to admire this mysterious and -luxurious dwelling.</p> - -<p>The table was laid in the drawing-room as the dining-room had been -thought too small. Extra knives, forks, and spoons had been hired from a -neighbouring restaurant, and decanters full of wine glittered under the -rays of the sun, which shone in through the window.</p> - -<p>The ladies went into the bedroom to take off their shawls and bonnets, -and Old Touchard, who was standing at the door, squinted at the low, wide -bed, and made funny signs to the men, with many a wink and nod. Old -Taille, who thought a great deal of himself, looked with fatherly pride at -his child's well-furnished rooms, and went from one to the other holding -his hat in his-hand, making a mental inventory of everything, and walking -like a verger in a church.</p> - -<p>Anna went backward and forward, and ran about giving orders and hurrying -on the wedding feast. Soon she appeared at the door of the dining-room, -and cried: "Come here, all of you, for a moment," and when the twelve -guests did as they were asked they saw twelve glasses of Madeira on a -small table.</p> - -<p>Rose and her husband had their arms round each other's waists, and were -kissing each other in every corner. M. Sauvetanin never took his eyes -off Anna; he no doubt felt that ardour, that sort of expectation which -all men, even if they are old and ugly, feel for women of easy virtue, as -if their trade, their professional duty compelled them to give a little -of themselves to every male.</p> - -<p>They sat down, and the wedding breakfast began; the relatives sitting -at one end of the table and the young people at the other. Mme Touchard, -the mother, presided on the right and the bride on the left. Anna looked -after everybody, saw that the glasses were kept filled and the plates well -supplied. The guests evidently felt a certain respectful embarrassment -at the sight of the sumptuousness of the rooms and at the lavish manner in -which they were treated. They all ate heartily of the good things -provided, but there were no jokes such as are prevalent at weddings of -that sort; it was all too grand, and it made them feel uncomfortable. -Old Mme Touchard, who was fond of a bit of fun, tried to enliven matters -a little, and at the beginning of the dessert she exclaimed: "I say, -Philip, do sing us something." The neighbours in their street considered -that he had the finest voice in all Havre.</p> - -<p>The bridegroom got up, smiled, and turning to his sister-in-law, from -politeness and gallantry, tried to think of something suitable for the -occasion, something serious and correct, to harmonize with the seriousness -of the repast.</p> - -<p>Anna had a satisfied look on her face, and leaned back in her chair to -listen, and all assumed looks of attention, though prepared to smile -should smiles be called for.</p> - -<p>The singer announced, "The Accursed Bread," and extending his right -arm, which made his coat ruck up into his neck, he began.</p> - - -<p><span style="margin-left: 1em;">Il est un pain béni qu'à la terre économe</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Il nous faut arracher d'un bras victorieux.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">C'est le pain du travail, celui que l'honnête homme.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Le soir, à ses enfants, apporte tout joyeux.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Mais il en est un autre, à mine tentatrice,</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Pain maudit que l'enfer pour nous damner sema, (<i>bis</i>)</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Enfant, n'y touchez pas car c'est le pain du vice!</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Chers enfants, gardez vous de toucher ce pain-là. (<i>bis</i>)</span></p> - - -<p>They all applauded frantically. Old Touchard declared the sentiments -excellent. The cook, who was one of the guests, twisted in her hands a -crust at which she gazed tenderly. M. Sauvetanin murmured, "Bravo!" Aunt -Lamondois had already begun to wipe away her tears with her napkin.</p> - -<p>The bridegroom announced: "Second verse," and launched forth with -renewed vigour:</p> - - -<p><span style="margin-left: 1em;">Respect au malheureux qui, tout brisé par l'âge.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Nous implore en passant sur le bord du chemin.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Mais flétrissons celui qui, désertant l'ouvrage.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Alerte et bien portant, ose tendre la main.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Mendier sans besoin, c'est voler la vieillesse.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">C'est voler l'ouvrier que le travail courba, (<i>bis</i>)</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Honte à celui qui vit du pain de la paresse.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Chers enfants, gardez-vous de toucher ce pain-là. (<i>bis</i>)</span></p> - - -<p>They all yelled the refrain in chorus, even the two servants who -were standing against the wall. The falsetto, piercing voices of the -women put the deeper voices of the men out of tune.</p> - -<p>The aunt and the bride wept outright. Old Taille blew his nose with -the noise of a trombone, and old Touchard madly brandished a whole loaf -over the centre of the table. The friendly cook dropped a few silent tears -on the crust with which she was still fumbling.</p> - -<p>Amid the general emotion M. Sauvetanin said:</p> - -<p>"That is the right sort of song; very different from the usual -smut."</p> - -<p>Anna, who was visibly affected, kissed her hand to her sister and -pointed to her husband with an affectionate nod, as if to congratulate -her.</p> - -<p>Intoxicated by his success, the young man continued:</p> - - -<p><span style="margin-left: 1em;">Dans ton simple réduit, ouvrière gentille.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Tu sembles écouter la voix du tentateur.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Pauvre enfant, va, crois-moi, ne quitte pas l'aiguille.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Tes parents n'ont que toi, toi seule es leur bonheur.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Dans un luxe honteux trouveras-tu des charmes.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Lorsque, te maudissant, ton père expirera, (<i>bis</i>)</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Le pain du déshonneur se pétrit dans les larmes</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Chers enfants, gardez-vous de toucher ce pain-là. (<i>bis</i>)</span></p> - - -<p>No one took up the refrain about this bread, supposed to be eaten -with tears, except old Touchard and the two servants. Anna had grown -deadly pale and cast down her eyes, while the bridegroom looked from one -to the other without understanding the reason for this sudden coldness, -and the cook hastily dropped the crust as if it were poisoned.</p> - -<p>M. Sauvetanin said solemnly, in order to save the situation: "That last -couplet is not at all necessary;" and Old Taille, who had got red up to -his ears, looked round the table fiercely.</p> - -<p>Then Anna, with her eyes swimming in tears, told the servants, in the -faltering voice of a woman trying to stifle her sobs, to bring the -champagne.</p> - -<p>All the guests were suddenly seized with exuberant joy, and their faces -became radiant again. Old Touchard, who had seen, felt, and understood -nothing of what was going on, was still brandishing his loaf, and singing -to himself, as he showed it to the guests:</p> - - -<p><span style="margin-left: 1em;">Chers enfants, gardez-vous de toucher ce pain-là.</span></p> - - -<p>The whole party, electrified by the sight of the bottles with their -silver foil, loudly took up the refrain:</p> - - -<p><span style="margin-left: 1em;">Chers enfants, gardez-vous de toucher ce pain-là.</span></p> - - - - -<hr class="r5" /> - - - - -<h4><a id="MADAME_LUNEAUS_CASE"></a>MADAME LUNEAU'S CASE</h4> - - -<p>The fat Justice of the Peace, with one eye closed and the other -half-open, is listening with evident displeasure to the plaintiffs. Once -in a while he gives a sort of grunt that foretells his opinion, and in a -thin voice resembling that of a child, he interrupts them to ask -questions. He has just rendered judgment in the case of Monsieur Joly -against Monsieur Petitpas, the contestants having come to court on account -of the boundary line of a field which had been accidentally displaced -by Monsieur Petitpas's farmhand, while the latter was plowing.</p> - -<p>Now he calls the case of Hippolyte Lacour, vestryman and ironmonger, -against Madame Céleste Cesarine Luneau, widow of Anthime Isidore -Luneau.</p> - -<p>Hippolyte Lacour is forty-five years old; he is tall and gaunt, with a -clean-shaven face like a priest, long hair, and he speaks in a slow, -singsong voice.</p> - -<p>Madame Luneau appears to be about forty years of age. She is built like -a prize-fighter, and her narrow and clinging dress is stretched tightly -over her portly form. Her enormous hips hold up her overflowing bosom in -front, while in the back they support the great rolls of flesh that cover -her shoulders. Her face, with strongly-cut features, rests on a short, fat -neck, and her strong voice is pitched at a key that makes the windows and -the eardrums of her auditors vibrate. She is about to become a mother and -her huge form protrudes like a mountain.</p> - -<p>The witnesses for the defense are waiting to be called.</p> - -<p>The judge begins: Hippolyte Lacour, state your complaint.</p> - -<p>The plaintiff speaks: Your Honour, it will be nine months on -Saint-Michael's day since the defendant came to me one evening, after I -had rung the Angelus, and began an explanation relating to her -barrenness.</p> - -<p>The Justice of the Peace: Kindly be more explicit.</p> - -<p>Hippolyte: Very well, your Honour. Well, she wanted to have a child -and desired my participation. I didn't raise any objection, and she -promised to give me one hundred francs. The thing was all cut and dried, -and now she refuses to acknowledge my claim, which I renew before your -Honour.</p> - -<p>The Justice: I don't understand in the least. You say that she wanted -a child! What kind of child? Did she wish to adopt one?</p> - -<p>Hippolyte: No, your Honour, she wanted a new one.</p> - -<p>The Justice: What do you mean by a new one?</p> - -<p>Hippolyte: I mean a newborn child, one that we were to beget as if we -were man and wife.</p> - -<p>The Justice: You astonish me. To what end did she make this abnormal -proposition?</p> - -<p>Hippolyte: Your Honour, at first I could not make out her reasons, and -was taken a little aback. But as I don't do anything without thoroughly -investigating beforehand, I called on her to explain matters to me, which -she did. You see, her husband, Anthime Isidore, whom you knew as well as -you know me, had died the week before, and his money reverted to his -family. This greatly displeased her on account of the loss it meant, so -she went to a lawyer who told her all about what might happen if a child -should be born to her after ten months. I mean by this that if she gave -birth to a child inside of the ten months following the death of Anthime -Isidore, her offspring would be considered legitimate and would entitle -her to the inheritance. She made up her mind at once to run the risk, and -came to me after church, as I have already had the honour of telling you, -seeing that I am the father of eight living children, the oldest of whom -is a grocer in Caen, department of Calvados, and legitimately married to -Victoire-Elisabeth Rabou—</p> - -<p>The Justice: These details are superfluous. Go back to the subject.</p> - -<p>Hippolyte: I am getting there, your Honour. So she said to me: "If you -succeed, I'll give you one hundred francs as soon as I get the doctor's -report." Well, your Honour, I made ready to give entire satisfaction, and -after eight weeks or so I learned with pleasure that I had succeeded. But -when I asked her for the hundred francs she refused to pay me. I renewed -my demands several times, never getting so much as a pin. She even called -me a liar and a weakling, a libel which can be destroyed by glancing at -her.</p> - -<p>The Justice: Defendant, what have you to say?</p> - -<p>Madame Luneau: Your Honour, I say that this man is a liar.</p> - -<p>The Justice: How can you prove this assertion?</p> - -<p>Madame Luneau (red in the face, choking and stammering): How can I -prove it? What proofs have I? I haven't a single real proof that the child -isn't his. But, your Honour, it isn't his, I swear it on the head of my -dead husband.</p> - -<p>The Justice: Well, whose is it, then?</p> - -<p>Madame Luneau (stammering with rage): How do I know? How do—do -I know? Everybody's I suppose. Here are my witnesses, your Honour, they're -all here, the six of them. Now make them testify, make them testify. -They'll tell—</p> - -<p>The Justice: Collect yourself, Madame Luneau, collect yourself and -reply calmly to my questions. What reasons have you to doubt that this man -is the father of the child you are carrying?</p> - -<p>Madame Luneau: What reasons? I have a hundred to one, a hundred? No, -two hundred, five hundred, ten thousand, a million and more reasons to -believe he isn't. After the proposal I made to him, with the promise of -one hundred francs, didn't I learn that he wasn't the father of his own -children, your Honour, not the father of one of 'em?</p> - -<p>Hippolyte (calmly): That's a lie.</p> - -<p>Madame Luneau (exasperated): A lie! A lie, is it? I think his wife has -been around with everybody around here. Call my witnesses, your Honour, -and make them testify?</p> - -<p>Hippolyte (calmly): It's a lie.</p> - -<p>Madame Luneau: It's a lie, is it? How about the red-haired ones, then? -I suppose they're yours, too?</p> - -<p>The Justice: Kindly refrain from personal attacks, or I shall be -obliged to call you to order.</p> - -<p>Madame Luneau: Well, your Honour, I had my doubts about him, and said -I to myself, two precautions are better than one, so I explained my -position to Césaire Lepic, the witness who is present. Says he to me, -"At your disposal, Madame Luneau," and he lent me his assistance in case -Hippolyte should turn out to be unreliable. But as soon as the other -witnesses heard that I wanted to make sure against any disappointment, I -could have had more than a hundred, your Honour, if I had wanted them. -That tall one over there, Lucas Chandelier, swore at the time that I -oughn't to give Hippolyte Lacour a cent, for he hadn't done more than the -rest of them who had obliged me for nothing.</p> - -<p>Hippolyte: What did you promise for? I expected the money, your Honour. -No mistake with me,—a promise given, a promise kept.</p> - -<p>Madame Luneau (beside herself): One hundred francs! One hundred francs! -One hundred francs for that, you liar! The others there didn't ask a red -cent! Look at 'em, all six of 'em! Make them testify, your Honour, they'll -tell you. (To Hippolyte.) Look at 'em, you liar! they're as good as you. -They're only six, but I could have had one, two, three, five hundred of -'em for nothing, too, you robber!</p> - -<p>Hippolyte: Well, even if you'd had a hundred thousand—</p> - -<p>Madame Luneau: I could, if I'd wanted them.</p> - -<p>Hippolyte: I did my duty, so it doesn't change our agreement.</p> - -<p>Madame Luneau (slapping her protuberant form with both hands): Then -prove that it's you that did it, prove it, you robber! I defy you to -prove it!</p> - -<p>Hippolyte (calmly): Maybe I didn't do any more than anybody else. But -you promised me a hundred francs for it. What did you ask the others for, -afterwards? You had no right to. I could have done it alone.</p> - -<p>Madame Luneau: It is not true, robber! Call my witnesses, your Honour; -they'll answer, for certain.</p> - -<p>The Justice calls the witnesses in behalf of the defense. Six -individuals appeared blushing, awkward looking, with their arms swinging -at their sides.</p> - -<p>The Justice: Lucas Chandelier, have you any reason to suppose that you -are the father of the child Madame Luneau is carrying.</p> - -<p>Lucas Chandelier: Yes, sir.</p> - -<p>The Justice: Célestin-Pierre Sidoine, have you any reason to suppose -that you are the father of the child Madame Luneau is carrying?</p> - -<p>Celestin-Pierre Sidoine: Yes, sir.</p> - -<p>The four other witnesses testified to the same effect.</p> - -<p>The Justice, after having thought for a while pronounced judgment: -Whereas the plaintiff has reasons to believe himself the father of the -child which Madame Luneau desired, Lucas Chandelier, Celestin-Pierre -Sidoine, and others, have similar, if not conclusive reasons to lay -claim to the child.</p> - -<p>But whereas Mme Luneau had previously asked the assistance of Hippolyte -Lacour for a duly stated consideration of one hundred francs:</p> - -<p>And whereas one may not question the absolute good faith of Hippolyte -Lacour, though it is questionable whether he had a perfect right to enter -into such an agreement, seeing that the plaintiff is married, and -compelled by the law to remain faithful to his lawful spouse: Whereas, -farther, etc., etc.</p> - -<p>Therefore the Court condemns Madame Luneau to pay an indemnity of -twenty-five francs to Hippolyte Lacour for loss of time and seduction.</p> - - - - -<hr class="r5" /> - - - - -<h4><a id="A_WISE_MAN"></a>A WISE MAN</h4> - - -<p>Blérot had been my friend since childhood; we had no secrets from each -other, and were united heart and soul by a brotherly intimacy and a -boundless confidence in each other. He used to tell me his most intimate -thoughts, even the smallest pangs of conscience that are very often -kept hidden from our own selves. I did the same for him. I had been the -confident of all his love affairs, as he had been with mine.</p> - -<p>When he told me that he was going to get married I was hurt, as though -by an act of treason. I felt that it must interfere with that cordial and -absolute affection which had united us. His wife would come between us. -The intimacy of the marriage-bed establishes a kind of complicity, a -mysterious alliance between two persons, even when they have ceased to -love each other. Man and wife are like two discreet partners who will not -let anyone else into their secrets. But that close bond which the conjugal -kiss fastens is broken quickly on the day on which the woman takes a -lover.</p> - -<p>I remember Blérot's wedding as if it were but yesterday. I would not be -present at the signing of the marriage contract, as I have no particular -liking for such ceremonies. I only went to the civil wedding and to the -church.</p> - -<p>His wife, whom I had never seen before, was a tall, slight girl, with -pale hair, pale cheeks, pale hands, and eyes to match. She walked with a -slightly undulating motion, as if she were on board a ship, and seemed to -advance with a succession of long, graceful courtesies.</p> - -<p>Blérot seemed very much in love with her. He looked at her constantly, -and I felt a shiver of an immoderate desire for her pass through his -frame.</p> - -<p>I went to see him a few days later, and he said to me:</p> - -<p>"You do not know how happy I am; I am madly in love with her; but then -she is—she is—" He did not finish his sentence, but he put the -tips of his fingers to his lips with a gesture which signified "divine! -delicious! perfect!" and a good deal more besides.</p> - -<p>I asked, laughing, "What! all that?"</p> - -<p>"Everything that you can imagine," was his answer.</p> - -<p>He introduced me to her. She was very pleasant, on easy terms with me, -as was natural, and begged me to look upon their house as my own. But I -felt that he, Blérot, did not belong to me any longer. Our intimacy was -cut off definitely, and we hardly found a word to say to each other.</p> - -<p>I soon took my leave, and shortly afterwards went to the East, -returning by way of Russia, Germany, Sweden, and Holland, after an -absence of eighteen months from Paris.</p> - -<p>The morning after my arrival, as I was walking along the boulevards -to feel the air of Paris once more, I saw a pale man with sunken cheeks -coming toward me, who was as much like Blérot as it was possible for an -emaciated tubercular man to resemble a strong, ruddy, rather stout man. I -looked at him in surprise, and asked myself: "Can it possibly be he?" But -he saw me, uttered a cry, and came toward me with outstretched arms. I -opened mine and we embraced in the middle of the boulevard.</p> - -<p>After we had gone up and down once or twice from the Rue Drouot to the -Vaudeville Theatre, just as we were taking leave of each other,—for -he already seemed quite done up with walking,—I said to him:</p> - -<p>"You don't look at all well. Are you ill?"</p> - -<p>"I do feel rather out of sorts," was all he said.</p> - -<p>He looked like a man who was going to die, and I felt a flood of -affection for my dear old friend, the only real one that I had ever had. -I squeezed his hands.</p> - -<p>"What is the matter with you? Are you in pain?"</p> - -<p>"A little tired; but it is nothing."</p> - -<p>"What does your doctor say?"</p> - -<p>"He calls it anæmia, and has ordered me to eat no white meat and to -take tincture of iron."</p> - -<p>A suspicion flashed across me.</p> - -<p>"Are you happy?" I asked him.</p> - -<p>"Yes, very happy; my wife is charming, and I love her more than -ever."</p> - -<p>But I noticed that he grew rather red and seemed embarrassed, as if he -was afraid of any further questions, so I took him by the arm and pushed -him into a café, which was nearly empty at that time of day. I forced him -to sit down, and looking him straight in the face, I said:</p> - -<p>"Look here, old fellow, just tell me the exact truth."</p> - -<p>"I have nothing to tell you," he stammered.</p> - -<p>"That is not true," I replied, firmly. "You are ill, mentally perhaps, -and you dare not reveal your secret to anyone. Something or other is doing -you harm, and I mean you to tell me what it is. Come, I am waiting for you -to begin."</p> - -<p>Again he got very red, stammered, and turning his head away, he -said:</p> - -<p>"It is very idiotic—but I—I am done for!"</p> - -<p>As he did not go on, I said:</p> - -<p>"Just tell me what it is."</p> - -<p>"Well, I have got a wife who is killing me, that is all," he said -abruptly, almost desperately as if he had uttered a torturing thought, -as yet unrealised.</p> - -<p>I did not understand at first. "Does she make you unhappy? She makes -you suffer, night and day? How? What is it?"</p> - -<p>"No," he replied in a low voice, as if he were confessing some crime; -"I love her too much, that is all."</p> - -<p>I was thunderstruck at this unexpected avowal, and then I felt inclined -to laugh, but at length I managed to reply:</p> - -<p>"But surely, at least so it seems to me, you might manage to—to -love her a little less."</p> - -<p>He had got very pale again, but finally he made up his mind to speak -to me openly, as he used to do formerly.</p> - -<p>"No," he said, "that is impossible; and I am dying from it, I know; it -is killing me, and I am really frightened. Some days, like to-day, I feel -inclined to leave her, to go away altogether, to start for the other end -of the world, so as to live for a long time; and then, when the evening -comes, I return home in spite of myself, but slowly, and feeling -uncomfortable. I go upstairs hesitatingly and ring, and when I go in I -see her there sitting in her arm-chair, and she says, 'How late you are,' -I kiss her, and we sit down to dinner. During the meal I think: 'I will go -directly it is over, and take the train for somewhere, no matter where'; -but when we get back to the drawing-room I am so tired that I have not the -courage to get up out of my chair, and so I remain, and then—and -then—I succumb again."</p> - -<p>I could not help smiling again. He saw it, and said: "You may laugh, but -I assure you it is very horrible."</p> - -<p>"Why don't you tell your wife?" I asked him. "Unless she be a regular -monster she would understand."</p> - -<p>He shrugged his shoulders. "It is all very well for you to talk. I -don't tell her because I know her nature. Have you ever heard it said of -certain women, 'She has just married a third time?' Well, and that makes -you laugh as you did just now, and yet it is true. What is to be done? It -is neither her fault nor mine. She is so, because nature has made her so; -I assure you, my dear old friend, she has the temperament of a Messalina. -She does not know it, but I do; so much the worse for me. She is charming, -gentle, tender, and thinks that our conjugal intercourse, which is wearing -me out and killing me, is natural and quite moderate. She seems like an -ignorant schoolgirl, and she really is ignorant, poor child.</p> - -<p>"Every day I form energetic resolutions, for you must understand that I -am dying. But one look of her eyes, one of those looks in which I can read -the ardent desire of her lips, is enough for me, and I succumb at once, -saying to myself: 'This is really the end; I will have no more of her -death-giving kisses,' and then, when I have yielded again, like I have -to-day, I go out and walk and walk, thinking of death, and saying to -myself that I am lost, that all is over.</p> - -<p>"I am mentally so ill that I went for a walk to Père Lachaise cemetery -yesterday. I looked at all the graves, standing in a row like dominoes, -and I thought to myself: 'I shall soon be there,' and then I returned -home, quite determined to pretend to be ill, and so escape, but I could -not.</p> - -<p>"Oh! You don't know what it is. Ask a smoker who is poisoning himself -with nicotine whether he can give up his delicious and deadly habit. -He will tell you that he has tried a hundred times without success, and -he will, perhaps, add: 'So much the worse, but I would rather die than go -without tobacco.' That is just the case with me. When once one is in the -clutches of such a passion or such a habit, one must give oneself up to -it entirely."</p> - -<p>He got up and held out his hand. I felt seized with a tumult of rage, -and with hatred for this woman, this careless, charming, terrible woman; -and as he was buttoning up his coat to go away I said to him, brutally -perhaps:</p> - -<p>"But, in God's name, why don't you let her have lovers rather than -kill yourself like that?"</p> - -<p>He shrugged his shoulders without replying, and went off.</p> - -<p>For six months I did not see him. Every morning I expected a letter of -invitation to his funeral, but I would not go to his house from a -complicated feeling of anger against him and of contempt for that woman; -for a thousand different reasons.</p> - -<p>One lovely spring morning I was walking in the Champs-Elysées. It was -one of those warm afternoons which make our eyes bright and stir in us a -tumultuous feeling of happiness from the mere sense of existence. Some one -tapped me on the shoulder, and turning round I saw my old friend, looking -well, stout, and rosy.</p> - -<p>He gave me both hands, beaming with pleasure, and exclaimed:</p> - -<p>"Here you are, you erratic individual!"</p> - -<p>I looked at him, utterly thunderstruck.</p> - -<p>"Well, on my word—yes. By Jove! I congratulate you; you have -indeed changed in the last six months!"</p> - -<p>He flushed scarlet, and said, with an embarrassed laugh:</p> - -<p>"One can but do one's best."</p> - -<p>I looked at him so obstinately that he evidently felt uncomfortable, -so I went on:</p> - -<p>"So—now—you are—completely cured?"</p> - -<p>He stammered, hastily:</p> - -<p>"Yes, perfectly, thank you." Then changing his tone, "How lucky that I -should have come across you, old fellow. I hope we shall see each other -often now."</p> - -<p>But I would not give up my idea; I wanted to know how matters really -stood, so I asked:</p> - -<p>"Don't you remember what you told me six months ago? I -suppose—I—eh—suppose you resist now?"</p> - -<p>"Please don't talk any more about it," he replied, uneasily; "forget -that I mentioned it to you; leave me alone. But, you know, I have no -intention of letting you go; you must come and dine at my house."</p> - -<p>A sudden fancy took me to see for myself how matters stood, so that I -might understand all about it, and I accepted. Two hours later he -introduced me to his home.</p> - -<p>His wife received me in a most charming manner, and she was, as a matter -of fact, a most attractive woman. She looked guileless, distinguished and -adorably naïve. Her long hands, her neck, and cheeks were beautifully -white and delicate, and marked her breeding, and her walk was undulating -and delightful, as if her leg gave slightly at each step.</p> - -<p>René gave her a brotherly kiss on the forehead and said:</p> - -<p>"Has not Lucien come yet?"</p> - -<p>"Not yet," she replied, in a clear, soft voice; "you know he is almost -always rather late."</p> - -<p>At that moment the bell rang, and a tall man was shown in. He was dark, -with a thick beard, and looked like a society Hercules. We were introduced -to each other; his name was Lucien Delabarre.</p> - -<p>René and he shook hands in a most friendly manner, and then we went to -dinner.</p> - -<p>It was a most enjoyable meal, without the least constraint. My old -friend spoke with me constantly, in the old familiar cordial manner, just -as he used to do. It was: "You know, old fellow!"—"I say, old -fellow!"—"Just listen a moment, old fellow!" Suddenly he -exclaimed:</p> - -<p>"You don't know how glad I am to see you again; it takes me back to old -times."</p> - -<p>I looked at his wife and the other man. Their attitude was perfectly -correct, though I fancied once or twice that they exchanged a rapid and -furtive look.</p> - -<p>As soon as dinner was over René turned to his wife, and said:</p> - -<p>"My dear, I have just met Pierre again, and I am going to carry him off -for a walk and a chat along the boulevards to remind us of old times. -You will excuse this bachelor spree. I am leaving Mr. Delabarre with -you."</p> - -<p>The young woman smiled, and said to me, as she shook hands with me:</p> - -<p>"Don't keep him too long."</p> - -<p>As we went along, arm-in-arm, I could not help saying to him, for I was -determined to know how matters stood:</p> - -<p>"What has happened? Do tell me!"</p> - -<p>He, however, interrupted me roughly, and answered like a man who has -been disturbed without any reason.</p> - -<p>"Just look here, old fellow; leave me alone with your questions."</p> - -<p>Then he added, half aloud, as if talking to himself:</p> - -<p>"After all, it would have been too stupid to have let oneself go to -perdition like that."</p> - -<p>I did not press him. We walked on quickly and began to talk. All of a -sudden he whispered in my ear:</p> - -<p>"I say, suppose we go and see the girls! Eh?"</p> - -<p>I could not help laughing heartily.</p> - -<p>"Just as you like; come along, old man."</p> - - - - -<hr class="r5" /> - - - - -<h4><a id="THE_UMBRELLA"></a>THE UMBRELLA</h4> - - -<p>Madame Oreille was a very economical woman; she thoroughly knew the -value of a half-penny, and possessed a whole store-house of strict -principles with regard to the multiplication of money, so that her servant -found the greatest difficulty in making what servants call their -"market-penny," while her husband had great difficulty in getting any -pocket-money at all. They were, however, very comfortably off, and had no -children. It really pained. Mme Oreille to see any money spent; it was -like tearing at her heartstrings when she had to take any of those silver -pieces out of her pocket; and whenever she had to spend anything, no -matter how necessary it was, she slept badly the next night.</p> - -<p>Oreille was continually saying to his wife:</p> - -<p>"You really might be more liberal, as we have no children and never -spend our income."</p> - -<p>"You don't know what may happen," she used to reply. "It is better to -have too much than too little."</p> - -<p>She was a little woman of about forty, very active, rather hasty, -wrinkled, very neat and tidy, and with a very short temper. Her husband -very often used to complain of all the privations she made him endure; -some of them were particularly painful to him, as they touched his -vanity.</p> - -<p>He was one of the upper clerks in the War Office, and only stayed there -in obedience to his wife's wish, so as to increase their income, which -they did not nearly spend.</p> - -<p>For two years he had always come to the office with the same old patched -umbrella, to the great amusement of his fellow-clerks. At last he got -tired of their jokes, and insisted upon his wife buying him a new one. -She bought one for eight francs and a-half, one of those cheap things -which big stores sell as an advertisement. When the others in the office -saw the article, which was being sold in Paris by the thousand, they began -their jokes again, and Oreille had a dreadful time of it with them. The -umbrella was no good. In three months it was done for and at the office -everybody laughed. They even made a song about it, which he heard from -morning till night all over the immense building.</p> - -<p>Oreille was very angry, and peremptorily told his wife to get him a new -one, a good silk one, for twenty francs, and to bring him the bill, so -that he might see that it was all right.</p> - -<p>She bought him one for eighteen francs, and said, getting red with anger -as she gave it to her husband:</p> - -<p>"This will last you for five years at least."</p> - -<p>Oreille felt quite triumphant, and obtained a small ovation at the -office with his new acquisition. When he went home in the evening, his -wife said to him, looking at the umbrella uneasily:</p> - -<p>"You should not leave it fastened up with the elastic; it will very -likely cut the silk. You must take care of it, for I shall not buy you -a new one in a hurry."</p> - -<p>She took it, unfastened it, and then remained dumfounded, with -astonishment and rage. In the middle of the silk there was a hole as big -as a six-penny-piece, as if made with the end of a cigar.</p> - -<p>"What is that?" she screamed.</p> - -<p>Her husband replied quietly, without looking at it:</p> - -<p>"What is it? What do you mean?"</p> - -<p>She was choking with rage and could hardly get out a word.</p> - -<p>"You—you—have burned—your umbrella! Why—you -must be—mad! Do you wish to ruin us outright?"</p> - -<p>He turned round hastily, turning pale.</p> - -<p>"What are you talking about?"</p> - -<p>"I say that you have burned your umbrella. Just look here—"</p> - -<p>And rushing at him, as if she were going to beat him, she violently -thrust the little circular burned hole under his nose.</p> - -<p>He was so utterly struck dumb at the sight of it that he could only -stammer out:</p> - -<p>"What—what is it? How should I know? I have done nothing, I will -swear. I don't know what is the matter with the umbrella."</p> - -<p>"You have been playing tricks with it at the office; you have been -playing the fool and opening it, to show it off!" she screamed.</p> - -<p>"I only opened it once, to let them see what a nice one it was, that -is all, I declare."</p> - -<p>But she shook with rage, and got up one of those conjugal scenes which -make a peaceable man dread the domestic hearth more than a battlefield -where bullets are raining.</p> - -<p>She mended it with a piece of silk cut out of the old umbrella, which -was of a different color, and the next day Oreille went off very humbly -with the mended article in his hand. He put it into a cupboard, and -thought no more of it than of some unpleasant recollection.</p> - -<p>But he had scarcely got home that evening when his wife took the -umbrella from him, opened it, and nearly had a fit when she saw what had -befallen it, for the disaster was now irreparable. It was covered with -small holes, which evidently, proceeded from burns, just as if some one -had emptied the ashes from a lighted pipe on to it. It was done for, -utterly, irreparably.</p> - -<p>She looked at it without a word, in too great a passion to be able to -say anything. He also, when he saw the damage, remained almost dumb, in a -state of frightened consternation.</p> - -<p>They looked at each other; then he looked on to the floor. The next -moment she threw the useless article at his head, screaming out in a -transport of the most violent rage, for she had now recovered her -voice:</p> - -<p>"Oh! you brute! you brute! You did it on purpose, but I will pay you -out for it. You shall not have another."</p> - -<p>And then the scene began again. After the storm had raged for an hour, -he, at last, was able to explain himself. He declared that he could not -understand it at all, and that it could only proceed from malice or from -vengeance.</p> - -<p>A ring at the bell saved him; it was a friend whom they were expecting -to dinner.</p> - -<p>Mme Oreille submitted the case to him. As for buying a new umbrella, -that was out of the question; her husband should not have another. The -friend very sensibly said that in that case his clothes would be spoiled, -and they were certainly worth more than the umbrella. But the little -woman, who was still in a rage, replied:</p> - -<p>"Very well, then, when it rains he may have the kitchen umbrella, for I -will not give him a new silk one."</p> - -<p>Oreille utterly rebelled at such an idea.</p> - -<p>"All right," he said; "then I shall resign my post. I am not going to -the office with the kitchen umbrella."</p> - -<p>The friend interposed:</p> - -<p>"Have this one re-covered; it will not cost much."</p> - -<p>But Mme Oreille, being in the temper that she was, said:</p> - -<p>"It will cost at least eight francs to re-cover it. Eight and eighteen -are twenty-six. Just fancy, twenty-six francs for an umbrella! It is utter -madness!"</p> - -<p>The friend, who was only a poor man of the middle classes, had an -inspiration:</p> - -<p>"Make your fire insurance pay for it. The companies pay for all articles -that are burned, as long as the damage has been done in your own -house."</p> - -<p>On hearing this advice the little woman calmed down immediately, and -then, after a moment's reflection, she said to her husband:</p> - -<p>"To-morrow, before going to your office, you will go to the Maternelle -Insurance Company, show them the state your umbrella is in, and make them -pay for the damage."</p> - -<p>M. Oreille fairly jumped, he was so startled at the proposal.</p> - -<p>"I would not do it for my life! It is eighteen francs lost, that is -all. It will not ruin us."</p> - -<p>The next morning he took a walking-stick when he went out, for, luckily, -it was a fine day.</p> - -<p>Left at home alone, Mme Oreille could not get over the loss of her -eighteen francs by any means. She had put the umbrella on the dining-room -table, and she looked at it without being able to come to any -determination.</p> - -<p>Every moment she thought of the insurance company, but she did not dare -to encounter the quizzical looks of the gentlemen who might receive her, -for she was very, timid before people, and grew red at a mere nothing, -feeling embarrassed when she had to speak to strangers.</p> - -<p>But regret at the loss of the eighteen francs pained her as if she had -been wounded. She tried not to think of it any more, and yet every moment -the recollection of the loss struck her painfully. What was she to do, -however? Time went on, and she could not decide; but suddenly, like all -cowards, she made up her mind.</p> - -<p>"I will go, and we will see what will happen."</p> - -<p>But first of all she was obliged to prepare the umbrella so that the -disaster might be complete, and the reason of it quite evident. She took a -match from the mantelpiece, and between the ribs she burned a hole as big -as the palm of her hand. Then she rolled it up carefully, fastened it with -the elastic band, put on her bonnet and shawl, and went quickly toward the -Rue de Rivoli, where the insurance office was.</p> - -<p>But the nearer she got the slower she walked. What was she going to say, -and what reply would she get?</p> - -<p>She looked at the numbers of the houses; there were still twenty-eight. -That was all right, she had time to consider, and she walked slower and -slower. Suddenly she saw a door on which was a large brass plate with "La -Maternelle Fire Insurance Office" engraved on it. Already! She waited for -a moment, for she felt nervous and almost ashamed; then she went past, -came back, went past again, and came back again.</p> - -<p>At last she said to herself:</p> - -<p>"I must go in, however, so I may as well do it now as later."</p> - -<p>She could not help noticing, however, how her heart beat as she entered. -She went into an enormous room with grated wicket openings all round, -and a man behind each of them, and as a gentleman, carrying a number of -papers, passed her, she stopped him and said, timidly:</p> - -<p>"I beg your pardon, Monsieur, but can you tell me where I must apply -for payment for anything that has been accidentally burned?"</p> - -<p>He replied in a sonorous voice:</p> - -<p>"The first door on the left; that is the department you want."</p> - -<p>This frightened her still more, and she felt inclined to run away, to -make no claim, to sacrifice her eighteen francs. But the idea of that sum -revived her courage, and she went upstairs, out of breath, stopping at -almost every other step.</p> - -<p>She knocked at a door which she saw on the first landing, and a clear -voice said, in answer:</p> - -<p>"Come in!"</p> - -<p>She obeyed mechanically, and found herself in a large room where three -solemn gentlemen, each with a decoration in his buttonhole, were standing -talking.</p> - -<p>One of them asked her: "What do you want, Madame?"</p> - -<p>She could hardly get out her words, but stammered: "I have come—I -have come on account of an accident, something—"</p> - -<p>He very politely pointed out a seat to her.</p> - -<p>"If you will kindly sit down I will attend to you in a moment."</p> - -<p>And, returning to the other two, he went on with the conversation.</p> - -<p>"The company, gentlemen, does not consider that it is under any -obligation to you for more than four hundred thousand francs, and we can -pay no attention to your claim to the further sum of a hundred thousand, -which you wish to make us pay. Besides that, the surveyor's -valuation—"</p> - -<p>One of the others interrupted him:</p> - -<p>"That is quite enough, Monsieur; the law-courts will decide between us, -and we have nothing further to do than to take our leave." And they went -out after mutual ceremonious bows.</p> - -<p>Oh! if she could only have gone away with them, how gladly she would -have done it; she would have run away and given up everything. But it was -too late, for the gentleman came back, and said, bowing:</p> - -<p>"What can I do for you, Madame?"</p> - -<p>She could scarcely speak, but at last she managed to say:</p> - -<p>"I have come—for this."</p> - -<p>The manager looked at the object which she held out to him in mute -astonishment. With trembling fingers she tried to undo the elastic, and -succeeded, after several attempts, and hastily opened the damaged -remains of the umbrella.</p> - -<p>"It looks to me to be in a very bad state of health," he said, -compassionately.</p> - -<p>"It cost me twenty francs," she said, with some hesitation.</p> - -<p>He seemed astonished. "Really! As much as that?"</p> - -<p>"Yes, it was a capital article, and I wanted you to see the state it -is in."</p> - -<p>"Very well, I see; very well. But I really do not understand what it -can have to do with me."</p> - -<p>She began to feel uncomfortable; perhaps this company did not pay for -such small articles, and she said:</p> - -<p>"But—it is burned."</p> - -<p>He could not deny it.</p> - -<p>"I see that very well," he replied.</p> - -<p>She remained open-mouthed, not knowing what to say next; then suddenly -forgetting that she had left out the main thing, she said hastily:</p> - -<p>"I am Mme Oreille; we are assured in La Maternelle, and I have come to -claim the value of this damage. I only want you to have it re-covered," -she added quickly, fearing a positive refusal.</p> - -<p>The manager was rather embarrassed, and said:</p> - -<p>"But, really, Madame, we do not sell umbrellas; we cannot undertake -such kinds of repairs."</p> - -<p>The little woman felt her courage reviving; she was not going to give -up without a struggle; she was not even afraid now, so she said:</p> - -<p>"I only want you to pay me the cost of repairing it; I can quite well -get it done myself."</p> - -<p>The gentleman seemed rather confused.</p> - -<p>"Really, Madame, it is such a very small matter! We are never asked -to give compensation for such trivial losses. You must allow that we -cannot make good pocket-handkerchiefs, gloves, brooms, slippers, all the -small articles which are every day exposed to the chances of being -burned."</p> - -<p>She got red, and felt inclined to fly into a rage.</p> - -<p>"But Monsieur, last December one of our chimneys caught fire, and -caused at least five hundred francs' damage. M. Oreille made no claim on -the company, and so it is only just that it should pay for my umbrella -now."</p> - -<p>The manager, guessing that she was telling a lie, said, with a -smile:</p> - -<p>"You must acknowledge, Madame, that it is very surprising that M. -Oreille should have asked no compensation for damages amounting to five -hundred francs, and should now claim five or six francs for mending an -umbrella."</p> - -<p>She was not the least put out, and replied:</p> - -<p>"I beg your pardon, Monsieur, the five hundred francs affected M. -Oreille's pocket, whereas this damage, amounting to eighteen francs, -concerns Mme Oreille's pocket only, which is a totally different -matter."</p> - -<p>As he saw that he had no chance of getting rid of her, and that he -would only be wasting his time, he said, resignedly:</p> - -<p>"Will you kindly tell me how the damage was done?"</p> - -<p>She felt that she had won the victory, and said:</p> - -<p>"This is how it happened. Monsieur: In our hall there is a bronze -stick and umbrella-stand, and the other day, when I came in, I put my -umbrella into it. I must tell you that just above there is a shelf for the -candlesticks and matches. I put out my hand, took three or four matches, -and struck one, but it missed fire, so I struck another, which ignited, -but went out immediately, and a third did the same."</p> - -<p>The manager interrupted her, to make a joke.</p> - -<p>"I suppose they were Government matches, then?"</p> - -<p>She did not understand him, and went on:</p> - -<p>"Very likely. At any rate, the fourth caught fire, and I lit my candle, -and went into my room to go to bed; but in a quarter-of-an-hour I fancied -that I smelled something burning, and I have always been terribly afraid -of fire. If ever we have an accident it will not be my fault, I assure -you. I am terribly nervous since our chimney was on fire, as I told you; -so I got up, and hunted about everywhere, sniffing like a dog after game, -and at last I noticed that my umbrella was burning. Most likely a match -had fallen between the folds and burned it. You can see how it has damaged -it."</p> - -<p>The manager had taken his clue, and asked her:</p> - -<p>"What do you estimate the damage at?"</p> - -<p>She did not know what to say, as she was not certain what amount to put -on it, but at last she replied:</p> - -<p>"Perhaps you had better get it done yourself. I will leave it to -you."</p> - -<p>He, however, naturally refused.</p> - -<p>"No, Madame, I cannot do that. Tell me the amount of your claim, that -is all I want to know."</p> - -<p>"Well!—I think that—Look here. Monsieur, I do not want to -make any money out of you, so I will tell you what we will do. I will take -my umbrella to the maker, who will re-cover it in good, durable silk, and -I will bring the bill to you. Will that suit you, Monsieur?"</p> - -<p>"Perfectly, Madame; we will settle it on that basis. Here is a note -for the cashier, who will repay you whatever it costs you."</p> - -<p>He gave Mme Oreille a slip of paper. She took it, got up, and went out, -thanking him, for she was in a hurry to escape lest he should change his -mind.</p> - -<p>She went briskly through the streets, looking out for a really good -umbrella-maker, and when she found a shop which appeared to be a -first-class one, she went in, and said, confidently:</p> - -<p>"I want this umbrella re-covered in silk, good silk. Use the very best -and strongest you have; I don't mind what it costs."</p> - - - - -<hr class="r5" /> - - - - -<h4><a id="A_MEETING"></a>A MEETING</h4> - - -<p>It was all an accident, a pure accident. Tired of standing, Baron -d'Étraille went—as all the Princess's rooms were open on that -particular evening—into an empty bedroom, which appeared almost -dark after coming-out of the brilliantly-lighted drawing-rooms.</p> - -<p>He looked round for a chair in which to doze, as he was sure his wife -would not go away before daylight. As soon as he got inside the door he -saw the big bed with its azure-and-gold hangings, in the middle of the -great room, looking like a catafalque in which love was buried, for the -Princess was no longer young. Behind it, a large bright spot looked like a -lake seen at a distance from a window. It was a big looking-glass, -discreetly covered with dark draperies that were sometimes let down, and -often opened up, and it seemed to look at the bed, which was its -accomplice. One might almost fancy that it felt regrets, and that one was -going to see in it the charming shapes of the thighs of women and the -gentle movement of arms about to embrace them.</p> - -<p>The Baron stood still for a moment, smiling and rather moved, on the -threshold of this chamber dedicated to love. But suddenly something -appeared in the looking-glass, as if the phantoms which he had evoked had -come up before him. A man and a woman who had been sitting on a low couch -hidden in the shade had risen, and the polished surface, reflecting their -figures, showed that they were kissing each other before separating.</p> - -<p>The Baron recognised his wife and the Marquis de Cervigné. He turned and -went away like a man fully master of himself, and waited till it was day -before taking away the Baronne. But he had no longer any thoughts of -sleeping.</p> - -<p>As soon as they were alone, he said:</p> - -<p>"Madame, I saw you just now in the Princess de Raynes's room. I need -say no more, for I am not fond either of reproaches, acts of violence, or -of ridicule. As I wish to avoid all such things, we shall separate without -any scandal. Our lawyers will settle your position according to my orders. -You will be free to live as you please when you are no longer under my -roof; but, as you will continue to bear my name, I must warn you that -should any scandal arise, I shall show myself inflexible."</p> - -<p>She tried to speak, but he stopped her, bowed, and left the room.</p> - -<p>He was more astonished and sad than unhappy. He had loved her dearly -during the first period of their married life; but his ardour had cooled, -and now he often had a caprice, either in a theatre or in society, though -he always preserved a certain liking for the Baronne.</p> - -<p>She was very young, hardly four-and-twenty, small, thin,—too -thin,—and very fair. She was a true Parisian doll: clever, spoiled, -elegant, coquettish, witty, with more charm than real beauty. He used to -say familiarly to his brother, when speaking of her:</p> - -<p>"My wife is charming, attractive, but—there is nothing to lay -hold of. She is like a glass of champagne that is all froth—when you -have got to the wine it is very good, but there is too little of it, -unfortunately."</p> - -<p>He walked up and down the room in great agitation, thinking of a -thousand things. At one moment he felt in a great rage, and felt inclined -to give the Marquis a good thrashing, to horsewhip him publicly, in the -club. But he thought that would not do, it would not be the thing; -<i>be</i> would be laughed at, and not the other, and he felt that his -anger proceeded more from wounded vanity than from a broken heart. So he -went to bed, but could not get to sleep.</p> - -<p>A few days afterward it was known in Paris that the Baron and Baronne -d'Étraille had agreed to an amicable separation on account of -incompatibility of temper. Nobody suspected anything, nobody laughed, and -nobody was astonished.</p> - -<p>The Baron, however, to avoid meeting her, travelled for a year; then he -spent the summer at the seaside, and the autumn in shooting, returning to -Paris for the winter. He did not meet his wife once.</p> - -<p>He did not even know what people said about her. At any rate, she took -care to save appearances, and that was all he asked for.</p> - -<p>He got dreadfully bored, travelled again, restored his old castle of -Villebosc—which took him two years; then for over a year he received -relays of friends there, till at last, tired of all these commonplace, -so-called pleasures, he returned to his mansion in the Rue de Lilles, -just six years after their separation.</p> - -<p>He was then forty-five, with a good crop of gray hair, rather stout, -and with that melancholy look of people who have been handsome, sought -after, much liked, and are deteriorating daily.</p> - -<p>A month after his return to Paris he took cold on coming out of his -club, and had a bad cough, so his doctor ordered him to Nice for the rest -of the winter.</p> - -<p>He started by the express on Monday evening. He was late, got to the -station only a very short time before the departure of the train, and had -barely time to get into a carriage, with only one other occupant, who was -sitting in a corner so wrapped in furs and cloaks that he could not even -make out whether it were a man or a woman, as nothing of the figure could -be seen. When he perceived that he could not find out, he put on his -travelling-cap, rolled himself up in his rugs, and stretched himself out -comfortably to sleep.</p> - -<p>He did not wake up till the day was breaking, and looked immediately at -his fellow-traveller. He had not stirred all night, and seemed still to be -sound asleep.</p> - -<p>M. d'Étraille made use of the opportunity to brush his hair and his -beard, and to try and freshen himself up a little generally, for a night's -travelling changes one's looks very much when one has attained a certain -age.</p> - -<p>A great poet has said:</p> - - -<p><span style="margin-left: 1em;">Quand on est jeune, on a des matins triomphants!</span></p> - - -<p>Then we wake up with a cool skin, a bright eye, and glossy hair. When -one grows older one wakes up in a very different state. Dull eyes, red, -swollen cheeks, dry lips, the hair and beard all disarranged, impart an -old, fatigued, worn-out look to the face.</p> - -<p>The Baron opened his travelling dressing-case, made himself as tidy as -he could, and then waited.</p> - -<p>The engine whistled and the train stopped, and his neighbour moved. No -doubt he was awake. They started off again, and then an oblique ray of -the sun shone into the carriage just on to the sleeper, who moved again, -shook himself, and then calmly showed his face.</p> - -<p>It was a young, fair, pretty, stout woman, and the Baron looked at her -in amazement. He did not know what to believe. He could really have sworn -that it was his wife—but wonderfully changed for the better: -stouter—why, she had grown as stout as he was—only it suited -her much better than it did him.</p> - -<p>She looked at him quietly, did not seem to recognise him, and then -slowly laid aside her wraps. She had that calm assurance of a woman who -is sure of herself, the insolent audacity of a first awaking, knowing and -feeling that she was in her full beauty and freshness.</p> - -<p>The Baron really lost his head. Was it his wife, or somebody else who -was as like her as any sister could be? As he had not seen her for six -years he might be mistaken.</p> - -<p>She yawned, and he knew her by the gesture. She turned and looked at -him again, calmly, indifferently, as if she scarcely saw him, and then -looked out at the country again.</p> - -<p>He was upset and dreadfully perplexed, and waited, looking at her -sideways, steadfastly.</p> - -<p>Yes; it was certainly his wife. How could he possibly have doubted? -There could certainly not be two noses like that, and a thousand -recollections flashed through him, slight details of her body, a -beauty-spot on one of her limbs and another on her back. How often he had -kissed them! He felt the old feeling of the intoxication of love stealing -over him, and he called to mind the sweet odour of her skin, her smile -when she put her arms on to his shoulders, the soft intonations of her -voice, all her graceful, coaxing ways.</p> - -<p>But how she had changed and improved! It was she and yet not she. He -thought her riper, more developed, more of a woman, more seductive, more -desirable, adorably desirable.</p> - -<p>And this strange, unknown woman, whom he had accidentally met in a -railway-carriage belonged to him; he had only to say to her:</p> - -<p>"I insist upon it."</p> - -<p>He had formerly slept in her arms, existed only in her love, and now -he had found her again certainly, but so changed that he scarcely knew -her. It was another, and yet she at the same time. It was another who had -been born, formed, and grown since he had left her. It was she, indeed; -she whom he had possessed but whom he found with her manners modified, her -features more formed, her smile less affected, her gestures surer. There -were two women in one, mingling a great deal of what was new and unknown -with many sweet recollections of the past. There was something -extraordinary, disturbing, exciting about it—a kind of mystery of -love in which there floated a delicious confusion. It was his wife in a -new body and in new flesh which his lips had never pressed.</p> - -<p>And he remembered that in six or seven years everything changes in us, -only outlines can be recognised, and sometimes even they disappear.</p> - -<p>The blood, the hair, the skin, all change, and are reconstituted, and -when people have not seen each other for a long time they find, when they -meet, another totally different being, although it be the same and bear -the same name.</p> - -<p>And the heart also can change. Ideas may be modified and renewed, -so that in forty years of life we may, by gradual and constant -transformations, become four or five totally new and different beings.</p> - -<p>He dwelt on this thought till it troubled him; it had first taken -possession of him when he surprised her in the Princess's room. He was -not the least angry; it was not the same woman that he was looking -at—that thin, excitable little doll of those days.</p> - -<p>What was he to do? How should he address her? and what could he say -to her? Had she recognised him?</p> - -<p>The train stopped again. He got up, bowed, and said: "Berthe, do you -want anything I can bring you?"</p> - -<p>She looked at him from head to foot, and answered, without showing the -slightest surprise or confusion or anger, but with the most perfect -indifference:</p> - -<p>"I do not want anything—thank you."</p> - -<p>He got out and walked up and down the platform a little in order to -think, and, as it were, to recover his senses after a fall. What should -he do now? If he got into another carriage it would look as if he were -running away. Should he be gallant? That would look as if he were asking -for forgiveness. Should he speak as if he were her master? He would -look like a cad, and besides, he really had no right to do so.</p> - -<p>He got in again and took his place.</p> - -<p>During his absence she had hastily arranged her dress and hair, and was -now lying stretched out on the seat, radiant, but without showing any -emotion.</p> - -<p>He turned to her, and said: "My dear Berthe, since this singular chance -has brought us together after a separation of six years—a quite -friendly separation—are we to continue to look upon each other as -irreconcilable enemies? We are shut up together, tête-à-tête, which is so -much the better or so much the worse. I am not going to get into another -carriage, so don't you think it is preferable to talk as friends till the -end of our journey?"</p> - -<p>She answered quite calmly again:</p> - -<p>"Just as you please."</p> - -<p>Then he suddenly stopped, really not knowing what to say; but as he had -plenty of assurance, he sat down on the middle seat, and said:</p> - -<p>"Well, I see I must court you; so much the better. It is, however, -really a pleasure, for you are charming. You cannot imagine how you have -improved in the last six years. I do not know any woman who could give me -that delightful sensation which I experienced just now when you emerged -from your wraps. I could really have thought such a change impossible."</p> - -<p>Without moving her head or looking at him, she said: "I cannot say the -same with regard to you; you have certainly deteriorated a great -deal."</p> - -<p>He got red and confused, and then, with a smile of resignation, he -said:</p> - -<p>"You are rather hard."</p> - -<p>"Why?" was her reply. "I am only stating facts. I don't suppose you -intend to offer me your love? It must, therefore, be a matter of perfect -indifference to you what I think about you. But I see it is a painful -subject, so let us talk of something else. What have you been doing since -I last saw you?"</p> - -<p>He felt rather out of countenance, and stammered:</p> - -<p>"I? I have travelled, hunted, and grown old, as you see. And you?"</p> - -<p>She said, quite calmly: "I have always kept up appearances, as you -ordered me."</p> - -<p>He was very nearly saying something brutal, but he checked himself, and -kissed his wife's hand:</p> - -<p>"And I thank you," he said.</p> - -<p>She was surprised. He was indeed strong and always master of -himself.</p> - -<p>He went on: "As you have acceded to my first request, shall we now talk -without any bitterness?"</p> - -<p>She made a little gesture of disdain.</p> - -<p>"Bitterness! I don't feel any; you are a complete stranger to me; I am -only trying to keep up a difficult conversation."</p> - -<p>He was still looking at her, carried away in spite of her harshness, -and he felt seized with a brutal desire, the desire of the master.</p> - -<p>Perceiving that she had hurt his feelings, she said:</p> - -<p>"How old are you now? I thought you were younger than you look."</p> - -<p>He grew rather pale:</p> - -<p>"I am forty-five;" and then he added: "I forgot to ask after Princess -de Raynes. Are you still intimate with her?"</p> - -<p>She looked at him as if she hated him:</p> - -<p>"Yes, certainly I am. She is very well, thank you."</p> - -<p>They remained sitting side by side, agitated and irritated. Suddenly -he said:</p> - -<p>"My dear Berthe, I have changed my mind. You are my wife, and I expect -you to come with me to-day. You have, I think, improved both morally -and physically, and I am going to take you back again. I am your husband -and it is my right to do so."</p> - -<p>She was quite taken aback, and looked at him, trying to divine his -thoughts; but his face was resolute and impenetrable.</p> - -<p>"I am very sorry," she said, "but I have made other engagements."</p> - -<p>"So much the worse for you," was his reply. "The law gives me the -power, and I mean to use it."</p> - -<p>They were getting to Marseilles, and the train whistled and slackened -speed. The Baronne got up, carefully rolled up her wraps, and then turning -to her husband, she said:</p> - -<p>"My dear Raymond, do not make a bad use of the tête-à-tête which I had -carefully prepared. I wished to take precautions, according to your -advice, so that I might have nothing to fear from you or from other -people, whatever might happen. You are going to Nice, are you not?"</p> - -<p>"I shall go wherever you go."</p> - -<p>"Not at all; just listen to me, and I am sure that you will leave me -in peace. In a few moments, when we get to the station, you will see the -Princess de Raynes and the Comtesse Henriot waiting for me with their -husbands. I wished them to see us, and to know that we had spent the night -together in the railway-carriage. Don't be alarmed; they will tell it -everywhere as a most surprising fact.</p> - -<p>"I told you just now that I had most carefully followed your advice -and saved appearances. Anything else does not matter, does it? Well, in -order to do so, I wished to be seen with you. You told me carefully to -avoid any scandal, and I am avoiding it, for, I am afraid—I am -afraid—"</p> - -<p>She waited till the train had quite stopped, and as her friends ran up -to open the carriage door, she said:</p> - -<p>"I am afraid that I am enceinte."</p> - -<p>The Princess stretched out her arms to embrace her, and the Baronne -said, pointing to the Baron, who was dumb with astonishment, and trying to -get at the truth:</p> - -<p>"You do not recognise Raymond? He has certainly changed a good deal, -and he agreed to come with me so that I might not travel alone. We take -little trips like this occasionally, like good friends who cannot live -together. We are going to separate here; he has had enough of me -already."</p> - -<p>She put out her hand, which he took mechanically, and then she jumped -out on to the platform among her friends, who were waiting for her.</p> - -<p>The Baron hastily shut the carriage door, for he was too much disturbed -to say a word or come to any determination. He heard his wife's voice, and -their merry laughter as they went away.</p> - -<p>He never saw her again, nor did he ever discover whether she had told -him a lie or was speaking the truth.</p> - - - - -<hr class="r5" /> - - - - -<h4><a id="DECORATED"></a>DECORATED!</h4> - - -<p>Some people are born with a predominant instinct, with some vocation or -some desire aroused, from the very moment they begin to speak or to -think.</p> - -<p>Ever since he was a child Monsieur Sacrement had only had one idea in -his head—to be decorated. When he was still quite a small boy he -used to wear a zinc Cross of the Legion of Honour just as other children -wear a soldier's cap, and he took his mother's hand in the street with a -proud look, sticking out his little chest with its red ribbon and metal -star so that it might show to advantage.</p> - -<p>His studies were not a success, and he failed in his examination for -Bachelor of Arts; so, not knowing what to do, he married a pretty girl, -for he had plenty of money of his own.</p> - -<p>They lived in Paris, like many rich middle-class people do, mixing with -their own particular set, without going among other people, proud of -knowing a Deputy, who might perhaps be a Minister some day, while two -heads of government departments were among their friends.</p> - -<p>But Monsieur Sacrement could not get rid of his one absorbing idea, and -he was very unhappy because he had not the right to wear a little bit of -coloured ribbon in his buttonhole.</p> - -<p>When he met any men who were decorated on the Boulevards, he looked at -them askance, with intense jealousy. Sometimes, when he had nothing -to do in the afternoon, he would count them, and say to himself: "Just let -me see how many I shall meet between the Madeleine and the Rue -Drouot."</p> - -<p>Then he would walk slowly, looking at every coat, with a practiced eye, -for the little bit of red ribbon, and when he had got to the end of his -walk he always said the numbers out loud. "Eight officers and seventeen -knights. As many as that! It is stupid to sow the Cross broadcast in that -fashion. I wonder how many I shall meet going back?"</p> - -<p>And he returned slowly, unhappy when the crowd of passers-by interfered -with his seeing them.</p> - -<p>He knew the places where most of them were to be found. They swarmed in -the Palais Royal. Fewer were seen in the Avenue de l'Opéra than in the Rue -de la Paix, while the right side of the Boulevard was more frequented by -them than the left.</p> - -<p>They also seemed to prefer certain cafés and theatres. Whenever he saw -a group of white-haired old gentlemen standing together in the middle of -the pavement, interfering with the traffic, he used to say to himself: -"They are officers of the Legion of Honour," and he felt inclined to take -off his hat to them.</p> - -<p>He had often remarked that the officers had a different bearing from -mere knights. They carried their heads higher, and you felt that they -enjoyed greater official consideration, and a more widely-extended -importance.</p> - -<p>Sometimes M. Sacrement would be seized with a furious hatred for -everyone who was decorated; he felt like a Socialist towards them. Then, -when he got home, excited at meeting so many Crosses,—just like a -poor hungry wretch is on passing some dainty provision-shop,—he used -to ask in a loud voice:</p> - -<p>"When shall we get rid of this wretched government?" And his wife would -be surprised, and ask:</p> - -<p>"What is the matter with you to-day?"</p> - -<p>"I am indignant," he would reply, "at the injustice I see going on -around us. Oh! the Communards were certainly right!"</p> - -<p>After dinner he would go out again and look at the shops where all the -decorations were sold, and examine all the emblems of various shapes and -colours. He would have liked to possess them all, and to have walked -gravely at the head of a procession with his opera-hat under his arm and -his breast covered with decorations, radiant as a star, amid a buzz of -admiring whispers and a hum of respect. But, alas! he had no right to -wear any decoration whatever.</p> - -<p>He used to say to himself: "It is really too difficult for any man to -obtain the Legion of Honour unless he is some public functionary. Suppose -I try to get appointed an officer of the Academy!"</p> - -<p>But he did not know how to set about it, and spoke to his wife on the -subject, who was stupefied.</p> - -<p>"Officer of the Academy! What have you done to deserve it?"</p> - -<p>He got angry. "I know what I am talking about; I only want to know how -to set about it. You are quite stupid at times."</p> - -<p>She smiled. "You are quite right; I don't understand anything about -it."</p> - -<p>An idea struck him: "Suppose you were to speak to M. Rosselin, the -Deputy, he might be able to advise me. You understand I cannot broach the -subject to him directly. It is rather difficult and delicate, but coming -from you it might seem quite natural."</p> - -<p>Mme Sacrement did what he asked her, and M. Rosselin promised to speak -to the Minister about it. Then Sacrement began to worry him, till the -Deputy told him he must make a formal application and put forward his -claims.</p> - -<p>"What were his claims?" he said. "He was not even a Bachelor of -Arts."</p> - -<p>However, he set to work and produced a pamphlet, with the title, "The -People's Right to Instruction," but he could not finish it for want of -ideas.</p> - -<p>He sought for easier subjects, and began several in succession. The -first was, "The Instruction of Children by Means of the Eye." He wanted -gratuitous theatres to be established in every poor quarter of Paris for -little children. Their parents were to take them there when they were -quite young, and, by means of a magic-lantern, all the notions of human -knowledge were to be imparted to them. There were to be regular courses. -The sight would educate the mind, while the pictures would remain -impressed on the brain, and thus science would, so to say, be made -visible. What could be more simple than to teach universal history, -natural history, geography, botany, zoölogy, anatomy, etc., etc., -thus?</p> - -<p>He had his ideas printed in tract form, and sent a copy to each Deputy, -ten to each Minister, fifty to the President of the Republic, ten to each -Parisian, and five to each provincial newspaper.</p> - -<p>Then he wrote on "Street Lending-Libraries." His idea was to have -little carts full of books drawn about the streets, like orange-carts are. -Every householder or lodger would have a right to ten volumes a month by -means of a half-penny subscription.</p> - -<p>"The people," M. Sacrement said, "will only disturb itself for the sake -of its pleasures, and since it will not go to instruction, instruction -must come to it," etc., etc.</p> - -<p>His essays attracted no attention, but he sent in his application, and -he got the usual formal official reply. He thought himself sure of -success, but nothing came of it.</p> - -<p>Then he made up his mind to apply personally. He begged for an -interview with the Minister of Public Instruction, and he was received -by a young subordinate, already very grave and important, who kept -touching the buttons of electric-bells to summon ushers, and footmen, and -officials inferior to himself. He declared to the applicant that his case -was going on quite favourably, and advised him to continue his remarkable -labours. So M. Sacrement set at it again.</p> - -<p>M. Rosselin, the Deputy, seemed now to take a great interest in his -success, and gave him a lot of excellent, practical advice. Rosselin was -decorated, although nobody knew exactly what he had done to deserve such -a distinction.</p> - -<p>He told Sacrement what new studies he ought to undertake; he introduced -him to learned Societies which took up particularly obscure points of -science, in the hope of gaining credit and honours thereby; and he even -took him under his wing at the Ministry.</p> - -<p>One day, when he came to lunch with his friend (for several months past -he had constantly taken his meals there), he said to him in a whisper as -he shook hands: "I have just obtained a great favour for you. The -Committee on Historical Works is going to intrust you with a commission. -There are some researches to be made in various libraries in France."</p> - -<p>Sacrement was so delighted that he could scarcely eat or drink, and a -week later he set out. He went from town to town, studying catalogues, -rummaging in lofts full of dusty volumes, and was a bore to all the -librarians.</p> - -<p>One day, happening to be at Rouen, he thought he should like to embrace -his wife, whom he had not seen for more than a week, so he took the nine -o'clock train, which would land him at home by twelve at night.</p> - -<p>He had his latchkey, so he went in without making any noise, delighted -at the idea of the surprise he was going to give her. She had locked -herself in. How tiresome! However, he cried out through the door:</p> - -<p>"Jeanne, it is I."</p> - -<p>She must have been very frightened, for he heard her jump out of bed -and speak to herself, as if she were in a dream. Then she went to her -dressing-room, opened and closed the door, and went quickly up and down -her room barefoot two or three times, shaking the furniture till the vases -and glasses sounded. Then at last she asked:</p> - -<p>"Is it you, Alexander?"</p> - -<p>"Yes, yes," he replied; "make haste and open the door."</p> - -<p>As soon as she had done so she threw herself into his arms, -exclaiming:</p> - -<p>"Oh! what a fright! What a surprise! What a pleasure!"</p> - -<p>He began to undress himself methodically, as he did everything, and -from a chair he took his overcoat, which he was in the habit of hanging -up in the hall. But, suddenly, he remained motionless, struck dumb with -astonishment—there was a red ribbon in the buttonhole!</p> - -<p>"Why," he stammered, "this—this—this overcoat has got the -rosette in it!"</p> - -<p>In a second his wife threw herself on him, and, taking it from his -hands, she said:</p> - -<p>"No! you have made a mistake—give it to me."</p> - -<p>But he still held it by one of the sleeves, without letting it go, -repeating, in a half-dazed manner:</p> - -<p>"Oh! Why? Just explain. Whose overcoat is it? It is not mine, as it -has the Legion of Honour on it."</p> - -<p>She tried to take it from him, terrified, and hardly able to say:</p> - -<p>"Listen—listen—give it to me—I must not tell -you—it is a secret—listen to me."</p> - -<p>But he grew angry, and turned pale:</p> - -<p>"I want to know how this overcoat comes to be here? It does not belong -to me."</p> - -<p>Then she almost screamed at him:</p> - -<p>"Yes it does; listen—swear to me—well—you are -decorated."</p> - -<p>She did not intend to joke at his expense.</p> - -<p>He was so overcome that he let the overcoat fall, and dropped into -an armchair.</p> - -<p>"I am—you say I am—decorated?"</p> - -<p>"Yes, but it is a secret, a great secret."</p> - -<p>She had put the glorious garment into a cupboard, and came to her -husband pale and trembling.</p> - -<p>"Yes," she continued, "it is a new overcoat that I have had made for -you. But I swore that I would not tell you anything about it, as it will -not be officially announced for a month or six weeks, and you were not to -have known till your return from your business journey. M. Rosselin -managed it for you."</p> - -<p>"Rosselin!" he contrived to utter in his joy; "he has obtained the -decoration for me? He—Oh!"</p> - -<p>And he was obliged to drink a glass of water.</p> - -<p>A little piece of white paper had fallen to the floor out of the pocket -of the overcoat. Sacrement picked it up; it was a visiting-card, and he -read out:</p> - -<p>"Rosselin—Deputy."</p> - -<p>"You see how it is," said his wife.</p> - -<p>He wept with joy, and, a week later, it was announced in the "Journal -Officiel" that M. Sacrement had been awarded the Legion of Honour on -account of his exceptional services.</p> - - - - -<hr class="r5" /> - - - - -<h4><a id="CHALI"></a>CHÂLI</h4> - - -<p>Admiral de la Vallée, who seemed to be half asleep in his armchair, -said in a voice which sounded like an old woman's:</p> - -<p>"I had a very singular little love adventure once; would you like to -hear it?"</p> - -<p>He spoke from the depths of his great armchair, with that everlasting -dry, wrinkled smile on his lips, that Voltairian smile which made people -take him for a terrible sceptic.</p> - - - - -<h5>I</h5> - - -<p>"I was thirty years of age and a first lieutenant in the navy, when I -was intrusted with an astronomical expedition to Central India. The -English Government provided me with all the necessary means for carrying -out my enterprise, and I was soon busied with a few followers in that -vast, strange, surprising country.</p> - -<p>"It would take me twenty volumes to relate that journey. I went through -wonderfully magnificent regions, was received by strangely handsome -princes, and was entertained with incredible magnificence. For two months -it seemed to me as if I were walking in a poem, that I was going about in -a fairy kingdom, on the back of imaginary elephants. In the midst of wild -forests I discovered extraordinary ruins, delicate and chiseled like -jewels, fine as lace and enormous as mountains, those fabulous, divine -monuments which are so graceful that one falls in love with their form as -with a woman, feeling a physical and sensual pleasure in looking at them. -As Victor Hugo says, 'Whilst wide-awake, I was walking in a dream.'</p> - -<p>"Toward the end of my journey I reached Ganhara, which was formerly one -of the most prosperous towns in Central India, but is now much decayed. -It is governed by a wealthy, arbitrary, violent, generous, and cruel -prince. His name is Rajah Maddan, a true Oriental potentate, delicate and -barbarous, affable and sanguinary, combining feminine grace with pitiless -ferocity.</p> - -<p>"The city lies at the bottom of a valley, on the banks of a little lake -surrounded by pagodas, which bathe their walls in the water. At a distance -the city looks like a white spot, which grows larger as one approaches it, -and by degrees you discover the domes and spires, the slender and graceful -summits of Indian monuments.</p> - -<p>"At about an hour's distance from the gates, I met a superbly -caparisoned elephant, surrounded by a guard of honour which the sovereign -had sent me, and I was conducted to the palace with great ceremony.</p> - -<p>"I should have liked to have taken the time to put on my gala uniform, -but royal impatience would not permit me to do it. He was anxious to make -my acquaintance, to know what he might expect from me.</p> - -<p>"I was ushered into a great hall surrounded by galleries, in the midst -of bronze-coloured soldiers in splendid uniforms, while all about were -standing men dressed in striking robes, studded with precious stones.</p> - -<p>"On a bench like our garden benches, without a back; I saw a shining -mass, a kind of setting sun reposing; it was the rajah who was waiting -for me, motionless, in a robe of the purest canary colour. He had some ten -or fifteen million francs' worth of diamonds on him, and by itself, on his -forehead, glistened the famous star of Delhi, which has always belonged to -the illustrious dynasty of the Pariharas of Mundore, from whom my host was -descended.</p> - -<p>"He was a man of about five-and-twenty, who seemed to have some negro -blood in his veins, although he belonged to the purest Hindoo race. He -had large, almost motionless, rather vague eyes, fat lips, a curly beard, -low forehead, and dazzling sharp white teeth, which he frequently showed -with a mechanical smile. He got up and gave me his hand in the English -fashion, and then made me sit down beside him on a bench which was so high -that my feet hardly touched the ground, and on which I was very -uncomfortable.</p> - -<p>"He immediately proposed a tiger hunt for the next day; war and hunting -were his chief occupations, and he could hardly understand how one could -care for anything else. He was evidently fully persuaded that I had only -come all that distance to amuse him a little, and to be the companion of -his pleasures.</p> - -<p>"As I stood greatly in need of his assistance, I tried to flatter his -tastes, and he was so pleased with me that he immediately wished to show -me how his trained boxers fought, and led the way into a kind of arena -situated within the palace.</p> - -<p>"At his command two naked men appeared, their hands covered with steel -claws. They immediately began to attack each other, trying to strike one -another with these sharp weapons, which left long cuts, from which the -blood flowed freely down their dark skins.</p> - -<p>"It lasted for a long time, till their bodies were a mass of wounds, -and the combatants were tearing each other's flesh with these pointed -blades. One of them had his jaw smashed, while the ear of the other -was split into three pieces.</p> - -<p>"The prince looked on with ferocious pleasure, uttered grunts of -delight, and imitated all their movements with careless gestures, crying -out constantly:</p> - -<p>"'Strike, strike hard!'</p> - -<p>"One fell down unconscious and had to be carried out of the arena, -covered with blood, while the rajah uttered a sigh of regret because it -was over so soon.</p> - -<p>"He turned to me to know my opinion; I was indignant, but I -congratulated him loudly. He then gave orders that I was to be conducted -to Couch-Mahal (the palace of pleasure), where I was to be lodged.</p> - -<p>"This palace, this jewel, was situated at the extremity of the royal -park, and one of its walls was built into the sacred lake of Vihara. It -was square, its four sides showing rows of galleries with colonnades -of most beautiful workmanship. At each angle there were light, lofty, or -low towers, standing either singly or in pairs: no two were alike, and -they looked like flowers growing out of that graceful plant of Oriental -architecture. All were surmounted by fantastic roofs, like coquettish -ladies' caps.</p> - -<p>"In the middle of the edifice a large dome raised its round cupola, like -a woman's bosom, up to a lovely slender belfry open to the sky.</p> - -<p>"The whole building was covered with sculpture from top to bottom, -with exquisite arabesques which delighted the eye, motionless processions -of delicate figures whose attitudes and gestures in stone told the story -of Indian manners and customs.</p> - -<p>"The rooms were lighted by windows with dentelated arches, looking on -to the gardens. On the marble floor were designs of graceful bouquets in -onyx, lapis-lazuli, and agate.</p> - -<p>"I had scarcely had time to finish my toilette when Haribadada, a court -dignitary who was specially charged to communicate between the prince and -me, announced his sovereign's visit.</p> - -<p>"The saffron-coloured rajah appeared, again shook hands with me, and -began to tell me a thousand different things, constantly asking me for my -opinion, which I had great difficulty in giving him. Then he wished to -show me the ruins of the former palace at the other extremity of the -gardens.</p> - -<p>"It was a real forest of stones inhabited by a large tribe of apes. On -our approach the males began to run along the walls, making the most -hideous faces at us, while the females ran away, carrying off their young -in their arms. The rajah shouted with laughter and pinched my shoulder to -draw my attention, and to testify his own delight, and sat down in the -midst of the ruins, while around us, squatting on the top of the walls, -perching on every eminence, a number of animals with white whiskers put -out their tongues and shook their fists at us.</p> - -<p>"When he had seen enough of this, the yellow rajah rose and began to -walk sedately on, keeping me always at his side, happy at having shown me -such things on the very day of my arrival, and reminding me that a grand -tiger hunt was to take place the next day, in my honour.</p> - -<p>"I was present at it, at a second, a third, at ten, twenty in -succession. We hunted all the animals which the country produces in turn: -the panther, the bear, elephant, antelope, the hippopotamus, and the -crocodile—half the beasts in creation I should say. I was disgusted -at seeing so much blood flow, and tired of this monotonous pleasure.</p> - -<p>"At length the prince's ardour abated and, at my urgent request, he -left me a little leisure for work, contenting himself by loading me with -costly presents. He sent me jewels, magnificent stuffs, and well-broken -animals of all sorts, which Haribadada presented to me with apparently -as grave respect as if I had been the sun himself, although he heartily -despised me at the bottom of his heart.</p> - -<p>"Every day a procession of servants brought me, in covered dishes, a -portion of each course that was served at the royal table. Every day he -seemed to take an extreme pleasure in getting up some new entertainment -for me—dances by the bayaderes, jugglers, reviews of the troops, and -I was obliged to pretend to be most delighted with it, so as not to hurt -his feelings when he wished to show me his wonderful country in all its -charm and splendour.</p> - -<p>"As soon as I was left alone for a few moments I either worked or went -to see the monkeys, whose company pleased me a great deal better than that -of their royal master.</p> - -<p>"One evening, however, on coming back from a walk, I found Haribadada -outside the gate of my palace. He told me in mysterious tones that a gift -from the king was waiting for me in my abode, and he said that his master -begged me to excuse him for not having sooner thought of offering me that -of which I had been deprived for such a long time.</p> - -<p>"After these obscure remarks the ambassador bowed and withdrew.</p> - -<p>"When I went in I saw six little girls standing against the wall, -motionless, side-by-side, like smelts on a skewer. The eldest was perhaps -ten and the youngest eight years old. For the first moment I could not -understand why this girls' school had taken up its abode in my rooms; -then, however, I divined the prince's delicate attention: he had made -me a present of a harem, and had chosen it very young from an excess of -generosity. There, the more unripe the fruit is, in the higher estimation -it is held.</p> - -<p>"For some time I remained confused, embarrassed, and ashamed in the -presence of these children, who looked at me with great grave eyes which -seemed already to divine what I might want of them.</p> - -<p>"I did not know what to say to them; I felt inclined to send them back; -but I could not return the presents of a prince; it would have been a -mortal insult. I was obliged, therefore, to install this troop of children -in my palace.</p> - -<p>"They stood motionless, looking at me, waiting for my orders, trying -to read my thoughts in my eyes. Confound such a present! How absurdly it -was in my way. At last, thinking that I must be looking rather ridiculous, -I asked the eldest her name.</p> - -<p>"'Châli,' she replied.</p> - -<p>"This little creature, with her beautiful skin, which was lightly -yellow, like old ivory, was a marvel, a perfect statue, with her face and -its long and severe lines.</p> - -<p>"I then asked, in order to see what she would reply, and also, perhaps, -to embarrass her:</p> - -<p>"'What have you come here for?'</p> - -<p>"She replied in her soft, harmonious voice: 'I have come to do whatever -my Lord wishes.' She was evidently quite resigned.</p> - -<p>"I put the same question to the youngest, who answered immediately in -her shrill voice:</p> - -<p>"'I am here to do whatever you ask me, my master.'</p> - -<p>"This one was like a little mouse, and was very taking, just as they -all were, so I took her in my arms and kissed her. The others made a -movement to go away, thinking, no doubt, that I had made my choice; but -I ordered them to stay, and sitting down in the Indian fashion, I made -them all sit round me and began to tell them fairy-tales, for I spoke -their language tolerably well.</p> - -<p>"They listened very attentively, and trembled, wringing their hands in -agony. Poor little things, they were not thinking any longer of the reason -why they were sent to me.</p> - -<p>"When I had finished my story, I called Latchmân, my confidential -servant, and made him bring sweetmeats and cakes, of which they ate enough -to make themselves ill. Then, as I began to find the adventure rather -funny, I organized games to amuse my wives.</p> - -<p>"One of these diversions had an enormous success. I made a bridge of my -legs and the six children ran underneath, the smallest beginning and the -tallest always knocking against them a little, because she did not stoop -enough. It made them shout with laughter, and these young voices sounding -through the low vaults of my sumptuous palace seemed to wake it up and to -people it with childlike gaiety and life.</p> - -<p>"Next I took great interest in seeing to the sleeping apartments of my -innocent concubines, and in the end I saw them safely locked up under the -surveillance of four female servants, whom the prince had sent me at the -same time in order to take care of my sultanas.</p> - -<p>"For a week I took the greatest pleasure in acting the part of a father -toward these living dolls. We had capital games of hide-and-seek and -puss-in-the-corner, which gave them the greatest pleasure. Every day I -taught them a new game, to their intense delight.</p> - -<p>"My house now seemed to be one class room, and my little friends, -dressed in beautiful silk stuffs, and in materials embroidered with gold -and silver, ran up and down the long galleries and the quiet rooms feebly -lighted by the day coming in through the arched windows, like little human -animals.</p> - -<p>"Then one evening, I know not how, the eldest, who was called Châli, and -who looked like an old ivory statuette, really became my wife. She was -an adorable little creature, timid and gentle, who soon got to love me -ardently and whom I loved strongly with some degree of shame, with -hesitation as if afraid of European morality, with reserve and scruples, -and yet with passionate tenderness. I cherished her as if I had been her -father and I caressed her like a lover."</p> - -<p>Excuse me ladies, I am going a little bit too far.</p> - -<p>"The others continued to play in the palace like a lot of happy -kittens, but Châli never left me except when I went to the prince.</p> - -<p>"We passed delicious hours together in the ruins of the old castle, -among the monkeys, who had become our friends.</p> - -<p>"She used to lie on my knees, and remain there, turning all sorts of -things over in her little sphinx's head, or perhaps not thinking of -anything, retaining that beautiful, charming, hereditary pose of that -noble and dreamy people, the hieratic pose of the sacred statues.</p> - -<p>"In a large brass dish I had one day brought provisions, cakes, fruits. -The apes came nearer and nearer, followed by their young ones, who were -more timid; at last they sat down round us in a circle, without daring to -come any nearer, waiting for me to distribute my delicacies. Then, almost -invariably, a male more daring than the rest would come to me with -outstretched hand, like a beggar, and I would give him something, which he -would take to his wife. All the others immediately began to utter furious -cries, cries of rage and jealousy; and I could not make the terrible -racket cease except by throwing each one his share.</p> - -<p>"As I was very comfortable in the ruins I had my instruments brought -there, so that I might be able to work. As soon, however, as they saw the -copper fittings on my scientific instruments, the monkeys, no doubt taking -them for some deadly engines, fled on all sides, uttering the most -piercing cries.</p> - -<p>"I often spent my evenings with Châli on one of the outside galleries -that looked on to the lake of Vihara. One night in silence we were looking -at the bright moon gliding over the sky, throwing a mantle of trembling -silver over the water, and, on the further shore, upon the row of small -pagodas like carved mushrooms with their stalks in the water. Taking the -thoughtful face of my little mistress between my hands, I printed a long, -soft kiss on her polished brow, on her great eyes, which were full of the -secret of that ancient and fabulous land, and on her calm lips which -opened to my caress. I felt a confused, powerful, above all a poetical, -sensation, the sensation that I possessed a whole race in this little -girl, that mysterious race from which all the others seem to have taken -their origin.</p> - -<p>"The prince, however, continued to load me with presents. One day he -sent me a very unexpected object, which excited a passionate admiration in -Châli. It was merely one of those cardboard boxes covered with shells -stuck on outside. In France it would have been worth forty cents, at the -most. But there it was a jewel beyond price, and no doubt was the first -that had found its way into the kingdom. I put it on a table and left it -there, wondering at the value which was set upon this trumpery article out -of a bazaar.</p> - -<p>"But Châli never got tired of looking at it, of admiring it -ecstatically. From time to time she would say to me, 'May I touch it?' And -when I had given her permission she raised the lid, closed it again with -the greatest precaution, touched the shells very gently, and the contact -seemed to give her real physical pleasure.</p> - -<p>"However, I had finished my scientific work, and it was time for me to -return. I was a long time in making up my mind, held by my tenderness for -my little friend, but at last I was obliged to fix the day of my -departure.</p> - -<p>"The prince got up fresh hunting excursions and fresh wrestling -matches, and after a fortnight of these pleasures I declared that I could -stay no longer, and he gave me my liberty.</p> - -<p>"My farewell from Châli was heartrending. She wept, lying beside me, -with her head on my breast, shaken with sobs. I did not know how to -console her; my kisses were no good.</p> - -<p>"All at once an idea struck me, and getting up I went and got the -shell-box, and putting it into her hands, I said, ‘That is for you; it is -yours.'</p> - -<p>"Then I saw her smile at first. Her whole face was lighted up with -internal joy, with that profound joy which comes when impossible dreams -are suddenly realized, and she embraced me ardently.</p> - -<p>"All the same, she wept bitterly when I bade her a last farewell.</p> - -<p>"I gave fatherly kisses and cakes to all the rest of my wives, and then -I left for home."</p> - - - - -<h5>II</h5> - - -<p>"Two years had passed when the chance of my duties again called me to -Bombay. Because I knew the country and the language well, I was left there -to undertake another mission, by a sequence of unforeseen circumstances.</p> - -<p>"I finished what I had to do as quickly as possible, and as I had a -considerable amount of spare time on my hands I determined to go and see -my friend Rajah Maddan and my dear little Châli once more, though I -expected to find her much changed.</p> - -<p>"The rajah received me with every demonstration of pleasure, and hardly -left me for a moment during the first day of my visit. At night, however, -when I was alone, I sent for Haribadada, and after several misleading -questions I said to him:</p> - -<p>"'Do you know what has become of little Châli, whom the rajah gave -me?'</p> - -<p>"He immediately assumed a sad and troubled look, and said, in evident -embarrassment:</p> - -<p>"'We had better not speak of her.'</p> - -<p>"'Why? She was a dear little woman.'</p> - -<p>"'She turned out badly, sir.'</p> - -<p>"'What—Châli? What has become of her? Where is she?'</p> - -<p>"'I mean to say that she came to a bad end.'</p> - -<p>"'A bad end! Is she dead?'</p> - -<p>"'Yes. She committed a very dreadful action.'</p> - -<p>"I was very much distressed. I felt my heart beat; my breast was -oppressed with grief, and I insisted on knowing what she had done and what -had happened to her.</p> - -<p>"The man became more and more embarrassed, and murmured: 'You had -better not ask about it.'</p> - -<p>"'But I want to know.'</p> - -<p>"'She stole—'</p> - -<p>"'Who—Châli? What did she steal?'</p> - -<p>"'Something that belonged to you.'</p> - -<p>"'To me? What do you mean?'</p> - -<p>"'The day you left she stole that little box which the prince had given -you; it was found in her hands.'</p> - -<p>"'What box are you talking about?'</p> - -<p>"'The box covered with shells.'</p> - -<p>"'But I gave it to her.'</p> - -<p>"The Hindoo looked at me with stupefaction, and then replied: 'Well, -she declared with the most sacred oaths that you had given it to her, but -nobody could believe that you could have given a king's present to a -slave, and so the rajah had her punished.'</p> - -<p>"'How was she punished? What was done to her?'</p> - -<p>"'She was tied up in a sack and thrown into the lake from this window, -from the window of the room in which we are, where she had committed -the theft.'</p> - -<p>"I felt the most terrible grief that I ever experienced, and made a -sign to Haribadad to go away so that he might not see my tears. I spent -the night on the gallery which looked on to the lake, on the gallery where -I had so often held the poor child on my knees, and pictured to myself her -pretty little body lying decomposed in a sack in the dark waters beneath -me.</p> - -<p>"The next day I left again, in spite of the rajah's entreaties and -evident vexation; and I now still feel as if I had never loved any woman -but Châli."</p> - - - - -<hr class="r5" /> - - - - -<h4><a id="THE_LEGACY"></a>THE LEGACY</h4> - - - - -<h5>I</h5> - - -<p>Although it was not yet ten o'clock, the employees were pouring in -like waves through the great doorway of the Ministry of Marine, having -come in haste from every corner of Paris, for the first of the year was -approaching, the time for renewed zeal—and for promotions. A noise -of hurrying footsteps filled the vast building, which was as tortuous as a -labyrinth, and honeycombed with inextricable passages, pierced by -innumerable doors opening into the various offices.</p> - -<p>Each one entered his particular room, pressed the hands of his -colleagues who had already arrived, threw off his coat, put on his office -jacket, and seated himself before the table, where a pile of papers -awaited him. Then they went for news into the neighbouring offices. They -asked whether their chief had arrived, if he was in an agreeable humour, -and if the day's mail was a heavy one.</p> - -<p>The clerk in charge of "general matter," M. César Cachelin, an old -non-commissioned officer of the marine infantry, who had become -chief-clerk by priority of office, registered in a big book all the -documents as they were brought in by the messenger. Opposite him the -copying-clerk, old father Savon, a stupid old fellow, celebrated -throughout the whole ministry for his conjugal misfortunes, copied in a -slow hand a dispatch from the chief, sitting with his body held sidewise -and his eyes askew, in the stiff attitude of the careful copyist.</p> - -<p>M. Cachelin, a big man, whose short, white hair stood up like a brush -on his head, talked all the time while performing his daily work: -"Thirty-two dispatches from Toulon. That port gives us as much as any four -others put together."</p> - -<p>Then he asked the old man Savon the question he put to him every -morning:</p> - -<p>"Well, father Savon, how is Madame?"</p> - -<p>The old man, without stopping his work, replied: "You know very well. -Monsieur Cachelin, that subject is a most painful one to me."</p> - -<p>Then the chief clerk laughed as he laughed every day at hearing the -same phrase.</p> - -<p>The door opened and M. Maze entered. He was a handsome, dark young -fellow dressed with an exaggerated elegance, who thought his position -beneath his dignity, and his person and manners above his position. He -wore large rings, a heavy gold watch chain, a monocle (which he discarded -while at work), and he made a frequent movement of his wrists in order to -bring into view his cuffs ornamented with great shining buttons.</p> - -<p>At the door he asked: "Much work to-day?" M. Cachelin replied: "It is -always Toulon which keeps sending in. One can easily see that the first -of the year is at hand, from the way they are hustling down there."</p> - -<p>But another employee, a great joker, always in high spirits, appeared -in his turn and said laughing:</p> - -<p>"We are not hustling at all, are we?" Then taking out his watch he -added: "Seven minutes to ten and every man at his post! By George, what -do you think of that? and I'll wager anything that his Dignity M. Lesable -arrived at nine o'clock—at the same hour as our illustrious -chief."</p> - -<p>The chief-clerk ceased writing, put his pen behind his ear, and leaning -his elbow on the desk said: "Oh! there is a man for you! If he does -not succeed, it will not be for want of trying."</p> - -<p>M. Pitolet, seating himself on the corner of the table and swinging his -leg, replied:</p> - -<p>"But he will succeed, papa Cachelin; he will succeed, you may be sure. -I will bet you twenty francs to a sou that he will be chief within ten -years."</p> - -<p>M. Maze, who rolled a cigarette while warming his calves before the -fire, said:</p> - -<p>"Pshaw! for my part I would rather remain all my life on a salary of -twenty-four hundred francs than wear myself to a skeleton the way he is -doing."</p> - -<p>Pitolet turned on his heels and said in a bantering tone: "But that -does not prevent you, my dear fellow, from being here on this twentieth -of December before ten o'clock."</p> - -<p>The other shrugged his shoulders with an air of indifference. "Hang it -all! I do not want everybody to walk over my head, either! Since you -come here to see the sun rise, I am going to do it, too, however much I -may deplore your officiousness. From doing that to calling the chief 'dear -master,' as Lesable does, and staying until half past six and then -carrying work home with you is a long way. Besides, I am in society and I -have other demands upon my time."</p> - -<p>M. Cachelin had ceased his registering and begun to dream, his eyes -fixed on vacancy. At last he asked: "Do you believe that he will get an -increase again this year?"</p> - -<p>Pitolet cried: "I will bet you ten to one he gets it. He is not wearing -himself out for nothing."</p> - -<p>And so they talked of the eternal question of promotion which for a -month had excited the whole hive of clerks from the ground floor to the -roof.</p> - -<p>They calculated chances, computed figures, compared their various -claims to promotion, and waxed indignant over former injustices. These -discussions lasted from morning until evening, and the next day were begun -all over again, with the same reasons, the same arguments, the same -words.</p> - -<p>A new clerk entered, a little, pale, sick-looking man, M. Boissel, who -lived as in a romance of Alexandre Dumas, <i>père.</i> Everything with him -was an extraordinary adventure, and he recounted every morning to his -friend Pitolet his strange encounters of the previous evening, imaginary -scenes enacted in his house, strange cries uttered in the street which -caused him to open his window at half past three in the morning. Every day -he had separated combatants, stopped runaway horses, rescued women from -danger; and although of a deplorably weak constitution he talked -unceasingly, in a slow and satisfied tone, of exploits accomplished by his -strong arm.</p> - -<p>As soon as he understood that they were talking of Lesable he declared: -"Some day I will give that little pup his deserts; and if he ever walks -over my head. I'll give him something that will prevent him from trying -again."</p> - -<p>Maze, continuing to smoke, sneered: "You would do well, then, to begin -at once, for I hear on good authority that you are to be set aside this -year for Lesable."</p> - -<p>Boissel raised his hand. "I swear that if—" The door opened once -more, and a dapper little man wearing the side-whiskers of an officer of -marine or lawyer, and a high, stiff collar, who spoke his words rapidly as -though he could not take the time to finish what he had to say, entered -quickly with a preoccupied manner. He shook hands all around with the air -of a man who had no leisure for dallying, and approaching the chief-clerk -said: "My dear Cachelin, will you give me the Chapelou papers, rope yarn, -Toulon A. T. V., 1875?"</p> - -<p>The clerk rose, reached for a portfolio above his head, took out a -package of sealed documents wrapped in blue linen, and presenting them -said: "There, M. Lesable; you remember the chief took three dispatches -from their package yesterday."</p> - -<p>"Yes, I have them. Thanks," and the young man went out hurriedly.</p> - -<p>Hardly had he gone when Maze ejaculated:</p> - -<p>"Well! what an air! One would swear he was already chief."</p> - -<p>And Pitolet replied: "Patience, patience; he will be before any of -us."</p> - -<p>M. Cachelin had not resumed his writing. A fixed thought seemed to have -taken possession of him. At last he said: "He has a fine future, that -boy!"</p> - -<p>But Maze murmured in a disdainful tone: "For those who think the -ministry is a career—yes. For the others it is a little—"</p> - -<p>Pitolet interrupted him: "Perhaps you intend to become ambassador?"</p> - -<p>The other made an impatient gesture. "It is not a question of me. I can -take care of myself. That has nothing to do with the fact that the -position of the head of a department will never be anything very -much."</p> - -<p>Father Savon, the copyist, had never ceased his work. But for some -little time he had been dipping his pen in the inkstand, then wiping it -vigorously on the sponge which stood in a little glass of water on his -desk, without being able to trace a letter. The black liquid slipped along -the point of the metal and fell in round spots on the paper. The good man, -driven to despair as sheet after sheet of paper was thus spoiled, said in -a deep and sorrowful voice:</p> - -<p>"Here is more adulterated ink!"</p> - -<p>A shout of laughter came from every mouth. Cachelin shook the table with -his stomach. Maze bent double, as though he were going up the chimney -backward. Pitolet stamped and roared and waved his hands in the air, and -even Boissel was almost suffocated, although he generally looked at -these things on the tragic rather than the comic side.</p> - -<p>But father Savon, wiping his pen on the tail of his overcoat, said: -"There is nothing to laugh at. I have to go over my whole work two or -three times."</p> - -<p>He took from his box another sheet of paper, laid his wax sheet over -it, and commenced again at the beginning: "Monsieur le Ministre and dear -Colleague—" The pen now held the ink and traced the letters neatly. The -old man settled down into his oblique posture and continued his copy.</p> - -<p>The others had not stopped laughing. They were fairly choking. For six -months they had played the same game on the poor old fellow, who had never -detected it. It consisted in pouring several drops of oil on the damp -sponge used for wiping pens. The metal, thus becoming coated with liquid -grease, would not take the ink, and the perplexed copying-clerk would pass -hours in using boxes of pens and bottles of ink, and finally declare that -the supplies of the department were becoming perfectly worthless.</p> - -<p>Then the jokers would torment the old man in other ways. They put -gunpowder in his tobacco, pour drugs into his drinking water, and made -him believe that, since the Commune, the majority of articles for general -use had been adulterated by the socialists, to put the government in the -wrong and bring about a revolution. He had conceived a terrible hatred -against the anarchists, whom he believed to be concealed everywhere, and -had a mysterious fear of an unknown woman—veiled and formidable.</p> - -<p>A sharp ring of the bell sounded in the corridor. They well knew the -emphatic ring of their chief, M. Torchebeuf, and each one sprang toward -the door that he might regain his own compartment.</p> - -<p>Cachelin returned to his work. Then he laid down his pen again, and took -his head in his hands and began to think.</p> - -<p>He turned over in his mind an idea which had tormented him for some -time. An old non-commissioned officer of the marine infantry, retired -after receiving three wounds, one at Senegal and two at Cochin China, who -had been given a position in the ministry as an exceptional favour, he had -had to endure many miseries, many hardships, and many griefs in his long -career as an insignificant subordinate. He considered authority, official -authority, as the finest thing in the world. The head of a Department -seemed to him an exceptional being, living in a higher sphere; and the -employee of whom he heard it said: "He is a sharp one; he will get there -yet," appeared to him of another race, another nature, than himself.</p> - -<p>He had therefore for his colleague Lesable a high respect which -approached veneration, and he cherished the secret desire, which was never -absent from his mind, to have him marry his daughter.</p> - -<p>She would be rich one day, very rich. This was known throughout the -entire ministry, for his sister. Mlle Cachelin, possessed a million, a -clear, cool million, acquired through love, they said, but purified -by belated piety.</p> - -<p>This ancient spinster, who had led a gay life in her youth, had retired -with five hundred thousand francs, which she had more than doubled in -eighteen years, thanks to her ferocious economy and more than frugal -habits. She had lived for a long time with her brother, who was a widower -with one daughter, Coralie; but she did not contribute in the slightest -degree to the expenses of the house, guarding and accumulating her gold, -and always repeating to Cachelin: "It makes no difference, since it is all -for your daughter; but marry her quickly, for I want to see my little -nephews around me. It is she who will give me the joy of embracing -a child of our blood."</p> - -<p>This was well understood at the office, and suitors were not lacking -for Coralie's hand. It was said that Maze himself, the handsome Maze, the -lion of the bureau, hovered around father Cachelin with a palpable intent. -But the former sergeant, who had roamed through all latitudes, wanted a -young man with a future, a young man who would be chief, and who would be -able to make some return to him, the old clerk. Lesable suited him to a -nicety, and he cast about in his mind for a means of attaching him to -himself.</p> - -<p>All of a sudden he sat upright, striking his hands together. He had -found it. He well understood the weakness of each one of his colleagues. -Lesable could be approached only through his vanity, his professional -vanity. He would go to him and demand his protection as one goes to a -senator or a deputy—as one goes to a high personage.</p> - -<p>Not having had any promotion for five years, Cachelin considered himself -as certain to obtain one this year. He would make it appear then that -he owed it to Lesable, and would invite him to dinner as a means of -thanking him.</p> - -<p>As soon as his project was conceived he began to put it into execution. -He took off his office jacket, put on his coat, and, gathering up all the -registered papers which concerned the services of his colleague, he betook -himself to the office which Lesable occupied all alone, by special favour, -because of his zeal and the importance of his functions.</p> - -<p>The young man was writing at a great table, covered with bundles of -documents and loose papers numbered with red or blue figures.</p> - -<p>As soon as he saw the chief-clerk enter, he said in a familiar tone, -which also betokened consideration: "Well, my dear fellow, do you bring -me a lot of business?"</p> - -<p>"Yes, a good deal. And then I want to speak to you."</p> - -<p>"Sit down, my friend; I am listening."</p> - -<p>Cachelin seated himself, coughed, put on a troubled look, and finally -said in a despondent tone:</p> - -<p>"This is what brings me here, Monsieur Lesable. I will not beat about -the bush. I will be frank like an old soldier. I have come to demand a -service of you."</p> - -<p>"What is it?"</p> - -<p>"In few words, I wish very much to be promoted this year. I have nobody -to help me, and I have thought of you."</p> - -<p>Lesable reddened somewhat. He was surprised, flattered, and filled with -a pleased confusion. However, he replied:</p> - -<p>"But I am nobody here, my friend. I am much less than you, who are going -to be principal clerk. I can do nothing. Believe me that if—"</p> - -<p>Cachelin cut him short with respectful brusqueness: "Oh, nonsense. You -have the ear of the chief, and if you speak a word for me I shall get it. -Remember that in eighteen months I shall have the right to retire, and I -shall be just five hundred francs to the bad if I obtain nothing on the -first of January. I know very well that they say: 'Cachelin is all right; -his sister has a million.' It is true enough that my sister has a million, -but she doesn't give any of it away. It is also true that her fortune -is for my daughter, but my daughter and I are two different persons. I -shall be in a nice fix if, when my daughter and my son-in-law are rolling -in their carriage, I have nothing to eat. You see my position, do you -not?"</p> - -<p>Lesable agreed. "It is true—what you say is very true. Your -son-in-law may not be well disposed toward you. Besides, one is always -more at ease when owing nothing to anybody. Well, I promise you I shall do -my best; I shall speak to the chief, place the case before him, and shall -insist if it be necessary. Count on me!"</p> - -<p>Cachelin rose, took the hands of his colleague, and pressing them hard -while he shook them in military fashion, stammered: "Thank you, thank -you; believe me, if ever I have the opportunity—if I can -ever—" He stopped, not being able to finish what he had begun, and -went away making the corridor resound with the rhythmical tread of an old -trooper.</p> - -<p>But he heard from afar the sharp ring of a bell and he began to run. He -knew that ring. It was the chief, M. Torchebeuf, who wanted him.</p> - -<p>Eight days later Cachelin found one morning on his desk a sealed -letter, which contained the following:</p> - - -<p>"My dear Colleague: I am happy to announce to you that the minister, -at the instance of our director and our chief, yesterday signed your -nomination to the position of principal clerk. You will receive tomorrow -your official notification. Until then you know nothing, you understand?</p> - -<p><span style="margin-left: 60%;">Yours ever,</span></p> - -<p><span style="margin-left: 70%;">LESABLE."</span></p> - - -<p>César ran at once to the office of his young colleague, thanked him, -excused himself, offered his everlasting devotion, overwhelmed him with -his gratitude.</p> - -<p>It was known on the morrow that MM. Lesable and Cachelin had each been -promoted. The other employees must wait another year, receiving by way of -compensation a gratuity which varied from one hundred and fifty to three -hundred francs.</p> - -<p>M. Boissel declared that he would lie in wait for Lesable at the corner -of the street at midnight some night and give him a drubbing which would -leave its mark. The other clerks kept silent.</p> - -<p>The following Monday, on his arrival, Cachelin went to the office of -his protector, entered with solemnity, and in a ceremonious tone said: "I -hope that you will do me the honour to dine with us during the New Year -holidays. You may choose the day yourself."</p> - -<p>The young man, somewhat surprised, raised his head and looked his -colleague full in the face. Then he replied without removing his eyes, -that he might read the thoughts of the other: "But, my dear fellow you -see—all my evenings are promised here for some time to come."</p> - -<p>Cachelin insisted in a good-humoured tone: "Oh, but, I say, you will -not disappoint us by refusing, after the service that you have rendered -me. I beg you in the name of my family and in mine."</p> - -<p>Lesable hesitated, perplexed. He had understood well enough, but he did -not know what to reply, not having had time to reflect and to weigh the -pros and the cons. At last he thought: "I commit myself to nothing by -going to dinner," and he accepted with a satisfied air, choosing the -Saturday following. He added, smiling: "So that I shall not have -to get up too soon the next morning."</p> - - - - -<h5>II</h5> - - -<p>M. Cachelin lived in a small apartment on the fifth floor of a house -at the upper end of the Rue Rochechouart. There was a balcony from which -one could see all Paris, and three rooms, one for his sister, one for his -daughter, and one for himself. The dining-room served also for a -parlour.</p> - -<p>He occupied himself during the whole week in preparing for this dinner. -The menu was discussed at great length, in order that they might have a -repast which should be at the same time home-like and elegant. The -following was finally decided upon: A consommé with eggs, shrimps and -sausage for hors d'œuvre, a lobster, a fine chicken, preserved peas, a -<i>pâté de joie gras</i>, a salad, an ice, and dessert.</p> - -<p>The <i>foie gras</i> was ordered from a neighbouring pork butcher with -the injunction to furnish the best quality. The pot alone cost three -francs and a half.</p> - -<p>For the wine, Cachelin applied to the wine merchant at the corner who -supplied him with the red beverage with which he ordinarily quenched his -thirst. He did not want to go to a big dealer reasoning thus: "The small -dealers find few occasions to sell their best brands. On this account they -keep them a long time in their cellars, and they are therefore -better."</p> - -<p>He came home at the earliest possible hour on Saturday to assure -himself that all was ready. The maid who opened the door for him was red -as a tomato, for she had lighted her fire at midday through fear of not -being ready in time, and had roasted her face at it all day. Emotion also -excited her. He entered the dining-room to inspect everything. In the -middle of the little room the round table made a great white spot under -the bright light of a lamp covered with a green shade.</p> - -<p>The four plates were almost concealed by napkins folded in the form of -an archbishop's miter by Mlle Cachelin, the aunt, and were flanked by -knives and forks of white metal. In front of each stood two glasses, one -large and one small. César found this insufficient at a glance, and he -called: "Charlotte!"</p> - -<p>The door at the left opened and a little old woman appeared. Older than -her brother by ten years, she had a narrow face framed with white -ringlets. She did these up in papers every night.</p> - -<p>Her thin voice seemed too weak for her little bent body, and she moved -with a slightly dragging step and tired gestures.</p> - -<p>They had said of her when she was young: "What a dear little -creature!"</p> - -<p>She was now a shrivelled up old woman, very clean because of her early -training, headstrong, spoiled, narrow-minded, fastidious, and easily -irritated. Having become very devout, she seemed to have totally forgotten -the adventures of her past.</p> - -<p>She asked: "What do you want?"</p> - -<p>He replied: "I find that two glasses do not make much of a show. If we -could have champagne—it would not cost me more than three or four -francs; we have the glasses already, and it would entirely change the -aspect of the table."</p> - -<p>Mlle Charlotte replied: "I do not see the use of going to that expense. -But you are paying; it does not concern me."</p> - -<p>He hesitated, seeking to convince himself:</p> - -<p>"I assure you it would be much better. And then, with the cake it would -make things more lively." This decided him. He took his hat and went -downstairs, returning in five minutes with a bottle under his arm which -bore on a large white label, ornamented with an enormous coat of arms, -the words: "Grand vin mousseux de Champagne du Comte de Chatel-Rénovau."</p> - -<p>Cachelin declared: "It cost only three francs, and the man says it is -delicious."</p> - -<p>He took the champagne glasses from the cupboard and placed them before -each place.</p> - -<p>The door at the right opened. His daughter entered. She was a tall girl -with firm, rosy flesh—a handsome daughter of a strong race. She had -chestnut hair and blue eyes. A simple gown outlined her round and supple -figure; her voice was strong, almost the voice of a man, with those deep -notes which make the nerves vibrate. She cried: "Heavens! Champagne! What -luck!" clapping her hands like a child.</p> - -<p>Her father said to her: "I wish you to be particularly nice to this -gentleman; he has done such a lot for me."</p> - -<p>She began to laugh—a sonorous laugh, which said: "I know."</p> - -<p>The bell in the vestibule rang. The doors opened and closed and Lesable -appeared.</p> - -<p>He wore a black coat, a white cravat, and white gloves. He created a -stir. Cachelin sprang forward, embarrassed and delighted: "But, my dear -fellow, this is among ourselves. See me—I am in ordinary dress."</p> - -<p>The young man replied: "I know, you told me so; but I never go out in -the evening without my dress-coat." He saluted, his opera-hat under his -arm, a flower in his buttonhole. César presented him: "My sister, Mlle -Charlotte; my daughter Coralie, whom at home we call Cora."</p> - -<p>Everybody bowed. Cachelin continued: "We have no salon. It is rather -troublesome, but one gets used to it."</p> - -<p>Lesable replied: "It is charming."</p> - -<p>Then he was relieved of his hat, which he wished to hang up, and he -began immediately to draw off his gloves.</p> - -<p>They sat down and looked at one another across the table, and no one -said anything more until Cachelin asked: "Did the chief remain late -to-night? I left very early to help the ladies."</p> - -<p>Lesable replied in a careless tone: "No, we went away together, because -we were obliged to discuss the matter of the payment for the canvasses at -Brest. It is a very complicated affair, which will give us a great deal of -trouble."</p> - -<p>Cachelin believed he ought to bring his sister into the conversation, -and turning to her said: "It is M. Lesable who decides all the difficult -questions at the office. One might say that he was the deputy chief." -The old spinster bowed politely, saying: "Oh, I know that Monsieur has -great capabilities."</p> - -<p>The maid entered, pushing open the door with her knee, and holding -aloft with both hands a great soup tureen. Then the master of the house -cried: "Come—dinner! Sit there, M. Lesable, between my sister and my -daughter. I hope you are not afraid of the ladies," and the dinner -began.</p> - -<p>Lesable made himself agreeable, with a little air of self-sufficiency, -almost of condescension, and he glanced now and then at the young girl, -astonished at her freshness, at her beautiful, appetising health. Mlle -Charlotte showed her best side, knowing the intentions of her brother, and -she took part in the conversation so long as it was confined to -commonplace topics. Cachelin was radiant; he talked and joked in a loud -voice while he poured out the wine bought an hour previous at the store on -the corner: "A glass of this little Burgundy, M. Lesable. I do not say -that it is anything remarkable, but it is good; it is from the cellar and -it is pure—I can say that much. We get it from some friends down -there."</p> - -<p>The young girl said nothing; a little red, a little shy, she was awed by -the presence of this man, whose thoughts she suspected.</p> - -<p>When the lobster appeared, César declared: "Here comes a personage -whose acquaintance I shall be glad to make."</p> - -<p>Lesable, smiling, told a story of a writer who had called the lobster -"the cardinal of the seas," not knowing that before being cooked the -animal was a dark greenish black. Cachelin laughed with all his might, -repeating: "Ha, ha, ha! that is first rate!" But Mlle Charlotte, becoming -serious, said sharply:</p> - -<p>"I do not see anything amusing in that. That gentleman was an improper -person. I understand all kinds of pleasantries, but I am opposed to -anything which casts ridicule on the clergy in my presence."</p> - -<p>The young man, who wished to please the old maid, profited by this -occasion to make a profession of the Catholic faith. He spoke of the bad -taste of those who treated great truths with lightness. And in conclusion -he said: "For myself I respect and venerate the religion of my fathers; I -have been brought up in it, and I will remain in it till my death."</p> - -<p>Cachelin laughed no longer. He rolled little crumbs of bread between -his finger and thumb while he murmured: "That's right, that's right." -Then he changed the conversation, and, with an impulse natural to those -who follow the same routine every day, he said: "Our handsome -Maze—must have been furious at not having been promoted?"</p> - -<p>Lesable smiled. "Well, why not? To everyone according to his deserts." -And they continued talking about the ministry, which interested everybody, -for the two women knew the employees almost as well as Cachelin himself, -through hearing them spoken of every day.</p> - -<p>Mlle Charlotte was particularly pleased to hear about Boissel, on -account of his romantic spirit, and the adventures he was always telling -about, while Cora was secretly interested in the handsome Maze. They had -never seen either of the men, however.</p> - -<p>Lesable talked about them with a superior air, as a minister might have -done in speaking of his staff.</p> - -<p>"Maze is not lacking in a certain kind of merit, but when one wishes -to accomplish anything it is necessary to work harder than he does. He is -fond of society and of pleasure. All that distracts the mind; he will -never advance much on this account. He will be an Assistant Secretary, -perhaps, thanks to the influence he commands, but nothing more. As for -Pitolet, he is a good clerk, I must say. He has a superficial elegance -which cannot be gainsaid, but nothing deep. There is a young man whom one -could never put at the head of an important bureau, but who can always be -utilised by an intelligent chief who would lay out his work for him."</p> - -<p>"And M. Boissel?" asked Mlle Charlotte.</p> - -<p>Lesable shrugged his shoulders: "A poor chap, a poor chap. He can see -nothing in its proper proportions, and is continually imagining wonderful -stories while half asleep. To us he is of no earthly use."</p> - -<p>Cachelin began to laugh. "But the best of all," he declared, "is old -father Savon."</p> - -<p>Then everybody laughed.</p> - -<p>After that they talked of the theatres and the different plays of the -year. Lesable judged the dramatic literature of the day with the same -authority, concisely classifying the authors, determining the strength -and weakness of each, with the assurance of a man who believes himself to -be infallible and universal.</p> - -<p>They had finished the roast. César now uncovered the pot of <i>foie -gras</i> with the most delicate precautions, which made one imagine the -contents to be something wonderful. He said: "I do not know if this one -will be a success, but generally they are perfect. We get them from a -cousin who lives in Strasburg."</p> - -<p>With respectful deliberation each one ate the butcher's <i>pâté</i> in -its little yellow pot.</p> - -<p>But disaster came with the ice. It was a sauce, a soup, a clear liquid -which floated in the dish. The little maid had begged the pastry cook's -boy, who brought the ice at seven o'clock, to take it out of the mold -himself, fearing that she would not know how.</p> - -<p>Cachelin, in despair, wished to make her carry it back again; then he -calmed himself at the thought of the Twelfth Night cake, which he divided -with great mystery as though it contained a prime secret. All fixed their -gaze on the symbolic cake, then Mlle Charlotte directed that each one -close his eyes while taking a piece.</p> - -<p>Who would be the king? A childish, expectant smile was on the lips of -everyone. M. Lesable uttered a little "ah" of astonishment, and showed -between his thumb and forefinger a great white bean still covered with -pastry. Cachelin began to applaud, then cried: "Choose the queen! choose -the queen!"</p> - -<p>The king hesitated an instant only. Would it not be a politic act to -choose Mlle Charlotte? She would be flattered, brought over, his friend -ever after! Then he reflected that it was really Mlle Cora for whom he had -been invited, and that he would seem like a ninny in choosing the aunt. He -turned toward his youthful neighbor, and handing her the royal bean said: -"Mademoiselle, will you permit me to offer it to you?" And they looked -one another in the face for the first time.</p> - -<p>She replied: "Thank you. Monsieur," and received the gage of -sovereignty.</p> - -<p>He thought: "She is enormously pretty, this girl. Her eyes are superb. -She is gay, too, if I am not mistaken!"</p> - -<p>A sharp detonation made the two women jump. Cachelin had just opened -the champagne, which escaped from the bottle and ran over the table-cloth. -Then the glasses were filled with the frothy stuff and the host declared: -"It is of good quality, one can see that." But as Lesable was about to -drink to prevent his glass from running over, César cried: "The king -drinks! the king drinks! the king drinks!" And Mlle Charlotte, also -excited, squeaked in her thin voice: "The king drinks! the king -drinks!"</p> - -<p>Lesable emptied his glass with composure, and replacing it on the table -said: "You see I am not lacking in assurance." Then turning toward Mlle -Cora he said: "It is yours, Mademoiselle!"</p> - -<p>She wished to drink, but everybody having cried: "The queen drinks! -the queen drinks!" she blushed, began to laugh, and put the glass down -again.</p> - -<p>The end of the dinner was full of gaiety; the king showed himself most -attentive and gallant toward the queen. Then when they had finished the -liqueurs, Cachelin announced:</p> - -<p>"We will have the table cleared away now to give us more room. If it is -not raining, we can go to the balcony for a few minutes." He wanted -Lesable to see the view, although it was night.</p> - -<p>The glass door was thrown open. A moist, warm breeze entered. It was -mild outdoors as in the month of April. They all mounted the step which -separated the dining-room from the large balcony. They could see nothing -but a vague glimmer hovering over the great city, like the gilt halos -which they put on the heads of the saints. In some spots this light seemed -more brilliant, and Cachelin began to explain:</p> - -<p>"See, that is the Eden blazing down there. Look at the line of the -boulevards. Isn't it wonderful, how you can distinguish them! In the -daytime it is splendid, this view. You would have to travel a -long way before you saw anything finer!"</p> - -<p>Lesable was leaning on the iron balustrade, by the side of Cora, who -gazed into the void, silent, distraught, seized of a sudden with one of -those melancholy languors which sometimes oppress the soul. Mlle Charlotte -returned to the room, fearing the damp. Cachelin continued to speak, his -outstretched hand indicating the places where they would find the -Invalides, the Trocadéro, the Arc de Triomphe.</p> - -<p>Lesable in a low voice asked: "And you, Mlle Cora, do you like to look -at Paris from this height?"</p> - -<p>She gave a little shiver, as though she had been dreaming and answered: -"I? Yes, especially at night. I think of all the things which are -happening there in front of us. How many happy people and how many who -are unhappy in all these houses! If one could see everything, how many -things one might learn!"</p> - -<p>He came a little nearer, until their elbows and their shoulders -touched:</p> - -<p>"By moonlight this should be like fairyland."</p> - -<p>She murmured: "Ah, yes, indeed. One would say it was an engraving by -Gustave Doré. What a pleasure it would be to take a long walk on these -roofs."</p> - -<p>Then he questioned her regarding her tastes, her dreams, her pleasures. -And she replied without embarrassment, after the manner of an intelligent, -sensible girl—one who was not more imaginative than was -necessary.</p> - -<p>He found her full of good sense, and he said to himself that it would -be wonderfully sweet to put his arm about that firm, round figure, and to -press a score of little slow kisses, as one drinks in little sips of -excellent brandy, on that fresh cheek, near the ear, just where a ray from -the lamp fell upon it. He felt himself attracted, moved by the sensation -of the proximity of a beautiful woman, by the thirst for her ripe and -virginal flesh and by that delicate seductive influence a young girl -possesses. It seemed to him he could remain there for hours, nights, -weeks, forever, leaning towards her, feeling her near to him, thrilled -by the charm of that contact. And something like a poetic sentiment -stirred his heart in the face of that great Paris, spread out before him, -brilliant in her nocturnal life, her life of pleasure and debauchery. It -seemed to him that he dominated the enormous city, that he hovered over -it; and he thought how delicious it would be to recline every evening on -such a balcony beside a woman, to love her and be loved by her, to press -her to his breast, far above the vast city, and all the earthly loves it -contained, above all the vulgar satisfactions and common desires, near to -the stars.</p> - -<p>There are nights when even the least exalted souls begin to dream, and -Lesable felt as though he were spreading his wings for the first time. -Perhaps he was a little tipsy.</p> - -<p>Cachelin went inside to get his pipe, and came back lighting it. "I -know," he said, "that you do not smoke or I would offer you a cigarette. -There is nothing more delightful than to smoke here. If I had to live on -the ground floor I should die. We could do it if we wanted to, for the -house belongs to my sister, as well as the two neighbouring ones—the -one on the right and the one on the left. She has a nice little revenue -from these alone. They did not cost a great deal, either, when she bought -them." And turning toward the window he cried: "How much did you pay for -the ground here, Charlotte?"</p> - -<p>Then the thin voice of the old spinster was heard speaking. Lesable -could only hear broken fragments of the sentences: "In eighteen hundred -and sixty-three—thirty-five francs—built afterward—the -three houses—a banker—sold for at least five hundred thousand -francs—"</p> - -<p>She talked of her fortune with the complacency of an old soldier who -reels off stories of his campaigns. She enumerated her purchases, the high -offers she had since had, the rise in values, etc.</p> - -<p>Lesable, immediately interested, turned about, resting now his back -against the balustrade of the balcony. But as he still caught only -tantalizing scraps of what the old woman said, he brusquely left his young -companion and went within where he might hear everything; and seating -himself beside Mademoiselle Charlotte conversed with her for a long time -on the probable increase in rents and what income should accrue from money -well placed in stocks and bonds. He left toward midnight, promising to -return.</p> - -<p>A month later there was nothing talked about in the whole office but -the marriage of Jacques Léopold Lesable with Mademoiselle Céleste Coralie, -Cachelin.</p> - - - - -<h5>III</h5> - - -<p>The young people began housekeeping on the same floor with Cachelin and -Mlle Charlotte, in an apartment similar to theirs from which the tenant -was expelled.</p> - -<p>A certain uneasiness, however, disturbed the mind of Lesable: the aunt -had not wished to assure her heritage to Cora by any definitive act. She -had, however, consented to swear "before God" that her will was made and -deposited with Maître Belhomme, the notary. She had promised, moreover, -that her entire fortune should revert to her niece on one sole condition. -Being pressed to reveal this condition she refused to explain herself, but -averred with a little amiable smile that it was very easy of fulfillment.</p> - -<p>Notwithstanding these explanations and the stubbornness of the pious old -woman, Lesable thought he ought to have further assurance; but, as the -young woman pleased him greatly, his desire triumphed over his -incertitude, and he yielded to the determined efforts of Cachelin.</p> - -<p>Now he was happy, notwithstanding that he was always tormented by a -doubt, and he loved his wife, who had in nowise disappointed his -expectations. His life flowed along, tranquil and monotonous. He became, -in several weeks, perfectly inured to his new position of married man, and -he continued to be the same faithful and accomplished employee as -formerly.</p> - -<p>A year rolled away. The first of the year came round again. He did not -receive, to his great surprise, the promotion on which he had counted. -Maze and Pitolet alone passed to the grade above, and Boissel declared -confidentially to Cachelin that he had promised himself to give his two -fellow-clerks a good thrashing at the main entrance before everybody. -But he did nothing.</p> - -<p>For a whole week Lesable did not sleep a wink because of the anguish -he felt at not having been promoted, despite his zeal. He had been working -like a dog; he had filled the place of the assistant-chief, M. Rabot, who -had been in the hospital of Val-de-Grâce for nine months; he had been -coming to the office at half past eight every morning, remaining until -half past six in the evening. What more could they ask? If they could not -appreciate such faithful service he would do like the others, that was -all. To everyone according to his deserts. How could M. Torchebeuf, who -had always treated him like a son, have sacrificed him thus? He wanted to -get at the bottom of the thing. He would go to the chief and have an -explanation with him.</p> - -<p>On Monday morning, therefore, before the arrival of his comrades, he -knocked at the door of that potentate.</p> - -<p>A sharp voice cried: "Come in!" He entered.</p> - -<p>Seated before a great table strewn with papers, his little body bent -over a writing-pad which his big head almost touched, M. Torchebeuf was -busily writing. On seeing his favorite employee he said cheerfully: "Good -morning, Lesable; you are well?"</p> - -<p>The young man replied: "Good morning, dear master, I am very well; and -you?"</p> - -<p>The chief ceased writing and turned about in his revolving chair. His -frail, slender body, clad in a black surtout of severe cut, seemed -ridiculously disproportioned to the great leather-covered chair. The -brilliant rosette of an officer of the Legion of Honour, a hundred times -too large for the small body which it decorated, burned like a live coal -upon his narrow chest. His skull was of considerable size, as though the -entire development of the individual had been at the top, after the manner -of mushrooms.</p> - -<p>His chin was pointed, his cheeks hollow, his eyes protruding, and his -great bulging forehead was surmounted with white hair which he wore thrown -backward.</p> - -<p>M. Torchebeuf said: "Sit down, my friend, and tell me what brings you -here."</p> - -<p>Toward all the other clerks he displayed a military brusqueness, -considering himself to be their captain, for the ministry was to him as -a great vessel, the flag-ship of all the French fleet.</p> - -<p>Lesable, somewhat moved, a little pale, stammered: "Dear master, I come -to ask you if I have been lacking in any way."</p> - -<p>"Certainly not, my dear fellow; why do you ask me such a question?"</p> - -<p>"Because I was a little surprised at not receiving my promotion this -year, as in former years. Allow me to finish my explanation, dear master, -and pardon my audacity. I know that I have obtained from you exceptional -favours and unlooked-for advantages. I know that promotions are only made, -as a general thing, every two or three years; but permit me to remind you -that I furnish the bureau with nearly four times the amount of work of an -ordinary employee, and at least twice as much time. If, then, you put in -the balance the result of labor and the renumeration, you will certainly -find the one far outweighs the other."</p> - -<p>He had carefully prepared this speech, which he judged to be -excellent.</p> - -<p>M. Torchebeuf, surprised, hesitated before replying. At length he said -in a rather cool tone: "Although it is not admissible, on principle, that -these subjects should be discussed between chief and employee, I am -willing to reply for this once to your question regarding your very -meritorious services.</p> - -<p>"I proposed your name for promotion as in preceding years. The chief, -however, crossed out your name on the ground that by your marriage your -fortune was assured. You are to come into an inheritance such as your -modest colleagues can never hope to possess. Is it not, therefore, just to -take into consideration the condition of each one? You will be rich, very -rich. Three hundred francs more per year will be as nothing to you, -whereas this little increase will count for a great deal in the pockets -of the others. There, my friend, you have the reason why you remain -stationary this year."</p> - -<p>Lesable, irritated and covered with confusion, retired.</p> - -<p>That evening at dinner he was disagreeable to his wife. She, however, -was gay and pleasant as usual. Although she was of an even temper, she was -headstrong, and when she desired anything greatly she never yielded her -point. She possessed no longer for him the sensual charm of the early -days, and although he still looked upon her with the eye of desire, for -she was fresh and charming, he experienced at times that disillusion so -near to estrangement which soon comes to two beings who live a common -life. The thousand trivial or grotesque details of existence, the loose -toilettes of the morning, the common linen <i>robe-de-chambre</i>, the -faded <i>peignoir</i>, for they were not rich, and all the necessary home -duties which are seen too near at hand in a poor household—all these -things took the glamour from marriage and withered the flower of poetry -which, from a distance, is so attractive to lovers.</p> - -<p>Aunt Charlotte also rendered herself as disagreeable as possible. She -never went out, but stayed indoors and busied herself in everything which -concerned the two young people. She wished everything conducted in -accordance with her notions, made observations on everything, and as they -had a horrible fear of offending her, they bore it all with resignation, -but also with a suppressed and ever-increasing exasperation.</p> - -<p>She went through their apartment with her slow, dragging step, -constantly saying in her sharp, nasal voice: "You ought to do this; you -certainly ought to do that."</p> - -<p>When the husband and wife found themselves alone together, Lesable, -who was a perfect bundle of nerves, would cry out: "Your aunt is growing -intolerable. I won't stand her here any longer, do you hear? I won't stand -it!" And Cora would reply tranquilly: "What do you want me to do?" Then -flying into a passion he would say: "It is dreadful to have such a -family!"</p> - -<p>And she, still calm, would reply: "Yes, the family is dreadful, but the -inheritance is good, isn't it? Now don't be an imbecile. You have -as much interest as I in managing Aunt Charlotte."</p> - -<p>Then he would be silent, not knowing what to say.</p> - -<p>The aunt now harried them unceasingly on the subject of a child. She -pushed Lesable into corners and hissed in his face: "My nephew, I intend -that you shall be a father before I die. I want to see my little heir. -You cannot make me believe that Cora was not made to be a mother. It is -only necessary to look at her. When one gets married, my nephew, it is -to have a family—to send out little branches. Our holy mother, the -Church, forbids sterile marriages. I know very well that you are not rich, -and that a child causes extra expense. But after me you will want for -nothing. I want a little Lesable, do you understand? I want him."</p> - -<p>When, after fifteen months of marriage, her desire was not yet realized, -she began to have doubts and became very urgent; and she gave Cora in -private advice—practical advice, that of a woman who has known many -things in her time, and who has still the recollection of them on -occasion.</p> - -<p>But one morning she was not able to rise from her bed, feeling very -unwell. As she had never been ill before, Cachelin ran in great agitation -to the door of his son-in-law: "Run quickly for Dr. Barbette," he said, -"and you will tell the chief, won't you, that I shall not be at the office -to-day."</p> - -<p>Lesable passed an agonizing day, incapable of working himself, or of -giving directions to the other clerks. M. Torchebeuf, surprised, remarked: -"You are somewhat distraught to-day, M. Lesable." And Lesable answered -nervously: "I am greatly fatigued, dear master; I have passed the entire -night at the bedside of our aunt, whose condition is very serious."</p> - -<p>The chief replied coldly: "As M. Cachelin is with her I think that -should suffice. I cannot allow my bureau to be disorganized for the -personal reasons of my employees."</p> - -<p>Lesable had placed his watch on the table before him, and he waited for -five o'clock with feverish impatience. As soon as the big clock in the -grand court struck he hurried away, quitting the office, for the first -time, at the regular hour.</p> - -<p>He even took a cab to return home, so great was his anxiety, and he -mounted the staircase at a run. The nurse opened the door; he stammered: -"How is she?"</p> - -<p>"The doctor says that she is very low."</p> - -<p>His heart began to beat rapidly. He was greatly agitated. "Ah, -indeed!"</p> - -<p>Could she, by any chance, be going to die?</p> - -<p>He did not dare to go into the sick woman's chamber now, and he asked -that Cachelin, who was watching by her side, be called.</p> - -<p>His father-in-law appeared immediately, opening the door with -precaution. He had on his dressing-gown and skullcap, as on the pleasant -evenings which he passed in the corner by the fire; and he murmured in a -low voice: "It's very bad, very bad. She has been unconscious since four -o'clock. She even received the viaticum this afternoon."</p> - -<p>Then Lesable felt a weakness descending into his legs, and he sat -down.</p> - -<p>"Where is my wife?"</p> - -<p>"She is at the bedside."</p> - -<p>"What is it the doctor says? Tell me exactly."</p> - -<p>"He says it is a stroke. She may come out of it, but she may also die -to-night."</p> - -<p>"Do you need me? If not, I would rather not go in. It would be very -painful to me to see her in this state."</p> - -<p>"No, go to your own apartment. If there is anything new I will call you -at once."</p> - -<p>Lesable went to his own quarters. The apartment seemed to him -changed—it was larger, clearer. But, as he could not keep still, he went -out onto the balcony.</p> - -<p>They were then in the last days of July, and the great sun, on the point -of disappearing behind the two towers of the Trocadéro, rained fire on the -immense conglomeration of roofs.</p> - -<p>The sky, a brilliant shining red at the horizon, took on, higher up, -tints of pale gold, then of yellow, then of green—a delicate green -flecked with light; then it became blue—a pure and fresh blue -overhead.</p> - -<p>The swallows passed like flashes, scarcely visible, painting against the -vermilion sky the curved and flying profile of their wings. And above the -infinite number of houses, above the far-off country, floated a -rose-tinted cloud, a vapour of fire toward which ascended, as in an -apotheosis, the points of the church-steeples and all the slender -pinnacles of the monuments. The Arc de Triomphe appeared enormous and -black against the conflagration on the horizon, and the dome of the -Invalides seemed another sun fallen from the firmament upon the roof -of a building.</p> - -<p>Lesable held with his two hands to the iron railing, drinking in the -air as one drinks of wine, feeling a desire to leap, to cry out, to make -violent gestures, so completely was he given over to a profound and -triumphant joy. Life seemed to him radiant, the future full of richness! -What would he do? And he began to dream.</p> - -<p>A noise behind him made him tremble. It was his wife. Her eyes were -red, her cheeks slightly swollen: she looked tired. She bent down her -forehead for him to kiss; then she said: "We are going to dine with papa -so that we may be near her. The nurse will not leave her while we are -eating."</p> - -<p>He followed her into the next apartment.</p> - -<p>Cachelin was already at table awaiting his daughter and his son-in-law. -A cold chicken, a potato salad, and a compote of strawberries were on the -buffet, and the soup was smoking in the plates.</p> - -<p>They sat down at table. Cachelin said: "These are days that I wouldn't -like to see often. They are not gay." He said this with a tone of -indifference and a sort of satisfaction in his face. He set himself to -eat with the appetite of a hungry man, finding the chicken excellent and -the potato salad most refreshing.</p> - -<p>But Lesable felt his stomach oppressed and his mind ill at ease. He -hardly ate at all, keeping his ear strained toward the next room, which -was as still as though no one was within it. Nor was Cora hungry, but -silent and tearful she wiped her eyes from time to time with the corner of -her napkin. Cachelin asked: "What did the chief say?" and Lesable gave the -details, which his father-in-law insisted on having to the last -particular, making him repeat everything as though he had been absent -from the ministry for a year.</p> - -<p>"It must have made a sensation there when it became known that she was -sick." And he began to dream of his glorious re-entry when she should -be dead, at the head of all the other clerks. He said, however, as though -in reply to a secret remorse: "It is not that I desire any evil to the -dear woman. God knows I would have her preserved for many years yet, but -it will have that effect all the same. Father Savon will even forget the -Commune on account of it."</p> - -<p>They were commencing to eat their strawberries, when the door of the -sick-room opened. The commotion among the diners was such that with a -common impulse all three of them sprang to their feet, terrified. The -little nurse appeared, still preserving her calm, stupid manner, and said -tranquilly:</p> - -<p>"She has stopped breathing."</p> - -<p>Cachelin, throwing his napkin among the dishes, sprang forward like a -madman; Cora followed him, her heart beating; but Lesable remained -standing near the door, spying from a distance the white spot of the bed, -scarcely visible by the light of the dying day. He saw the back of his -father-in-law as he stooped over the couch, examining but disturbing -nothing; and suddenly he heard his voice, which seemed to him to come -from afar—from very far off—the other end of the world, one of -those voices which pass through our dreams and which tell us astonishing -things. Cachelin said: "It is all over. She is dead." He saw his wife fall -upon her knees and bury her face in the bedclothes, sobbing. Then he -decided to go in, and, as Cachelin straightened himself up, the young man -saw on the whiteness of the pillow the face of Aunt Charlotte, so hollow, -so rigid, so pale, that with its closed eyes it looked like the face of -waxen figure.</p> - -<p>He asked in a tone of anguish: "Is it over?"</p> - -<p>Cachelin, who was gazing at his sister, too, turned towards Lesable, -and the two men looked at each other.</p> - -<p>"Yes," replied the elder, wishing to force his face into an expression -of sorrow, but the two understood one another at a glance, and without -knowing why, instinctively, they shook hands, as though each would thank -the other for a service rendered.</p> - -<p>Then, without losing any time, they quickly occupied themselves with -the offices required by the dead.</p> - -<p>Lesable undertook to fetch the doctor, and to discharge as quickly as -possible the most urgent errands.</p> - -<p>He took his hat and ran down the staircase, in haste to be in the -street, to be alone, to breathe, to think, to rejoice in solitude over his -good fortune.</p> - -<p>When he had attended to his errands, instead of returning he went -across to the boulevard, possessed with a desire to see the crowds, to -mingle in the movement of the happy life of the evening. He felt like -crying out to the passers-by: "I have fifty thousand francs a year," and -he walked along, his hands in his pockets, stopping before the -show-windows, examining the rich stuffs, the jewels, the artistic -furniture, with this joyous thought: "I can buy these for myself now."</p> - -<p>Suddenly he stopped in front of a mourning store and the startling -thought came into his mind: "What if she is not dead? What if they are -mistaken?"</p> - -<p>And he quickly turned homeward with this doubt troubling his mind.</p> - -<p>On entering he demanded: "Has the doctor come?"</p> - -<p>Cachelin replied: "Yes, he has confirmed the death, and is now writing -the certificate."</p> - -<p>They re-entered the death-chamber. Cora was still weeping, seated in an -armchair. She wept very gently, without noise, almost without grief now, -with that facility for tears which women have.</p> - -<p>As soon as they were all three alone in the room Cachelin said in a low -voice: "Now that the nurse has gone to bed, we might look around to see if -anything is concealed in the furniture."</p> - -<p>The two men set about the work. They emptied the drawers, rummaged -through the pockets, unfolded every scrap of paper. By midnight they had -found nothing of interest. Cora had fallen asleep, and she snored a -little, in a regular fashion. César said: "Are we going to stay here until -daybreak?" Lesable, perplexed, thought it was the proper thing. Then the -father-in-law said: "In that case let us bring in armchairs;" and they -went out to get the two big, soft easy-chairs which furnished the room of -the young married couple.</p> - -<p>An hour later the three relatives slept, with uneven snorings, before -the corpse, icy in its eternal immobility.</p> - -<p>They awakened when, at daybreak, the little nurse entered the chamber. -Cachelin immediately said, rubbing his eyes: "I have been a little drowsy -for the last half hour."</p> - -<p>Lesable, who was now sitting very upright, declared: "Yes, I noticed it -very plainly. As for me, I have not lost consciousness for a second; I -just closed my eyes to rest them."</p> - -<p>Cora went to her own room.</p> - -<p>Then Lesable asked with apparent indifference:</p> - -<p>"When do you think we should go to the notary's to find out about the -will?"</p> - -<p>"Why—this morning if you wish."</p> - -<p>"Is it necessary that Cora should accompany us?"</p> - -<p>"That would be better, perhaps, since she is in fact the heir."</p> - -<p>"In that case I shall go and tell her to get ready."</p> - -<p>Lesable went out with a quick step.</p> - -<p>The office of Maître Belhomme was just opening its doors when Cachelin, -Lesable and his wife presented themselves in deep mourning, with faces -full of woe.</p> - -<p>The notary at once appeared and, greeting them, bade them sit down. -Cachelin spoke up: "Monsieur, you remember me: I am the brother of Mlle -Charlotte Cachelin. These are my daughter and my son-in-law. My poor -sister died yesterday; we will bury her to-morrow. As you are the -depositary of her will, we come to ask you if she has not formulated some -request relative to her inhumation, or if you have not some communication -to make to us."</p> - -<p>The notary opened a drawer, took out an envelope from which he drew a -paper, and said:</p> - -<p>"Here, Monsieur, is a duplicate of the will, the contents of which I -will make you acquainted with immediately. The other document, exactly -similar to this, is to remain in my hands." And he read:</p> - - -<p>"I, the undersigned, Victorine-Charlotte Cachelin, here express my last -wishes:</p> - -<p>"I leave my entire fortune, amounting to about one million one hundred -and twenty thousand francs, to the children who will be born of the -marriage of my niece Céleste-Coralie Cachelin, the possession of the -income to go to the parents until the majority of the eldest of their -descendants.</p> - -<p>"The provisions which follow regulate the share which shall fall to -each child, and the share remaining to the parents until their death.</p> - -<p>"In the event of my death before my niece has an heir, all my fortune is -to remain in the hands of my notary, for the term of three years, for my -wish above expressed to be complied with if a child is born during that -time.</p> - -<p>"But in the case of Coralie's not obtaining from Heaven a descendant -during the three years following my death, my fortune is to be -distributed, by the hands of my notary, among the poor and the benevolent -institutions contained in the following list."</p> - - -<p>There followed an interminable series of names of communities, of -societies, of orders, and of instructions.</p> - -<p>Then Maître Belhomme politely placed the paper in the hands of -Cachelin, who stood speechless with astonishment.</p> - -<p>The notary thought he ought to add something by way of explanation to -his visitors.</p> - -<p>"Mlle Cachelin," said he, "when she did me the honour to speak to me -for the first time of her project of making her will according to this -plan, expressed to me the great desire which she had to see an heir of her -race. She replied to all my reasoning by a more and more positive -expression of her wishes, which were based, moreover, on a religious -sentiment, she holding every sterile union to be the sign of divine -malediction. I have not been able to modify her intentions in the least. -Believe me, I regret this fact exceedingly." Then he added, smiling at -Coralie: "But I do not doubt that the <i>desideratum</i> of the deceased -will be quickly realized."</p> - -<p>And the three relatives went away, too bewildered to think of -anything.</p> - -<p>Side by side they walked home, without speaking, ashamed and furious, -as though they had robbed each other. All of Cora's grief, even, had -suddenly disappeared, the ingratitude of her aunt driving away all -disposition to weep.</p> - -<p>At last Lesable, whose pale lips were drawn with rage, said to his -father-in-law:</p> - -<p>"Pass me that paper, that I may read it with my own eyes." Cachelin -handed him the document and the young man began to read. He had stopped -on the footpath and, jostled by the passers-by, he stood there scanning -the words with his piercing and practical eye. The two others waited a few -steps in front, still silent.</p> - -<p>Then he handed back the paper, saying:</p> - -<p>"There is nothing to be done. She has tricked us beautifully."</p> - -<p>Cachelin, who was irritated by the failure of his hopes, replied:</p> - -<p>"It was for you to have a child, damn it! You knew well enough that she -wanted it long ago."</p> - -<p>Lesable shrugged his shoulders without answering.</p> - -<p>On entering they found a crowd of people awaiting them, those whose -calling brings them where a corpse is. Lesable went to his room, not -wishing to be bothered, and César spoke roughly to all of them, crying out -to them to leave him in peace, demanding that they get through with it as -quickly as possible, thinking that they were very long in relieving him of -the dead.</p> - -<p>Cora, shut up in her room, made no sound, but after an hour Cachelin -came and rapped on the door of his son-in-law.</p> - -<p>"I come, my dear Léopold," said he, "to submit some reflections to you, -for it is necessary to come to some understanding. My opinion is that we -should give her a befitting funeral in order to give no hint at the -Ministry of what has happened. We will arrange about the expense. Besides, -nothing is lost. You have not been married very long, and it would be too -great a misfortune if you had no children. You must set about it, that's -all. And now to business. Will you drop in at the Ministry after a while? -I am going to address the envelopes for the death announcements."</p> - -<p>Lesable grudgingly agreed that his father-in-law was right, and they -sat down face to face, each at an end of a long table, to fill in the -black-bordered cards.</p> - -<p>Then they lunched. Cora reappeared, indifferent as though nothing of -what had passed concerned her, and she ate a good deal, having fasted the -evening before.</p> - -<p>As soon as the meal was finished she returned to her room. Lesable left -to go to the Ministry, and Cachelin installed himself on the balcony, his -chair tilted back, in order to enjoy a pipe.</p> - -<p>The broad sun of a summer day fell perpendicularly upon the multitude -of roofs, some of which were pierced with windows which blazed as with -fire and threw back the dazzling rays which the sight could not -sustain.</p> - -<p>And Cachelin, in his shirt-sleeves, looked, with his eyes blinking -under this stream of light, upon the green hillocks far, far away beyond -the great city, beyond the dusty suburbs. He thought of how the Seine -flowed there, broad, calm, and fresh, at the foot of hills which had trees -on their slopes, and how much better it would be to be lying on one's -stomach in that greenery on the bank of the river, gazing into the water, -than to be sitting on the burning lead of his balcony. And an uneasiness -oppressed him, the tormenting thought, the grievous sensation of their -disaster, of that unfortunate, unexpected thing, so much more bitter and -brutal because the hope had been so ardent and so long-lived; and he said -aloud, as people do in time of great trouble of mind, in the uprooting of -a fixed idea: "Damned old witch!"</p> - -<p>Behind him in the bedroom he heard the movements of those who were -busying themselves with the preparations for the funeral, and the -continuous noise of the hammer which nailed up the coffin. He had not -looked at his sister since his visit to the lawyer.</p> - -<p>But little by little the warmth, the gaiety, the clear charm of this -beautiful day penetrated to his mind and his soul, and he thought that -things were not so desperate. Why should his daughter not have a child? -She had not been married two years yet! His son-in-law appeared vigorous, -well built, and in good health, although small. They would have a child, -and then besides, by Jupiter, they had to!</p> - -<p>Lesable furtively entered the Ministry and slunk to his room. He found -on the table a paper bearing these words: "The chief wants you." He made a -gesture of impatience. He felt a revolt against this yoke which had again -fallen on his back; then a sudden and violent desire to succeed seized -him. He would be chief in his turn, and soon; he would then go higher -still. Without removing his frock-coat he went at once to M. Torchebeuf. -He presented himself with one of those solemn faces which one assumes on -sad occasions. But there was something more—an expression of sincere -and profound sorrow, that involuntary dejection which a deep -disappointment leaves upon the features.</p> - -<p>The head of the chief was bent over his papers. He raised it suddenly, -and said in a sharp tone: "I have needed you all morning. Why have you -not come?"</p> - -<p>Lesable replied: "Dear master, we have had the misfortune to lose my -aunt. Mademoiselle Cachelin, and I have just come to ask you to attend the -funeral, which will take place to-morrow."</p> - -<p>The frown on the brow of M. Torchebeuf immediately disappeared, and he -replied with a touch of consideration: "That alters the case, my dear -friend. I thank you and give you the day, for you must have a great deal -to attend to."</p> - -<p>But Lesable, desiring to show his zeal, said:</p> - -<p>"Thanks, dear master, everything is finished, and I expected to remain -here until the regular hour for closing."</p> - -<p>And he returned to his desk.</p> - -<p>The news soon spread, and his fellows came from all the departments to -bring him their congratulation rather than their condolences, and also to -see how he bore himself. He endured their speeches and their looks with -the resigned appearance of an actor, and also with a tact which astonished -them.</p> - -<p>"He conducts himself very well," said some.</p> - -<p>"Well he may," added others; "he ought to be content—lucky -dog!"</p> - -<p>Maze, more audacious than any of them, asked with the careless air -of a man of the world: "Do you know exactly the amount of the fortune?"</p> - -<p>Lesable replied in a perfectly disinterested tone: "No, not precisely. -The will says about twelve hundred thousand francs. I know that, as the -notary was obliged to make us acquainted immediately with certain clauses -relative to the funeral."</p> - -<p>It was the general opinion that Lesable would not remain in the -Ministry. With an income of sixty thousand francs one does not remain a -quill-driver. One is somebody and can be something according to one's -inclination.</p> - -<p>Some thought that he was aiming at the Cabinet; others believed that he -thought of the Chamber of Deputies. The chief was expecting to receive -his resignation to transmit to the head of the department.</p> - -<p>The entire Ministry came to the funeral, which was thought to be very -meagre. But the word was around: "It is Mlle Cachelin herself who -wished it so. It was in the will."</p> - -<p>On the very next day Cachelin was at his post, and Lesable, after a -week of indisposition, also returned, a little pale but assiduous and -zealous as formerly. One would have said that nothing unlooked-for had -happened to them. It was only remarked that they ostentatiously smoked -very large cigars, that they talked of consols, railways, of stocks and -shares, like men who have scrip in their pockets, and it became known, in -a short time, that they had rented a country-house in the neighbourhood -of Paris, in which to spend the summer season.</p> - -<p>"They are miserly like the old woman," they said. "It runs in the -family. Birds of a feather flock together. But it doesn't look well to -retain a clerkship with such a fortune."</p> - -<p>In a short time the matter was forgotten. They were rated and -judged.</p> - - - - -<h5>IV</h5> - - -<p>After the burial of Aunt Charlotte, Lesable thought again of the -million, and, tormented by a rage all the more violent because it must -be kept secret, he hated all the world on account of his deplorable -ill-luck. "Why, having been married two years, have I not had a child?" he -asked himself, and the fear of seeing his household remain sterile made -his heart sink. Then, as an urchin who sees from afar the shining prize -at the end of the goal, and swears to himself to attain it, and exerts -all the vigour and tenacity necessary to reach it, so Lesable took the -desperate resolution to become a parent. So many others had, why might -not he also? Perhaps he had been negligent, careless, ignorant of -something, the consequence of complete indifference. Never having felt a -violent desire for an heir, he had never directed all his energies to -obtaining this result. He determined to concentrate all his efforts; he -would neglect nothing, and he must succeed because he so much desired to. -But when he returned home, he felt ill enough to take to his bed. The -disappointment had been too bitter and he bowed himself to the blow.</p> - -<p>This nervous strain brought him to such a state that the physician -judged his condition serious enough to prescribe absolute rest as well as -an interminable course of treatment. They feared brain fever. In eight -days, however, he was about again and resumed his work at the office. But -he dare not yet, he believed, approach the conjugal bed. He hesitated and -trembled as a general who is going to give battle, a battle on which -depends his future. Each evening he awaited the next day, hoping for an -access of virility and energy, a happy moment in which he might accomplish -his desire. He felt his pulse every minute, and if it was too feeble or -too rapid, he took a tonic, ate raw meat, and strengthened himself in -every possible way. As his improvement was not very rapid, Lesable -determined to pass the hot months in the country. He persuaded himself -that the country air would be a sovereign balm for his weakness, and he -assured himself of the accomplishment of the hoped-for success. He said -to his father-in-law, in a confidential tone: "When we are once in the -country my health will improve, and all will go well." That one word -"country" seemed to carry for him a mysterious significance.</p> - -<p>They rented a small house in the village of Bezons, and the whole -family took up their residence there. The two men started out on foot -every morning for the station of Colombes, returning in the evening.</p> - -<p>Cora, enchanted at living thus on the banks of the peaceful river, -would seat herself on the sward, gather flowers, and bring home great -bunches of delicate, trembling ferns.</p> - -<p>Every evening they all three walked along the river as far as the -tollgate of Morue, and, entering, drank a bottle of beer at the Restaurant -des Tilleuls. The river, retarded by the long file of stakes, poured -between them and leaped, bubbled, and foamed for the distance of a hundred -feet. The roaring of the falls made the ground tremble, while a fine mist -of vapour floated in the air, rising from the cascade like a light smoke, -throwing on the surroundings a delightful odour of spray and a savour -of wet earth. As night fell, a great light below and in front indicated -Paris, and Cachelin exclaimed every evening: "What a city, after all!"</p> - -<p>From time to time, a train, passing on the iron bridge which crossed -the end of the island, made a rolling as of thunder and suddenly -disappeared, sometimes to the left, sometimes to the right, toward -Paris or toward the sea. They returned home slowly, seating themselves on -the bank, watching the moon rise and pour on the river her soft and yellow -light, which seemed to fuse with the water, and the wrinkles of the -current moved like waves of fire. The toads uttered their short and -metallic cries. The calls of the night birds rang out on the air, and -sometimes a large, mute shadow glided on the river, troubling her calm and -luminous course. It was a band of freebooters who, throwing in suddenly -their net, drew it back without noise into their boat, dragging in its -vast and sombre mesh a shoal of shining and trembling gudgeons, like a -treasure drawn from the bottom of the sea, a living treasure of silver -fish.</p> - -<p>Cora, deeply moved, leaned tenderly upon the arm of her husband, whose -design she suspected, although nothing of it had been spoken between -them. It was for them like a new betrothal, a second expectation of the -kiss of love. Sometimes he would bestow a furtive caress behind her ear, -on that charming spot of tender flesh where curls the first hair. She -responded by a pressure of the hand, and they attracted while refusing -each other, incited and held back by a will more energetic, by the phantom -of the million. Cachelin, appeased by the hope which he felt around him, -was happy. He drank deeply and ate much, feeling, born in him at twilight, -the hour of poetry, that foolish tenderness which comes to the dullest -persons in certain aspects of nature: a rain of light through the -branches, a sunset behind the distant hills, with purple reflections on -the water. He declared: "As for me, in the presence of such things I -believe in God. It touches me here," and he indicated the pit of his -stomach. "I feel myself turned upside down. I feel queer. It seems to me -I have been steeped in a bath which makes me want to cry."</p> - -<p>As for Lesable, his health rapidly improved. He was seized with sudden -ardours, which he did not understand, and he felt a desire to run like -a young colt, to roll in the grass and neigh with delight.</p> - -<p>He thought the favoured time was approaching. It was a true wedding -night. Then they had a new-honeymoon full of caresses and hopes. Later -they perceived that their experiments were fruitless and their confidence -was in vain.</p> - -<p>But in the midst of despair Lesable did not lose courage; he continued -to make the most superhuman efforts. His wife, moved by the same desire -and trembling with the same fear, more robust too than he, encouraged him -in his attempts and stimulated his flagging ardour. They returned to Paris -in the early days of October.</p> - -<p>Life became hard for them again. Unkind words fell from their lips, and -Cachelin, who scented the situation, harassed them with the coarse and -venomous epigrams of an old trooper.</p> - -<p>And one incessant thought pursued them, tortured them, and sharpened -their mutual rancour—that of the unattainable legacy. Cora now -carried a sharp tongue, and lashed her husband. She treated him like a -little boy, a mere brat, a man of no importance. Cachelin at every meal -repeated: "If I were rich, I should have children in plenty; when one is -poor it is necessary to be reasonable." Then turning to his daughter he -added: "You must be like me; but there—" and he looked at his -son-in-law significantly, accompanying the look with a movement of the -shoulders full of contempt.</p> - -<p>Lesable made no reply. He felt himself to be a superior man allied to -a family of boors.</p> - -<p>At the Ministry they noticed the alteration in his manner, and even the -chief one day asked him: "Are you not ill? You appear to me to be somewhat -changed."</p> - -<p>Lesable replied: "Not at all, my dear sir. I am a little tired, perhaps, -having worked very constantly, as you may have seen."</p> - -<p>He counted very surely on his promotion at the end of the year, and he -had resumed, in this hope, the laborious life of a model employee. But -among the meagre bonuses that were distributed Lesable's was the smallest -of all, and Cachelin received nothing. Struck to the heart, Lesable sought -the chief, whom, for the first time, he addressed as "Monsieur."</p> - -<p>"Of what use is it, Monsieur, to work as I do, if I do not reap any -reward?"</p> - -<p>The head of Monsieur Torchebeuf appeared to bristle.</p> - -<p>"I have already told you. Monsieur Lesable, that I will admit of no -discussion of this nature between us. I repeat to you again that your -claim is unreasonable, your actual fortune being so great as compared -to the poverty of your colleagues—"</p> - -<p>Lesable could not contain himself. "But I have nothing, Monsieur. Our -aunt has left her fortune to the first child which shall be born of our -marriage. We live, my father-in-law and I, on our salaries."</p> - -<p>The chief was greatly surprised. "If you have no fortune to-day, you -will be rich, in any case, at some future day. It amounts to the same -thing."</p> - -<p>Lesable withdrew, more cast down by his failure than by the uncertainty -of Aunt Charlotte's million.</p> - -<p>As Cachelin came to his desk some days later the handsome Maze entered -with a smile on his lips; next Pitolet appeared, his eyes shining; then -Boissel opened the door, and advanced with an excited air, tittering and -exchanging meaning looks with the others. Old Savon continued his copying, -his clay pipe in the corner of his mouth, seated on his high chair, his -feet twisted about the rounds after the fashion of little boys. Nobody -spoke. They seemed to be waiting for something, and Cachelin continued -to register his papers, announcing in a loud voice according to his -custom: "Toulon: Furniture for the officers of the Richelieu. Lorient: -Diving apparatus for the Desaix. Brest: Samples of sails of English -manufacture."</p> - -<p>Lesable entered. He came now every morning for information in regard -to the affairs which concerned him, his father-in-law no longer taking the -trouble to send him instructions by the office boy.</p> - -<p>While he was looking amongst the papers spread out on the table of the -chief-clerk, Maze watched him from his corner, rubbing his hands, and -Pitolet, who was rolling a cigarette, seemed full of mirth he could not -control. He turned toward the copying-clerk:</p> - -<p>"Say now, papa Savon, you have learned many things in your time, -haven't you?"</p> - -<p>The old man, knowing they meant to tease him and to speak to him of -his wife, did not reply.</p> - -<p>Pitolet began: "You must have discovered the secret of begetting -children, since you have had several."</p> - -<p>The old clerk raised his head. "You know, M. Pitolet, that I do like -any joking on this subject. I have had the misfortune to marry an unworthy -woman, and when I became convinced of her faithlessness I separated from -her."</p> - -<p>Maze asked in an indifferent tone: "You have had several proofs of her -infidelity, have you not?"</p> - -<p>And the old man gravely replied: "I have."</p> - -<p>Pitolet put in again: "That has not prevented you from becoming the -father of three or four children, I am told."</p> - -<p>The poor old man, growing very red, stammered: "You are trying to -wound me. Monsieur Pitolet; but you will not succeed. My wife has had, -in fact, three children. I have reason to believe that the first born is -mine, but I deny the two others."</p> - -<p>Pitolet continued: "Everybody says, in truth, that the first one is -yours. That is sufficient. It is very gratifying to have a child, very -gratifying and very delightful. I wager Lesable there would be enchanted -to have one—only one, like you."</p> - -<p>Cachelin had stopped writing. He did not laugh, although old Savon was -his butt ordinarily, and he had poured out his stock of cruel jokes on the -subject of the old clerk's conjugal sorrows.</p> - -<p>Lesable had collected his papers; but feeling himself attacked he -wished to remain, held back by pride, confused and irritated, and wishing -to know who had betrayed his secret.</p> - -<p>Then the recollection of the confidence he had made to his chief came -back to him, and he at once understood it was necessary to express his -indignation if he did not wish to become the butt of the whole -Ministry.</p> - -<p>Boissel marched up and down the room, all the time tittering. He -imitated the hoarse voices of the street criers, and bellowed: "The secret -of begetting children, for ten centimes—two sous! Buy the secret of -begetting children—revealed by Monsieur Savon, with many horrible -details." Everybody began to laugh except Lesable and his father-in-law, -and Pitolet, turning toward the order-clerk, said: "What is the matter -with you, Cachelin? You seem to have lost your habitual gaiety. One would -think that you do not find it amusing to believe that old Savon could have -had a child by his wife. I think it very funny. Everybody cannot do as -much."</p> - -<p>Lesable pretended to be deeply absorbed in his papers and to hear -nothing of what was going on about him, but he was as white as a -ghost.</p> - -<p>Boissel took up the strain in the same mocking voice: "The utility of -heirs for getting an inheritance, ten centimes, two sous; who will -buy?"</p> - -<p>Then Maze, who thought this was very poor sort of wit, and who -personally was enraged at Lesable having robbed him of the hope of a -fortune which he had secretly cherished, said pointedly: "What is the -matter with you, Lesable? You are very pale."</p> - -<p>Lesable raised his head and looked his colleague full in the face. He -hesitated a second, while his lip trembled as he tried to formulate a -bitter reply, but, unable to find the phrase he sought, he responded: -"There is nothing the matter with me. I am only astonished that you -display so much delicacy."</p> - -<p>Maze, who stood with his back to the fire and his hands under his -coat-tails, replied, laughing: "One does the best one can, old man. We -are like you, we do not always succeed—"</p> - -<p>An explosion of laughter interrupted his words. Old Savon, who now -vaguely comprehended that the clerks no longer addressed their railleries -to him, looked around with his mouth gaping and his pen suspended in the -air. And Cachelin waited, ready to come to blows with the first person who -came in his way.</p> - -<p>Lesable stammered: "I do not understand. In what have I not -succeeded?"</p> - -<p>The handsome Maze dropped the tails of his coat, and began to stroke -his mustache. "I know that you ordinarily succeed in all that you -undertake. I have done wrong to speak of you. Besides, we were speaking -of old Savon's children, and not of yours, as you haven't any. Now since -you succeed in all your enterprises, it is evident that, if you do not -have children, it is because you do not want them."</p> - -<p>"What business is it of yours?" demanded Lesable sharply.</p> - -<p>At this provoking tone Maze in his turn raised his voice: "Hold on! -what do you take me for? Try to be polite, or I'll settle you!"</p> - -<p>Lesable trembled with anger, and losing all self-control, replied: -"Monsieur Maze, I am not, like you, a great booby, or a great coxcomb. -And I forbid you ever to speak to me again. I care neither for you nor -your kind." And he threw a look of defiance at Pitolet and Boissel.</p> - -<p>Maze suddenly understood that true force is in calmness and irony, but -wounded in his most vulnerable part—his vanity—he wished to -strike his enemy to the very heart, and replied in the protecting tone of -a benevolent well-wisher, but with rage in his eyes: "My dear Lesable, you -pass all bounds. But I understand your vexation. It is pitiful to lose a -fortune, and to lose it for so little, for a thing so easy, so simple. If -you wish, I will do you this service myself, for nothing, out of pure -friendship. It is only an affair of five minutes—"</p> - -<p>He was still speaking when Lesable hurled the inkstand of old Savon -full at his head.</p> - -<p>A flood of ink covered his face and metamorphosed him into a negro with -surprising rapidity. He sprang forward, rolling the whites of his eyes, -with his hands raised ready to strike. But Cachelin covered his -son-in-law, and grasping Maze by the arms pushed him aside, and, after -pounding him well, dashed him against the wall. Maze disengaged himself -with a violent effort, and rushed through the door, crying to the two men: -"You shall soon hear from me!" Pitolet and Boissel followed him.</p> - -<p>Boissel explained his moderation by declaring he should have killed -some one if he had taken part in the struggle.</p> - -<p>As soon as he entered his room Maze endeavoured to remove the stain, -but without success. The ink was violet, and was indelible and -ineffaceable. He stood before his glass furious and disconsolate, rubbing -savagely at his face with a napkin rolled in a knot. He obtained only a -richer black, mixed with red, the blood coming to the surface with the -friction.</p> - -<p>Boissel and Pitolet strove to advise and console him. One suggested the -application of pure olive oil, the other prescribed a bath of ammonia. The -office boy was sent to ask the advice of a chemist. He brought back a -yellow liquid and pumice stone, which was used with no result.</p> - -<p>Maze, disheartened, sank into a chair and declared: "Now it only -remains to settle the question of honour. Will you act as seconds for me, -and demand of Monsieur Lesable a sufficient apology, or the reparation by -arms?"</p> - -<p>They both at once consented, and began to discuss the steps to be -taken. They had no idea about affairs of this kind, but not wishing to -betray their ignorance, and desiring to appear correct, their advice were -timorous and conflicting. It was finally decided that they should consult -a sea captain who was attached to the Ministry to look after the coal -distribution. But he was as ignorant as they were. After some moments of -reflection, however, he advised them to go and see Lesable and ask to be -put in touch with two of his friends.</p> - -<p>As they proceeded to the office of their colleague, Boissel suddenly -stopped. "Is it not imperative that we should have gloves?" he asked.</p> - -<p>Pitolet hesitated an instant. "Perhaps it is," he replied seriously. -But in order to procure the gloves it would have been necessary to go out, -and the chief was rather severe.</p> - -<p>They sent the office boy to bring an assortment from the nearest -glove-store.</p> - -<p>To decide upon the colour was a question of time. Boissel preferred -black. Pitolet thought that shade out of place in the circumstances. At -last they chose violet.</p> - -<p>Seeing the two men enter gloved and solemn, Lesable raised his head -and brusquely demanded: "What do you want?"</p> - -<p>Pitolet replied: "Monsieur, we are charged by our friend. Monsieur -Maze, to ask of you an apology, or a reparation by arms for the insult you -have inflicted on him."</p> - -<p>Lesable, still greatly exasperated, cried: "What, he insults me, and -sends you to provoke me? Tell him that I despise him—that I despise -all he can say or do."</p> - -<p>Boissel advanced with a tragic air. "You will force us. Monsieur, to -publish in the papers an official report, which will be very disagreeable -to you."</p> - -<p>Pitolet maliciously added: "And which will gravely injure your honour, -and your future advancement."</p> - -<p>Lesable, overwhelmed, looked at them. What should he do? He sought to -gain time. "Will you wait a moment in the office of Monsieur Pitolet? -You shall have my answer in ten minutes."</p> - -<p>When at last alone he looked around him, seeking for some counsel, some -protection.</p> - -<p>A duel! He was going to fight a duel!</p> - -<p>He sat terrified, with a beating heart. He, a peaceful man, who had -never dreamed of such a possibility, who was not prepared for the risk, -whose courage was not equal to such a formidable event. He rose from his -chair and sat down again, his heart wildly beating, his legs sinking under -him. His anger and his strength had totally deserted him.</p> - -<p>But the thought of the opinion of the Ministry, the gossip the story -would make among his acquaintances, aroused his failing pride, and, not -knowing what to decide, he sought his chief to ask his advice. M. -Torchebeuf was surprised and perplexed. An armed encounter seemed to him -unnecessary, and he thought a duel would demoralise the service. He -replied: "I can give you no advice. It is a question of honour, which does -not concern me. Do you wish that I should give you a note to Commandant -Bouc? He is a competent man in such matters, and will be able to advise -you."</p> - -<p>Lesable accepted the offer, and saw the commandant, who even consented -to be his second; he took an under-chief for another.</p> - -<p>Boissel and Pitolet waited with their gloves on. They had borrowed two -chairs from another office, in order to have four seats.</p> - -<p>They saluted gravely and took their places, while Pitolet explained -the situation. The commandant, having listened attentively, replied: "The -case is serious, but it does not appear to me to be irreparable. -Everything depends on the intention." He was a sly old sailor, who was -enjoying himself.</p> - -<p>A long discussion began regarding the reciprocal apologies the -principals should make. M. Maze acknowledging not to have had the -intention to offend, M. Lesable should hasten to avow himself in the wrong -in throwing the inkstand at the head of M. Maze, and pray to be excused -for his inconsiderate violence.</p> - -<p>The four proxies returned to their clients.</p> - -<p>Maze, seated before his table, was agitated by the dread of the -possible duel, although expecting to see his adversary retreat, and -regarded his face attentively in one of those little, round tin mirrors -which the employees concealed in a drawer for the purpose of adjusting -their hair and ties before leaving in the evening. He read the letter of -apology which had been prepared by the seconds of both parties, and -declared with evident satisfaction: "That appears to me to be very -honourable; I am willing to sign it."</p> - -<p>Lesable, for his part, accepted without discussion the arrangement of -his seconds, and declared: "As this is the result of your mutual -consultation, I can but acquiesce."</p> - -<p>The four plenipotentiaries assembled. The letters were exchanged, they -saluted gravely, and so the affair terminated. An extraordinary excitement -reigned in the Ministry. The employees, carrying the news, passed from -one door to the other, and lingered to gossip about in the lobbies. When -they heard how the affair had ended, there was general disappointment. -Some one said: "Still, that will not get Lesable a baby." And the saying -took. One employee made a rhyme upon it.</p> - -<p>But at the moment when everything seemed adjusted, a difficulty -suggested itself to Boissel: "What would be the attitude of the two -adversaries when they found themselves face to face? Would they speak, or -would they ignore each other?" It was decided that they should meet, as if -by chance, in the office of the chief, and exchange, in the presence -of M. Torchebeuf, some words of politeness.</p> - -<p>This ceremony was accordingly accomplished, and Maze, having sent for -a carriage, returned home, to try to remove the stain from his face.</p> - -<p>Lesable and Cachelin drove home together without speaking, mutually -exasperated, each blaming the other for the disgraceful affair.</p> - -<p>The moment he entered the house, Lesable threw his hat violently on -the table and cried to his wife: "I have had enough of it! I have a -duel on your account now!" She looked at him in angry surprise.</p> - -<p>"A duel? How is that?"</p> - -<p>"Because Maze has insulted me on your account."</p> - -<p>She approached him. "On my account? How?"</p> - -<p>He threw himself passionately into an armchair and exclaimed: "He has -insulted me—no need to say any more about it."</p> - -<p>But she would know. "You must repeat to me the words he used about -me."</p> - -<p>Lesable blushed, and then stammered: "He told me—he told -me—it was in regard to your sterility."</p> - -<p>She gave a start; then recoiling in fury, the paternal rudeness showing -through the woman's nature, she burst out:</p> - -<p>"I! I am sterile, am I? What does that clown know about it? Sterile -with you, yes; because you are not a man. But if I had married another, no -matter who, do you hear? I should have had children. Ah, you had better -talk! It has cost me dear to have married a softy like you! And what did -you reply to this good-for-nothing?"</p> - -<p>Lesable, frightened before this storm, stuttered: "I—I slapped -his face."</p> - -<p>She looked at him in astonishment.</p> - -<p>"And what did he do?"</p> - -<p>"He sent me a challenge; that was all."</p> - -<p>She was instantly interested, attracted, like all women, by the -dramatic element, and she asked, immediately softened, and suddenly seized -with a sort of esteem for this man who was going to risk his life for her -sake:</p> - -<p>"When are you going to fight him?"</p> - -<p>He replied tranquilly: "We are not going to fight: the matter has been -arranged by our seconds. Maze has sent me an apology."</p> - -<p>Transported with rage, she boxed his ears. "Ah, he insults me in your -presence, and you permit it, and refuse to fight him! It needed but this -to make you a coward."</p> - -<p>Enraged at this he cried: "I command you to hold your tongue. I know -better than you do how to protect my honour. To convince you, here is the -letter of M. Maze; take it and read it, and see for yourself."</p> - -<p>She took the letter, ran her eye over it, and divining the whole truth, -sneered: "You wrote him a letter also? You are afraid of each other. What -cowards men are! If we were in your place, we women—after all, it is -I who have been insulted, your wife, and you are willing to let it pass. -That need not astonish me, for you are not man enough to beget a child. -That explains everything. You are as impotent before women as you are -cowardly among men. Ah, I have married a nice worm!"</p> - -<p>She had suddenly assumed the voice and gestures of her father, the -coarse and vulgar manners of an old trooper, and the intonations of a -man.</p> - -<p>Standing before him, her hands on her hips, tall, strong, vigorous, her -chest protruding, her cheeks flushed, her voice deep and vibrant, she -looked at this little man seated in front of her, a trifle bald, clean -shaven except for the short side-whiskers of the lawyer, and she felt a -desire to crush, to strangle him.</p> - -<p>She continued: "You are capable of nothing—of nothing whatever! -You allow everybody at the Ministry, even, to be promoted over your -head!"</p> - -<p>The door opened, and Cachelin entered, attracted by the sound of their -voices, and demanded to know what was the matter. "I told the truth to -that worm!" answered Cora.</p> - -<p>Lesable raised his eyes, and for the first time noticed the resemblance -between father and daughter. It seemed to him that a veil was lifted and -the pair were revealed in their true colours—the same coarse nature -was common to both; and he, a ruined man, was condemned to live between -the two forever.</p> - -<p>Cachelin exclaimed: "If you only could get a divorce! It is not very -satisfactory to have married a capon."</p> - -<p>At that word, trembling and blazing with fury, Lesable sprang up with -a bound. He rushed at his father-in-law shouting: "Get out of here! -Begone! You are in my house—do you understand?—and I order you -to leave it." He seized from the table a bottle of sedative water and -brandished it like a club.</p> - -<p>Cachelin, intimidated, backed out of the room, muttering: "What will he -do next, I wonder?"</p> - -<p>But Lesable was too angry to be easily appeased. He turned upon his -wife, who regarded this outburst in astonishment, and placing the bottle -on the table cried: "As for you—as for you—" But as words -failed him to express his rage, he was choked into silence, and stood -glaring at her with a distorted visage.</p> - -<p>She began to laugh.</p> - -<p>This mocking laughter put him beside himself, and springing upon her he -seized her by the throat with his left hand, while he boxed her ears -furiously with the right. She recoiled, terrified and suffocating, and -fell backward on the bed, while he continued to strike her. Suddenly he -raised himself, out of breath, exhausted and heartily ashamed of his -brutality; he stammered: "There—there—there—that will -do!"</p> - -<p>But she did not move; it seemed as if he had killed her. She lay on her -back, on the side of the bed, her face concealed by her hands.</p> - -<p>He approached her in alarm, wondering what had happened, and expecting -her to uncover her face and look at him. She made no sign, and suspense -becoming intolerable he murmured: "Cora, Cora, speak!" But she did not -move or reply.</p> - -<p>What was the matter with her? What was she going to do?</p> - -<p>His rage had passed—fallen as suddenly as it had been aroused. He -felt that his conduct was odious, almost criminal. He had beaten his wife, -his own wife—he who was circumspect, cold, and courteous. And in the -softness his remorse awakened, he would ask her forgiveness. He threw -himself on his knees at her side and covered with kisses the cheek he had -just smitten. He softly touched the end of a finger of the hand that -covered her face. She seemed to feel nothing. He coaxed her, caressing her -as one caresses a beaten dog. She took no notice of him. "Cora, listen: I -have done wrong! Cora, hear me!" She seemed as one dead. Then he tried -to take her hand from her face. It obeyed his effort passively, and he saw -an open eye, which stared at him with a fixed and alarming gaze.</p> - -<p>He continued: "Listen, Cora, I was transported with fury. It was your -father who drove me to do this shameful thing. A man cannot take such an -insult as that." She made no reply, as if she heard nothing. He did not -know what to say, or what to do. He kissed her under the ear, and raising -himself he saw a tear in the corner of her eye, a great tear which rolled -slowly down her cheek, and her eyelids fluttered and closed convulsively. -He was seized with shame, deeply moved, and opening his arms he threw -himself on his wife; he removed the other hand from her face and covered -it with kisses, crying: "My poor Cora, forgive me! forgive me!"</p> - -<p>Still she wept, without a sound, without a sob, as one weeps from the -deepest grief. He held her pressed closely against him, caressing her and -whispering in her ear all the tender words he could command. But she -remained insensible. However, she ceased to weep. They continued thus a -long time locked in each other's arms.</p> - -<p>The night fell, folding in its sombre shadow the little room; and when -it was entirely dark he was emboldened to solicit her pardon in a manner -that was calculated to revive their hopes.</p> - -<p>When they had risen he resumed his ordinary voice and manner, as if -nothing had happened. She appeared, on the contrary, softened, and spoke -in a gentler tone than usual, regarding her husband with submissive, -almost caressing eyes, as if this unexpected correction had relaxed her -nerves and softened her heart.</p> - -<p>Lesable said quietly: "Your father must be tired of being alone so -long. It will soon be dinner-time; go and fetch him."</p> - -<p>She obeyed him.</p> - -<p>It was seven o'clock indeed, and the little maid announced dinner, as -Cachelin, serene and smiling, appeared with his daughter. They seated -themselves at table and talked on this evening with more cordiality -than they had done for a long time, as if something agreeable had happened -to everybody.</p> - - - - -<h5>V</h5> - - -<p>But their hopes, always sustained, always renewed, ended in nothing. -From month to month their expectations declined, in spite of the -persistence of Lesable and the co-operation of his wife. They were -consumed with anxiety. Each without ceasing reproached the other for their -want of success, and the husband in despair, emaciated, fatigued, had to -suffer all the vulgarity of Cachelin, who in their domestic warfare called -him "M. Lecoq," in remembrance, no doubt, of the day that he missed -receiving a bottle in his face for having called his son-in-law a -capon.</p> - -<p>He and his daughter, whose interests were in league, enraged by the -constant thought of this great fortune so near, and yet impossible to -seize, racked their invention to humiliate and torture this impotent -man, who was the cause of all their misfortune.</p> - -<p>As they sat at table, Cora repeated each day: "There is very little -for dinner. If we were rich, it would be otherwise. It is not my -fault."</p> - -<p>When Lesable set out for his office, she called from her room: "Do not -forget your umbrella or you will come back as muddy as an omnibus wheel. -It's not my fault that you are still obliged to follow the trade of a -quill-driver."</p> - -<p>When she went out herself, she never failed to cry: "If I had married -another man, I should have a carriage of my own."</p> - -<p>Every hour and on every occasion she harped on this subject. She -pricked her husband with reproaches, lashed him with insult, held him -alone guilty, and made him responsible for the loss of the fortune that -should have been hers.</p> - -<p>At last, one evening, losing all patience, Lesable exclaimed: "In the -dog's name, can't you hold your tongue? From first to last it is your -fault, and yours alone, do you hear, if we have not a child, because -I have already had one."</p> - -<p>He lied, preferring anything to this eternal reproach, to this shame -of appearing impotent. She looked at him, astonished at first, seeking -the truth in his eyes; at last comprehending, and full of disdain, -she cried: "You have a child, have you?"</p> - -<p>He replied with effrontery: "Yes, an illegitimate child, that I am -bringing up at Asnières."</p> - -<p>She answered quietly: "We will go and see it tomorrow, so that I may -find out how what he is like."</p> - -<p>He only blushed to the ears and stammered: "Just as you please."</p> - -<p>She rose the next morning at seven o'clock, very much to her husband's -astonishment.</p> - -<p>"Are we not going to see your child? You promised me yesterday evening. -Perhaps you haven't got it any more to-day."</p> - -<p>He sprang from the bed hastily. "It is not my child we are going to -see, but a physician, who will give us his opinion on your case."</p> - -<p>She replied in the tone of a woman who was sure of herself: "I shall -ask nothing better."</p> - -<p>Cachelin was instructed to inform the chief that his son-in-law was -ill, and Lesable and his wife advised by a neighbouring chemist, rang at -one o'clock exactly the office-bell of Dr. Lefilleul, author of several -works on the hygiene of generation.</p> - -<p>They were shown into a salon decorated in white and gold, but scantily -furnished in spite of the number of chairs and sofas. They seated -themselves and waited. Lesable was excited, trembling, and also ashamed. -Their turn came at last, and they were shown into a sort of office, where -they were received by a short, stout man of dignified and ceremonious -demeanour.</p> - -<p>He waited till they should explain their case, but Lesable had not -courage to utter a word, and blushed up to the roots of his hair. It -therefore devolved on his wife to speak, and with a resolute manner and -in a tranquil voice, she made known their errand.</p> - -<p>"Monsieur, we have come to discover the reason why we cannot have -children. A large fortune depends upon this for us."</p> - -<p>The consultation was long, minute, and painful. Cora alone seemed -unembarrassed, and submitted to the critical examination of the medical -expert, sustained by the great interest she had at stake.</p> - -<p>After having studied for nearly two hours the constitutions of the -married pair, the practitioner said: "I discover nothing either abnormal -or special. Your case is by no means an uncommon one. There is as much -divergence in constitutions as in characters. When we see so many -households out of joint through incompatibility of temper, it is not -astonishing to see others sterile through incompatibility of physique. -Madame appears to be particularly well fitted for the offices of -motherhood. Monsieur, on his side, although presenting no conformation -outside of the general rule, seems to me enfeebled, perhaps the -consequence of his ardent desire to become a parent. Will you permit me -to make an auscultation?"</p> - -<p>Lesable, greatly disturbed, removed his waistcoat, and the doctor glued -his ear to the thorax, and then to the back of his patient, tapping him -continuously from the throat to the stomach, and from the loins to the -nape of his neck. He discovered a slight irregularity in the action of -the heart, and even a menace to the right lung. "—It is necessary -for you to be very careful, Monsieur, very careful. This is anaemia, and -comes from exhaustion—nothing else. These conditions, although now -insignificant, may in a short time become incurable."</p> - -<p>Lesable turned pale with anguish and begged for a prescription.</p> - -<p>The doctor ordered a complicated régime consisting of iron, raw meat, -and soup, combined with exercise, rest, and a sojourn in the country -during the hot weather. He indicated, moreover, the symptoms that -proclaimed the desired fecundity, and initiated them into the secrets -which were usually practised with success in such cases.</p> - -<p>The consultation cost forty francs.</p> - -<p>When they were in the street, Cora burst out full of wrath:</p> - -<p>"I have discovered what my fate is to be!"</p> - -<p>Lesable made no reply. He was tormented by anxiety, he was recalling -and weighing each word of the physician. Had the doctor made a mistake, -or had he judged truly? He thought no more of the inheritance now, or the -desired offspring; it was a question of life or death. He seemed to hear a -whistling in his lungs, and his heart sounded as though it were beating in -his ears. In crossing the garden of the Tuileries he was overcome with -faintness and had to sit down to recover himself. His wife, as though to -humiliate him by her superior strength, remained standing in front of him, -regarding him from head to foot with pitying contempt. He breathed -heavily, exaggerating the effort by his fears, and with the fingers of his -left hand on his right wrist he counted the pulsations of the artery.</p> - -<p>Cora, who was stamping with impatience, cried: "When will you be ready? -It's time to stop this nonsense!" He arose with the air of a martyr, and -went on his way without uttering a word.</p> - -<p>When Cachelin was informed of the result of the consultation, his fury -knew no bounds. He bawled out: "We know now whose fault it is to a -certainty. Ah, well!" And he looked at his son-in-law with his ferocious -eyes as though he would devour him.</p> - -<p>Lesable neither listened nor heard, being totally absorbed in thoughts -of his health and the menace to his existence. Father and daughter might -say what they pleased. They were not in his skin, and as for him he meant -to preserve his skin at all hazards. He had the various prescriptions of -the physician filled, and at each meal he produced an array of bottles -with the contents of which he dosed himself regardless of the sneers of -his wife and her father. He looked at himself in the glass every instant, -placed his hand on his heart each moment to study its action, and removed -his bed to a dark room which was used as a clothes closet to put himself -beyond the reach of carnal temptation.</p> - -<p>He conceived for his wife a hatred mingled with contempt and disgust. All -women, moreover, appeared to him to be monsters, dangerous beasts, whose -mission it was to destroy men; and he thought no more of the will of Aunt -Charlotte, except as one recalls a past accident which might have been -fatal.</p> - -<p>Some months passed. There remained but one year before the fatal -term.</p> - -<p>Cachelin had suspended in the dining-room an enormous calendar, from -which he effaced a day each morning, raging at the impotence of his -son-in-law, who was allowing this great fortune to escape week by week. -And the thought that he would have to drudge at the office all his life, -and limit his expenses to the pitiful sum of two thousand francs a year, -filled him with a passion of anger that found vent in the most violent -abuse. He could not look at Lesable without shaking with rage, with a -brutal desire to beat, to crush, to trample on him. He hated him with an -inordinate hatred. Every time he saw him open the door and enter the room, -it seemed to him that a robber had broken into the house and robbed him of -a sacred inheritance. He hated him more than his most mortal enemy, and he -despised him at the same time for his weakness, and above all for the -baseness which caused him to sacrifice their common hope of posterity to -the fear of his health. Lesable, in fact, lived as completely apart from -his wife as if no tie united them. He never approached or touched her; he -avoided even looking at her, as much through shame as through fear.</p> - -<p>Cachelin, every morning asked his daughter: "Well, how about your -husband? Has he made up his mind?"</p> - -<p>And she would reply: "No, papa."</p> - -<p>Each evening saw the most painful scenes take place at table. Cachelin -continually reiterated: "When a man is not a man, he had better get out -and yield his place to another."</p> - -<p>And Cora added: "The fact is, there are some men who are both useless -and wearisome. I do not know why they are permitted to live only to become -a burden to everyone."</p> - -<p>Lesable dosed himself and made no reply. At last one day his -father-in-law cried: "Say, you, if you do not change your manners now that -your health is improving, do you know what my daughter means to do?"</p> - -<p>The son-in-law raised his eyes, foreseeing a new outrage. Cachelin -continued: "She will take somebody else, confound you! You may consider -yourself lucky if she hasn't done so already. When a girl has married a -weakling like you, she is entitled to do anything."</p> - -<p>Lesable, turning livid with wrath, replied: "It is not I who prevents -her from following your good counsel."</p> - -<p>Cora: lowered her eyes, and Cachelin, knowing that he had said an -outrageous thing, remained silent and confused.</p> - - - - -<h5>VI</h5> - - -<p>At the office the two men seemed to live on good enough terms. A sort -of tacit pact was entered into between them to conceal from their -colleagues their internal warfare. They addressed each other as "my dear -Cachelin, my dear Lesable;" they even feigned to laugh and talk together -as men who were satisfied and happy in their domestic relations.</p> - -<p>Lesable and Maze, for their part, comported themselves in the presence -of each other with the ceremonious politeness of adversaries who had met -in battle.</p> - -<p>The duel they had escaped, but whose shadow had chilled them, exacted -of them an exaggerated courtesy, a more marked consideration, and perhaps -a secret desire for reconciliation, born of the vague fear of a new -complication. Their attitude was recognised and approved as that of men -of the world, who had had an affair of honour. They saluted each other -from a distance with severe gravity, and with a flourish of hats that was -graceful and dignified. They did not speak, their pride preventing either -from making the first advances. But one day, Lesable, whom the Chief -demanded to see immediately, to show his zeal, started with a great rush -through the lobby and ran right into the stomach of an employee. It was -Maze. They recoiled before each other, and Lesable exclaimed with eager -politeness: "I hope I have not hurt you. Monsieur?"</p> - -<p>Maze responded: "Not at all, sir."</p> - -<p>From this moment they thought it expedient to exchange some phrases -when they met. Then, in the interchange of courtesies, there were little -attentions they paid each other from which arose in a short time certain -familiarities, then an intimacy tempered with reserve and restrained by a -certain hesitation; then on the strength of their increasing goodwill and -visits made to the room of each other, a comradeship was established. They -often gossiped together now of the news that found its way into the -bureau. Lesable laid aside his air of superiority, and Maze no longer -paraded his social successes. Cachelin often joined in the conversation -and watched with interest their growing friendship. Sometimes as the -handsome Maze left the apartment with head erect and square shoulders, he -turned to his son-in-law and hissed: "There goes a fine man!" One morning -when they were all four together, for old Savon never left his copying, -the chair of the old clerk, having been tampered with no doubt by some -practical joker, collapsed under him, and the good man rolled on the floor -uttering cries of affright. The three others flew to his assistance. The -order-clerk attributed this machination to the communists, and Maze -earnestly desired to see the wounded part. Cachelin and he even essayed -to take off the poor old fellow's clothes to dress the injury, they said, -but he resisted desperately, crying that he was not hurt.</p> - -<p>When the fun was over, Cachelin suddenly exclaimed: "I say, M. Maze, -now that we are all together, can you not do us the honour of dining with -us next Sunday? It will give pleasure to all three of us, myself, my -son-in-law, and my daughter, who has often heard your name when we speak -of the office. Shall it be yes?"</p> - -<p>Lesable added his entreaty, but more coldly than his father-in-law:</p> - -<p>"Pray come," he said; "it will give us great pleasure."</p> - -<p>Maze hesitated, embarrassed and smiling at the remembrance of past -events.</p> - -<p>Cachelin urged him: "Come, say we may expect you!"</p> - -<p>"Very well, then, I accept."</p> - -<p>Cachelin said on entering the house: "Cora, do you know that M. Maze -is coming here to dinner next Sunday?"</p> - -<p>Cora, surprised at first, stammered: "M. Maze? Really!" She blushed up -to her hair without knowing why. She had so often heard him spoken of, -his manners, his successes, for he was looked upon at the office as a man -who was irresistible with women, that she had long felt a desire to know -him.</p> - -<p>Cachelin continued rubbing his hands: "You will see that he is a real -man, and a fine fellow. He is as tall as a carbineer; he does not resemble -your husband there."</p> - -<p>She did not reply, confused as if they had divined her dreams of -him.</p> - -<p>They prepared this dinner with as much solicitude as the one to which -Lesable had been formerly invited. Cachelin discussed the dishes, wishing -to have everything served in perfection; and as though a confidence -unavowed and still undetermined had risen up in his heart, he seemed more -gay, tranquilised by some secret and sure prevision.</p> - -<p>Through all that Sunday he watched the preparations with the utmost -solicitude, while Lesable was doing some urgent work, brought the evening -before from the office.</p> - -<p>It was the first week of November, and the new year was at hand.</p> - -<p>At seven o'clock Maze arrived, in high good humour. He entered as -though he felt very much at home, with a compliment and a great bouquet -of roses for Cora. He added, as he presented them, in the familiar tone -of a man of the world: "It seems to me, Madame, I know you already, and -that I have known you from your childhood, for many years your father has -spoken to me of you."</p> - -<p>Cachelin, seeing the flowers, cried: "Ah they are charming!" and his -daughter recalled that Lesable had not brought her a bouquet the day he -was introduced. The handsome clerk seemed enchanted, laughing and -bestowing on Cora the most delicate flatteries, which brought the colour -to her cheeks.</p> - -<p>He found her very attractive. She thought him charming and seductive. -When he had gone, Cachelin exclaimed: "Isn't he a fine fellow? What -havoc he creates! They say he can wheedle any woman!"</p> - -<p>Cora, less demonstrative, avowed, however, that she thought him very -agreeable, and not so much of a poseur as she had believed.</p> - -<p>Lesable, who seemed less sad and weary than usual, acknowledged that -he had underrated Maze on his first acquaintance.</p> - -<p>Maze returned at intervals, which gradually grew shorter. He delighted -everybody. They petted and coddled him. Cora prepared for him the dishes -he liked, and the intimacy of the three men soon became so great that they -were seldom seen apart.</p> - -<p>The new friend took the whole family to the theatre in boxes procured -through the press. They returned on foot, through the streets thronged -with people, to the door of Lesable's apartments, Maze and Cora walking -before, keeping step, hip to hip, swinging with the same movement, the -same rhythm, like two beings created to walk side by side through life. -They spoke to each other in a low tone, laughing softly together, and -seemed to understand each other instinctively: sometimes the young -woman would turn her head and throw behind her a glance at her husband -and father.</p> - -<p>Cachelin followed them with a look of benevolent regard, and often, -forgetting that he spoke to his son-in-law, he declared: "They have the -same physique exactly. It is a pleasure to see them together."</p> - -<p>Lesable replied quietly: "Yes, they are about the same figure." He was -happy now in the consciousness that his heart was beating more vigorously, -that his lungs acted more freely, and that his health had improved in -every respect; his rancour against his father-in-law, whose cruel taunts -had now entirely ceased, vanished little by little.</p> - -<p>The first day of January he was promoted to the chief clerkship. His -joy was so excessive over his happy event that on returning home he -embraced his wife for the first time in six months. She appeared -embarrassed, as if he had done something improper, and she looked at Maze, -who had called to present to her his devotion and respect on the first day -of the year. He also had an embarrassed air, and turned toward the window -like a man who does not wish to see.</p> - -<p>But Cachelin very soon resumed his brutalities, and began to harass his -son-in-law with his coarse jests.</p> - -<p>Sometimes he even attacked Maze, as though he blamed him also for the -catastrophe suspended over them—the inevitable date of which -approached nearer every minute.</p> - -<p>Cora alone appeared composed, entirely happy and radiant. She had -forgotten, it seemed, the threatening nearness of the term.</p> - -<p>March had come. AH hope seemed lost, for it would be three years on -the twentieth of July since Aunt Charlotte's death.</p> - -<p>An early spring had advanced the vegetation, and Maze proposed to his -friends one Sunday to make an excursion to the banks of the Seine, to -gather the violets in the shady places. They set out by a morning train -and got off at Maisons-Laffitte. A breath of winter still lingered among -the bare branches, but the turf was green and lustrous, flecked with -flowers of white and blue, and the fruit-trees on the hillsides seemed -garlanded with roses as their bare branches showed through the clustering -blossoms. The Seine, thick and muddy from the late rains, flowed slowly -between its banks gnawed by the frosts of winter; and all the country, -steeped in vapour, exhaled a savour of sweet humidity under the warmth of -the first days of spring.</p> - -<p>They wandered in the park. Cachelin, more glum than usual, tapped his -cane on the gravelled walk, thinking bitterly of their misfortune, so soon -to be irremediable Lesable, morose also, feared to wet his feet in the -grass, while his wife and Maze were gathering flowers to make a bouquet. -Cora for several days had seemed suffering, and looked weary and pale. She -was soon tired and wished to return for luncheon. They came upon a little -restaurant near an old ruined mill, and the traditional repast of a -Parisian picnic party was soon served under a green arbour, on a little -table covered with two napkins, and quite near the banks of the river. -They had fried gudgeons, roast beef cooked with potatoes, and they had -come to the salad of fresh green lettuce, when Cora rose brusquely and ran -toward the river, pressing her napkin with both hands to her mouth.</p> - -<p>Lesable, uneasy, wondered what could be the matter. Maze disconcerted, -blushed, and stammered, "I do not know—she was well a moment -since."</p> - -<p>Cachelin appeared frightened, and remained seated, with his fork in the -air, a leaf of salad suspended at the end. Then he rose, trying to see -his daughter. Bending forward, he perceived her leaning against a tree -and seeming very ill. A swift suspicion flashed through his mind, and he -fell back into his seat and regarded with an embarrassed air the two men, -both of whom seemed now equally confused. He looked at them with anxious -eyes, no longer daring to speak, wild with anguish and hope.</p> - -<p>A quarter of an hour passed in utter silence. Then Cora reappeared, a -little pale and walking slowly. No one questioned her; each seemed to -divine a happy event, difficult to speak of. They burned to know, but -feared also to hear, the truth. Cachelin alone had the courage to ask: -"You are better now?" And she replied: "Yes, thank you; there is not much -the matter; but we will return early, as I have a light headache." When -they set out she took the arm of her husband as if to signify something -mysterious she had not yet dared to avow.</p> - -<p>They separated at the station of Saint-Lazare. Maze, making a pretext -of some business affair which he had just remembered, bade them adieu, -after having shaken hands with all of them. As soon as Cachelin was alone -with his daughter and his son-in-law, he asked: "What was the matter -with you at breakfast?"</p> - -<p>But Cora, did not reply at first; after hesitating for a moment she -said: "It was nothing much; a little sickness of the stomach was all." -She walked with a languid step, but with a smile on her lips.</p> - -<p>Lesable was ill at ease, his mind distracted; haunted with confused and -contradictory ideas, angry, feeling an unavowable shame, cherishing a -cowardly jealousy, he was like those sleepers who close their eyes in the -morning that they may not see the ray of light which glides between the -curtains and strikes the bed like a brilliant shaft.</p> - -<p>As soon as he entered the house, he shut himself in his own room, -pretending to be occupied with some unfinished work. Then Cachelin, -placing his hands on his daughter's shoulders, exclaimed: "You -are pregnant, aren't you?"</p> - -<p>She stammered: "Yes, I think so. Two months."</p> - -<p>Before she had finished speaking, he bounded with joy, then began to -dance the cancan around her, an old recollection of his garrison days. -He lifted his leg and leaped like a young kid in spite of his great -paunch, and made the whole apartment shake with his gambols. The furniture -jostled, the glasses on the buffet rattled, and the chandelier oscillated -like the lamp of a ship.</p> - -<p>He took his beloved daughter in his arms and embraced her frantically. -Then tapping her lightly on the shoulder he cried: "Ah, it is done, then, -at last! Have you told your husband?"</p> - -<p>She murmured, suddenly intimidated: "No,—not -yet—I—I—was waiting—"</p> - -<p>But Cachelin exclaimed: "Good, very good. You find it awkward. I will -run and tell him myself." And he rushed to the apartment of his -son-in-law. On seeing him enter, Lesable, who was doing nothing, rose and -looked inquiringly at Cachelin, who left him no time for conjecture, but -cried: "Do you know your wife is in the family way?"</p> - -<p>The husband was stricken speechless, his countenance changed, and the -blood surged to the roots of his hair: "What? How? Cora? you say—" -he faltered when he recovered his voice.</p> - -<p>"I say that she is pregnant; do you understand? Now is our chance!"</p> - -<p>In his joy he took Lesable's hands and pressed and shook them, as if -to felicitate him, to thank him, and cried: "Ah, at last it is true, it -is true! it is true! Think of the fortune we shall have!" and unable to -contain himself longer, he caught his son-in-law in his arms and embraced -him, crying: "More than a million! think of it! more than a million!" and -he began to dance more violently than ever.</p> - -<p>"But come, she is waiting for you, come and embrace her, at least," and -taking him by the shoulders he pushed Lesable before him, and threw him -like a ball into the apartment where Cora stood anxiously waiting and -listening.</p> - -<p>The moment she saw her husband, she recoiled, stifled with a sudden -emotion. He stood before her, pale and severe. He had the air of a judge, -and she of a culprit. At last he said: "It seems that you are pregnant."</p> - -<p>She stammered in a trembling voice: "Yes, that seems to be the -case."</p> - -<p>But Cachelin seized each of them by the neck, and, bringing them face -to face, cried: "Now kiss each other, by George! It is a fitting -occasion."</p> - -<p>And after releasing them, he capered about like a schoolboy, shouting: -"Victory, victory, we have won our case! I say, Léopold, we must purchase -a country house; there, at least, you will certainly recover your health." -At this idea Lesable trembled. His father-in-law continued: "We will -invite M. Torchebeuf and his wife to visit us, and as the under-chief is -at the end of his term you may take his place. That is the way to bring it -about."</p> - -<p>Lesable was now beginning to regard things from Cachelin's standpoint, -and he saw himself receiving his chief at a beautiful country place on -the banks of the river, dressed in coat of white twill, with a Panama hat -on his head.</p> - -<p>Something sweet entered into his heart with this hope, something warm -and good seemed to melt within him, rendering him light of heart and -healthier in feeling. He smiled, still without speaking.</p> - -<p>Cachelin, intoxicated with joy, transported at the thought of his fine -prospects, continued:</p> - -<p>"Who knows, we may gain some political influence. Perhaps you will be -deputy. At all events, we can see the society of the neighbourhood, and -enjoy some luxuries. And you shall have a little pony to convey you every -morning to the station."</p> - -<p>These images of luxury, of elegance and prosperity aroused the drooping -spirits of Lesable. The thought that he could be driven in his own -carriage, like the rich people he had so often envied, filled him with -satisfaction, and he could not refrain from exclaiming: "Ah, that will be -delightful indeed."</p> - -<p>Cora, seeing him won over, smiled tenderly and gratefully, and -Cachelin, who saw no obstacles now in the way of indulgence, declared: -"We will dine at the restaurant, to celebrate the happy event."</p> - -<p>When they reached home, the two men were a little tipsy, and Lesable, -who saw double and whose ideas were all topsy-turvy, could not find his -bedroom. He made his way by mistake, or forgetfulness, into the long -vacant bed of his wife. And all night long it seemed to him that the bed -oscillated like a boat, rolling and pitching as though it would upset. He -was even a little seasick.</p> - -<p>He was surprised on awaking to find Cora in his arms. She opened her -eyes with a smile and kissed him with a sudden effusion of gratitude and -affection. Then she said to him, in that caressing voice which women -employ in their cajoleries: "If you wish to be very nice, you will not -go to your office to-day. There is no need to be so punctual now that we -are going to be rich, and we will make a little visit to the country, all -by ourselves."</p> - -<p>Lesable was content to remain quiet, with the feeling for -self-indulgence which follows an evening of excess, and the warmth of the -bed was grateful. He felt the drowsy wish to lie a long time, to do -nothing more but to live in tranquil idleness. An unusual sloth paralyzed -his soul and subdued his body, and one vague, happy, and continuous -thought never left him—"He was going to be rich, independent."</p> - -<p>But suddenly a fear seized him, and he whispered softly, as if he -thought the walls might hear him: "Are you very sure you are pregnant, -after all?"</p> - -<p>She reassured him at once. "Oh, yes! I am certain of it. I could not be -mistaken."</p> - -<p>And, as if still doubting, he traced the outline of her figure with his -hand, and feeling convinced declared: "Yes, it is true—but you will -not be brought to bed before the date. They will contest our right on that -account, perhaps."</p> - -<p>At this supposition she grew angry.</p> - -<p>"Oh, no indeed, they are not going to trick us now after so much misery, -so much trouble, and so many efforts. Oh, no, indeed!" She was overwhelmed -with indignation. "Let us go at once to the notary," she said.</p> - -<p>But his advice was to get a physician's certificate first, and they -presented themselves again to Dr. Lefilleul.</p> - -<p>He recognized them immediately, and exclaimed:</p> - -<p>"Ah well, have you succeeded?"</p> - -<p>They both blushed up to their ears, and Cora a little shamefacedly -stammered: "I believe we have, doctor."</p> - -<p>The doctor rubbed his hands, crying: "I expected it, I expected it. -The means I recommended to you never fail; at least, only from some -radical incapacity of one of the parties."</p> - -<p>When he had made an examination of the young wife, he declared: "It -is true, bravo!" and he wrote on a sheet of paper:</p> - -<p>"I, the undersigned, doctor of medicine, of the Faculty of Paris, -certify that Madame Léopold Lesable, née Cachelin, presents all the -symptoms of pregnancy, dating from over three months."</p> - -<p>Then, turning toward Lesable: "And you," he said, "how is that chest -and that heart?" and having made an auscultation, he declared that the -patient was entirely cured. They set out happy and joyous, arm in arm, -with elastic steps. But on the route Léopold had an idea. "We had better -go home before we see the lawyer, and rearrange your dress; you'll put two -or three towels under your belt it will draw attention to it and that will -be better; he will not believe then that we are trying to gain time."</p> - -<p>They returned home, and he himself undressed his wife in order to -adjust the deception. Ten consecutive times Lesable changed the position -of the towels, and stepped back some paces to get the proper effect, -wishing to obtain an absolutely perfect resemblance. Satisfied with the -result at last, they set out again, and walked proudly through the -streets, Lesable carrying himself with the air of one whose virility was -established and patent to all the world.</p> - -<p>The notary received them kindly. Then he listened to their explanation, -ran his eye over the certificate, and, as Lesable insisted, "For the rest, -Monsieur, it is only necessary to glance for a second," he threw a -convinced look on the tell-tale figure of the young woman.</p> - -<p>There was a moment of anxious suspense, when the man of law declared: -"Assuredly, whether the infant is born or to be born, it exists, it lives; -so we will suspend the execution of the testament till the confinement of -Madame."</p> - -<p>After leaving the office of the notary, they embraced each other on the -stairway, so exuberant was their joy.</p> - - - - -<h5>VII</h5> - - -<p>From the moment of this happy discovery, the three relatives lived in -the most perfect accord. They were good-humoured, reasonable, and kind. -Cachelin had recovered all his old gaiety, and Cora loaded her husband -with attentions. Lesable also seemed like another man, and more gay than -he had ever been in his life. Maze came less often, and seemed ill at ease -in the family circle; they received him kindly, but with less warmth than -formerly, for happiness is egotistical and excludes strangers.</p> - -<p>Cachelin himself seemed to feel a certain secret hostility against the -handsome clerk whom some months before he had introduced so eagerly into -his household. It was he who announced to this friend the pregnancy of -Cora. He said to him brusquely: "You know my daughter is pregnant!"</p> - -<p>Maze, feigning surprise, replied: "Ah, indeed! you ought to be very -happy."</p> - -<p>Cachelin responded with a "Humph!" for he perceived that his colleague, -on the contrary, did not appear to be delighted. Men care but little to -see in this state (whether or not the cause lies with them) women in whom -they are interested.</p> - -<p>Every Sunday, however, Maze continued to dine with the family, but it -was no longer pleasant to spend the evenings with them, albeit no serious -difference had arisen; and this strange embarrassment increased from week -to week. One evening, just after Maze had gone, Cachelin cried with an -air of annoyance: "That fellow is beginning to weary me to death!"</p> - -<p>Lesable replied: "The fact is, he does not improve on acquaintance." -Cora lowered her eyes. She did not give her opinion. She always seemed -embarrassed in the presence of the handsome Maze, who, on his side, -appeared almost ashamed when he found himself near her. He no longer -smiled on looking at her as formerly, no longer asked her and her husband -to accompany him to the theatre, and the intimacy, which till lately had -been so cordial, seemed to have become but an irksome burden.</p> - -<p>One Thursday, when her husband came home to dinner, Cora kissed him -with more coquetry than usual and whispered in his ear:</p> - -<p>"Perhaps you are going to scold me now?"</p> - -<p>"Why should I?" he inquired.</p> - -<p>"Well, because—M. Maze came to see me a little while ago, and, as -I do not wish to be gossiped about on his account, I begged him never to -come when you were not at home. He seemed a little hurt."</p> - -<p>Lesable, very much surprised, demanded:</p> - -<p>"Very well, what did he say to that?"</p> - -<p>"Oh! he did not say much, but it did not please me all the same, and -then I asked him to cease his visits entirely. You know very well that it -is you and papa who brought him here—I was not consulted at all -about it—and I feared you would be displeased because I had -dismissed him."</p> - -<p>A grateful joy beamed from the face of her husband.</p> - -<p>"You did right, perfectly right, and I even thank you for it."</p> - -<p>She went on, in order to establish the understanding between the two -men, which she had arranged in advance: "At the office you must conduct -yourself as though nothing had happened, and speak to him as you have been -in the habit of doing; but he is not to come here any more."</p> - -<p>Taking his wife tenderly in his arms, Lesable impressed long kisses on -her eyelids and on her cheeks. "You are an angel! You are an angel!" he -repeated, and he felt pressing against his stomach the already lusty -child.</p> - - - - -<h5>VIII</h5> - - -<p>Nothing of importance happened up to the date of Cora's confinement, -which occurred on the last day of September. The child, being a daughter, -was called Désirée. As they wished to make the christening an imposing -event, it was decided to postpone the ceremony until they were settled in -the new country house which they were going to buy.</p> - -<p>They chose a beautiful estate at Asnières, on the hills that overlook -the Seine. Great changes had taken place during the winter. As soon as the -legacy was secured, Cachelin asked for his pension, which was granted, and -he left the office. He employed his leisure moments in cutting, with the -aid of a little scroll-saw, the covers of cigar-boxes. He made clocks, -caskets, jardinières, and all sorts of odd little pieces of furniture. He -had a passion for this work, the taste for which had come to him on seeing -a peripatetic merchant working thus with sheets of wood on the Avenue de -l'Opéra; and each day he obliged everybody to admire some new design both -complicated and puerile. He was amazed at his own work, and kept on -saying: "It is astonishing what one can accomplish!"</p> - -<p>The assistant-chief, M. Rabot, being dead at last, Lesable fulfilled -the duties of his place, although he did not receive the title, for -sufficient time had not elapsed since his last promotion.</p> - -<p>Cora had become a wholly different woman, more refined, more elegant, -instinctively divining all the transformations that wealth imposes. On -New Year's Day she made a visit to the wife of her husband's chief, a -commonplace person, who remained a provincial, notwithstanding a residence -of thirty-five years in Paris, and she put so much grace and seductiveness -into her prayer that Mme Torchebeuf should stand godmother to her child -that the good woman consented. Grandpapa Cachelin was the godfather.</p> - -<p>The ceremony took place on a brilliant Sunday in June. All the -employees of the office were invited to witness it, except the handsome -Maze, who was seen no more in the Cachelin circle.</p> - -<p>At nine o'clock Lesable waited at the railway station for the train -from Paris, while a groom, in livery covered with great gilt buttons, held -by the bridle a plump pony hitched to a brand-new phaeton.</p> - -<p>The engine whistled, then appeared, dragging its train of cars, which -soon discharged their freight of passengers.</p> - -<p>M. Torchebeuf descended from a first-class carriage with his wife, in -a magnificent toilette, while Pitolet and Boissel got out of a -second-class carriage. They had not dared to invite old Savon, but it was -understood that they were to meet him by chance in the afternoon and bring -him to dinner with the consent of the chief.</p> - -<p>Lesable hurried to meet his superior, who advanced slowly, the lapel -of his frock-coat ornamented with a decoration that resembled a full-blown -red rose. His enormous head, surmounted by a large hat that seemed to -crush his small body, gave him the appearance of a phenomenon, and his -wife, if she had stood on tiptoe, could have looked over his head without -any trouble.</p> - -<p>Léopold, radiant, bowed and thanked his guests. He seated them in the -phaeton, then running toward his two colleagues, who were walking modestly -behind, he pressed their hands, regretting that his phaeton was too small -to accommodate them also. "Follow the quay," he directed, "and you will -reach my door—'Villa Désirée,' the fourth one after the turn. Make -haste!"</p> - -<p>And mounting the phaeton, he took the reins and drove off, while the -groom leaped lightly to the little seat behind.</p> - -<p>The ceremony was very brilliant, and afterwards they returned for -luncheon. Each one found under his napkin a present proportioned to his -station. The godmother received a bracelet of solid gold, her husband a -scarf-pin of rubies, Boissel a pocket book of Russian leather, and Pitolet -a superb meerschaum pipe. "It was Désirée," they said, "who offered these -presents to her new friends."</p> - -<p>Mme Torchebeuf, blushing with confusion and pleasure, placed on her fat -arm the brilliant circle, and, as the chief wore a narrow black cravat, -which would not receive the pin, he stuck the jewel in the lapel of his -frock-coat, under the Legion of Honour, as if it had been another -decoration of an inferior order.</p> - -<p>Outside the window the shining band of the river was seen, curving -toward Suresnes, its banks shaded with trees. The sun fell in a rain on -the water, making it seems a river of fire. The beginning of the repast -was rather solemn, being made formal by the presence of M. and Mme -Torchebeuf. After a while, however, things began to go better. Cachelin -threw out some heavy jokes, which he felt would be permitted him since he -was rich, and everyone laughed at them. If Pitolet or Boissel had uttered -them, the guests would certainly have been shocked.</p> - -<p>At dessert, the infant was brought in and received a kiss from each of -the company. Smothered in a cloud of snowy lace, the baby looked at the -guests with its blue eyes void of intelligence or expression, and rolled -its bald head from side to side with an air of newly awakened -interest.</p> - -<p>Pitolet, amid the confusion of voices, whispered in the ear of Boissel: -"It looks like a little Mazette."</p> - -<p>The joke went round the Ministry next day.</p> - -<p>At two o'clock the health of the newly christened baby was drunk, and -Cachelin proposed to show his guests over the property, and then to take -them for a walk on the banks of the Seine.</p> - -<p>They moved in a slow procession from room to room, from the cellar to -the garret; then they examined the garden tree by tree, plant by plant; -after which, separating into two parties, they set out for a walk.</p> - -<p>Cachelin, who did not feel at home in the company of ladies, drew -Boissel and Pitolet into a café on the bank of the river, while Mesdames -Torchebeuf and Lesable, with their husbands, walked in the opposite -direction, these refined ladies not being able to mingle with the common -Sunday herd.</p> - -<p>They walked slowly along the path, followed by the two men, who talked -gravely of the affairs of the office. On the river the boats were -continually passing, propelled by long strokes of the oars in the hands of -jolly fellows, the muscles of whose bare arms rolled under the sunburned -skin. Women, reclining on black or white fur rugs, managed the tillers, -drowsing under the hot sun, holding open over their heads, like enormous -flowers floating on the surface of the water, umbrellas of red, yellow, -and blue silk. Cries from one boat to the other, calls, and shouts, and a -remote murmur of human voices lower down, confused and continuous, -indicated where the swarming crowds were enjoying a holiday.</p> - -<p>Long files of fishermen stood motionless all along the river, while the -swimmers, almost naked, standing in heavy fishing boats, plunged in -headforemost, climbed back upon the boats and leaped into the water -again.</p> - -<p>Mme Torchebeuf looked on in surprise.</p> - -<p>Cora said to her: "It is like this every Sunday; it spoils this charming -country for me."</p> - -<p>A canoe moved softly by. Two women rowed, while two men were stretched -in the bottom of the boat. One of the women, turning her head towards -the shore, cried:</p> - -<p>"Hello! hello! you respectable women! I have a man for sale, very -cheap! Do you want him?"</p> - -<p>Cora turned away contemptuously and taking the arm of her companion -said: "We cannot remain here; let us go. What infamous creatures!"</p> - -<p>They moved away as M. Torchebeuf was saying to Lesable: "It is settled -for the first of January. The head of the Department has positively -promised me."</p> - -<p>"I don't know how to thank you, dear master," Lesable replied.</p> - -<p>When they reached home they found Cachelin, Pitolet, and Boissel -laughing immoderately and almost carrying old Savon, whom they jokingly -declared they had found on the beach in the company of a girl.</p> - -<p>The frightened old man was crying: "It is not true, no, it is not true. -It is not right to say that, M. Cachelin, it is not kind."</p> - -<p>And Cachelin, choking with laughter, cried: "Ah, you old rogue, did you -not call her your 'sweet goose quill'? We caught you, you rascal!"</p> - -<p>Then the ladies, too, began to laugh at the dismay of the poor old -man.</p> - -<p>Cachelin continued: "With M. Torchebeuf's permission, we will keep him -prisoner as a punishment and make him dine with us."</p> - -<p>The chief good-humouredly consented, and they continued to laugh about -the lady abandoned by the old man, who protested all the time, annoyed -at this mischievous farce.</p> - -<p>The subject was the occasion of inexhaustible wit throughout the -evening, which sometimes even bordered on the obscene.</p> - -<p>Cora and Mme Torchebeuf, seated under a tent on the lawn, watched the -reflections of the setting sun, which threw upon the leaves a purple -glow.</p> - -<p>Not a breath stirred the branches, a serene and infinite peace fell -from the calm and flaming heavens.</p> - -<p>Some boats still passed, more slowly, drifting with the tide.</p> - -<p>Cora remarked: "It appears that poor M. Savon married a bad woman."</p> - -<p>Mme Torchebeuf, who was familiar with everything of the office, -replied:</p> - -<p>"Yes, she was an orphan, very much too young for him, and deceived him -with a worthless fellow, and she ended in running away with him."</p> - -<p>Then the fat lady added: "I say he was a worthless fellow, but I know -nothing about it. It is reported that they loved one another very much. -In any case, old Savon is not very seductive."</p> - -<p>Mme Lesable replied gravely:</p> - -<p>"That is no excuse; the poor man is much to be pitied. Our next door -neighbour, M. Barbou, has had the same experience. His wife fell in love -with a sort of painter who passed his summers here, and she has gone -abroad with him. I do not understand how women can fall so low. To my -mind it seems a special chastisement should be meted out to those wicked -creatures who bring shame upon their families."</p> - -<p>At the end of the alley the nurse appeared, carrying the little Désirée -wrapped in her laces. The child, all rosy in the red gold of the evening -light, was coming towards the two women. She stared at the fiery sky with -the same pale and astonished eyes with which she regarded their faces.</p> - -<p>All the men who were talking at a distance drew near, and Cachelin, -seizing his little granddaughter, tossed her aloft in his arms as if he -would carry her to the skies. Her figure was outlined against the -brilliant line of the horizon, while her long white robe almost touched -the ground; and the grand-father cried: "Look! isn't this the best thing -in the world, after all, father Savon?"</p> - -<p>But the old man made no reply, having nothing to say, or perhaps -thinking too many things.</p> - -<p>A servant opened the door and announced: "Madame is served!"</p> - - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's The Sisters Rondoli,, by Guy de Maupassant - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SISTERS RONDOLI, *** - -***** This file should be named 60136-h.htm or 60136-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/0/1/3/60136/ - -Produced by Laura Natal Rodrigues at Free Literature (Images -generously made available by Hathi Trust.) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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