CONTE NT S
BALD OF FAr
-
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-
M ADEMOIS ELLE
Fm
BAB E I I E
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A C OC K CROW ED
L
LALA
A V A G AB O ND
TH E M OUNTEB ANK S
q
UGL Y
THE
T HE
DEB T
HER
FA T
.
THA T PIG OF A M ORIN
T H E H OLE
A FAMILY
B ELLFLO W ER
IN THE WOOD
L
T H E M AR UIS DE FUME RO
Q
T H E V ENU S OF BRANIZA
T H E HA B Rrr
WArrE R, A Bocxl
T H E SE UEL TO A DIV ORCE
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.
M AD WOMAN
M ADEM OIS ELLE
A BAD E RRO R
THE
(h
im
T H E DOUB LE P IN S
H ow HE COT T H E LEGIO
A CRISIS
A FRENC
H
E NOC
H
N
ARDEN
OF
HON O
R
CO NT E NTS
’
vui
ULIE RO MAIN
J
AN UNRE A S ONAB LE WO MAN
RO S ALIE PRUDEN T
H IP P OLY TE S CLA IM
’
FE CUND ITY
A WA Y T O WEALT
AM I IN S ANE ?
FO RB IDDE N m m
T H E C A RM DIS P E LLED
M ADAM E P ARISS E
M AK IN G A CO NV ERT
A LITTLE W ALK
’
A WIE E S C ON F ESSIO N
’
A DEAD WO M AN S SECRE T
’
LO V E S AW AK ENING
BE D NO 2 9
H
H
.
MARROCA
A
A
P
H LO SO HER
I
P
M IS TAK E
CON SIDERA TIO N
MOO NLIGHT
HUM ILIA TIO N
T H E NONCO MMISSI O NED
IN T E COUR TR OO M
A PRAC TICAL J
OK E
A STRAN GE FANCY
AF TER DEA T
ON C ATS
H
H
)
O
BALL OF FAT
-
-
the fag end of the arm y had been straggling
through the town They were not troops but a dis b anded horde The
beards of the men were long and filthy their uniforms in tatters and
they advanced at an easy pace without flag or regiment All seemed
worn out and back broken incapable of a thought or a resolution
marching by habit solely and fa l ling from fatigue as soon as they
stopped In short they were a mo b ilized pacific people bendin g under
the weight of the g
un ; some little squads on the alert easy to take
alarm and prompt in enthusiasm ready to attack or to flee ; and in the
midst of them some red b reeches the remain s of a division broken up
in a great battle ; some somber artillerymen in line with these v aried
kinds of foot soldiers and sometimes the brilliant helmet of a dragoon
on foot who followed with difficulty the shortest march of the lines
Some legions of free shooters under the heroic names of Avengers
of the D efeat Citizens of the Tomb Partakers of D eath passed in
their turn with the air of bandits
Their leaders were former cloth or grain merchants ex merchants
in tallow or soap warriors of circumstance elected o fficers on account
of their escutcheons and the length of their mustaches covered with
arms and withb raid speaking in constra ined voices discussing plan s
of campaign and pretending to carry agonized F rance alone on their
swaggering shoulders but sometimes fearing their own soldiers pris on
birds that were often brave at first and later proved to be plunderers
and debauchees
It was said
the Prussians were oin to eng geg
THE National Guard who for two mon s had b een carefully re con
noitering in the neighboring woods
shooting sometimes their own
sentinels an d ready for a combat whenever a little wolf stirred in the
thicket had now returned to their fi
resides
Their arms the ir uni
forms all the murderous accouterments with which they had l ately
struck fear into the national heart for three leagues in every direction
had suddenly disappeared
The last French soldiers fi
nally cam e across the S eine to reach the
Audemer bridge through Saint Sever and Bourg Achard ; and march
ing behind on foot between two o fficers of ordnance the general in
FOR MANY
DAY S NOW
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J
S H O RT S T O R I E S
2
OF
DE M A UPA SS AN T
d esp air unable to d o anything with these incongruous tatters him
self lost in the breaking up of a people accustomed to con quer and
disas trously beaten in spite of his legend ary bravery
A profound cal m a fright ful silent ex ectancy had sprea_
o
v
er
e
d_
_
th
c ity Many of the heavy citizens,em ascupated by commerce arfxiOusl y
aited the conquerors tremb l ing lest their roasting spits or kitchen
ziw
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knives be considered arms
All l ife seemed stopped ; shops were cl ose d th e streets d umb Some
times an inhabitant intim idated by this silence move d ra pidly along
next the walls The agony of waiting made them wish the enemy woul d
come
In the afternoon of the d ay which followe d the departure of the
French troops some uhlans coming from one knows not where crossed
the town with celerity Then a little later a black mass descend ed the
S ide of St Catherine while two other invading ban d s appeared by the
way of D arnetal and Bois Cu ill au rne The advance gu ard of the three
bodies joined one another at the same moment in H Otel de Ville square
and by all the neighboring streets the Germ an army continued to
arrive S preadin g out its battalions making the pavement resoun d
mic ste
un d er their hard rhyt h
Some orders of the com m an er in a forei g
n guttur al v oice reache d
the houses which seemed dead and d eserted while behind closed S hut
men masters of the city
terS eyes were
“
”
through the rights of war The inh
abitants
of fortunes of lives
shut up in their rooms were v isited with the kind of excitem en
t
l
t
t
a catacl ySIn or
fatal
ag
a
in
st
ié hal l
usel eSS F or the same sensation is produced each
wh
time that the establ ish
b d ord er of things
hérrsecurity
W
“
er exists and all that protect the laws of m an and d natfire
no l ong
fin d themselves at the m efcy Of
houses an
The trembling of
entire people ; a river overflowing its banks and carrying in its course
the drowned easants carcasses of beeves and girders snatched from
roofs or a g
lbriou s army massacring those trying to defend them
selves leadin g other p risoners p il l ag
ingin the name of the sword
and thanking God to the soun d of the cannon ; all
are
a
l
ike
frightfu
l
‘
"
f
n
scourges
which
d
sconnect
all
a
l
l
e
eter
a
jus
ce
f
h
e e
b
l
“
ti
lif jn
cj
nl
i
“
fi
dé fice th
fl w
t
h
eaven
and
e have in the
rotec i n
H
e reason of
t
p
f
g
man
Som e detach
e
m ents rappe d at each door then disappeared into th
houses It was occupation after invas ion Then the duty co m mences
for the conquered to S how themselves gracious toward the con
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u erors
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fi
,
.
B ALL OF FAT
After some tim e as soon as th e first terror disappears a new c al m
-
-
3
is
stablished In many famil ies the Prussian ofi
cer eats at the table
He is sometim es well bred an d through politeness pities France an d
S peaks of his rep ugnance in takin g part in this affair One is gratefu l
to him for this sentiment ; then one may be someday or other in
is protection By treatin g him we ll one has perhaps a less
nee d of h
nu mber of men to fee d And why S houl d we wound anyone on whom
we are entirely depen dent ? T o act thus woul d be less bravery than
temerity And temerity is no l onger a faul t of the commoner of
Rouen as it was at the time of the heroic defense when their c ity
bec ame famous Finally each told himself that the highest judgm ent of
French urbanity requ ired that they be allowed to be polite to the
strange soldier in the house pro vided they did not S how themselves
famili ar with him in pub lic Outside they would not make themselves
known to each other but at home they could chat freely and the
German might remain longer each evening warming his feet at their
hearthstones
The town e ven took on littl e by littl e its ordinary aspect The
French scarcely went ou t but the Prussian soldiers grumbled in the
streets In short the officers of the Blue Hussars who dragged with
arrog ance their great weapons of death up an d d own the pavement
seemed to have no more grievou s S corn for the sim ple citizens than
the officers or the sportsmen who the year before drank in the same
c afé s
There was nevertheless somethin g in the air
an d
—
osp h
efe like
in
f ol é rabTe atifi
odor
ell i
the odor of invasion It fill ed th
e:dwf
ggs and the pu blic p la ces
“
e fOO
d gave the impression of b eingon a
e ftaste of th
changed th
d
d
an er
us gibes
journey far
awa
among
barba
s
n
r
o
ou a
g
“y
—
e conquerors exacted
money much money The inhabitants
Th
always paid and they were rich enough to do it But the richer a
tra ding Norman becomes the more he suffers at every outlay at each
p art of his fortu ne that he sees pass from his hands into tho se of
another
Therefore two or three leagues below the town foll owing the
c ourse of the river toward Croisset D ieppedalle or Biessard mariners
and fishermen often picked up the swollen corpse of a German in
u niform from the bottom of the river killed by the blow of a knife
the head crushed with a stone or perhaps thrown into the water by a
push from the high bridge The slime of the river bed buried these
obscure vengeances savage but l eg
itim Me unknown heroisms mute
attacks more perilous than the battles of broad day and without the
echoing sound of glory
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S H O R T S T O RI E S OF D E M A UPA SS AN T
4
For hatred of the foreigner always arouses some intrepid ones who
are ready to die for an idea
Finally as soon as the invad ers had brought the town quite under
subjection with the ir inflexible discipline without having been guil ty
of any of the horrors for which they were famous along their
triumphal lin e of march people beg an to take courage and the need
e com m erce of the countr
of trade put new heart into th
y Some had
an
d they
e i nterests at Havre which the F rench army occupie d
l arg
wished to try and reach this port by going to D ieppe by l and an d
there embarking
They used their influence with the German soldiers with whom
they ha d an acquaintance and finally an authorization of departure
was o b tained from the general in chief
Then a large diligence with fo u r horses ha ving been en gaged for
this journey and ten persons having engaged seats in it it was re
solved to set out on Tuesday morning before daylight in order to
escape observation
For some tim e before the frost had been hardening the earth an d
toward three o clock great black clouds coming from
on Monday
the north brought the snow which fell without interruption during
the evening and all night
At half past four in the morning the travelers met in the cou rt
yard of H Otel Normandie where they were to take the carriage
They were still full of sleep and shivering with cold under their
wraps They could only see each other dimly in the obscure light
and the accu mulation of heavy winter garments made them all re
semble fat curates in long cassocks Only two of the men were
“
acquainted ; a third accosted them and they chatted : I m going to
”
”
“
“
t ake my wife said one I too said another And I said the thir d
“
The fi
rst added : We shall not return to Rouen and if the Prussians
”
approach Havre we shall go over to England All had the same
projects being of the same mind
As yet the horses were not harnesse d A little lantern carried by a
stab leboy went out one door from time to tirne to immediately
appear at another The feet of the horses striking the floor could be
heard although deadened by the straw and litter and the voice of a
man ta l king to the beasts sometimes swe aring came from the end
o the buildin g A light tinkling of bel ls announced that they were
f
taking down the harness ; this murmur soon became a clear and
continuous rhythm by the movement of the animal stopping some
times then breaking into a brusque shake which was a cc ompanied by
e dull stamp of a sabot upon the hard earth
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BALL OF FAT
5
The door suddenly closed All noise ceased The frozen citizens were
silent ; they remained immovable an d stifi
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A curtain of uninterrupted white flakes constantly sparkled in its
descent to the ground It effaced forms and powdered everything
with a d owny moss And nothing coul d be heard in the great silence
The town was calm and buried under the wintry frost as this fal l of
snow unnamable and floating a sensation rather than a soun d
(tremb l ing atoms which only seem to fill a ll space ) came to cover
the earth
The man reappeared with his l antern pulling at the end of a rope
a sad horse wh
ich would not come willingly H e placed him against
the pole fastene d the traces walked about a long time adjusting the
harness for he ha d the use of but one hand the other carryin g the
l antern As he went for the secon d horse he noticed the “
travelers
motionless already white with snow and said to them : Why not
”
get into the carriage? You will be u nder cover at l east
They ha d evidently not thought of it and they hastened to do so
The three men installed their wives at the back and then followe d
them Then the other forms undecided and veile d took in their
turn the l ast places without exchanging a wor d
The floor was covere d with straw in which the feet ensconce d
themselves The l adies at the back having brought little copper foot
stoves with a carbon fire l ighted them an d for some time in low
voices enum erated the advantages of the appliances repeating things
that they had known for a long tirne
F inally the carriage was harnessed with six horses instea d of four
because the traveling was very bad an d a v oice called ou t:
”
“
Is everybody abo ard ?
“
An d a voice within answere d : Yes
They were off The carriage move d S lowly s lowly for a littl e w ay
e wheels were imbedde d in the snow ; the whole body groan ed
Th
with heavy cracking soun d s ; the horses gl istened puffe d and smoked ;
and the great whip of the d river snapped without ceasing hovering
about on al l sides knotting and unroll ing itself l ike a thin serpent
las hing brusquely some horse on the rebou nd which then put forth
its most violent e ffort
Now the day was imperceptibly d awning The light flakes which
one of the travelers a Rou enese by birth said looked like a S hower
of cotton no longer fell A faint light filtered through the great dul l
clouds which rendered more brilliant the white of the fields where
appeared a l ine of great tree s clothed in whiteness or a chim ney with
a cap of sno w
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S H O R T ST O RIE S OF
6
DE
M AUPA SS ANT
In the ca rriage each looked at the others curiously in the sad light of
this dawn
At the back in the best places
wholesale merch ant
of wine of Grand Pont Stree t and Mme Loiseau were sleeping
Loiseau had bought ou t his former patron
Opposite each other
who failed in business and made his fortune He sold bad wine at
a good price to small retailers in the coun try and passed am ong his
friends and acquaintan ces as a knavish wag a true Norman ful l of
vial i
d eceit and jo_
g
His reputation as a sharper was so well establish ed that one evening
at the residence of the prefect M Tournel author of some fables and
songs of keen satirical mind a local celebrity having proposed to
some ladies who seemed to be gettin g a little sleepy that they m ak e
up a game of Loiseau tricks the joke traversed the rooms of the
prefect reached those of the town and then in the months to come
m ade many a face in the pro vince expand with laughter
Loiseau was especial ly kn own for his love of farce of every
kind for his jokes good and bad ; and no one could ever talk with
“
him without thinking : He is invaluable this Loiseau Of tall figure
h
is balloon shaped front was surmo u nte d by a ruddy face sur
rounded by gray whiskers
H is wife large strong and resolute with a quick d ecisive manner
metic of this house of commerce while he was
was the order and ari th
the lif e of it through his joyous activity
Beside them M Carré Lam adon held himsel f with great dignity as
if belonging to a superior caste ; a considerable man in cottons pro
rietor of three mills
ofl
i
cer of the Legion of Honor and member of
p
the General Cou ncil He had remained during the Empire chief of
th
e friendly opposition famous for making the emperor pay more dear
for rall ying to the cause than if he had combated it with blunted
arms according to his own story Mme Carré Lam adon much
younger than her husband was the consolation of ofl
icers of goo d
fam ily sent to Rouen in garrison She sat Opposite her hus band very
dainty petite and pretty wrapped closely in furs and looking with
sad eyes at the interior of the carriage
Her neighbors the Count and Coun tess Hubert de Brevill e bore
the name of one of the most ancient and noble families of Normandy
The count an old gentleman of good figu re accen tuated by the
artifi
ces of his to ilette his resemblance to King He nry IV
who fol
lowing a glorious legend of the family had impregnated one of the
De Breville ladies whose husb and for this reas on was made a count
and governor of the province
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BALL OF FAT
-
7
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A coll eague of M Carré Lam adon in the General Cou ncil Count
Hubert represented the Orléans p arty in the department
The story of his m arriage with the daughter of a little captain of
a privateer had always rema in ed a mystery But as the countess ha d
a
ran d air received better than anyone an d passed for having been
g
lov ed b y the son of Louis Phil ippe all the nobility did her honor an d
her salon remained the first in the country the only one which pre
serv ed the old g
gal lan try an d to which the entree w as difficult The
fortune of the Brevill es amounted it was said to five hundre d thou~
sand francs in income all in go od s ecurities
These six persons formed the foundation of the carriage company
the socie ty side serene and strong honest esta b lished people who
had both religion and principles
By a strange chance all the wo men were upon the same seat and
th
e countess had for neighbors two sisters who picked at long string s
”
‘
“
Paters and
One was ol d an d
of beads and muttered some
as pitted with Smallpox as if sh
e had received a broadside of grape
shot full in the face The other very s ad had a pretty face and a
diseas e of the lungs which ad d e d to their devoted faith illumined
them and made them appear like martyrs
Opposite these two devotees were a man and a woman who
attracted the notice of all The man w ell known was Cornu det the
dem ocrat the terror of respectable p eople For twenty years he had
is great red h
eard in the b ooks of all th
e democ ratic c afés
so aked h
He ha d consumed with his friends and confreres a rather pretty for
tune left him b y his father an ol d confectioner and he awaite d the
establis hing of the Repu blic with impatience that he might hav e
e position he merited by h
th
is great exp enditures On the fourth of
September by some joke perhaps he believed himself elected prefect
but when he went to assume the duties the clerks of the O ffice were
masters of the place and refused to recognize him o bliging him to
retreat Rather a good b achelor on the whole inoffensive and serv
ice abl e he had b usied himself with incomparable ardor in organizing
the defense agains t the Prussians He had dug holes in all the plains
cu t down young trees from the neighboring forests sown snares over
all routes and
at the approach of the enemy took himself quickl y
back to the town He now thought he coul d b e of more use in Havre
where more entrenchm ents would be necessary
The woman one of those called a coquette was celebrated for her
”
“
l
em b on oint
wh
i
ch
had
given
her
the
nick
name
of
B
l
os at
a
p
Smal l rou nd and fat as lard with p uffy fingers choked at the phalang
es
like chapl §ts of h—
ort sausages wi th a stretch e
d
a
nd shin ing skin an
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S H O R T ST O R I E S OF DE M A UPA SS AN T
8
enormous bosom which‘shook under her dress she was nevertheless
pleasing and sought after on account of a certaini freShfi
FSS and
breeziness of d isp osition Her face was a round apple a peony bud
ready to p 0 p _
into_
blo om , and inside that opened two E s a h
k
s
eyes shaded witht hick brows that cast a shadow— within _and bel ow
a charming mouth humid for kissing furnish
ed withshining micro
scopic baby teeth She was it was said full of a dm irable
i
i
t
— ual es
As soon as she was recognized a whisper went arOiiri among the
“
”
u bl ic S hame
honest women and the words pr ostitute
were
whispered so loud that she raised her head Then she t ew at er
neighbors such a provoking cou ragggusJoglg that a great silence
reigned and everybody l ooked down except Loiseau who watched
her with an exhilarated air
And immediately conversation began among the three ladies
whom the presence of this girl had suddenly rendered friendly almost
intimate It seemed to them they should bring their married dignity
into union in opposition to that sol d without shame ; for legal love
always takes on a tone of contempt for its free confrere
The three men also drawn together by an instinct of preservation
at the sight of Com u det talked money with a certain high tone of
disdain for the poor CountJi gbgrt talked of the havoc which the
Prussians had caused the losses which resulted from being robbed
of cattle and from destroyed crops with the assurance of a great lord
ten tim es millionaire whom these rav ages would scarcely cramp for
a year M_“
Carré Lam ado"
n
largely
experienced
in
the
c otton in
"
“
du stry had had nem
f s ei1ding SIX hundred thous and francs to
England as a trifle in reserve if it should b e needed As for I iseau ,
he had arranged with the F rench administra tion to sell them all the
wines that remained in his cellars on account of which the State
owed him a formidable sum which he counted on collecting at Havre
An d all three threw tow ard each other swift and amicable gl ances
Although in different con d itions they felt themsel ves to be brothers
through money that
those w
ho possess it and
make the gold rattle by uttin gtheir hands in their trousers p ockets
h
The carriage went so 3 owly thata t té n o cl ock in thé m hrfi
in
t
ey
g
had not gone four leagues The men had got down three times to cl imb
hills on foot They began to be d is turbed because they should be
now taking b reakfast at T otes and they despaired now of reaching
there before nig
ht Each one had begu n to watch for an inn along
the route when the carriage foundere d in a snowdrift and it took
two hours to extricate it
e tites troubled their min ds ; and no eating hous e
Growing
app
no
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BALL OF FAT
-
9
-
wineshop showed itsel fA
he approach of the Prussians and the passage
of the troops having frightened away all these industries
The gentlemen ran to the farms along the way for provisions but
nd brea d for the defiant peasant had concealed
they did not even fi
his stores for fear of being pil laged by the soldiers who having
nothing to put between their teeth took by force whatever they
d iscovere d
Toward one o clock in the afternoon Loiseau announced that there
is stomach Everybody su ffered with him
was a decided hollow in h
an d the violent need of eating ever increasing had killed conver
sation
From time to time someone yawned ; another immediately imitated
him ; and each in his turn in accordance with his character his
is mouth with
knowledge of life and his social position O pened h
carelessness or modes ty placing his hand quickly before the yawning
hole from whence issued a v apor
Ball of Fat after many attempts bent down as if seeking some
thing under her skirts She hesitated a second looked at her neigh
bors then sat up again tranquilly The faces were pale and d rawn
Loiseau a ffi
rmed that he would give a thousand francs for a sma ll
ham His wife made a gesture as if in protest but she kept quiet She
was always troubled when anyone spoke of s quandering money and
“
”
could not comprehend any pleasantry on the subject The fact is
“
said the count I cannot understand why I did not think to bring
some provisions with me Each reproached himself in the same way
However Cornu det had a flask full of rum He offered it ; it was
refused coldly Loiseau alone accepted two swallows and then passed
back the flask sayin g by way of thanks : It is good all the same ; it
”
is warming and checks the appetite The alcohol put him in good
humor and he proposed that they do as they did on the little S hip in
the song eat the fattest of the passengers This indirect allusion to
Ball of—F at choked the well bred people They said nothing Cornu det
alone laughed The two good sisters had ceased to mumble their
rosaries and with their hands enfolde d in their g
reat sleeves hel d
themselves immovab le obstin ately lowering their eyes without d oub t
offering to Heaven the suffering it had brought upon them
Finally at three o clock when they found themselves in the midst of
an interminab le plain without a single village in sight Ball of Fat
bending down quickly drew from __
e seat a large basket
I1nder th
covered with a white napkin
At first S he brought out a little china plate and a sil ver p then a
large dish in which there were two whol e ch ickens, cut up an d
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SH O RT S T O RI E S OF DE M AUPA SS AN T
10
bedde d in their own jelly And one coul d still see in the basket
other goo d thin gs some p é tés fruits an d sweetmeats provisions for
three days if they should not see the kitchen of an inn Four necks
of bottl es were seen among th
e packages of food
She took a wing
of a chicken and began to eat it delicately with one of those bis cu its
“
”
called Regence in Normandy
All looks were turned in her direction Then the odor sprea d
enlarging the nostrils and m akingthe mouth water besides causing
a painfu l contraction of the jaw behind the ears The sco rn of the
women for this girl became ferocious as if they had a desire to
kill her and throw her ou t of the carriage into the snow her sil ver
cup her basket provisions and all
But Loiseau with his eyes devoured the d ish of chicken He said
“
Fortu nately Madame had more precaution than we There are some
people who know how to think ahead always
“
She turned toward him saying : If you woul d like some of it
”
sir? It is hard to go without breakfast so long
“
He saluted her and replied : Faith I frankly cannot refuse ; I can
stan d it no longer Everything goes in time of war does it not
”
madame ? And then casting a comprehensive glance around he
“
a d ded : In moments like this one can but be pleased to find people
b li gin
a heésp ap er which he sprea d ou t on his knees that no
come to his pantaloons and upon the point of a knife that
carried in his pocket he took up a leg all glistening
with jelly put it between his teeth and masticated it with a satis
faction s evident that there ran through the c a rriage a great S igh of
distress 4»
Then Ball Of Fat in a sweet an d humble v oice proposed that the
two sisters partake of her collation They both accepted instantly
and without raisin g their eyes beg an to eat v ery quickly after stam
mering their thanks Cornu det no longer refused the offers of his
neighbor and they formed with the sisters a sort of table by S pread
knees
ceasing ; they masticated
his corner was working
was trying to induce his wife to follow his
example _She resisted for a long tim e ; then when a d rawn sensation
ran through her b ody she yielded Her husband rounding his phrase
“
”
asked their charming companion if he might be allowed to offer
a li ttle piece to Mme Loiseau
“
”
She replied : Why yes certainly sir with an amiable sm ile as
sh
e passed the dish
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S H O R T ST O R IE S OF DE M A UPA SS AN T
12
gracious with a certain d elicacy The countess especi ally showed
that amiable condescension of v ery noble ladies who do not fear
being spoil ed by contact with anyone and was ch arming But the
great Mme Loiseau who had the soul of a plebian remained crabbed
saying little and eating much
The conversation was about the war naturally They related the
horrible deeds of the Prussians the brave acts of the French ; an d all
of them although running away did homage to those who stayed
behind Then person al stories b egan to be told and Ball of Fat
related with sincere emotion and in the heated words that such girls
sometimes u se in expressing their natural feelings how she had left
Rouen :
“
“
I believe d at first that I could remain she said I had my hou se
fu ll of pro visions and I preferred to feed a few soldiers rather than
expatriate myself to go I knew not where But as soon as I saw them
those Prussians that was too much for me ! They made my blood
boil with anger and I wept for v ery shame all day long Ohl if I
were only a man ! I watched them from my windows the great
orkers with their pointed helmets and my maid held my han ds to
peep me from throwing the furniture down upon them Then one
of them came to lodge at my house ; I sprang at h
is th
re at the first
thing ; they are no more difficult to strangle than other people An d
I should have put an end to that one then and there had they not
pulled me away by the hair After that it was necessary to keep ou t
of sight And finally when I found an opportu nity I left town and
”
here I am !
They congratul ated her She gre w in the estimation of her com
panions who had not S hown themselves so hot brained and Cornu det
whil e listening to her took on the approving benevolent smile of an
apostle as a priest woul d if he heard a devotee praise God for the
long bearded democrats have a monopoly of patriotism as the men
in cassocks have of religion In his turn he spoke in a doc trinal tone
with the emphasis of a procl amation such as we see pasted on the
walls about
town and finished by a bit of eloquence whereby he
“
”
gave that scamp of a B ading
u et a good lashing
ew
Then Ball of Fire was angry for she was a Bonapartist Sh
e
_g
red der than a cherry and stammering with indignation s ai d:
“
I wo uld like to have seen you in his la ce you other people
Then everything would have been quite rig t ; oh yes ! It is you who
have betrayed this man ! One would never have ha”d to leave France
if it had been governed by blackgu ard s like you !
Cornu det undisturbed preserved a disdainful superior smile but
all felt that the high note ha d been struck until the count not with
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BALL OF FAT
13
ou t some difficulty ca lmed the exasperated gir l and proclaimed with
a manner of authority that all S incere O pinions should be respected
B ut the countess and the manufacturer s wife who had in their souls
an unreasonable hatred for the people that favor a repu blic and the
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same instinctive tenderness that all women have for a decorative
despotic government felt themselves drawn in spite of themselves
toward this prostitute so full of dignity whose sentiments so strongly
resembled their own
The basket was empty By ten o clock they had easily exhausted the
contents and regretted that there was not more Conversation con
tinu ed for some time but a little more c ol dly since they had finis he d
catin
Th
i night fell ; the d arkness little by little became profound and
th e cold felt more du ring digestion made Ball of—F at shiver in S pite
of her plumpness Then Mme de Breville offered her the little foot
stove in which the fuel had been renewed many times S ince m om
ing ; she accepted it immediately for her feet were becoming numb
with cold The ladies Carré Lam adon an d Loiseau gave theirs to the
two religious sisters
The driver had lighted his lanterns They shone ou t with a lively
glimmer showing a cloud of foam beyond the sweat of the horses ;
and on both sides of the way the snow seemed to roll itself along
under the moving reflection of the lights
Inside the carriage one could distingu ish nothin Bu t a sudden
movement seemed to be made between Ball of—F at and Cornu det;
and Loiseau whose eye penetrated the S hadow believe d that he s aw
the big bearded man start back quickly as if he had receive d a s wift
noiseless blow
Then some twink l ing p oints of fire appeared in the distance along
the road It was Totes They had traveled eleven hours which with
the two hours given to resting and feeding the horses made thirteen
They entered the town and stopped before the Hotel of Commerce
The carriage door opened ! A well known sou nd gave the travelers
a start it w as the scabbard of a sword hitting the ground Imme
diatel y a Germ an woice _
was heard in the darkness
Although the d iligence was not moving no one offered to alight
fearing someone might be waiting to murder them as they stepped
ou t Then the conductor appeare d holding in his hand one of the
l anterns which lighted the carri age to its depth and showed the two
rows of frightened faces whose mouths were O pen and whose eyes
were wide with su rise and fear
icer
Outside beside e driver in p l ain sight stood a German ofl
an excessively tall young man thin and bl end squeezed into his
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SH O R T ST O R I E S OF DE M A UPA SS AN T
I4
nifo rm like a girl in a corset an d wearing on his head a flat oilcloth
cap which made him resemble the porter of an English hotel H is
enormous mustache of long straight hairs growing gradually thin
at each side and terminating in a S ingle blond thread so fine that one
co ul d not perceive where it ended seemed to weigh heavily on the
corners of his mouth an d drawing down the cheeks left a d ecided
wrinkle about the lips
In Al satian French he invited the travelers to come in saying in a
”
“
suave tone : Will you descend gentlemen and ladies ?
The two good S isters were the first to Obey with the docil ity of
saints accustomed ever to submission : The count and cou ntess then
appeared followed b y the manufacturer and his wife ; then Lois eau
pushing ahead of him his larger half The last named as he set foot
“
”
Goo d evening sir more as a meas
on the earth said to the officer :
ure of p rudence than politeness The o ffi
cer insolent as all powerfu l
eople
usually
are
looked
at
him
without
a
word
p
Ball of F at and Cornu det although nearest the door were the last
to descend grave and haughty before the enemy The fat girl trie d
to control herself and be calm The d emocrat waved a tragic hand
ey
(1 his long beard seemed to trem b le a little and grow redder Th
wished to preserve their dignity comprehending that in such meet
ings as these they represented in some degree their great country ;
and som what dis gusted with the docihty of her companions the fat
girl tried to S how more pride than her neighbors the honest women
and as she felt that someone S houl d set an example she continued her
attitude of resistance assumed at the beginning of the journey
They entered the v ast kitchen of the inn and the German hav ing
d emanded their traveling papers S igned b y the general in chief (in
which the name the description and profession of each traveler was
mentioned ) and having examin ed them a ll critically comparing the
“
”
eople
and
their
signat
said
It
is
q
uite
right
and
went
u res
:
ou t
p
Then they breathed They were still hungry and su p p er was or
d ered A half—hour was necess ary to prepare it and while two serv
ants were attending to this they went to their rooms They found them
along a corridor which terminate d in a large glazed door
Finally they sat down at table when the proprietor of the inn
himself appeared He was a former horse merchant a large asthmatic
man with a const ant wheezing and rattling in his throat His father
had left him th
w m e o f Fol l envie He asked
“
E l iz ab eth Rousset h
Is Miss fi
ere ?
“
Ball of F a t started as S he answered : It is I
”
“
The Pru ssian officer wishes to speak with you immediately
”
“
With me ?
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BALL OF FAT
are Miss Eliza beth R ousset
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“
Y
th at
13
-
if you
d reflecting for an instant decl are d flatly
e was d istu rbed an
Sh
“
That is my name but I shall not go
A stir was felt aroun d her ; each discusse d and tried to think of
the cause of this order The count approached her saying :
“
You are e ng mad ame for your refusal may lead to consid erab le
difficu lty not only for yourself but f or all your companions It is
ile to resist those in power This reque st cannot
never worth wh
assuredly bring any danger ; it is without doubt about some for
”
gotten formality
Everybody a g
ree d with him as king begging beseeching her to
o and at last they con vince d her that it was best ; they al l feare d
g
the complications that m ght resul t from disobedience She finally
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is,
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“
It is
i
.
that I d o this you u n d erstand
“
The countes”s took her by the hand saying : And we are gratefu l
to you for it
S he went ou t Th ey waite d before Sitting d own at table
Each one regretted not having been sent for in the place of this
violent irascible girl and mentally prepared some platitud es in c as e
they S hould be called in their tu rn
But at the end of ten minutes she reappeare d out of breath red
“
Oh ! the rascal ; the
to su ffocation and exasperate d S he stammered :
”
ras cal !
All gathere d aroun d to learn som ethin g but she said nothing ;
“
e responded with great dignity :
No
and when the co u nt insiste d sh
I can s ay nothing
1 seated themselves around a high soup tureen whence
In spite of alarm the supper was gay
of ca b bage
The cider was good ; the beverage Loiseau and the good sisters took
The others called for wine ; Cornu det de
as a means of economy
He had a special fashion of uncorking the bottle
m anded beer
m aking froth on the liquid carefully fill ing the glass and then holding
it before the l ight to better appreciate the color When he drank
his great beard which still kept some of the foam of his belove d
eem ed to tremble with tenderness ; his eyes were squinted
efh
beverag
the unique air
would s ay th at
for you
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M and Mme Fol l envie dined at the end of the ta ble The m an
rattling like a cracked locomotive had too much trouble in breathing
.
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“
S H O RT S T O R I E S OF DE M A UPA SS AN T
16
to talk whil e eating but his wife was never S ilent She told all h er
impressions at the arrival of the Prussians what they did what they
said reviling them because they cost her some money and because
S he had two sons in the army She addressed herself especially to the
countess flattered by being able to talk with a lady of quality
When She lowered her voice to say some del icate thing her hus
“
b an d would interrupt from tirne to time with : You had better keep
”
silent Madame Foll envie But she paid no attention continuing
in t his fashion :
“
Yes madame those people there not only eat our potatoes and
A
n d it must not be believe d that
ork
but
our
pork
and
potatoes
p
they are at all proper— oh no ! Such fil thy things they do saving
the respect I owe to you ! And if you could see them exercise for
hours in the day ! They are all there in the field marching ahead
then marchin g back turning here and turning there They might be
cultivating the land or at least working on the roads of their own
country ! But no madame these milit ary men are profitable to no
one Poor people have to feed them or perhaps b e murdered ! I am
only an old woman without education it is true but when I see
some endangering their constitutions by raging from morning to
‘
night I s ay : When there are so many people found to be useless
how unnecessary it is for o thers to take so much trouble to be
nuisances ! Truly is it not an abomination to kill people whether
they b e Prussian or English or Polish or F rench ? If one man revenges
himself upon another who has done him some injury it is wicked
and he is pun ished ; but when they exterminate our boys as if they
were game with guns they give d ecorations indeed to the one who
”
destroys the most ! Now you se“
e I can never understand that never !
Cornu det raised his voice : War is a barbarity when one attacks
a peaceable neighbor but a sacred d uty when one d efen ds his
country
The old woman lowered her head
“
Yes when one defends himself it is another thing ; but why not
make it a duty to kill all the kings who make these wars for their
”
pleasure ?
”
Com u det s eyes flashe d Bravo my cou ntry wom anl sai d he
M Carré Lam adon reflected profoundly Although he was p reju
d iced as a captain of industry the good sense of this pe asant woman
e
ink of the O pulence that wo uld be brought into th
im th
m ade h
country were the idle and consequently mischievous hands and the
ich were now maintained in unproductiveness employed
b oo m w h
in some great ind ustria l work that it woul d require cen turies to
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BALL OF FAT
17
Loiseau l eaving h
is place went to S pe ak with the innkeeper in a
ock and squeake d h
reat man l aughed Sh
is
l ow tone of voice The g
quivered with joy at the jokes of his neighbor an d
after the Prussians
of him S ix cases of wine for S pring
h ad gone
As soo n as supper was finished as they were worn ou t with
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fatigu e they retired
However Loiseau who ha d observed things after getting his wife
to bed glued his eye and then his ear to a hole in the wall to try and
“
d iscover what are known as the mysteries of the corridor
At the end of about an hour he heard a groping and looking
he erceived Ball of F at who appeared stil l more plump in a blue
ere negligee trimme d with white lace She had a candle in her
cas
hand and was directing her steps toward the great door at the end
But a door at the S ide O pened and when she
of the corridor
re turned at the end of some minutes Cornu det in his suspend ers
followed her They spoke l ow then they stopped Ball of F at seemed
to be defending the entrance to her room with energy Loiseau
u nfortunately could not hear all their words but fin ally as they raised
their voices he was able to catch a few Cornu det insisted with
vivacity He said :
“
”
Come now you are a silly woman ; what harm can be done ?
She had an indignant air in responding : No m y dear there are
moments when such things are ou t of place Here it would be a
”
shame
He doubtl ess did not comprehen d an d asked why Then she c rie d
ou t raising her v oice still more
“
Why? You do not see why ? When there are Prussians in the
”
house in the v ery next room perhaps ?
He was silent This patriotic S hame of the harlot who woul d not
suffer his caress so near the enemy must have awakened the latent
d ignity in his heart for after simply kissing her he went back to his
own door with a boun d
w
Loiseau much excited le ft the aperture cut a cap er in his room
put on his paj am as turned back the clothes that covered the bony
carcass of his comp anion whom he awakened with a kiss mur
“
murin g : DO you love me dearie ?
Then all the house was stil l And immediately there arose some
where from an uncertain q uarter which might be the cellar but was
quite as likely to be the garret a powerful snoring monotonous an d
re g
ular a heavy prolonged sou n d like a great kettle under pressu re
M Fol l envie was asleep
AS they had decided that they would set o ut at eight o cl oc k th
e
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SH O R T S T O R IE S OF D E M A UPA SS AN T
18
morning they all collected in the kitchen But the c arria ge the
roof of which was covered with sn ow stood un disturbe d in the cou rt
yar d without horses and without a conductor They sought him in
v ain in the stables in the hay an d in the coach house Then they
resolved to scour the town and st arte d ou t They found thems elves
in a square with a church at one en d and some l ow houses on either
side where they perceived some Prussian soldiers The first one they
The second further off was cleaning
saw was parin g potatoes
the hairdresser s S hop Another bearded to the eyes was tending a
troublesome b rat cradlin g it an d trying to appease it ; an d the great
”
peasant women whose husbands were away in the army indicate d
by signs to the ir ob edient conquerors the work they wished to have
done : cutting wood cooking the soup g
rinding the coffee or what
not One of them even washed the l inen of his hostess an impotent ol d
gran dmo ther
The count astonished asked questions of the beadle who came out
of the rectory The old man responded
“
Oh ! those men are not wicked ; they are not the Prussians we h ear
about They are from far off I know nOt where ; and they have left
wives and children in their coun try ; it is not amusing to them this
war I can tel l you ! I am sure they also weep for their homes and that
it makes as much sorrow among them as it does among us Here now
there is not so much unhappiness for the moment because the
soldiers do no harm and they work as if they were in their own
homes You see sir among poor people it is necessary that they aid
”
one another These are the great traits which war develops
Cornu det indignant at the cordial relations betwee n the con
u erors and the conquered preferred to shut himself up in th
“
”
Loiseau had a joke for the occasion : They will repeople the lan d
“
M Gw eLam adon had a serious wor d : They try to make
”
amends
But they did not find the driver Finally they discovered him in
a café of the village sittin g at table fratem all y with the oflicer of
ordn ance The count called out to him
“
”
Were you not ordered to b e ready at eight o clock?
“
”
Well yes ; but another order has been given me sin ce
“
By whom ?
“
”
F
aith ! the Prussian comman d er
”
“
What was it?
“
Not to harness at all
"
“
Why?
“
I know nothing a b out it GO and ask him They tell me not to
”
harnes s and I don t harness That s all
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S H O R T S T O RI E S OF
20
M A UPA S S AN T
DE
men after he had breakfasted that is to say about one o cl ock
The ladies reappeared and ate a littl e something despite their dis
quiet Ball of Fat seemed ill and prodigiously troubled
They were finishing their coffee when the word came that the
omcer was ready to meet the gentlemen
Loiseau joined them ;
but when they tri e d to enlist Cornu det to give more solemnity to
their proceedings he decl ared proudly that he would have nothing
to do with the Germans and he betook himse l f to his chimney
corner and ordered another liter of beer
The three men mounted the staircase an d were in troduced to the
icer received t h
em stretched out
best room of the inn where the ofl
in an armcha ir his feet on the mantelpiece smokin g a long porcelain
pipe and enveloped in a flam b oyant dressing gown appropriated
without doubt from some dwelling belongin g to a common citizen
of bad taste He did not rise nor greet them in any way not even
looking at them It was a magnificent display of natural black
u ardism
transformed in to the military victor
g
“
At the expiration of some moments he asked : What is it you
wis h?
“
”
The count became spokesman We desire to go on our way sir
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NO
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,
May I ask the cause of this refus al ?
”
Because I do not wish it
But I would respec tft observe to you S ir that your gener al
in g
in chief gave us permission to go to D ieppe and I know of noth
we have done to merit your severity
“
I do not wish it— that is a l l ; you can go
All three having bowed retired
The afternoon was lamentable They coul d not understand this
c aprice of the German and the most singular ideas would come into
their heads to trou b le them Every b ody stayed in the kitchen and
dis cussed the S ituation endlessly imagining all sorts of unlikely
things Perhaps they would be retained as hostages— but to what
end ?— or t aken prisoners— or rather a considerable ransom might be
demanded At this thought a panic prevail ed The richest were the
most frightened already seeing themselves constrained to pay for
their lives with sacks of gold poured into the hands of this insolen t
soldier They racked their brains to think of some acceptable false
hood s to conceal their riches and make them pas s themselves off for
r
very
poor
people
Loiseau
took
off the chain to h
i
s
eo l e
p
watch an hid it away in his pocket The falling night increased their
apprehensions The l amp was lighted and as there was still two
hours before dinner Mme Loiseau proposed a gam e of thirty one I t
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BALL OF FAT
21
a diversion They accepted Cornudet himself having
-
-
would
be
.
.
,
oke d out his pipe took part for politeness
The count shuffled the cards d ealt an d Ball of F
at the outset ; and imme d iately the interest was great enough to ap
pease the fear that haunte d their min ds Then Cornu det perceived
tha t the house of Loiseau was given to tri cks
As they were going to the dinner table M Fol l envie again ap
eared an d in whee zing rattling v oi ce announced
p “
The Prussian offi cer ord ers me to ask M iss Elizabeth R ous set if She
has yet change d her m in d
B all of Fat remained stan d ing an d was pale ; then sudd enl y be
e
coming crim son such a stifling anger took possession of her that sh
“
coul d not speak But finally she flashed ou t : You may say to the
d irty beast that id iot that carrion of a Prussian
that I shall ne ver
”
change it ; you un derstand never ne ver never !
The great innkeeper went out Then B all of Fat was immediately
surrounded q uestioned and solicited by all to disclose the mystery
of h
is v isit She resisted at first but soon becoming exasperated
“
What does he want? You really want to know what he
e sai d :
sh
wants ? He wants to Sleep with me
Everybo dy T VT S EHOked foT W ords and indignation was rife
is fi
is glass so violently did he bring h
st down upon
Cornu det broke h
ere was a cl amor of censure against this ignoble soldier
th
e table Th
a blast of anger a union of all for resistance as if a d emand had been
m ade on each one of the party for the sacrifice exacted of her The
cou nt d ec lared with d isgus t that those people conducte d themselves
after the fashion of the ancient barbarian s The women especially
showe d to Ball of Fat a most energetic and tender com m iseration
! The good sisters who onl y showed themselves at m eal tim e l owered
‘
a
the ir heads an d said nothin g
They all dine d nevertheless when the first furors ha d abated But
there was little conversation ; they were thinking
The la dies retired early and the men all smoking organized a
game of cards to which M Foll envie was in vited as they intended
to put a few casual questions to him on the su bject of c onquering
icer But he thought of nothing but the
th
e resistance of this ofl
car ds and without hstening or answering would keep repeating :
“
To the game S irs to the game H is a ttention was so taken that he
even forgot to e xpectorate which must have put him some points to
the good with the organ in his breast H is Whistl ing lun gs ran the
whole asthmatic scale from deep profoun d tones to the sharp
rustiness of a young c o c k essaying to c row
He even refu sed to retire when his wife who ha d fallen asl eep
sm
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S H O R T ST O R I E S OF D E M A UPA SS AN T
22
w
al one for S h
v
i
i
m
She
went
a
ay
o
us ly c ame to l ook for h
e was
p
“
”
an e arly bird always up with the su n while her husb and was a
“
”
night owl al ways ready to pass the ni ht with his friends He
“
"
cri ed out to her :
Leave my creamed chi en before the fi
re!
and
re
.
,
,
,
,
,
g
g
.
h n went on with his ame When they saw that they co uld g
et
nothing from him they ecl ared tha t it was time to stop and each
sou ght his b ed
They all rose rather early the next d ay with an unde fi
ned hope
in
of ge tting away which desire the terror of passing anothe r d a
y
that horrible inn greatly increased
Al as ! the hors es rem ained in the stable an d the driver was in
visible For w ant of better employment they went ou t and walked
around the carriage
The breakfast was very doleful and it be came apparent that a
coldness had arisen toward B al l of Fat and that the night
brings counsel had slightly modifi
ed their judgments They
wished now that the Prussian ha d secretly fou nd this girl in Order
“
to giv e her companions a pleasant surprise in the morning What
coul d be more S imple ? Besid es who would know anyth ing a b out it ?
She coul d save appearances by telling the officer that She took pity
on their distress To her it w ould m ake s o little diffe ren ce!
No one had avowed these thoughts yet
In the afternoon as they w ere almost perishin g fIOIn ennui th
e
Each
cou nt propo sed that they take a walk around th
e v ill age
wrapped up warmly and the littl e party set out with the exception
re
and the good
of Cornu det who preferr ed to remain near the fi
s is ters who pas sed their t im e in the church or at the curate s
The cold growing mo re inten se every day cruell y p inched their
noses and e ars ; their feet bec am e so n u mb that each step w as torture ;
and when they came to a field it s eemed to the m fri ghtf ully sa d
ite so that everybod y returned
u nder this limitless Wh
with hearts hard pres sed and souls congeal ed
The four women walked ahead the three gentlemen foll owed j ust
behind Loiseau who
ders tood the S ituation asked su d de nly if
the y thought that girl
re was going to keep them l ong in such
The count always courteous said that they could
a place as this
no t exact from a woman a sa crifice so hard un l e ss it S hould come of
her own will M Carré Lam adon remarked that if the French made
th eir re turn through Dieppe as they were likely to a ba ttle would
su rely take place
at T otes This refle cti on made the two
anx ious
“
"
If we could only get away on foot sai d Loiseau
“
How can we think of it
Th
e count S hrugged h
is sh oulde rs
t e
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BALL OF FAT
”
“
with our wiv es ? he said And then
-
w
sno
and
23
-
should be pursu ed
back p risoners at the mercy of
.
we
caught in ten minutes and l ed
”
thes e soldiers
It was true and they were silent
Th
e ladies talked of their clothes but a certain c onstraint seemed
Suddenly at the end of the str eet the officer
to disunite them
appeared His tall wasp hke figu re in uniform was outlined upon the
horiz on formed by the snow and he was marching with knees apart
which is affected that they may not
a gait p articul arly mil it ary
sp ot their carefully blackened boots
He bowed in passing near the la d ies an d looked disd ainfully at
who preserved their dig
nity by not seeing him except
th
e men
Lois eau who made a motion toward raising his hat
Ball of F at reddened to the ears an d the three married women
re nted the great humiliation of being thus met by this soldier in the
cornp any of this girl whom he had treate d so caval ierly
But they spoke of him of his figure and his face Mme Carré
cers and considered herself a
Lam adon who had known many ofi
connoisseur of them found this one not at al l bad ; S he regretted even
that he was not F rench becaus e he would make such a pretty
hus sar one all the women woul d rave over
Again in the house no one kn ew what to do Some sharp words
nificant The dinner was silent
ev e n were said a b out things ve ry insi g
and al rnost immediately after it each one went to h
is room to kill
time in sleep
They descended the next morning with weary faces and exasperated
h
ea rts T h
e m om en sca rcel L sp g
kgto Bal l of F at
A be ll began to ring It was for a ap tism The fat g irl had a
chil d being brought up among the peasants of Yvetot She had not
seen it for a year or thought of it ; but now the idea of a child
being baptized threw into her heart a sudden and v iol ent tenderness
for her own and she strongly wished to be present at the cere
and
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y
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soon as she was gone everybody l c fe d at each other then
their chairs together for they thought that finally something
be decided upon Loiseau had an inspiration : it was to hol d
Bal l Of Fat alone and let the others go
M Fol l envie was charged with the commission but he returned
al most immediately for the German who understood human nature
had put him out He pretended that he woul d retain e verybody so
l ong as his des ire was not satis fied
Then the commonplace nature of Mme Loiseau burst out with C
“
Wel l we are not goin gto stay here to die of ol d age S ince it is
AS
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m
SH O R T S T O RI E S OF D E M A UPA SS AN T
24
th e trad e of this c reature to accommodate herself to all kin ds I fail
to see how S he has the right to refuse one more than another I can
tell you S he has received a ll she coul d fin d in Rouen even the
c oachmen ! Yes madame the prefect s coachman ! I know him very
we ll for he bought his wine at our house And to think that today
we should be drawn into this embarrassment by this affected woman
this minx ! For my part I find that this officer conducts himself v ery
well He has perhaps suffered priv ations for a long time an d d oubt
less he would have preferred u s three ; but no he is contented with
common property He respects marrie d women And we mus t re
“
’
member too that he is master He has only to say I wish and he
take us by force with his soldiers
Mme
C
e tw o women ha d a cold shiver Pre tt
Th
arré L am adon s
y
eyes grew brilliant and she became a little pale as if she saw herse lf
already taken by force by the officer
The men met
an d d iscusse d the S ituation Loiseau furious was
“
”
for d elivering the wretch bo u nd han d and foot to the enemy B ut
the count descended through three generations of ambassadors an d
endowed with the temperament of a diplomatis t was the a d vocate of
ingenuity
“
It is best to d ecid e up on something s aid he Then they con
SPire d
the tone of their voices was lowered
Th
e women kept together
each gave advice and the d iscussion was general Everythin g was
very harmonious The ladies especially found delicate Shades an d
charming subtleties of e xpression for saying the most unusual things
A stranger would have understood nothing so great was the pre
caution of langu age observe d But the light edge of modes ty with
which every woman of the world is barbed 0
surface ;
they blossom ou t in a scandalous adven ture of
g deeply
amused and
with
sensuality as a greedy cook prepares supper for his master )
Even gaiety returned so funny di d the whole story seem to them
at last The count found some of the jokes a l ittle off col or but
they were so well told that he was forced to smile In his tu rn
Loiseau came ou t with some still b older tales and yet nobody
was wounded The brutal thought expressed by his W ife d ominated
“
all minds : Since it is her trade why should S he refuse this one
”
more than another ? The genteel Mme Carré Lam adon seemed to
think that in her place she would refuse this one less than some
others
They prepared the blockade at length as if they were about to
surround a fortress Each took some role to play some ar g
uments
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BALL OF FAT
-
25
-
he would brin g to bear som e m aneuvers
t
at
he
would
endeavor
to
" "
"h
“
decided on th e t
of attack the fruse to
assaul t that shoul d force this l iXi citadel
,
'
'
,
'
”
“
hle a fai
So entirely were their min d s d istracte d that they did not hear
rest an d
(
f
o
was
a stranger to the
r
.
”
B all of Fat enter The count uttered a light Ssh! which turned
all eyes in her direction There she was The abrupt silence and a
certain embarrassment hindere d them from speakin g to her at
-
-
.
.
.
first The countess more accustomed to the duplicity of society than
the others finally inquired
“
Was it very amusing that baptism?
The fat girl filled with emotion told them all about it : the faces
“
It
th
e a ttitudes and even the appearance of the church She added :
”
is good to pray sometimes
e for l uncheon these ladies continued to be
e ting
th
t/
"
“
rd er to incre ase her d oci1ity and her con
amiable toward her in o
“
dence iri th
l
uf
r
fs
fi
eirfi
o
A
t
t
h
e
tab
r
e
te.
was in the shape of a vague conversation upon devotion They
c ited ancient examples : Judith and H OIOp hernes then without rea
and Cleopatra obliging all the generals of
son Lucrece and Sextus
th
e enemy to pass by her couch an d reducing them in servility to
slaves Then they brought out a fantastic story hatched in the
im agination of these ignorant mill ionaires where the women of
Rome went to Capua for the purp ose of lulling Hannibal to sleep
in their arms and his lieutenants and p hal anfes f
of m ercenarres as
well They cited all the women who had been taken b y conquering
armies m akin g a battlefield of their bodies making them also a
weapon and a means of success ; and all those hideous and detestable
beings who have conquered by their heroic caresses and sacrifice d
their chastity to vengeance or a beloved cause They even spoke
in veiled terms of that great English famil y which allowed one of
its women to be inoculated with a horrible and contagious disease
in order to transmit it to Bonaparte who was miraculously save d
by a su d den ill ness at the hour of the fatal rendezvous
And all this was related in an agreeable temperate fashion except
as it was enlivened by the enthusiasm deemed proper to excite
emulation
One might finally have believe d that the sole duty of woman here
below was a sacrifice of her person and a continual abandonment
to so ld ierly caprices
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SHORT STORIES OF DE MAUPASSANT
26
The two good sisters seeme d not to hear lost as they were in
profound thought Ball of—Fat s aid nothing
During the whole afternoon they let her reflect B ut in the
of
‘
”
‘
her M adame as they ha d up to this time they 5
ed
)
”
“
: calling
her Mademoisell e without knowing exactly why as if they had
a desire to put her down a degree in their esteem which she had
taken by storm and make her feel her shamefu l situation
The moment
supper was serv e d M Foll envie appeared with his
“
The Prussian offi
cer orders me to ask if Miss Elizabeth
ol d phrase :
”
Rousset has yet changed her mind
‘
B all of—Fat responded dryly : No sir
But at dinner the coalition weakened Loiseau made th
ree unh a py
p
remarks Each one beat his wits for new examples but found nothing ;
then the countess without premeditation p erha s feel ing some va g
ue
need of rendering homage to religion asked e el d er of the good
sisters to tell them some great d eeds in the lives of the saints It
appeared that many of their acts would have been considered
crimes in our eyes but the Church gave absolution of them rea dily
since they were done for the glory of God or for the goo d of all
It was a powerful argument the countess made the most of it
Thus it may be by one of those tacit understandings or the veile d
complacency in which anyone who wears the ecclesiastical garb
excels it may be simply from the effect of a happy unintel l igence
a helpful stupidity but in fact the religious sister lent a formidabl e
su pport to the conspiracy They ha d thought her timid but she
showed herself c ourageous verbose even v iolent She was not
trouble d by the chatter of the c asuist ; her d octrine seemed a b ar of
iron ; her faith never hesitated ; her conscience had no scruples S he
found the sacrifice of Abraham perfectly simple for she woul d
immediately kill father or mother on an order from on high And
no thing in her op inion could displease the
L
rd
if
the
intentio
n
o
“
was laudable The countess put to use the authority
acco mp lice and added to it the edifying paraphrase an d axiom of
”
Jesuit morals : The need justifi
e m eans
esj h
“
Then she asked her Then my sister do you think that God ac cepts
”
intentions and pardons the deed when the motive is pure ?
“
Who could doubt it madame? An action blamable in itself often
”
becomes meritorious by the thought it springs from
And they continued thus unraveling the will of God foresee ing his
v
/ decisions mak ing themselves intereste d in things that in truth they
would never think of noticing All
was ard ed sk illful discreet
But each w
ord of the saintly gsister in a cap el p ed to b reak d own fhé
resistance of the unworthy courtesan Then the c onversation changed
,
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’
S H O R T S T O R I E S OF DE
28
M AUPASSANT
again The disquiet was extreme What were they to do? If she con
tinned to resist what an em b arrassment !
The dinner hour struck They waite d in vain M Fol l envie finally
entered and said that Miss Rousset was indisposed an d would not be
at the tab le Everybody pricked up his ears The count went to
the innkeeper and said in a l ow v oice
Is he in there ?
”
Yes
For convenience he said nothing to his companions but ma d e a
slight sign with his head Immediately a great sigh of relief went up
from every breast and a light appeared in their faces Loiseau cried
.
.
,
.
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.
.
.
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.
.
ou t :
Holy Christopher ! I pay for the champa g
ne if there is any to be
found in the establishment An d Mme Loiseau was pained to see
the proprietor re turn with four quart bottles in his hands
Each one had suddenly become communicative and buoyant A
wanton joy filled their hearts The count suddenly perceived that
M me Carré Lam adon was charming the manufacturer paid com
l
i
m ents to the co u ntess
The conversation was lively gay full of
p
touches
Suddenly Loiseau with anxious face and hand upraised called out
S ilence ! Every b ody was silent surprised al ready frightened Then
”
“
he listened intently and said : S s sh! his two eyes and his hands
raised toward the ceilin g listening and then continuing in his
”
natural voice : All right ! All goes well !
They failed to comprehend at first but soon all laughed At the
end of a quarter of an hour he began the same farce again renewing
it occasionally during the whole afternoon And he pretended to call
to someone in the story above giving him advice in a double mean
ing dr awn from the fountainhead— the min d of a commercial trav
eler For some moments he would assume a sad air breathing in a
“
”
whisper : Poor girl ! Then he would murmur between his teeth with
”
“
an appearance of rage : Ugh ! That scamp of a Prussian Sometimes
at a moment when no more was thought a b out it he wo uld say in an
”
“
affected voice many times over : Enough ! enough ! and add as if
eaking to himself : If we could only see her again ; it isn t necessary
”
s
p at he should kill her the wretch !
Al th ough these jokes were in deplorable taste they a m u sed all and
wound ed no one for indignation like other things depends upon its
s urroundings and the atmosphere which had been gra d ually created
around them was charged with sensual thoughts
At the dessert the women themselves made some del icate and dis
Their eyes glistened ; they had d runk much The
orcet all usions
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’
,
,
,
,
,
.
.
.
B ALL OF FAT
-
29
-
count who preserv ed even in his flights his grand appearance
,
of
gravity made a comparis on much relished upon the subject of
e joy of ship wrecked sail ors who
those wintering at the Pole and th
e south
s aw an opening toward th
Loiseau suddenly arose a glass of champagne in his hand and said
”
“
I drink to our deliverance Everybody was on his feet ; they shoute d
in agreement Even the two good sisters consented to touch their
lips to the froth of the wine which they had never before tasted
They declared that it “
tasted like charged lemonade only much nicer
Loiseau res umed : It is unfortunate that we have no piano for
we might make up a quadrill e
Cornu det had not said a word nor made a gesture ; he appeare d
plunge d in very grave thoughts and made sometimes a furious m o
tion so that his great beard seemed to wish to free itse l f Finall y
toward midnight as they were separating Loiseau who was stag
gering touched him su ddenl y on the stomach and said to him in a
“
stam mer : You are not very funny this evening ; you have sai d
”
nothing citizen ! Then Cornudet rais ed his head brusquely and
“
casting a brilliant terrible glance around the company said : I tell
of inf am
al l that
ou have been
He
rose
went
to
the
flty a
y
“
agam repeated : I amy s y and disappeared
This made a coldness at first Loiseau interlocutor was stu p efi
ed ;
“
but he recovered imm ediately and laughed heartily as he said : He
And then as they di d
is very green my friends He is very green
not comprehend he told them about the
mysteries of the corri d or
Then there was a return of gaiety The women behaved like lunatics
The count and M Carré Lam adon wept from the force of their
laughter
They could not believe it
”
“
H ow is that ? Are you sure ?
“
”
I tel l you I saw it
“
And she refused
“
”
cer was in the next room
Yes because the Prussian cfi
”
“
Impossible !
“
I swear it !
The count was s tifled with laughter The industrial gentleman
held his sides with both hands Loiseau continued
“
And now you understand why he saw nothing funny this eve
”
ning ! No nothing at al l !
And the three started ou t half ill suffo
,
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cated
.
They separated But Mme Loiseau who was of a spite ful nature
“
rem arked to her husband as they were getting into bed that that
”
grisette of a little Carré Lam adon was yellow with envy all the
“
“
evening You know she continue d how some women will take
.
,
-
.
,
,
,
S H O R T ST O RIE S OF
80
D E MAUPASSANT
a uniform whether it be French or Pruss ian It is al l the sam e
”
to them Oh what a pity !
An d a ll night in the darkness of the corrid or there were to be
he ar d l ight noises like whisperings and walking in bare feet and im
erceptible
They
did
not
go
to
sleep
unt
i
l
late
that
i
s
creaking
s
p
for there were threads of light shining under the doors for a
sure
long tim e The champagn e had its effect ; they s ay it troubles sleep
The next day a clear winter s su n made the snow very brilliant
already harnessed waited before the door while an
Th
e d iligence
army of white pigeons in their thick plumage with rose colored eyes
with a black sp ot in the center walk ed up and down gravely among
the l egs of the six horses seeking their l ivelihood in the manure
there scattered
The driver envelope d in his sheepskin ha d a lighte d pipe under
th e seat and all the travelers radi ant were rapidly packing some
provisions for the rest of the journey They were only waitin gfor
Ball of Fat Finally she appeared
She seemed a li ttle troubled ashame d And she advance d timidly
toward her companions who all with one motion turned as if they
had not seen her The count with digni ty took the arm of his wife
and removed her from this im pure contact
ed; then plucking up courage sh
e
The fat girl stopped hal f stu p efi
‘
‘
approached the manuf acturer s w ife with Good morning m adame
humbly murmured The l ady made a slight bow of the head which she
accompanied with a look of outrage d virtue Every b ody seem ed busy
and kept themselves as far from her as if she had had some infectious
dise ase in her kirts Then they hurried into the carriage where
she came last alone and where she took the pl ace she had occu pied
d uring the first part of the journey
They seemed not to see _
me Loiseau
her or know her ;
l oold ngather fro
m afar said to he
rh
uSh
and
”
I don t have to sit beside her
“
The hea vy carria g
e began to move and the remainder of the
journey commenced No ones poke at_
first Ball of F at dared not raise
_
her _eyes _She felt_indignant towar d all her neighbors and at the
same tim e humil iated at ha ving yielded to the foul kisses of this
Prussian into whose arms they had hypocritic ally thrown her
Then the countess turning tow
ard Mme Carré Lam adon broke
cult silence
e diffi
th
“
”
I believe you know Mad ame d E trell es?
“
Yes she i s one of my friends
”
“
What a charming woman !
“
D elightful ! A very gentle nature and well educated besides then
to
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s
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Ar v
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B ALL
h
-
OF
-
FAT
31
artist to the tips of her fingers sin gs beautifully and draws
”
to pe rfection
The manufacturer chatted with the count and in the midst
of the
“
coupon
ratt ling of the glass an occasional word escaped such as
”
premium— limit— expiration
Lois eau who had pilfered the ol d pack of cards from the inn
asy through five years of contact with tables badly cleane d
agan a game of bezique with his wife
The good sisters took from their belt the long rosary which hung
there made together the sign of the cross and suddenly b egan to
move their lips in a lively murmur as if they were going through the
“
”
whole of the Oremus An d from time to tim e they kissed a medal
made the sign anew then recommenced their mutter ing which was
rapid and continued
Cornu det sat motionless think ing
At the end of three hours on the way Loiseau put up the c ar ds
”
“
and said :
I am hungry
H is wife drew out a package from whence sh
e brought a piece
of cold veal She cut it evenly in thin pieces and they both began
to eat
“
Suppose we d o the same said the countess
They consented to it an d she undi d the provisions prepared for the
two couples It was in one of those dishes whose lid is decorated with
‘
a china hare to signify that a p até of ha re is inside a succu lent dish
of pork where white rivers of lard cross the brown flesh of the game
mixed with some other viands hashed fine A beautiful square of
Gruyere cheese wrapped in a piece of newspaper preserved the im
“
print divers thin gs upon the un ctuou s plate
The two good sisters unrolled a big sausage which smelled of garlic
and Cornu det plunged his two hands into the vast pockets of his over
coa t at the same time and drew ou t four hard eggs and a piece of
bread He removed the shells an d threw them in the straw under his
feet ; then he began to eat the eggs letting fal l on his vast beard some
bits of clear yellow which looked lik e stars caught there
B all of Fat in the haste and distraction of her rising had not
thought of anything ; and sh
e looked at them exasperated su ffocating
with rage at all of them eating so placidly A tumul tuous anger swept
over her at first and she opened her mouth to cry out at them to hurl
at them a flood of m jury which mounted to her lips but she could not
sp e ak her exasperation strangled her
looked at her or thought of her She felt herself drowned in
No
h
the scorn of these honest sco_
rel s who had first s a
cri
fi
ce
d
er and
11n
d
_
th
en rejected her Ii e s ome improper or useless article She thou ght
)
_k
s e
is
an
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‘
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;
SH O R T S TORIE S OF D E MAUPASSAN T
82
her great basketful of —goo d
devoured of
"
7
iningW it j
ally of_h
s sh
er
s
a1 s a
héT W o chickefi
e
n
d
é
é
the
t
p
p
four
and her
a
; s a cord
falling
drawn tO5
fi l i la L to fi p She made
e fforts to prevent it making ugly faces swallowing her sobs as chil
dren do ; but the te ars came and gl istened in the corners of her eyes
and then two great drops detaching themselves from the rest roll ed
slowly d own like little streams of water that filter through rock and
falling regularly re b ounded upon her breast She sits erect her eyes
fi
xed her face rigid and pale h 0 ping that no one will notice her
But the countess perceives her and tells her husband by a sign H e
shrugs his shoulders as much a s to say
“
What would you have me d o ? It is not my fault
M me Loiseau indulged”in a mute laugh of triumph and murmured
“
She weeps for shame
The _two good sisters began to pray again after having wrapped
in a p ap erfthe jrem ainder of their
Then Cornu det who was d igesting his eggs extended his legs to
th
is arms smiled like a man
e seat O pposite crossed them folded h
”
“
who is watching a good farce and beg an to whistle the Marseillaise
is
Al l faces grew dark The popular song assuredly did not please h
neighbors They became nervous and agitated having an appearance
of wishing to howl l ike dogs when they hear a bar b arous organ He
perceived this but did not stop Sometimes he would b urn the wor ds :
of
‘
,
-
w
,m
”
,
~
fi
’
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,
”
,
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'
n
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“
Sa cred
l ove
f cou ntry
su sta in th a ven in
a rm ;
gg
j
o
’
H el p ,
Liberty , sweet Liberty,
E ver g
ht, withno a la rm
fi
.
They traveled fast the snow being harder But as far as D ieppe
.
,
,
during the long sad hours of the jou rney ac oss the jolts in the road
through the falling night in the profound darkness of the carriage he
continued his vengeful monotonous whistling with a ferocious oh
cons
raining
his
neigh
b
ors
to
follow
the
song
from
one
end
t
stin ac
y
to the other and to recall the words that belonged to each measure
And Ball of F at wept continually and sometimes a sob which she
was not able to res tr ain echoed between the two rows of people in
the sha d ows
,
r
,
,
,
,
,
.
-
-
,
,
.
,
T HE N E C K L A C E
of
those pretty charming young ladies born as if
through an error of destiny into a family of clerks She had no dowry
no hopes no means of b ecoming known appreciated loved and married
by a man either rich or distin guished ; and she allowed herself to
marry a petty clerk 1n the office of the Board OW
She was simple not being a b le to adorn herself but she was u n
SH E W AS
one
,
,
,
.
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
ered her
m
w
a
The sight of the little Breton w 0 made this hum b le
home awo e in her sad regrets and desperate dreams She thought
of quiet antecham b ers with their oriental hangings lighted by high
bronze torches and of the two great footrnen in short trou sers who
sleep in the large armchairs made sleepy b y the heavy air from the
heatin g apparatus She thought of large drawing rooms hu ng in ol d
silks of grace ful pieces of furnitu re carrying b ric a brac of inestimab le
value and of the little perfumed coquettish apartm ents made for fi
ve
o clock chats with most intimate friends men known and sought
after whose attention all women envied and des ired
When she seated herself for dinner before the round tab le where
the ta b lecloth had been used three days O pposite her husband who
uncovered the tureen with a delighted air saying : Oh ! the good
potpie ! I kn ow nothing better than that she would think of the ele
gant dinners of the shining silver of the tapestries peopling the walls
with ancient personages and rare b irds in the midst of fairy forests ;
e thought of the exquisite food served on m arvelous dishes of the
sh
whispered gallantries listened to with the smile of the Sphinx while
an
.
,
,
.
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’
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,
,
,
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,
,
,
,
,
l ke to v isit; she suffered
not i
so
much when she returned An d she
.
SH O R T STORIE S OF DE MAUPASSAN T
34
wept for whole days from chagrin from regret from despair and
d isappointment
,
,
.
One evening her husband returned elated bearin g i n his hand a
l arge
envelope
”
“
”
“
Here he said here is something for you
She q uickly tore open the wrapper and drew ou t a printed c ard on
which were inscribed these words
The Minister of Public Instruction and Madame George Ram
ponneau ask the honor of M an d Mme Loisel s company Monday
evening j anuary 18 at the Minister s residence
Instead of being delighted as her husband had hoped she threw
e invita tion spitefully upon the table murm u ring
th
”
“
What do you suppose I want with that?
“
But my dearie I thought it would make you happy You ne ver go
ou t and th is is an occasion and a fine one! I had a great deal of
trouble to get it Everybody wishes one and it is very select ; not many
”
are given to employees You will see the whole oflicial world there
She look ed at him with an irritated eye and d eclared impatiently
“
”
What do you suppose I have to wear to such a thing as that?
He had not thought of that ; he stammered
“
Why the dress you wear when we go to the theater It seem s
very pre tty to me
ed in d ism ay at the sight of h
He was silent stup efi
is wife weep
ing Two great tears fell slowly from the corners of her eyes toward
the corners of her mouth ; he stammered
”
What is the matter? What is the matter?
By a v iolent effort she had controlle d her vexation and respond ed
in a calm voice wip ing her moist cheeks
“
Nothin g Only I have no dress and consequently I cannot go to
this affair Give your car d to some colleague whose wife is better
fitted ou t than 1
He was grieved but answered
“
Let us see Matilda How much would a s uitable costume cost
something that would serv e for other occasions something very
,
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“
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,
sim
l e?
,
,
”
S e reflected for some seconds makin g estimates and thinking
,
of
a sum that she coul d ask for without bringing with it an immed iate
re fusal and a frightened exclamation from the economical clerk
F
inally she said in a hesitating voice :
“
I cannot tell exactly but it seems to me that four hundre d francs
”
ou ght to cover it
?
.
,
.
SHORT STORIES OF DE MAUPASSANT
36
She fell upon the neck O f her friend embraced her with passion
then went away with her treasure
,
,
.
The day of the ball arrived Mme Loisel was a great success She
was the prettiest O f all elegant gracious smiling and full of joy All
th
e men noticed her asked her name and wante d to b e presented Al l
th
e members Of the Cabinet wished to waltz with her The minis ter O f
education paid her some attention
She danced with enthusiasm with passion intoxicated with pleas
u re thinking of nothing in the triumph O f her b eau ty in the glory Of
her success in a kind O f cloud O f happiness that came of all this
homage and all this admiration of all these awak ened desires and this
victory so complete and sweet to the heart O f woman
She went home toward four O clock in the morning Her husban d
had been half asleep in one of the little salons sin ce midnight wi th
three other gentlemen whose wives were enjoying themselves v ery
m uch
He threw around her shoulders the wraps they had carried for the
comin g home modest garments of everyday wear whose poverty
c lashed with the elegance Of the b all cos tume She felt this and wished
to hurry away in order not to be noticed b y the o ther w omen who
were wrapping themselves
in rich furs
”
“
Loisel detained her Wait said he You will catch cold out there
”
I am going to call a cab
But she would not listen and descended the steps rapidly When
they were in the street they found no carriage and they began to seek
for one hailing the coachm en whom they saw at a distance
They walked along toward the Seine hopeless and shivering Finally
they found on the dock one of those Old nocturnal coupés that one
sees in Paris after nightfall as if they were asham ed of their misery
by da
It t ok them as far as their door in M artyr Street and they went
wearily up to their apartment It was all over for her An d on his p art
he remem b ered that he would have to b e at the offi
ce by ten O clock
She removed the wraps from her shoulders before the glass for a
final view of herself in her glory Suddenly she uttered a cry Her
necklace was not around her neck
”
“
Her hus b and already half undressed aske d : What is the matter?
She turned toward him excitedly :
”
“
I have— I have— I no longer have Madame Forestier s neckla ce
”
“
He arose in dismay : What ! How is that? It is not possible
.
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THE NE CKLACE
37
An d they looked in the folds O f the dress in the fol d s O f the mantle
in the pockets everywhere They could not find it
“
He asked : You are s u re you still had it when we left the house ?
”
“
Yes I felt it in the vestib ule as we came out
“
But if you had lost it in the street we should have heard it fall
It must be in the cab
“
Yes It is proba b le D id you take the number?
“
”
No And you did you notice what it was ?
“
N0
They looked at each other utterly cast down F inally Loisel dressed
him“
s e l f again
I am going said he over the track where we went O n foot to
”
see if I can find it
And he went She remained in her evening gown not hav ng the
force to go to bed stretched upon a chair without am b ition or
thoughts
Toward seven O clock her husband returned He had found nothing
He went to the police and to the cab O ffice s and put an advertise
ment in the newspapers O ffering a reward ; he did everything that
afforded them a suspicion O f hope
She waited all day in a state of bewil d erment before this frightful
d isaster Loisel returned at evening with his face h arrowed and pale
and had discovered nothing
“
”
It will be necessary said he to write to your friend that you
have broken the clasp O f the necklace and that you will have it
repaired That will give us time to turn around
She wrote as he dictated
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At the end of a week they ha d lost all hOp e And Loisel O lder by
five years declared :
“
We must take measures to replace this jewel
The next day they took the box which had inclosed it to the jeweler
whose name was on the inside
He consulted his books
”
“
It is not I madame said he who sold this necklace ; I only
furnished the casket
Then they went from jeweler to jeweler seeking a necklace like the
other one consulting their memories and ill both of them with
chagrin and anxie ty
In a shop of the Palais Royal they found a chaplet O f diamond s
which seemed to them exactly like the one they had lost It was valued
at forty thousand francs They could get it for thirty six thousand
.
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-
.
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.
.
SHORT STORIES OF D E M AUPASSAN T
38
They begged the jeweler not to sell it for three days And they
made an arrangement by which they might retu rn it for thirty fou r
thousand francs if they foun d the other one before the end O f
F ebruary
Lois el possessed eighteen thous and francs which his father ha d left
b orrowed the rest
He borrowed it asking for a thousand francs of one five hundred
of another five louis of this one and three louis Of that one He gave
notes made ruinous promises took money O f usurers and the whole
race O f lenders He compromised his whole existence in fact risked
his signature without even knowing whether he could make it goo d
or not and haras sed by anxiety for the future by the b lack misery
which surrounded him and by the prospect O f all physical privations
and moral torture he went to get the new necklace depositing on
the merchant s counter thirty six thousand francs
When Mme Loisel took back the jewels to Mme Forestier the latter
said to her in a frigid tone :
“
You shoul d have returne d them to me sooner for I might have
”
needed them
She did Open the jewel box as her friend fe ared she would If she
shoul d perce ive the substitution what would she think ? What should
e take her for a robber ?
sh
e sa ? Would sh
y
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”
Mme Loisel now knew the horrible life O f necessity She did her
p art however completely heroically It was necessary to pay this
frightfu l debt She would pay it They sent away the maid ; they
changed their l odgings ; they rented some rooms under a m a
nsard
roof
She l earned the heavy cares of a household the odious work O f a
kitch
e washed the dishes using her rosy nails upon the greasy
en Sh
pots and the b ottoms of the stewp ans She washed the soil ed linen
the chem ises and dishcloths which she hung on the line to dry ; she
took down the re fuse to the street each morning and brought up the
water stopping at each landing to breathe And clothed like a wom an
O f the people she went to the grocer s the butcher s and the fruit
ere t s with her basket on her arm shopping hagglin g to the last sou
her misera b le m oney
Every month it was necessary to renew some notes thus O btaining
time and to pay others
The husband worked evenings putting the books of some me rchants
in order and nights he often did Oopying at five sous a page
And this life l asted for ten years
.
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.
TH E NE CKLA CE
39
At the end of ten years they had restored all al l with interest O f
th
e us urer and accumulated interest besides
Mme Lois el seemed O ld_now She had become a strong" hard
Woman O
f th
e
r Househol d
Her
hair
badly
e
e
m
m
p
dres sed her skirts awry her hands red she spoke in a loud tone and
er
was hed the floors in large pails O f water But sometimes when h
husban d was at the Oflice she would seat herself before the window
and think O f that evening party O f former times O f that ball where
e was so beautiful and s o flattered
sh
How would it have been if she had not lost that necklace? Who
,
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,
"
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,
,
,
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,
,
,
.
One Sunday as she was taking a w al k in the Champ s Elys ees to
rid herself of the cares O f the week she suddenly perceived a woman
walk ing with a child It was Mme Forestier still young stil l pretty
e speak to her ? Yes
still attractive Mme Loisel w as affected Sho ul d sh
ce rtainly And now that she had paid sh
e would te l l her all Why not?
“
”
She approached her Good morning Jeanne
Her friend did not recognize her and was astonished to be so
famili arly addressed by this common personage She stammered :
“
”
_
But madame I do not know
You must be mistaken
“
N o I am Matilda Loisel
“
Her friend uttered a cry O f asto nishm ent : Oh ! my poor Matilda !
”
H ow you have changed
“
Yes I have had some hard days since I saw you and some m is
erab l e ones— and all because of you
“
”
Because of me ? How is that?
“
You recall the diamond necklace tha t you loaned me to we ar to
”
the minister s ball ?
“
Yes very well
“
Well I lost it
”
“
H ow is that since you returned it to me ?
“
I returned a nother to you exactly like it And it has taken us ten
years to pay for it You can understand that it was not easy for us
who have nothing But it is finished and I am decently content
Mme Forestier stopped short She said
“
”
You say that you bought a diamond necklace to replace mine ?
”
“
Yes You did not perceive it then? They were just alike
And she smiled with a proud and simple joy Mme FOrestier was
touched and took both her han ds as she replied :
“
Oh my poor Matilda ! Mine were false They were not worth o v er
fiv e hun dred francs !
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S HORT S TORIES OF DE
40
IN
WE LL Mrsnrm
M AU PASS ANT
T HE M OO N L I GH T
was the name soldier of God by the Abb é Marignan
He was a tall thin priest fanatical to a degree but just and of
an exalted soul All his b eliefs were fixed with never a waver He
thought that he understood God thoroughly that he penetrated H is
d esigns H is wishes H is intentions
Striding up and down the garden walk of his littl e country parson
“
age sometimes a question arose in his mind : W hy did Go d make
”
that? Then in his thoughts putting himself in God s place he
searched obstinately and nearly always was satisfied that he foun d the
reason He was not the man to murmur in transpo rts of pious hu
“
”
m il ity
O Lord thy ways are past finding out ! What he said was :
“
I am the servant of God; I ought to know the reason of what he does
or to divine it if I do not
Everything in nature seemed to him created with an abso lute an d
“
“
”
admirable logic The wherefore and the b ecause were always bal
am eed The dawn s were made to rejoice you on waking the days to
ripen the harvests the rains to water them the evenings to prepar e
for sleeping and the nights d ark for sleep
The four seasons con esp onded perfectly to all the needs of agri
cul ture , and to him the suspicion could never have come that nature
has no intention and that all which lives has accustomed itself on the
contrary to the hard conditions O f different periods of cl imates an d
O f matter
But he hated women ; he hated them unconsciously and despise d
“
them by instinct He O ften repeated the words Of Christ Woman
”
what have I to do with thee ? and he would add One would a lmost
say that God himse l f was ill pleased with that p articular work of his
”
“
”
hands Woman for him was indeed the child twelve times unclean
o had ensnared
of whom the poet speaks She was the temptress wh
the first man and who still continued her damnable work ; she was the
being who is fee ble dangerous mysteriously troublous And even
more than her poisonous beauty he hated her loving soul
He had O fte n felt women s tenderness attack him and though he
knew himself to be unassailable he grew exasperated at this need O f
loving which quivers continually in their hearts
is mind God had only created woman to tempt m an and to
TO h
test him Man should not approach her without those precautions for
defense which he would take an d the fears he would cherish near
n
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IN THE MOONLI G HT
41
mbush Woman indeed was just like a trap with her arms extended
and her lips O pen toward a man
He had toleration only for nuns rendered harmless by their vow
but he treated them harshly notwithstanding b ecause ever at the
bottom O f their chained u p hearts their chastened hearts he per
im
ceived the etern al tenderness that constantly went out even to h
although he was a priest
He had a niece who lived with her mother in a little house near by
He was b ent on making her a sister of charity She was pretty an d
harebrained and a great tease When the ab b é sermonized she
laughed ; when he was angry at her she kissed him vehemently press
inghim to her heart while he would seek involuntarily to free himself
from her em b race Notwithstanding it made him taste a certain
sweet joy awaking deep within him that sensation of fatherhood
which slumbers in every man
Often he talked to her of God O f his God walkin g b eside her along
the footp aths through the fields She hardly listened b ut looked at the
the
grass
the
flowers
with
a
joy
of
l
i
ving
which
could
be
seen
in
sk
y
her eyes Sometimes she rushed forward to catch some flying crea
“
ture and b ringing it back would cry : Look my uncle how pretty it
“
”
And this necessity to kiss flies or sweet
is ; I should like to kiss it
flowers worried irritated and revolted the priest who saw even in
that the ineradicable tenderness which ever springs in the hearts of
women
One day the sacristan s wife who kept house for the Abb é Ma
ri nan told him very cautiously that his niece had a lover !
g
He exp erienced a dreadful emotion and he stood choking with the
soap all over his face in the act O f shaving
When he found hirnsel f able to think ”and speak once more he cried
“
It is not true ; you are lying Melanie !
But the peasant woman put her hand On her heart May our Lord
judge me if I am lying Monsieur l e Curé I tell you she goes to him
every evening as soon as your sister is in bed They meet each other
beside the river You have only to go there between ten o clock and
midnight and see for yourself
He ceased scratching his chin and commenced to pace the room
quickly as he always did in his hours Of gravest thought When he
tried to begin his shaving again he cut himself three times from nose
to ear
Al l day long he remaine d silent swollen with anger and with rage
To his priestly zeal against the migh ty power of love was added the
moral indignation of a father of a teacher O f a keeper of souls who
has b een deceived ro b bed played with by a child He felt the ego
a
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SHORT STORIES OF D E M AUPASSANT
42
tistical
sorrow that parents feel when their daughter announces that
sh
e has chosen a husband wi thout them and in spite O f their advice
After his dinner he tried to rea d a little but he could not attune
himsel f to it and he grew angrier and angrier When it struck ten he
took his cane a formidable oaken club which he always carried when
he had to go ou t at night to v isit the sick Smilingly he regarde d the
enormous cudgel holding it in his solid countryman s fist an d cut
ting threatening circles with it in the air Then suddenly he raised it
and grinding his teeth he brought it down upon a chair the back of
which split in two fell heavily to the ground
He Opened his door to go ou t but he stopped upon the threshol d
su rprised by such a S plendor of moonlight as you seldom see
Endowed as he was with an exalted sp irit such a spirit as must hav e
belonged to those dreamer poets the Fathers O f the Church he felt
himself suddenly softened and moved by the grand an d serene beauty
of the pale faced night
In his little garden bathe d in the soft brill iance his fruit trees all
arow were outlining in shadow upon the walk their slender l irnb s of
wood scarce clothed with green ; while the giant honeysuckl e cl imb ing
on the house wall exhaled d elicious sugared breaths which ho vere d
through the warm clear night lik e a perfumed soul
He began to breathe deep drinking the air as drunkards dr ink their
wine and walking slowly ravished surprise d and alrnost oblivious O f
his niece
As he steppe d into the Open country he stopped to contemp l ate
the whole plain inundated by this caressing radiance and drowned in
the tender and languishing charm of the serene night In chorus the
frogs threw into space their short metallic notes and with the seduo~
tion O f the moonlight distant nightingales mingled that fi
tfu l music of
theirs which brings no thoughts but dreams a light and vibrant
melody which seems attuned to kisses
The abbé continued his walk his courage failing he knew not why
He felt as it were enfeebled and suddenly exhausted ; he had a great
desire to sit down to pause right there an d praise God in a ll H is
works
Below him following the bends of the little river woun d a great
line O f poplars On and ab out the banks wrapping all the tortuous
watercourse in a kind of light transparent wadding hung suspended
a fine m ist a white vapor which the moon rays crossed and s ilvered
and caused to gleam
The priest paused yet again penetrated to the depths O f his soul by
a strong and g
rowing emotion And a doubt a vague uneasiness seized
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SHORT STORIES OF D E M AUPASSAN T
44
LO VE
THREE
FRO M
P A GE S
A S PO RTSMAN S
O
’
BO K
I HAVE ru s t READ among the general news in one of the papers a
drama of passion He killed her and then he kill ed himsel f so he must
have loved her What matters He or She ? The ir love alone matters to
me and it does not interest me because it moves me or astonishes
me or because it softens me or makes me think but because it recalls
to my min d a remem b rance of my youth a str ange recollection O f a
g adventure where Love appeared to me as the Cross appeared
to the early Christians in the midst O f the heavens
I was born with all the instincts and the senses of primitive man
tempered by the arguments and the restraints of a civilized being I
am passionately fond O f shooting yet the sight of the wounded animal
of the b lood on its feathers and on my hands affects my heart so as
al most to m ake it stop
That year the cold weather set in suddenly toward the end Of
au tum n and I was invited by one O f my cousins Karl de Rauville to
go with him and shoot ducks on the marshes at dayb reak
My cousin was a jolly fellow of forty with red hair very stout and
bearded a country gentleman an amiable sem ib ru te of a happy dis
position and endowed with that Gallic wit which m akes even medi
ocrity agreeable He lived in a house half farmhouse half ch ateau
situated in a broad va l ley through which a river ran The hil l s right
an d left were covered with woods Old m anorial woods where mag
nifi
cent trees stil l remained and where the rarest feathered game in
that part of France was to be found Eagles were shot there occasion
ally and birds O f passage such as rarely ventu re into ou r Overp Op u
lated part of the coun try invariably lighted amid these giant oaks as
if they knew or recognized some little corner of a prim eval forest
which had remained there to serve them as a shelter during their short
nocturnal halt
In the valley there were large meadows watered by trenches and
separated by hedges ; then further on the river which up to that
point had been kept b etween banks exp anded into a vast marsh That
marsh Was the b est shooting ground I ever saw It w as my cousin s
chief care and he kept it as a preserve Through the rushes that cov
ered it and made it rustling and rough narrow passages had been
cut through which the flat bottomed boats impelled and steered by
poles passed along s ilently o ver dead water brushing up against
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LOVE
45
the reed s an d making the swift fish take refuge in the weeds and the
wild fowl with their pointed black heads dive suddenly
I am passionately fond of the water : of the sea though it is too
vast too ful l O f movement im possible to hold ; of the rivers which are
so beau tiful but which pas s on and flee away ; and a b ove all O f the
marshes where the whole unknown existence O f aquatic animals pal
i
tates The marsh is an entire world in itself on the world O f earth
p
a different world which has its own life its settled inhabitants and its
passing travelers its voices its noises an d above all its mystery Noth
ing is more impressive nothing more d is quieting more terrifying
occ asionally than a fen Why should a vague terror hang over these
l ow plains covered with water? Is it the low rustling O f the rushes
the strange will O the wisp l ights the silence which prevails on c alm
nights the stil l mists wh
ich hang over the surface like a shroud ; or
is it the ah
nost inaudible splashing so slight and s o gentle yet some
more terr ifyin g th an the cannons O f men or the thunders O f the
ich make these marshes resemble cou ntries one has dreamed
skies wh
of terrible co u ntries holdin g an unknown and dangerous secret ?
NO something else belongs to it— another mystery perhaps the
mystery O f the creation itself ! For was it not in stagnant and muddy
water amid the hea vy humidity O f moist land under the heat O f the
sun that the first germ of life pulsated an d expanded to th
e day ?
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I arrive d at my cous in s in the evening It was freezing hard enough
to split the stones
During dinner in the large room whose S ideboards walls an d
ceiling were covered with stuffed birds with wings extended or
perched on branches to which they were nail ed— hawks herons owls
nightj ars b uzz ards tercels vu ltures falcons— m y cousin who dressed
in a seal skin jacket himself resembled some strange animal from a
cold country told me what preparations he had made for that same
nig
ht
we were to st art at half past three in the morning so as to arrive
at the place which he had chosen for our watching place at about
hal f past four On that spot a hut had been built of lumps O f ice so
as to shelter u s somewhat from the trying wind which precedes day
break a wind so cold as to tear the flesh l ike a saw cut it like the
blade of a kn ife prick it lik e a poisoned sting twis t it lik e a pair of
pincers and burn it like fire
My cousin rubbed his hands I have never known such a frost he
“
said ; it is already twelve degrees below zero at six O clock in the
even ing
I threw myself onto my be d immediately after we ha d finishe d our
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
46
al
rate
g
went to sleep by th e light
and
m e
of
a bright fire burning
e
in th
.
’
At
three o clock he woke me In my turn I put on a sheepskin and
fo un d my cousin Karl covere d with a bear skin After having each
swall owed tw o cups of scalding coffee fol lowed by glas ses of liqueur
brandy we st arted a cc ompanied by a gamekeeper and our dogs
Plongeon an d Pierrot
From the first moment that I got outsid e I felt chille d to the v ery
m arrow It was one of those nights on which the e arth seems dead
with cold The frozen air becomes resisting and p alpable such pain
d oes it cause ; no breath of wind moves it it is fixed and mo tionless !
it bites you pierces through you dries you kills the trees the plants
the insects the small birds themselves who fal l from the branches
onto the hard ground and become stiff themselves under the grip of
th
e c ol d
The moon which was in her l ast quarter and was inclining al l to
e was
one side seemed fain ting in the mi dst of space so weak that sh
unable to wane for ced to stay up yon d er seiz ed and paralyze d by
e severity of the weather She shed a cold mou rnful light over the
th
world that dying and wan light which she gives us every month at
the end O f her period
Karl and I walke d side by sid e our backs bent our h ands in our
oc kets an d ou r guns under our arms Our b oots which were wrapp ed
p
in wool so that we might be able to wa lk without slipp ing on the
frozen river made no sound an d I looked at the white v apor which
our dogs breath made
W e were soon on the e d ge O f the marsh and entere d one of th e
la nes of dry rushes which ran through the low forest
Our elbows which touched the long ribbonlike leaves left a s light
noise behind us and I was seized as I had never been before by the
powerful and singu lar emotion which marshes cause in me This one
was dead dead from cold since we were walking on it in the middl e
of its population of dried rus hes
Suddenl y at the tu rn O f one O f the l anes I perceived the ice bu t
which had been constructed to shelter us I went in and as we had
ne arly an hour to wait before the wandering bir ds woul d awake I
ro l l ed myself u p in my rug in ord er to try and get warm Then lying
on my back I b egan to look at the misshapen moon which had four
horns through the vaguely transparent walls of this lar house But
the cold from
e frost of the frozen marshes the cold O f these w
th
the fi
My
rrnam ent penetrated me s o terribly that I be gan to cough
cou“
s in Karl became uneasy
NO matt er if we do not kill much today he said I do not want
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L OVE
47
”
catch co ld ; we will li g
ht a fire An d he told the gamekeeper
to cu t some rushes
We made a pile in the middle of our hut which had a hole in the
m iddl e of the roof to let ou t the smoke and when the red fl ames rose
up to the clear crystal blocks they began to melt gently impercepti bly
as if they were sweating Karl who had remained outside called ou t
”
“
Come and look here ! I went out of the hut and remaine d
to me :
ment Our hut in the shape O f a cone looke d like
struck with a stonis h
an enormous diamond with a heart of fire which had been suddenly
planted there in the midst Of the frozen water of the marsh And inside
we saw two fantastic forms those of our dogs who were w arming
them selves at the fire
But a peculiar cry a lost a wan derin g cry passed over our heads
Nothing
and the light from our hearth showe d u s the wild b irds
moves one so much as the first clamor of a life which one does not
see which passes through the somber air so quickly and so far O ff
jus t before the first streak of a winter s day appears on the horizon
It seems to me at this glacial hour of dawn as if that passing cry
which is carried away by the wings of a bir d is the sigh O f a soul from
th
e world !
“
Put ou t the fire said Karl ; 1t is ge ttin g daylight
The sky was in fact beginning to grow pale an d the flights O f
ducks made long rapid s treaks which were soon obliterated on the sky
A stream O f light burst ou t into the night ; Karl had fired an d the
two dogs ran forward
And then nearly every minute now he now I aimed rapidly as soon
as the shadow O f a flying flock appeared above the rushes And Pierrot
an d Plongeon ou t of breath but happy retrieved the bleeding bir d s
whose eyes still occasionally looked at us
The sun had risen and it was a bright day with a blue sky and we
were thinking Of taking our departure when tw o b irds with e xtended
necks and outstretched wings gl ided rapidly over our heads I fired
and one of them fe l l ah
nost at my feet It was a teal with a silver
breast and then in the blue S pace above me I heard a v oice the
voice O f a bird It was a short repeated heart rending lament ; and
the bird the little anima l that had been spared began to turn round
in the blue sky O ver our heads looking at its dead companion which I
was holding in my hand
Karl was on h
is knees h
is gun to h
is shoul der watching it eager
“
”
until it should be within shot You ha ve killed the duck he sai y
“
and the drake will not fly away
He certainly did not fly away ; he circled over ou r heads continually
and c ontinued h
is cries Never have any groans of su ffering pained me
u
t
o
o
y
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l
SHORT STORIE S OF DE M AU PASSAN T
48
much as that deso l ate appea l as that l amentable reproach of this
poor b ird which was lost in space
Occasionally he took flight un d er the menace of the g
u n which fol
lowed his movements and seemed ready to continue his flight alone
but as he could not make up his min d to this he returned to find his
mate
“
“
Leave her on the ground Karl said to me ; he will come within
shot by and by And he did indee d come near us careless of d anger
infatuated by his animal lov e by his affect ion for his mate which I
had just kille d
Karl fire d and it was as if somebod y ha d cut the string which hel d
the bird suspen d ed I saw something black descend and I hear d the
noise of a fall among the rushes And Pierrot brought it to me
I put them— they were a l ready cold— into the same gamebag and
I returned to Paris the same evening
so
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M AD E M O I S E LL E F IFI
TH E
M ajor G raf 1 von F arlsberg the Prussian commandant
,
,
was
read ing his newspaper lying back in a great armchair with his
booted feet on the beautiful marble fireplace where his spurs had
made two holes which grew deeper every day during the three months
that he had been in the ch ateau of Urville
A cup of coffee was smoking on a small inlaid table which was
stained with liquors b u rnt by cigars notche d by the penknife of the
victorious oflicer who occasionally would stop while sharpening a
enoil to jot down figures or to make a drawing on it just as it took
fanc
Wheny he had read his letters an d the German newspapers which
his baggagemaster had brought him he got up and after throwing
three or four enormous pieces O f green wood onto the fi
re— for these
gentlemen were gradually cutting down the park in order to keep
themselves warm— he went to the window The rain was descending
in torrents a regular Normandy rain which looked as if it were being
poure d out b y some furious hand a slanting rain which was as thick
as a curta in and which formed a kind of wall with O blique stripes an d
which deluged everything a regu lar rain such as one frequently ex
which
i
s the watering pot
eriences in the neighborhoo d of Rouen
p
0 f France
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Count
.
M AD EMOISELLE FI F I
49
a long time the omcer l ooked at the sodd en turf and at the
For
wollen Andelle beyond it which was overflowing its banks and he
is
was drumming a waltz from the Rhine on the w indowpanes with h
ngers when a noise made him turn round ; it was his second in
fi
c ommand Captain Baron von Kel weinstein
The major was a g
iant with broad shoulders and a long fair beard
which hung like a cloth onto his chest His whole solemn person su g
gested the idea of a military peacock a peacock who was carrying his
tail spread ou t onto his breast He had cold gentle blue eyes and the
scar from a sword ou t which he had r eceived in the war with Austria ;
he was said to b e an honorab l e man as well as a brave officer
The captain a short red faced man who was tightly girthed in at
th e waist had his red hair cropped quite close to his head and in
n ost looked as if he had been rubbed over with phos
certain lights ah
h
Orou s He had lost two front teeth one night though he could not
p
quite remember how This defect made him speak so that he could
not a lways be understood and he had a bald patch on the top O f his
head which made him look rather like a monk with a fringe of curly,
bright golden hair round the circle O f bare skin
The commandant shook hands with him and drank his cup O f coffee
(the sixth that morning ) at a draught while he listened to his sub
ordinate s report of what ha d occurred ; and then they both went to
the window and declared that it was a very unpleasant outlook The
major who was a quiet man with a wife at home could accommodate
himself to everything but the captain who was rather fast being in
the habit of frequenting low resorts and much given to women was
ma d at having been shut up for three months in the compulsory
chastity of that wretched hole
There was a knock a t the door and when the commandant said
”
Come in one of their automatic soldiers appeared and b y his mere
presence announced that breakfast was ready In the dining room
they met three other Oflicers of lower rank : a lieutenant Otto v on
Grossl ing and two sublieutenants Fritz Sch
eu neb ar
and
Count
v
o
n
g
E yrick a v ery short fair haired man who was proud and bruta l
toward men harsh toward prisoners and very v iolent
Since he had been in France his comrades had calle d him nothing
“
but Mademoiselle F ifi They had given him that nickname on
account of his dandifi
ed style and small waist which l ooked as if he
wore stays from his pale face on which his budding mustache
scarcely showed and on account Of the habit he had ac q uired O f
employing the French expression 11
done which he pronounce d
with a slight whistle when he wished to express his sovereign
contempt for persons or things
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPASSAN T
50
The din ing room O f the ch ateau was a magn ificent long wer who se
fi
ne O l d mirrors now cracked by pistol bul lets and Flemish tapestry
now ou t to ribbons and hanging in rags in places from sword cu ts
told too we ll what Ma d emoiselle Fifi
s o cc upation was dur ing h
is
spare tim !
There were three f amily portraits on the wal ls : a steel clad knight
a cardinal an d a judge who were al l smoking long porcelain pipes
which had been inserted into holes in the canvas while a lady in a
l ong pointe d waist proudly exhibited an enormous pair of mustaches
drawn with a piece of charcoal
The oflicers ate their bre akfast almost in silence in that mutil ated
room which looked dul l in the rain and melancholy un der its v an
iris h
ed appe arance although its O ld oak floor had become as sol i d as
l e stone floor of a public house
When they had finished eating an d were smoking an d d rinking
th ey began as usual to t al k about the d u ll l ife they were leading The
bottle of b randy an d of liquors passe d from hand to hand and all sat
ba ck in their chairs t ak ing repeate d sips from their glasses an d
which terminated in china
e long bent stems
s carcely removing th
bowls painted in a m anner to del ight a Hottentot from their mouths
As soon as their gl asses were emp ty they filled them again with a
ges ture of resigned weariness but Mademois el le Fifi emptied his
e very minute an d a soldier imme d iately gave him another They were
enveloped in a cloud of strong tobacco smoke ; they seemed to be sunk
in a state of drowsy s tupi d intoxication in that dul l state of d runk
enness of men who have nothin g to do ,when suddenly the baron sat
up and said : By heavens ! This cannot go on ; we must think of some
thing to do And on hearing this Lieutenant Otto and Sublieutenant
Fritz who pre eminentl y possessed the gra ve heavy German coun
”
“
tenan ce said : What Captain?
“
He thought for a few moments an d then replied ; What ? Well we
m ust get up some entertainment if the com mandant will allow us
“
”
What sort of an entertainment Captain ? the major aske d taking
his pipe ou t of his mouth
“
“
I will arrange all that Commandant the baron said I will sen d
Le Devoir to Rouen who will b ring us some ladies I kno w where
be found We will have supper here as all the materials are
”
and at least we shall have a jo l ly evening
“
Graf von Farl sbergshrugged his shoulders with a smil e : You must
”
su rely be mad my frien d
But all the other Officers got up s u rro u n d ed their chief an d said”
“
is own way Comm andant ; it is terribly d ull here
Let Captain have h
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE MAUPASSAN T
52
he lighted it and took this infernal machine into the next room but
he came back immediately and shut the door The Germans all stood
expectantly their faces ful l of childish smiling curiosity and as soon
as the explosion ha d shaken the ch ateau they all rushed m at once
Mademoiselle Fifi who got in first clappe d his hands in delight at
the sight of a terra cotta Venus whose head had been blown O ff and
each picked up pieces O f porcelain and wondered at the strange shape
of the fragments while the major was lookin g with a paternal eye at
the large drawing room which had b een wrecked in such a Neronic
fashion and which w as strewn with the fragm ents of work s of art He
“
went ou t first and said wi th a smile : He managed that v ery well !
But there was such a cloud O f smoke in the dining room mingled
w ith the to b acco smoke that they could not breathe so the com m an
d ant O pened the window and all the officers who had gone into the
room for a glass of cognac went up to it
The moist air blew into the room and brought a sort of spray with
it which powdered their beards They looked at the t al l trees which
were dripp ing with the rain at the broad valley which was covered
with mist and at the church spire in the distance which rose up like
a gray point in the beating r ain
The bells had not rung since their arrival That was the only resist
ance which the invaders had met with in the neighborho od
The
parish priest had not refused to take in and to feed the Prussian sol
diers ; he had several times even d runk a bottle Of beer or claret with
the host ile commandant who O ften employed him as a benevolent
intermediary but it was no use to ask him for a s ingle stroke of the
bells ; he would sooner hav e a ll owed himself to be shot That was his
way of protesting against the invasion a peace ful and silent protest
the onl y one he said which was suitable to a priest who was a man
ve miles
of m ildness and not O f blood ; an d everyone for twenty fi
round praised Abbé Chantavoine s firmness and h
eroism in ventu ring
to proclaim the public mourning by the obstinate silence of his church
bells
The whole village grew enthusiastic over his resistance and was
ready to b ack up their pastor and to risk anything as they looke d
Upon that silent protest as the safegu ard of the national honor It
seemed to the peasants that thus they had deserved better O f their
country than Be l fort and Strassburg that they had set an equally v al
u ab l e example and that the name of the ir li ttl e v illage wou l d bec ome
immortalized by that but wi th that exception they refused their
Prussian conquerors nothing
The commandant an d his officers laughed amon themselves at that
ino ffensive courage an d as the people in the w Ol e country roun d
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M AD E MOISELLE FIFI
53
showed themselves obliging and compliant toward them they wil l
ingly tolerated their s ilent patriotism Only little Count Wilhe l m
would have liked to have forced them to ring the bells He was ve ry
an ry at h
i
s superior s politic compliance with the priest s scruples
g
and e very day he begged the commandant to allow him to sound
”
“
dingdong dingdong just once only just once just by way O f a joke
And he asked it like a wheedling woman in the tender voice of som e
mis tress who wis hes to Ob tain something but the commandant
would not yield and to console herself M ademoiselle Fifi made a
m ine in the ch ateau
The five men stood there together for some minutes inhal ing the
“
moist air and at l ast Sublieutenant Fritz said with a laugh : The ladies
”
will certainly not have fine weather for their drive Then they sep
is ow
n d uties while the captain ha d plenty to do in
arated each to h
seeing about the dinner
When they met again as it was growin g d ark they began to laugh
ed and smart as on the day of a grand
at seeing each other as dandifi
review The commandant s hair did not look as gray as it did in the
morning an d the captain had shaved— ha d only kept his mustache
on which made him look as if he ha d a streak of fire under his nose
In spite O f the rain they left the window O pen and one of them
went to listen from tim e to tim e At a quarter past six the baron sai d
he hear d a rumbling in the distance They all rushed down and soon
the wagon drove up at a gallop with its four horses splashed up to
their backs steaming and panting Five women got ou t at the b ottom
of the steps five handsome girls whom a comrade of the captain to
whom Le Devoir had taken his card ha d sele cted with care
They had not requ ired much pressing as they were sure of bein g
well treated for they had got to kn ow the Prus sians in the thre e
months durin g which they had had to do with them SO they resigned
“
themselves to the men as they did to the state of affairs It is part of
”
our business so it must be done
they said as they drove along no
doubt to allay some slight secret scruples of conscience
They went into the dining room immediately which looked still
more dismal in its dilapidated state when it was lighted up while
the ta ble covered with choice dishes the beautiful china and glass
and the plate which had been found in the hole in the wall where its
owner had hidden it gave to the place the look of a b andits resort
where they were supping after committin g a robbery The captain
was radiant ; he took hold of the women as if he were familiar with
them appraising them kissing them v aluing them for what they were
worth as lad ies of p l eas u re and when the three young men wanted to
appropriate one each he O pposed them authoritatively reserving to
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SHORT STO R IE S OF D E M AUPAS SAN T
54
himself the right to apportion them j ustly according
their several
ranks so as not to woun d the hierarchy Therefore so as to avoid a ll
discu ssion jarring and suspicion of partiality he placed them all in
he said in a
a line according to height and a d dressing the tallest
voice of command
”
“
What is your name ?
“
Pamela she replied raising her v oice
“
Then he said : Number one call ed Pamela is adjudged to the
”
commandant
Then having kissed Bl ondina the second as a sign of proprietor
“
the To
ship he pro ffered stout Aman d a to Lieutenant Otto Eva
mato to Sublieutenant Fritz and Rachel the shortest O f them all a
very young dark girl with eyes as black as ink a Jewess who se
snub nose confirmed by exception the rule which allots hooked
noses to all her race to the yo ungest Oflicer frail Count Wilhel m von
to
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They were al l pre tty and plump without any distinctive features
and all were ve ry much alike in look and person from their da ily dis
si ation and the life co m mon to houses of public accommodation
p
The three younger men wished to c arry Off the ir women imme
dia tel y under the pretext O f finding them brushes and soap but the
ca ptain wisely O pposed this for he said they were quite fit to sit down
to dinner and that those who went up woul d wish for a change when
they came down and so woul d distu rb the other couples and his
experience in such matters carrie d the day There were only many
kisses expectant kisses
S uddenly Rachel choked and began to cough until the te ars came
into her eyes while smoke came through her nostrils Under pretense
of kissing her the count had blown a whiff of tobacco into her mouth
She did not fly into a rage and did not s ay a word but she looked at
her possessor with latent hatred in her dark ey es
They sat down to dinner The command ant seeme d del ighted ; he
m ade Pamela s it on his right and B l ondina on his left and said as he
“
unfolded his ta b le napkin : That was a delightful idea of yours
”
Captain
Lieutenants Otto and Fritz who were as polite as if they had been
with fashionable ladies rather intimidated their neighb ors but Baron
von Kel weinstein gave the reins to all his vicious propensities beamed
made doubtful remarks and seemed on fire with his crown of re d hair
He paid them compliments in French from the other side of the Rhine
and sputtered ou t gallant remarks
only fit for a low pothouse from
be tween his two broken teeth
They did not und erstand him howev er and their intelligence did
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MAD EMOISELLE FIFI
55
seem to be awakened until he uttered nasty words and broad
expressions which were mangled by his accent Then all b egan to
l augh at once like mad women and fell against each other repeating
the words which the baron then b egan to s ay all wrong in order that
he might have the pleasure of hearing them say dou b tfu l thin gs They
gave him as much of that s tuff as he wanted for they were dru nk
after the first bottle of wine and becoming themselves once more an d
opening the door to their usual hab its they kissed the mustaches on
the right and left of them p inched their arms uttered furious cries
drank ou t of every glass and sang French couplets and bits of Ger
man songs which they had picked u p in their daily intercourse with
the enemy
Soon the men themselves intoxicated by that which was displayed
to their sight and touch grew very amorous shouted and b ro ke the
plates and dishes while the soldiers behind them waited on them
stolidly The commandant was the only one who put any restra int
upon himse l f
M ademoiselle Fifi had taken Rachel onto his knees and getting
excited at one moment kissed the little b lack curls on her neck inhal
ing the pleasant warmth of her body and all the savor of her person
through the sl ight space there was between her dress and her skin
and at another pinched her furiously through the material and made
her scream for he was seized with a species of ferocity and tor
m ented by his desire to hurt her He often held her close to him a s
if to make her part of him self and put his lips in a long kiss on the
Jewess s rosy mouth until she lost her b reath and at last he bit her
u ntil a stream of b lood ran down her chin and onto her bodice
For the second time she looked him full in the face and as she
“
”
bathed the wound she said : You will have to pay for that !
“
But he merely laughed a hard laugh and said : I will pay
At dessert champagne was served and the commandant rose and
in the same voice in which he would have drunk to the health of the
”
Empress Augu sta he drank : To ou r l adies ! Then a series of toasts
began toasts worthy of the lowest soldiers and of drunkards mingled
with filthy jokes which were made still more b rutal b y their ignorance
of the lan uage They got up one after the other trying to say some
g
thing witty forcing themselves to b e funny and the women who were
so drunk that they almost fell off their chairs with vacant looks and
c l ammy ton gues applauded madly each time
The captain who no doubt wished to impart an appearance of gal
l antry to the orgy raised his glass again and said : To our victories
o ver hearts ! Thereupon Lieutenant Otto who was a species of b ear
from the Black F orest jump ed up inflamed and saturated with drink
not
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SHORT STORIES OF DE M AUPA S SAN T
56
“
alc oholic patriotism c ried To
and seize d by an access of
:
our
”
victories over France !
Drunk as they were the women were silent and Rachel turned
“
round with a shudder and said : Look here I know some F renchmen
”
in whose presence you would not dare to say that But the l ittl e count
still hold in g her on his knees began to laugh for the wine had made
“
h im v ery merry and said : Ha ! ha ! ha ! I have never met
any of them
”
m yself As soon as we show ourselves they run away !
“
The girl who was in a terri b le rage shouted into his face : You
”
are lying you dirty scoun drel !
For a moment he looked at her steadily with his bright eyes upon
her as he had looked at the portrait b efore b“
e destroyed it with
revo lver bullets an d then he began to laugh : Ah yes talk about
”
them my dear ! Should we be here now if they were b rave ? Then
getting excited he exclaime d : We are the masters ! France belongs to
”
us!
She jumped off his knees with a bound and threw herself into her
chair while he rose held ou t his glass over the table and repeated
“
France and the French the woods the fields and the houses of
France b elong to us !
The others who were q uite dru nk and who were suddenly seized
by military enthusiasm the enthusiasm of brutes seized their glasses
”
“
and shouting Long l ive Prussia ! emptied them at a draught
The girls did not protest for they were reduced to silence and were
afraid Even Rachel did not say a word as she had no reply to make
and then the little count put his champagne glass which had just b een
“
refilled onto the head of the Iewess an d exclaimed : All the women in
”
France b elong to us also !
At that she got up so quickly that the glass upset spill ing the
a mber colored wine onto her b lack hair as if to baptize her and b roke
into a hundred fragments as it fell onto the floor With trembling lips
cer who was still laughing and she
sh
e defied the looks of the o ffi
“
stammered ou t in a voice choked with rage : That— that— that— is
not true— for you shall certainly not have any French women
He s at down again so as to l augh at his ease and trying effectu ally
“
to speak in the Parisian accent he said : That is good very good !
”
Then what did you come here for my dear?
She was thunderstruck and made no reply for a moment for in her
agitation she did not understand him at first but as soon as she
“
grasped his me aning she said to him indignantly and vehemently : I !
I am not a woman ; I am only a stm m p et and that is all that Prussi ans
”
w ant
Almost before she had finished he slappe d her full in her face but
e almost
as he was raising h
is h an d again as if he would strike her sh
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MADEMOIS E LLE FIFI
57
with passion took up a small dessert knife from the table an d
m ad
,
stabbed him right in the neck just above the breastbone Something
that he was going to say was cut short in his throat and he sat there
with his mouth half open and a terrible look in his eyes
Al l the officers shouted in horror and leaped up tu multu ousl y bu t
th owing her chair betw een Lieutenant Otto s legs who fell down at
full len th she ran to the window O pened it before they could sei ze
her an jumped out into the night and pouring rain
In two minutes Mademoiselle Fifi was dead Fritz and Otto drew
their swords and wanted to kill the women who threw themselves at
their feet and clung to their knees With some difficulty the major
stopped the slaughter and had the four terrified girls locked up in a
room u nder the care of two soldiers Then he organize d the pursuit of
the fugitive as carefully as if he were about to engage in a skirm ish
feeling quite sure that she would be caught
The table which had been cleared immediately now served as a
e win
ou t and the four officers made for th
bed on which to lay Fifi
dow rigid and sobered with the stern faces of soldiers on duty and
tried to pie rce through the darkness of the night amid the steady
torrent of rain Suddenly a shot was heard and then another a long
way off and for four hours they heard from time to time near or dis
tant reports and rallying cries str ange words uttered as a cal l in
guttural voices
In the morning they all retu rned Two soldiers had been kille d and
three others wounded by their comrades in the ardor of that chase
but they had not
and in the confusion of such a noc turnal pursuit
c aught Rachel
Then the inhabitants of the district were terrorized ; the houses were
turned topsy turvy ; the country was scoured and b eaten up over and
over again but the j ewess did not seem to have left a single trace of
her passage behind her
When the general was told of it he gave orders to hush up the affair
so as not to set a bad example to the army but he severely censured
the commandant who in turn punished his inferiors The general had
“
said : One does not go to war in order to amuse oneself and to caress
”
prostitutes And Graf von F arl sberg in his exasperation made up his
mind to have his revenge on the district but as he required a pretext
for showing severity he sent for the priest and ordered him to have
the bell tolled at the fu neral of Count von E yrick
Contrary to all expectation the priest showed himself humble an d
most respectfu l and when Mademoisel le Fifi
teau
s body left the Ch a
d Urvill e on its way to the cemetery carried b y soldiers preceded
su rro u nded and followed by sol d iers wh
o marched with l oade d rifles
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SHORT S TORIE S OF DE MAUPASSANT
58
first time the be ll sounded its funereal knell in a lively manner
h
t
it
sounded
again
and
as if a frien dly hand were caressing it At m
g
the next d ay and every day ; it rang as much as anyone coul d desire
Sometimes even it would start at night and sound gently through the
darkness seiz ed by strange joy awakened ; one co uld not tell why
Al l the peasants in the neighborhood declared that it was bewitched
an d nobody except the priest and the sacristan woul d now go near
the church tower and they went because a poor girl was living there
rief and solitude secretly nourished by those two men
m g
She remained there until the G erm an tr 0 0 ps departed and then one
e vening the priest borrowed the baker s cart and h imself drove his
prisoner to Rouen When they got there b e embraced her and she
quickly went back on foot to the establishment from which she had
come where the p rOp rietress who thought that sh
e was dead
was
v ery glad to see her
A sho rt time afterward a patriot who had no prejudices who l iked
her because of her bold deed and who afterward loved her for herself
m arried her and made a lady of her
for the
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B A BE TT E
I
very fond of inspecting that asylum for ol d i nfirm people
icial l y as I was obliged to go over it in company of the sup erin
ofl
tendent who was t alkative and a statistician But then the grandson
of the foundress accompanied us and was evidently pleased at that
minute inspection He was a ch arm ng man and the owner of a large
i
forest where he had given me perm i ss i on to shoot and I was of course
obliged to pretend to be interested in his grand m other s philanthropic
work So with a smile on my lips I endured the superintendent s inter
m inable discourse punc tuating it here and there as best as I could by
”
“
Ah! Really ! Very strange indeed ! I should never have believed it !
I was absolutely ignorant of the remark to which I replied thus for
my thoughts were lulled to repose by the constant humm ing of our
loquacious guide I was vaguely conscious that the ersons and things
might have ap p eared worthy of attention to me i I had been there
alone as an idler for i n that case I should certainly have asked the
superintendent : What is this Babette whose name appears so con
”
in
the
complaints
of
stantl
so many of the inmates ?
y
Quite a doz en men and women had spoken to us about her now
W AS NOT
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S HORT
60
STORIES OF DE MAUPASSAN T
e
but a burst of stifled l aughter was th e only reply I looked o ver th
balustrade and saw a woman d own below who was looking at us
fix ed!
Sbzwas an old woman— there could be no doubt of that from her
wrinkled face and the few straggling gray locks which appeared under
h er cap But one did not think of that when one saw her eyes which
were wonderfully youthful ; in fact one saw no thin g but them They
were profound eyes of a deep almost violet blue“the eyes of a chil d
Suddenly the superintendent called ou t to her : Y ou have been with
”
La Friez e again !
The old woman did not reply but shook with laughter as she had
d one just before and then she ran off giving the s“
u perintendent a look
which said as pla inly as words could have done : D o you think I care
a fig for you ?
Those insultin g word s were clearly written in her face and at the
same time I noticed that the ol d woman s eyes had utterly changed
for during that short moment of bravado the ch ildish eyes ha d become
the eyes of a monkey of some ferocious obstinate baboon
This time in spite of my dislike to question him further I could
“
”
not help s aym gto him : That is Babette I suppo se ?
“
Yes he repli ed growing rather red as if b e gu essed that I under
e ol d woman s insulting looks
stoo d th
“
Is she the woman who is so precious ? I added with a touch of
irony which made him grow altogether crimson
“
That is she be said walking on quickly so as to escape my
fu rther questions
But I was egged on by cu riosity and I made a d irect appeal to our
“
“
”
h ost s complaisance : I should like to see this Friez e I s aid Who is
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Friez e?
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,
”
He turned round and said : Oh ! Nothing nothing he is not at all
”
interesting What is the good of s eeing him ? It is not worth while
And he ran downstairs two steps at a tim e He who was usuall y so
minute and so very careful to explain everything was now in a hurry
to get finished and our visit was cut short
The next day I had to leave that part of the country without hear
ing anything more about Babette but I came b ack about four months
l ater when the shooting season began I had not forgotten her during
that time for nobody could ever forget her eyes and so I was v ery
glad to have as my traveling companion on my three hou rs diligen ce
journey from the station to my friend s house a m an who talked to
me about her all the time
He was a young magis trate whom I had already met an d who ha d
is wit by h
is close manner of observing
m uch interested me by h
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BABE TTE
61
things by his singularly refined casuistry and above all by the con
trast between his professional severity and his tolerant philosophy
But he never appeared so a ttractive to me as he did on that day
when he told me the history of the mysterious Bab ette
He had inquired into it and had app l ied all his facilities as an ex~
magistrate
to
it
for
like
me
his
vi
s it to the asylum had
am inin
g
roused his curiosity This is what he had learned and what he tol d
me
When she was ten years ol d Babe tte had been violated by her own
father and at thirteen had been sent to the house of correction for
vagabondage and debauchery From the time she was twenty until
e was for ty s h
e had been a servant in the neighborhood frequently
sh
changing her situations and being nearly everywhere her employer s
mis tress She had ruined several families without getting any money
herself and without gaining any definite position A shopkeeper had
committed suicide on her account and a respecta b le young fellow had
turned thief and incendiary and had finished at the hulks
She had b een marrie d twice and had twice b een left a wid ow an d
for ten years until she was fif ty sh
e had been th
e only courtesan in
the dis trict
She was very pretty I suppose ?
“
No she never was that It seems she was short thin with no bust
or hips at her best I am told and nobody can remem b er that sh
e
was pret ty even when she was young
”
“
Then how can you explain ?
”
“
“
How ? the magistrate exclaimed Well ! What about the eyes?
”
You could not have looked at them ?
“
Yes yes you are right I replied Those eyes explain many things
certainly They are the eyes of an innocent child
“
”
Ah ! he exclaimed again enthusiastically Cleopatra D iana of
Poitiers Ninon de l E ncl os all the queens of love who were adored
when they were growing ol d must have had eyes like hers A woman
who has such eyes can never grow old But if Bab ette lives to be a
”
hundred she will always be loved as she has been and as she is
”
“
As she is ! Bah ! By whom pray?
“
By all the old men in the asylum by Jove ; by all those who have
preserved a fiber that can be touched a com er of their heart that can
”
be inflamed or the least spark of desire left
”
“
D
o you think so?
“
I am sure of it And the superinten d ent loves her more than any of
them
“
Impossible !
”
“
1 wo u ld stake my head on it
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SHORT STORIES O F D E MAUPASSANT
62
“
Well after all
I now remem b er
1t
,
is
possible and even p robable ; it
is
even certain
.
.
And I again saw the ins ulting ferocious fam iliar l ook which she
had given the superintendent
”
“
“
An d who is La Friez e? I asked th
I su p
e magistrate suddenl y
”
pose you know that also ?
“
He is a retired butcher who had both his legs frozen in the war of
18 7 0 and of whom sh
e is very fond
No dou b t he is a cripple with
two wooden legs but sti ll a vigorous m an enou g
h in spite of h
is
fi
fty three years The loins of a Hercules and the face of a satyr The
superintendent is quite jealous of him !
I thought the matter over again and it seem ed v ery probable to
“
me D oes she love La Friez e?
”
Yes he is the chosen lover
When we arrived at the host s house a short time afterward we were
surprised to find every b ody in a terrible state of excitement A crime
had been committed in the asylu m ; the gendarmes were there and
ou r host was wi th them s o we instantly join ed them La F riez e had
murdered the superintendent and they gave us the details which were
horrible The former b utcher had hidden behind a door and catching
hold of the other had rolled onto the ground with him and bitten him
in the throat tearing ou t his carotid artery from which the bloo d
sp u rted in to the murderer s face
I s aw him La Friez e H is fat face which had been badly washe d
was s till bloodstained ; he had a low forehead square jaws pointed
ears sticking ou t from his head and flat nostrils like the mu z zle of
some wild animal ; but above all I saw Babette
She was sm ilin g and at that moment her eyes had not their monkey
l ike and ferocious exp ression ; they were pleading and tender full of
the sweetest childlike candor
”
You know my host said to me in a low voice that the poor
woman has fallen into senile imbecil ity and that is the cause of her
”
looks which are strange considering the terrible sight she has s een
”
“
“
D o you think so ? the magistrate said You must remember that
sh
e is not yet s ixty and I do not think that it is a case of senile im
as been
e is quite conscious of the erm e that h
becil ity but that sh
committed
“
Then whyshould she smile?
”
Because she is pleased at what she has done
”
“
Oh no ! You are really too subtle !
The magistrate suddenly turned to Babette and looking at her
steadil y he said
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I suppose y
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A COC K CROWE D
wha t has happen ed and why this crime
know
ou
63
was
.
omm itted ?
She left off smiling and her pretty chil dlike eyes became ab om in
able monkey s eyes again and then the answer was suddenl y to pul l
up her petticoats to show us the lower part of her lim b s Yes the
magis trate had been quite right That ol d woman had b een a Cleo
patra a D iana a Ninon de l E ncl os and the rest of her body had re
mained lik e a child s even more than her eyes We were thunder
struck at the sight
”
“
“
Pigs ! Pigs ! La Friez e shouted to us You also want to have some
”
thing to do with her !
And I saw that actually the magistrate s face w as pale and com
tr acted and that his hands and lips trembled like tho se of a m an
caught in the act of doin g wrong
c
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C O C K C RO WE D
A
MME B ERTHA
ha d up till that tim e resisted all the
prayers of her despairing adorer Baron Joseph de Croissard He had
pursued her ardently in Paris during the winter and now he was
giving fetes and shootin g parties in her honor at his ch ateau at Car
vil le in Norm andy
M d Av ancell es her husban d saw nothing and knew nothin g as
is wife on account of a
usual It was said that he l ived apart from h
physical weakn ess for which Mme d Avancel l es would not pardon
him He was a short stou t b al d man with short arms legs neck
nose and very ugly ; while Mme d Avancel l es on the contrary was a
tall dark and determined young woman who laughed in her husband s
“
face with sonorous peals while he called her openly Mrs Housewife
She looked at the b road shoulders strong build and fair mustaches of
her titled admirer Baron j oseph de Croissard with a certain amount
of tenderness
She had not however granted him anything as yet The b aron was
ruin ing him sel f for her and there was a constant round of fetin g hunt
ing parties and new pleasures to which he invited the neigh b oring
nobil i ty Al l day long the hounds gave tongue in the woods as they
followed the fox or the wild b oar and every night daz zl in g fireworks
mingled their b urning plumes with the stars while the illuminated
windows of the drawing room cast long rays of light onto the wide
lawns where shadows were moving to and fro
It was autumn the russet colored season of the year and the leaves
’
D AV AN CE LLE S
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSAN T
64
were whirling about
the grass like flights of birds One noticed the
sm ell of damp earth in the air of the naked earth like one scents the
odor of the bare skin when a woman s dress falls off her after a ball
One evening in the previous spring during an entertainment Mme
d Avancel l es had said to M de Croissard who was worrying her by
“
his importunities : If I do succumb to you my friend it will not be
before the fall of the leaf I have too many things to do this summer
”
to have any time for it He had not forgotten that hold and amus ing
S peech and every day he became more pressing every day he pushed
his approaches nearer— to u se a m ilitary phras e — and ga ined a hold
on the heart of the fair audacious woman who seemed only to be
resisting for form s sake
It was the day before a large wild boar hunt and in the evening
“
M me Bertha said to the baron with a laugh” : Baron if you kill the
brute I shall have something to say to you And so at dawn he was
up and ou t to try and discover where the solitary anirnal had its lair
He accompanied his huntsmen settle d the places for the relays and
organized everything personally to insure his triumph When the horns
gave the signal for setting ou t he appeared in a closely fitting coat of
scarlet and gold with his waist drawn in tight his chest expanded his
eyes radiant and as fresh and strong as if he had just got ou t of bed
They set off ; the wild boar bolted through the underwood as soon as
he was dislodged followed b y the hounds in full cry while the horses
The
set off at a gallop through the narrow side cuts in the forest
carriages which followed the chase at a distance drove noiselessly
along the soft roads
From mischief Mme d Avancel l es kept the baron b y her side lag
ging behind at a walk in an interminably long and straight drive over
which four rows of oaks hung so as to form almost an arch while he
trembling with love and anxiety listened with one ear to the young
woman s bantering chatter and with the other to _
the blast of the horns
and to the cry of the b ou nds as they receded in the distance
”
“
So you do not love me any longer? she observed
”
How can you s ay such things ? he replied
And she continued : But you seem to be paying more attention to
”
the sport than to me
He groaned and said : D id you not order me to kill the animal
"
myself?
Of course I reckon upon it You mus t
e replied gravely :
And sh
”
kill it under my eyes
is horse until it reared
Then he trembled in h
is saddle spurred h
“
and losing all patience exclaimed : But by j ove madame that is
”
im p ossible if we remain here
on
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A CO CK C ROWE D
65
Then she spoke tenderly to him laying her h and
his arm or
and said with a
stroking his horse s mane as if from abstraction
”
—
l augh : But y ou must do it or else so much the worse for you
Just then they turned to the right into a n arrow path which was
ov erhung by trees and suddenly to avoid a branch which barred the ir
way she le aned toward him so closely that he felt her hair tickling
is a rms brutally round her and putting
h
is neck Suddenly he threw h
his heavily mustached mouth to her forehead he gave her a furious
on
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At first she did not move and remained motionless under that ma d
c aress ; then she turned her head with a jerk and either by accident
or design her little lips met h
is under their wealth of light hair an d
a moment afterward either from confu sion or remorse sh
e struck her
horse with her riding whip and went off at full gallop and they rode
on l ike that for some tim e without exchanging a look
The noise of the hu nt came nearer ; the thickets see med to tremble
and suddenly the wild boar broke through the bushes covered with
blood and trying to shake off the b ou nds who had fastened onto him
“
Let him who
and the baron uttering a shout of triumph exclaimed :
”
loves me follow me ! And he disappeared in the copse as if the wood
h ad swallowed him up
When she reached an Open glade a few minutes later he was just
ett
g
up
covered
with
mud
h
i
s coat torn and his hands b loody
i
n
g
while the brute was lying stretched out at full len gth with the baron s
hunting knife driven into its shoulder up to the hilt
The quarry was cut at night by torchlight It was a warm and dul l
evenin g and the wan moon threw a yell ow light onto the torche s
which made the night mis ty with their resinous smoke The hound s
d evoured the wild boar s entrails and snarled and fought for them
while the prickers and the gentlemen standin g in a circl e round the
spoil blew their horns as loud as they could The flourish of the
hunting horns resounded beyond the woods on that stil l night and was
repeated by the echoes of the distant valleys awakening the timid
rousing the yelping foxes and d istur b ing the little rabbits in
sta gs
their gam b ols at the edge of the rides
The frightened night birds flew over the eager pack of b ou nds
while the women who were moved by all these strangely picturesque
things leaned rather heavily on the men s arms and turned aside into
the forest rid es before the hounds had finished their meal Mme
d Avancell es feeling lan g
uid after that day of fatigu e and tenderness
“
”
said to the baron : Will you take a turn in the park my frien d ? And
without replying but trembling and nervous he went with her and
im mediately they kissed each other They walked slowly un d er the
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SHORT S TORIES OF DE M AUPASS ANT
66
lmost leafless trees through which the moonbeams filtered and their
love their desires their longing for a closer embrace b ecame so ve
bement that they nearly yielded to it at the foot of a tree
The horns were not sounding any longer and the tired hounds were
“
sleeping in the kennels Let us re turn the young woman said and
they went back
When they got to the ch ateau and before they went in she said in
“
”
a we ak voice : I am so tired that I shall go to bed my friend And
as he O pened his arms for a last kiss she ran away saying as a last
“
— I am going to sleep Let him who loves me fol lo w
ood
No
:
b
g
y
me !
An hour later when the whole silent ch ateau seemed dead the
baron crept stealthily ou t of his room and went and scratched at her
e did not reply he tried to O pen it and found that it was
door As sh
not locked
She was in a reverie resting her arms against the window ledge
H e threw himself at her k ness which he kissed madly through her
dress She said nothi ng but buried her delicate fin gers caressingly in
his hair and suddenly as if she had formed some great resolution
“
”
whispered with a daring look : I shall come back ; wait for me And
stretching ou t her hand she pointed with her finger to an in d istinct
white spot at the end of the room ; it was her bed
Then with tremb ling hands and scarcely knowing what he was
d oing he quickly undressed got into the cool sheets and stretching
h imself out comfortab ly almost forgot his love in the pleasure he found
tired ou t as he was in the contact of the linen She did not return
however no doubt finding amusement in making him langu ish He
closed his eyes with a feeling of exquisite comf ort and reflected peace
a bly while waiting for what he so ardently longed for But b y degrees
his limbs grew languid and his thoughts became indistinct and fleet
ing until his fatigu e gained the upper hand and he fell asleep
He slept that unconquerable heavy sleep of the worn out h u nter
slept through until daylight Then as the window had remained half
O pen the crowing of a cock suddenly woke him The baron O pened
his eyes and feeling a woman s body against his— fi
nding himself
much to his surprise in a s trange bed and remembering nothing for
the moment— he stammered :
“
What? Where am I ? What is the matter?
Then she w
ho had not been asleep at all looking at this unkempt
man with red eyes and swollen lips replied in the haughty tone of
voice in which she occasionally spoke to her hus b and :
“
It is nothing ; it is only a cock crowing Go to sleep aga in mo nsieur
”
it has nothing to do with y ou
a
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S HO RT S TO RIE S OF D E
68
Lil ie who was
M AU PASS AN T
listless an d strange and was making hol es in the san d
with the heels of her boots suddenly exclaimed in one of those confi
d eu ces which women sometimes bestow and for which they are sorry
,
,
soon as the story is told :
‘
Ah ! M y d ear fellow I d o not deserve to be c anonized and my
life is rather a subject for a dram a than a chapter from the Gospels or
ing I c an re
end As l ong as I can remem b er anyth
th
e G olden Leg
m ember bein g wrapped in lace being carried by a woman and con
ildren who have been long waite d
tinu al l y being fussed o ver a s are c h
for and who are consequently spoile d more than usual
‘
Those kisses were so nice that I s till seem to feel their sweetness
and I shrine the remembrance of them in a l ittle place in my heart as
one preserves some lucky talisman in a reliquary I s till seem to remem
ber an in d istinct lan d scape lost in the mist outlines of trees which
frightened me as they creake d and groaned in the win d and ponds on
which swans were sailing And when I look in the glass for a long
tim e merely for the sake of seein g myself it seems to me as if I recog
niz e the woman who formerly us ed to kiss me most frequently an d
at
Speak to me in a more l o v ing v oice than anyone else did But wh
h appened
afterward ?
‘
Was I carried off or sol d to some strolling c ircus owner by a dis
h onest servant? I d o not know ; I have never been able to find ou t but
I remember that my whole childhoo d was spent in a c ircus which
trav e l ed from fair to fair and from plac e to place with files of v ans
roces
s ions of animals and noisy mus ic
p
‘
I was as tiny as an insect and they taught me d iffi
cult tricks to
d ance on the tightrope and to perform on the sl ackr0 p e I was beaten
as if I had been a bit of plaster and more frequentl y I had a piece
of d ry brea d to gn aw than a s l ice of meat But I remember that one
d ay I slipped under one of the v ans and stole a basin of soup as my
is thr ee
s hare which one of the clo wns was c are fully making for h
learne
d
dogs
‘
I had neither frien d s nor relations ; I was employe d on the dirtiest
jobs like the lowest stable help and I was tattooed with b ruises and
sc ars Of the whole company however the one who beat me the most
who was the least sparing of his thumps and who continually made
m e s u ffer as if it gave him pleasure was the manager and proprietor
a kin d of old vicious bru te whom eve ry body feared lik e the plagu e
as contin ually complaining of the receipts
who hid
a miser who w
away the crown pieces in h
is money in t he fun ds
is mattress invested h
and cut d own the salaries of a ll as far as he could
‘
H is name was Rapha Ginestous Any other chil d but m yse lf
wo uld have succumb ed to suc h a cons tant m artyrdom but I grew up
as
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L ILIE LA LA
69
and
the more I grew the prettier and more desirable I became so that
when I was fifteen men were already beginning to write love letters
to me and to throw bouquets to me in the arena I felt also that al l
the men in the company were watching me and were coveting me as
their prey ; that their lustful looks rested on my pink tights and followe d
the graceful outlines of my body when I was posing on the rope that
stretched from one end of the circus to the other or jumped through
the paper hoops at full gallop
“They were no longer the same an d spoke to me in a totally d iffer
ent tone of voice They tried to come into my dressing 1 oom when I
was changing my dress and Rapha Ginestous seemed to have lost his
head and his heart throbbed audibly when he came near me Yes he
had the audacity to propose bargains to me which covered my cheek s
and forehead with blushes and which filled me with disgust and as I
felt a fierce hatred for him and detested him with all my soul and all
my strength as I wished to make him suffer the tortures which he ha d
inflicted on me a hundre d fold I use d him as the target at which I was
constantly aim ing
‘
Instinctivel y I employed every cunning p erfi
dy every artful co
u etr
every
lie
every
a
rtifice that can unset the strongest and most
y
skeptical and place them at our mercy like submissive animals He
loved me ; he really loved me that lascivious goat who had never seen
anything in a woman except a soft couch and an in strument of con
venience and of forgetfulness He loved me like ol d men do love with
frenzy with degrading transports and with the prostration of his wil l
and of his strength I held him as in a leash and did whatever I liked
with him
‘
I was much more manageress than he was manager and the poor
wretch wasted away in vain hopes and in useless transports ; he ha d
not even touched the tips of my fingers and was reduced to bestowing
his caresses on my columbine shoes my tights and my wigs And I
cared not tha t for it you understand ! Not the slightest familiarity d id
I allow and he began to grow thin and ill and b ecame idiotic An d
while he implored me and promised to marry me with his eyes full
of te ars I shouted with laughter ; I reminded him of how he ha d
beaten abused and humiliated me and had often made me wish for
death And as soon as he left me he would swill bottles of gin an d
whisky and constantly got so abomina bly dru nk that he rolled under
the table and all to drown his sorrow and forget his desire
“He covered me with jewels and tried ever thing he could to tempt
y
me to become his wife In spite of my inexperience in life b e consulted
me with regard to everything he undertook and one evening after I
had stroked his fa ce with my hand I persuad ed him without any diffi
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPASSANT
70
lty to m ak e his will by which he left me
cus and everything b elongin g to it
cu
,
all
his savings and the
cir
.
‘
It was in the middle of winter near Moscow ; it snowed continu
and one almost b urnt onesel f at the stoves in trying to keep
all y
warm Rapha Gin estous had had supper brought into the largest van
which was his after the performan ce and for hours we ate and drank
I w as v ery nice tow ard him and fill ed his glass every moment ; I even
is knee and kissed him And all h
is love and the fumes of the
sa t on h
alcohol of the wine mounted to his head and gradually made him so
helplessly intoxicated that he fell from his chair inert as if he had
been struck b y ligh tning without opening his eyes or sayin g a word
The rest of the troupe were as leep ; the l ights were out in all the
little windows and not a sound was to be hear d while the snow con
tinned to fall in large fl akes So hav ing put out the petroleum lamp
I Opened the door and t aking the drunk ard by the feet as if he ha d
been a b ale of goods I threw him ou t int o that white shroud
‘
The next morning the s tiff and convu lsed body of Rapha Gines
tous was picked up and as everyb ody knew his inveterate dr inkin g
habits no one thought of instituting an inqu iry or of accusing me of
a crime Thus was I avenged and gained a yearly in come of nearly
fifteen thous and francs 1 What after al l is the good of being honest
and of pardoning our enemies as the Gospel bids us ?
“
”
o
And now Lo u is d Arandel s aid in conclusion suppose we g
and have a cocktail or tw o at the cas ino for I do not think that I have
”
ever tal ked so much in my life b efore
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A V AGAB OND
FOR M ORE T HAN A M ONT H Randel had been w alking seeking for work
everywhere He had left his native place Vil l e Avary i n the depart
ment of La Manche b ecause there was no work to b e had He was a
journeyman c arpenter tw enty seven years ol d a steady fellow and
good workm an but for two months he the eldest son had been o b li g
ed
to live on his famil y wi th nothing to do but loaf in the general stop
page of work Bread was getting scarce with them ; the two sisters
went ou t as ch arwomen but earned littl e and he Jacques Randel the
strongest of them al l did nothing b ecause he had nothing to do a d
ate the others bread
Then he went and inquired at the town hall and the mayors secre
tary told him that he woul d find work at the labor center So he
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‘A
bout
$3000
.
A VAGABON D
71
c tes and c a rrying an
arted well provided with papers and certifi
o ther pair of shoes a pair of trousers and a shirt in a blue handkerchief
at the end of his stick
He had walked almost without stopping day and night alon g inter
minab le roads in the su n and rain without every reaching that mys
n d work At first he had the fixed
teriou s country where workmen fi
idea th at he must only work at his own trade but at every carp enter s
shop where he applied he w as told that they had just dismissed men
nding himself at the end of
on account of work b ein g so slack and fi
is mind to un dertake any jo b that he might
h
is resources he made up h
come across on the road An d so by turns he was a navvy stab leman
stone sawyer ; he split wood lopped the branches of trees dug wells
mixed mortar tied up fagots tended goats on a mountain and all for
a few pence for he only o b tained two or three days work occasionally
by offerin g him self at a shamefully low price in order to tempt the
avarice of employers and peasants
An d now for a week he had found nothing and he had no money
left He was eating a piece of b read thanks to the charity of some
women from whom he had begged at house doors on the road It was
dark and Jacques Randel jaded his legs fail ing him his stom
is he art was walkin g b arefoot on the
achempty and with desp ai r in h
grass by the side of the road for he was taking care of his last pair
of shoes the other pair having al ready ceased to exi st for a long time
It was a Saturday toward the end of au tumn The heavy gray clouds
were being driven rapidly among the trees and one felt that it would
rain soon The country was deserted at that time of the evening and
e fields there rose up stacks
on the eve of Sunday Here and there in th
of thrashed ou t corn l ike huge yellow mushrooms and the fields looked
b are as they had already been sown for the next year
Randel was hungry with the hun ger of some wild animal such a
hunger as drives wolves to attack men Worn out and we akened with
fatigue he took longer strides so as not to take so many steps and
with heavy head the b lood thro bb ing in his temples with red eyes
and dry mouth he grasped his s tick tightly in his hand with a longing
to strik e the first passer b y whom he should meet and who might b e
goin g home to supper with all his force
He looked at the sides of the road with the image of potatoes dug
up and lying on the ground before his eyes ; if he had foun d any he
would have ga thered some dead wood made a fi
re in the ditch and
have had a capital supper Off the warm round tubers which he would
first of all have held bu rning hot in his cold hands But it w as too late
in the year and he would have to gnaw a raw bee troot as he had d one
th
e d ay before having picked one up in a field
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SHORT STORIES OF DE MAUPASSAN T
72
F o the last two days he had spoken aloud as he quickene d his
step u n ler the influence of his thoughts He had never done much
trunking hitherto as he ha d given all his mind all his simple faculties
to his industrial requirements But now fatig
ue and th is desperate
search for work which he coul d not get refusals and reb uffs nights
S pent in the O pen air lying on the grass long fasting the contempt
which he knew people with a settled abode felt for a _
v a ab ond the
g
“
question which he was continually asked : Why did you not remain
at home ? dis tress at not being a ble to use his s trong arms which he
felt so full of vigor the recollection of his relations who had remaine d
at home and who a lso had not a halfpenny filled him by degrees with
a rage which was accumulating every day every hour every minute
and which now escaped his lips in spite of himself in short growlin g
sentences
As he stu mbled over the stones which rolled beneath his bare feet
“
he grumbled : How wretched ! how miserab le ! A set of hogs to let a
man die of hunger a carpenter A set of hogs— not twopence— not
”
twopence An d now it is raining— a set of hogs !
He was indignant at the injustice of fate and cast the blame on
men on all men b ecause Na ture that g
reat blind mother is unjust
“
cruel and p erfi
is clenched teeth
A
diou s and b e repeated through h
as he looked at the thin gray smoke which rose from
set of hogs
the roofs for it wa s the dinner hour And without thinking about that
other injustice which is human and which is called ro bb ery an d vio
lence he felt inclined to go into one of those houses to murder the
inha b itants and to sit down to table in their stead
“
He said to himself : I have a right to live and they are lettin me
die of hunger— and yet I only ask for work— a set of hogs ! An the
pain in his limbs the gnawin g in his heart rose to his head like
terrib le intoxication and gave rise to this simple thought in his brain :
“
I have the right to live because I breathe and b ecause the air is the
common property of everybody and so nobody has the right to leave
me without b read !
A thick fine icy cold rain was coming down and he stopped and
“
murmured : How misera b le ! Another month of wal king before I get
”
home He was indeed retu rning home then for he saw that he should
more easily find work in his native town where he was kn own— and
he did not mind what he did— than on the highroads where every
body suspecte d him As the carpentering business was not going well
he would tu rn day laborer be a mason s hodman ditcher break stone s
on the road If he only earned tenpence a day that would at any rate
find him something to eat
He tied the remains of his last pocket handkerchief round his n eck
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A VAG ABON D
73
prevent the cold water from running down his back and chest
but he soon found that it was pene trating the thin material of which
his clothes were made and he glanced round him with the agonized
look of a man who does not know where to hide his body and to rest
his head and has no place of shelter in the whole world
Night c ame on and wrapped the country in obscurity and in the
d istance in a meadow he saw a d ark spot on the grass ; it was a cow
and so he got over the ditch by the roadside and went up to her
without exactly knowing wha t he was doing When he got close to
her she raised her great head to him and he thought : If I only ha d
”
He looked at the cow and the cow
a jug I could g
et a little milk
looked at“
him and then suddenly giving her a violent kick in the side
”
he said : Get up !
The animal got up slowly letting her heavy udder hang down b e
l ow her ; then the man lay down on his back between the animal s
legs and drank for a long time squeezing the warm swollen teats
which tasted of the cow st al l with b oth hands and drank as long as
any milk remained in that living well But the icy rain began to fall
more heavily and he saw no place of shelter on the whole of that
bare plain He was cold and he looked at a light which was shinin g
among the trees in the window of a house
The cow had lain down again heavily and he s at down by her
side and stroked her head grateful for the nourishment she had given
him T he anim al s strong thick breath w hich came ou t of her nostrils
like two jets of steam
in the evening air b lew onto the workman s
“
face who said : You are not cold inside there ! He put his hands
onto her chest and under her legs to find some warmth there and
then the idea struck him that he might pass the night against that
large warm stomach So he found a comfortable place and laid his
forehead against the great udder from which he had quenched his
thirst just previously and then as he was worn ou t with fatigue he
fell asleep immediately
He woke up however several times with his back or his stomach
half frozen according as he put one or the other to the animal s
flank Then he turn ed over to warm and dry that part of his body
which had remained exposed to the ni ght air and he soon went
soundly to sleep again
The crowing of a co ck woke him ; the day was breakin g it was no
longer raining and the sky was bright The cow was resting with her
muzzle on the ground and he stooped down resting on his hands to
“
kis s those wide nostrils of moist flesh and said : Good by my beauty
”
until next time You are a nice animal ! Good by Then he put on his
shoes and went off and for two hours he walked straight on b efore
to
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE M AUPASSANT
74
him always following the same road an d then he felt so tired tha t
he sat d own on the grass It was broad daylight by that time and the
churc h bells were ringing ; men in blue blou ses women in white caps,
some on foot some in carts began to pass along the road going to
the neighboring villages to spend Sun d ay with frien ds or relations
A stout peasant came in sight driving a score of frightened bleat
ingsheep in front of him whom an active dog kept together s o Rande l
“
i
:
ot up and raising h
s
he
said
Y
ou do not happen to have any
g
cap
work for a man who is dying of hunger
? But the other giving an
“
a ngry look at the vagabo d
replie d : I have no work for fe l lows
”
n
whom I meet on the road
And the carpenter went back and s at down by the sid e of the ditch
again He waited there for a long tim e watchin g the country people
pass and looking for a kind compassionate face b efore he renewed
his request and finally selected a man in an overcoat whose stomach
“
”
was adorned with a gold chain 1 have been lookin g for work he
“
said for the last two months and cannot find any and I have not a
halfp enny in my pocket
“
But the semigentleman replied You should have read the notice
which is stuck up at the beginnin g of the village Beggingis p ro
hib ited within the boundaries of this parish Let me tell you that I
am the mayor and if you do not get out of here pretty quickly I shall
”
have you arrested
R andel who was getting angry replied Have me arrested if you”
like I should prefer it for at any rate I should not die of hunger
And he went back and sat down by the side of his ditch again an d
in about a quarter of an hour two gendarmes appeared on the road
They were walking slowly side by side well in sight glitteri ng in
the sun with their shinin g hats their yellow accouterments and their
metal buttons as if to frighten evildoers and to put them to flight at
a distance He knew that they were coming after him but he did
not move for he was seized with a sud d en desir e to defy them to be
arrested by them and to have his revenge later
They came on without appearing to have seen him walking with
mi litary steps heavily and b alancing themselves as if they were doing
the goose step ; and then suddenly as they passed him the y noticed
him and stopped looking at him angrily and threateningly The
“
brigadier came u to him and asked : What are you do ing here ?
p
”
“
I am resting the man rep l ied ca lmly
“
”
Where d o you come from ?
“
If I ha d to tell you all the places I have been to it would take me
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m ore than an hour
“
Where are you going to ?
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SHORT STO RIE S OF DE M AUPASSAN T
76
with hatred in their eyes and a longing to throw stones at him to t ear
his skin with their nails to trample him under the ir feet They aske d
each o ther whether he had committed murder or robbe ry The b u tcher
who was an ex spahi declared that he was a deserter The tobacco nist
thought that he recognize d him as the man who had that very morn
ingpassed a ba d hal f fr anc piece off on him and the iro nmonger de
cl ared that he was the murderer of Widow Malet for whom the po l ice
had been looking for six months
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In the hall of the municipal council into which his custodians took
h
im Randel s aw the mayor again sitting on the magisterial bench
wit“
h the schoolm aster by his side
“
Ah ! ah ! the magistrate excl ah ed so here you are ag ain my
fellow I told you I should hav e you lo cked up Well Brigadier
”
what
is he charged with ?
“
He is a vagabond without house or home Monsieur l e Maire with
ou t any resources or money so he says who w as arrested in the act
ging b ut he is pro vided wi th good testimoni als and his papers
of be g
are all in order
Show me his papers the mayor said He took them read them
”
“
reread returned them and then said : Search him ; they search ed
him but found nothing and the mayor seemed perplex ed and asked
e workm an
th
”
“
What were you d oing on the roa d this morning?
”
“
I was looking for work
“
Work ? On the highroad ?
”
“
How do you expect me to fin d any if I hide in the wood s ?
They looked at each other with the hatred of two wild beasts which
“
belong to different hostile spe cies and the magistrate continued : I
goin g to have you set at liberty but do not be brought up before
am
me again
“
To which the carpenter replied : I would rather you l ooked me up ;
I have had enough running about the country
“
But the magistrate replied severely : Be silent And then he said
to the two gendarmes : You will cond uct this man two hundred yards
”
from the village and let him continue his jo u rney
“
At any rate give me something to eat the workman said but the
“
o ther grew indignant It only remains for us to feed you ! Ah ! ah ! ah !
”
that is rather s trong !
“
B u t Randel went on firmly : If you let me nearly die of hunger
again you will force me to commit a crim e and then so much the
”
worse for you other fat fellows
“
The mayor had risen and he re p eate d : Take him away im m edi~
ate ly or I shall end b y getting angry
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77
A VAGABOND
The
two
gendarmes thereupon seized the carpenter by the arm s
and dragged him ou t He allowe d them to do it without resistance,
passed throughthe village again and found himself on the highroad
on ce more and when the men had accompanied him two hundre d
yards beyon d the village the brigadier said Now off with you an d
do not let me catch you about here again for if I do you will
”
know it
Randel went off without replying or knowing where he was go ing
He walk ed on for a quarter of an hour or twen ty minutes so s tupe
fi
ed that he no longer thought of anything But suddenly as he wa s
passing a small house where the window was half open the smell of
the soup and boiled meat stopped him suddenly in front of it and
hunger fierce devouring maddening hunger seized him and almost
drove him against the wal ls of the house“
like a wild beast
He said aloud in a grumblin g voice : In heaven s name they must
”
give me some this time And he began to knock at the door vigorously
with his stick and as nobody came he knocked louder and called ou t:
“
Hallo ! you people in there Open the door ! And then as nothing
moved he went up to the window and pushe d it open with his hand
and the close warm air O f the kitchen ful l of the smell of hot soup
meat and cabb age escaped in to the cold outer air and with a b ound
the carpenter was in the house Two covers were laid on the table ;
no doubt the proprietors of the house on going to chu rch had left
their dinner on the fi
re their nice Sunday boiled b eef and vegeta b le
soup while there was a loaf of new bread on the chimney p iece b e
tween two bottles which seemed full
Randel seized the bread first of all and broke it with as much vio
lence as if he were strangling a man and then he began to eat it
voraciously swallowing great mouthfu ls quickly But almost imme
diatel y the smell of the meat attracted him to the fireplace and having
t aken off the lid of the saucepan he plunged a fork into it and brought
ou t a large piece of beef tied with a s tring Then he took more ca b
bage carrots and onions until his plate was full and having put it
on the ta b le he sat down before it cut the meat mto four pieces and
dined as if he had b een at home When he had eaten nearly all the
meat b esides a quantity of vegetables he felt thirsty and took one
of the bottles off the mantelpiece
Scarcely had he poured the liquor into his glass than he s aw it was
brandy So much the better it was warming it would instill some
fire into his veins and that would be all right af ter being so cold and
he drank some He found it very good certainly for he had grown
unaccustomed to it and he poured himself ou t another glass ful which
he drank at two gulps And then al most immediately he felt quite
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
78
merry an d lighthearted from the effect of the alcohol just as if some
great happiness were flowing through his system
He contin ued to eat but more slowly dippin g his bread into the
soup His skin had become b u rning and especial ly his forehead where
the vein s were thro bbing But suddenly the church bel ls b egan to
ring Mass was over and instinct rather than fear the instinct of pru
dence which guides all b eings and makes them clear sighted in dan
ger made the carpenter get up He put the remains Of the loaf into
one pocket and the b randy bottle into the other and he furtively went
to the win dow and looked ou t into the road It was still deserted so
he jumped out and set off walkin g again but instead O f following the
highroad he ran across the fields toward a wood which he saw a l ittle
wa off
felt alert strong lighthearted gla d of what he had done and so
I
nim b le that he sprang over the inclosures of the fields at a single
bound and as soon as he was under the trees he took the bottle ou t of
h
is pocket again and began to drink once more swallowing it down
as he walked and then his ideas began to get confused his eyes grew
d im and his legs elastic as springs and he started singing the Old
popular song
“
! h
Oh
aw nice how nice it is
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T o p ick th
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s
weet wild
strawb erries
,
”
.
He was now walking on thick damp cool moss and the soft car
pet under his feet made him feel absu rdly inclined to turn head over
"
heels like he used to do as a chil d ; so he took a run turned a somer
sault got up and b egan over again And between each time he began
to sing again
! h
ow nice h
ow nice it is
Oh
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e sweet, wil d stra wb erries
T 0 p ick th
.
Suddenly he found himself on the edge of a sunken road and in the
road he saw a tall girl a serv ant who was returning to the village with
is eyes as
two pails of mi l k He watched stooping down and with h
bright as those of a dog who scents a quail b ut she saw him raised
“
her head and said : W a s that you sin ging like that ? He did not reply
however b ut jumped down into the road although it was at least
six feet down and when sh
e saw him suddenly standing in front of
”
“
her she exclaimed : Oh dear how you frightened me !
But he did not hear her for he was drunk he was mad e
xcited by
another require m ent which was more imperative than hunger more
feverish than alcohol ; by the irresistible fury of the man who has been
in want of everythin g for two months and who is drunk who is young
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A VAGABON D
79
d ent and inflamed by all the appe tites which na ture has im p lante d
ar
the flesh of vigorous men
The girl started back from him frightened at his face his eyes his
half open mouth his outstretched hands but he seized her by the
shoulders and without a word threw her down in the road
She let her two pails fall and they rolled over noisily and all the
milk was S pilt and then she screamed but comprehending that it
would be of no use to call for help in that lonely spot and seeing that
he was not going to make an attempt on her life she yielded without
much difficulty and not very angrily either for he was a strong handsome young fellow and really not rough
When she got up the thought of her overturned pails suddenly filled
her with fury and taking off one of her wooden clogs she threw it in
her turn at the man to b reak his head since he did not pay her for
her mil k
B ut he mistaking the reason for this sudden violent attack some
what sobered and frightened at what he had done ran off as fast as
he could while she threw stones at him some of which hit him in
the back
He ran for a long time v ery long until he felt more tired than he
had ever been before H i s legs were so weak that they could scarcely
carry him ; all his ideas were confused ; he lost the recollection of
everything and could no longer think about anything and so he sat
down at the foot of a tree and in five minutes was fast asleep He was
soon awakened however by a rough shake and on Opening his eyes
he saw two cocked hats of polished leather bending over him and
the two gendarmes of the mornin g who were hold ing him and bin d
inghis arms
“
I knew I should catch you again said the brigadier jeeringly But
R andel got up without replying The two men shook him quite ready
to il l treat him if he made a movement for he was their prey now ;
he had b ecome a jailbird caught by hunters of cr iminals who would
not let him go again
“
N ow start ! the brigadier said and they set off It was getting
evenin g and the autumn twilight was settling heavy and dark over
the land and in half an hour they reached the village where every
door was open for the people had heard what had happened Peasants
and peasant women and girls excited with anger as if every man ha d
been ro bb ed and every woman violated wished to see the wretch
brought back so that they might overwhelm him with abuse They
hooted him from the first house in the village until they reached the
‘
mansion house where the mayor was waiting for him Eager to
avenge himself on this v agabond as soon as he saw him he cried
in
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SHORT
80
S TO
RIE S OF D E MAUPASSANT
“
Ah ! my fine fellow ! Here we are !
And
he rubbed his hands more
“
pleased than he usually was and continued : I said so I said so the
”
moment I saw him in the road And then with increased satisfaction :
“
Oh ! you blackguard ! Oh ! you dirty blackgu ard ! You wil l get your
twen ty years my fine fellow !
,
.
,
.
,
M O U N TE B A N K S
T HE
the clever manager of the Eden Réunis Theater as the
th eater critics invariably called him was reckoning on a great success
and had invested his last franc in the affair without thinking of the
morrow or of the bad luck which had been pursuing him so inexora b ly
for months past F or a whole week the walls the kiosks sh 0 p fronts
and even the trees had been placarded with flaming posters and from
one end of Paris to the o ther carriages were to be seen which were
covered with fancy sketches by Ch eret representing two strong well
built men who looked like ancient athletes The younger of them who
was standing with his arms folded had the vacant smile of an itiner an t
mountebank and t he other who was dressed in what was supposed to
be the costume of a Mexican trapper hel d a revolver in his h and
T here were large type advertisements in all the papers that the Monte
fi
ores would appear without fail at the Eden Réunis the next Monday
Nothing else was talked about for the puff and humb ug attracted
people The Montefi
ores like fashionab le knickknacks succeeded that
whimsical jade Rose Péché who had gone off t he preceding autum n
between the third and fo u rth acts of the burlesque Ousca Isca r in or
der to make a s tudy of love in company of a young fellow of seventeen
who had just entered the university The novelty and difficulty of their
performance revived and agitated the curiosity of the pu b l ic for there
seemed to be an implied threat of death or at any rate of wounds an d
O f blood in it and it seemed as if they d efied d anger with absolute in
difference And that always pleases women ; it holds them and masters
them and they grow pale with emotion and cruel enjoym ent Conse
quently all the seats in the large theater were l et almost imme d iately
and were soon taken for several days in advance And stout Com
ardin losing his glass of absinthe over a game of dominoes was in
h
spirits
seeing
the
future
through
rosy
glasses
and
exclaimed
in
a
g
“
”
l oud voice : I think I have turned up trumps by George !
COMP ARIDON
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The Countess Regina de V il l é gby was lyin g on the sofa in her
bou d oir l angu idl y fanning herself She ha d only received three or four
,
.
T HE MOUNTE BANKS
81
iel d and her
efl
intimate friend s that day Saint Mars Montal vin Tom Sh
o l aughed as in cessantly as a bir d
ou el a Creo l e wh
cousin M me de Rh
sings It was growing dusk an d the distant rumbl ing of the carriages
in the avenue of the Champs Elys ees sounde d like some somnolent
rhythm There was a del icate perfume of flowers ; the lamps had not
been brought in yet and chatting an d laughing filled the room with
,
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,
confused noise
“
Would you pour ou t the tea? the countess said suddenly touching
S aint Mars s fingers who was be g
inning an amorous conversation in a
low voice with her fan And while he slowly filled the little china cup
“
he continued : Are the Montefi
ores as good as the lying newspapers
”
m ake ou t?
Then T om Shefliel d and the others all joine d in They had never
seen anything like it they declared ; it was most exciting and made one
shiver unpleasantly as when the esp ada comes to close quarters with
h
t
th
e infuriated b rute at a b u ll fi
g
Countess Regina listened in silence and nibble d the petals of a tea
rose
“
How I should like to see them ! giddy Mme de Rhoncl exclaime d
“
Unfortunately
Cousin the countess s aid in the solemn tones of a
“
preacher a respectable woman dare not let herse lf be seen in im
”
proper places
They all agreed with her Nevertheless Countess de V il l é gb y w as
ores performance two days later dressed all in
resent at the Montefi
plack and wearing a thick veil at the back of a stage box
M me de V il l é gby was as col d as a steel buckler She had married as
e left the convent in which sh
soon as sh
e had been educated without
an
y affection or even liking for her husban d ; the most skeptical re
s ected her as a sain t and sh
e had a look of virgin purity on her calm
p
face as she went down the steps of the Madeleine on Sundays afte r
high mass
Countess Regina stretched herse lf nervously grew pale and tremble d
like the strings of a v iolin on which an artist had been playing some
wild symphony She inhaled the nas ty smell of the sawdust as if it
had been the perfume of a bou quet of unknown flowers ; she clenche d
her hands and gazed eagerly at the two mountebanks whom the
ublic applauded rap turously at every feat And contemptu ously and
pau ghtil y she compared those two men who were as vigorous as wil d
animals that have grown up in the open air with the ricke ty limbs that
look so awkwar d in the dress of an English groom
a
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Count de
V ill é g
by
had gone back
to
the country to prepare for his
S H ORT STORIES OF DE
82
MAUPASSANT
l ction as councilor general an d the very evening that he started
Regina again took the stage box at the Eden Réunis Consum ed by
e scribbled a few wo rds
sensual ardor as if by some love philter sh
on a piece of paper— the eternal formul a that women write on such
occa51ons
“
A c arriage will be waitin g for you at the stage door after the per
e e
,
.
,
,
.
— An
form
an ce
u nkno wn
wom a n wh
o adores you
”
.
And then she gave it to a box O pener who handed it to the Monte
ore who was the champion pistol shot
fi
Oh that interminable waiting in a m al orou s cab the overwhelm
ingemotion and the nausea of di sgu st the fear the desire of waking
the coachman who was nodding on the box of giv ing him her address
e remained with her face
and telling him to drive her home ! But sh
mech anically watching the dark passage illu
a gainst the window
”
“
actors entrance through which men
m inated by a gas lamp at the
were continually hurrying who talked in a loud voice and chewed the
e were glued to the
end of cigars which had gone out She s at as if sh
cushions and tapped impatiently on the bottom of the ca b with her
heels
When the act or who thought it was a joke made his appearance she
could hardly utter a word for evil pleasure is as intoxicating as adul
tera ted liquor So face to face with this imme diate surrender and this
rst thought that he had to do with a
unconstra ined irnm odesty he at fi
streetwalker
Regina felt various sensations and a “morbid pleasure throughout her
whole person She pressed close to him and rais ed her veil to show how
young beaut iful and desirable she was They did not speak a word
like wrestlers before a com b at She was eager to be locked up with
him to give herself to him and at last to know that moral uncleanness
of which sh
e was of course ign orant as a chaste wife ; and when they
left the room in the hotel together where they had spent hours like
amorous deer the man dragged himself along and al rnost groped his
way like a b lin d man while Regin a was smilin g though she exhibite d
th
e serene candor of an unsullied virgin like sh
e did on S u ndays after
mass
Then she took the second He was very sentimental and his hea d
was fu l l of romance He thought the unknown woman who merely
used him as her plaything really love d him and he was not satisfied
with furtive meetings He questioned her besought her and the
countess made fun of him Then she chose the two mounteb anks in
turn They did not kn ow it for she had forbidden them ever to talk
about her to each other under the penalty of never seeing her again
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S HORT S TORIE S OF D E MAUPA S SAN T
84
inert mass with a gaping wound in his forehead H is brother did
not move an d there was a l ook of madness on his face while the
Countess de V il l é g
by leane d on the ledge of her bo x and fanned herse lf
c almly as irnp l acab l y as any cruel goddess of ancie nt mythology
The next day between four and five when she was surrounded by
her usual friends in her little warm Japanese drawing room it was
strange to hear in what a languid and indifferent v oice she exclaimed :
“
They say that an accident happened to one of those
famous clowns
”
th e Monta— the Monte —what is the name Tom ?
”
The Montefi
ores madame !
And then they began to talk about An gele Velours who was going to
buy the former Fol ies at the H etel D rouot before marrying Prince
Storbeck
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U GLY
CE RTAINLY at this blessed epoch of the equality of m ediocrity
of
rec
u l ar a b omination
as Edgar Allan Poe says— at this delightful
tang
period when everybody dreams of resembling everybody els e so that
it has become impossib le to tell the president of the Republic from a
waiter— in these days which are the forerunners of that promising
bliss ful day when everything in this world will be of a dull neutral
uniformity certainly at such an epoch one has the right or rather it is
one s duty to be ugly
Lebeau however assuredly exercised that right with the most cruel
vigor He fulfilled that duty with the fiercest heroism and to make
matters worse the mysterious irony of fate had caused him to be born
with the name of Le b eau while an ingenious godfather the u ncon
scious accomplice of the pranks of destiny had given him the Christian
1
name of Antinous
Even among ou r contemporaries who were already on the highroad
to the coming ideal of universal hideousness Antinous Le b eau was re
markable for his ugliness ; and one might have said that he positively
threw zeal too much zeal into the matter though he was not hideous
”
“
like Mirab eau who made people excl airn Oh ! the beautifu l monster !
Alas ! No He was without any beauty of ugliness He was ugly that
w as all nothing more nor less ; in short he was uglily ugly He was not
‘
A y ou th of extraordinary b eauty page to the E m peror H adrian (A n
e
117 138 ) and the object of h
is extravag
ant affection H e was drowned in th
Nile wh ether by accident or in order to escape from the l ife he was leading
is uncert ain
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85
UGLY
humpbacked nor kn ock knee d nor potbell ied ; his legs were not l ike a
pair of tongs and his arms were neither too long nor too short and
yet there was an utter lack of uniformity about him not only in
painters eyes but also in everybody s for nobody could meet him in
the street without turning to look after him and thinking : G oo d
”
heavens ! what an object
His hair was of no particular color a light chestnut mixed with yel
low There was not much of it ; still he was not absolutely bald but just
bald enough to allow his butter colore d pate to show Butter colored ?
Hardly ! The color of margarine woul d be more applicable and such
pale margarine !
H is face was also like margarine but of adulterated margarine cer
tainl y His cranium the color of unadulterated margarine looked al
most like butter in comparison
There was very little to say about his mouth ! Less than little ; the
sum tota l was— nothing It was a chimerical m onth
But take it that I have sai d nothing about him and let us replace this
“
”
v ain description by the useful formula : Impossible to describe But
you must not forget that Antinous Lebeau was ugly that the fact iin
pressed everybody as soon as th ey saw him and that no b ody remem
bered ever having seen an uglier person ; and let us add as the climax
of his misfortune that he thought so himself
From this you will see that he was not a fool and not ill nature d
either but of course he was unhappy An unhappy man thi nks only O f
his wretchedness and people take his nightcap for a fool s cap ; while
on the other hand goodness is only esteemed when it is cheerful Con
sequently Antinous Lebeau passed for a fool and an ill tempered fool
he was not even pitied because he was so ugly !
He ha d only one pleasure in life and that was to go and roam about
the d arkest streets on dark nights an d to hear the streetwalkers say :
”
Come home with me you handsome dark man !
It was alas ! a furtive pleasure and he knew that it was not true
For occasionall y when the woman was old or d runk and he profited by
the invitation as soon as the candle was lighted in the garret they no
“
”
longer murmured the fallacious handsome dark man When they saw
him the ol d women grew still older and the drunken women got sober
And more than one although hardene d against disgust and ready for
all risks said to him in spite of liberal payment
“
”
My little man I must say you are most confoun d ed ly ugly
At last however he renounced even that lamentable pleasure when
he heard the stil l more lamentable words which a wretche d wom an
could not help uttering when he went home with her
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S HORT S TO R IE S OF D E MAU PASSAN T
86
“
Well
I must have been very hun gry !
Alas ! It was he who was hun gry unhappy man ; hungry for some
thing that shoul d resemble love were it ever so little ; he longed not
to live like a pariah any more not to be exiled and proscribed by his
ugli ness And the ugliest the most repugnant woman would have ap
eared beautiful to him if sh
e would only not think him ugly or
at
p
any rate not tell him so and not let him see that she felt horror at
him on that account
The consequence was that when he one day met a poor blear eye d
creature with her face covered with scabs and bearing evident signs
of alcoholism
with a driveling mouth and ragged and filthy petti
coats to whom he gave liberal a l ms for which she kissed his hand
he took her home with him had her cleansed dressed and taken care
O f made her his servant and then his housekeeper Next he raise d her
to the rank of his mistress and finally of cou rse he married her
She was almost as ugly as he was ! Al most but certainly not quite ;
for she was hideous and her hideousness had its charm and its beauty
no doubt ; that something by which a woman can a ttract a man An d
e had proved that by deceiving him
and she let him see it better
sh
stil l by seducing another man
That other man was actually uglier than he was
He was certainly uglier a coll ection of every physica l an d mor al
a d picked up among her
ugl iness a companion of beggars whom she h
former vagrant associates a jailbird a dealer in little girls a vagabon d
covered with filth with legs l ike a toad s with a mouth like a lam
prey s and a death s head in which the nose had been replaced by two
holes
“
And you have wronge d me with a wretch like that the poor cuck
“
And in my own house ! An d in such a manner that I might
ol d said
catch you in the v ery act ! And why why you wretch ? Why seeing
that he is uglier than I am ?
“
“
”
Oh no ! she exclaim ed You may say what you like that I am a
dirty slut and a strumpet but do not say that he is uglier than you
are
And the unhap py men stoo d there v anquishe d and overcome by
her la st words which she uttered without u nderstanding all the horror
he would feel at them
which
“
Because you see he has his own particul ar ugliness while you are
"
merely ugly like everybody else is
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TH E
DEB T
87
T H E DE B T
“
Ps
Psr !
r!
Com e with me you handsome dark fellow I am very nice
as you will see D o come up At any rate you will be a b le to warm
”
u rself for I have a capital fire at home
o
y
But nothing enticed the foot passengers neither being cal led a han d
e applied quite impartially to O ld or fat
som e dark fellow wh ich sh
m en a lso nor the promise of pleasure which was emphasized by a
ca ressing ogle and smile nor even the promise of a good fire which
was so attractive in the bitter D ecember wind And tall Fanny con
ight a d vanced and foot passengers
tinued her useless wal k and the n
re w scarcer In another hour the s treets would be absolutely deserte d
g
and unless she could manage to pick up some belated d runken man sh
e
woul d be obliged to retu rn home alone
And yet tall F anny was a bea utiful woman ! With the head of a ba c
in all the full splendor of her
ch ante and the body of a g oddes s
tw enty three years sh
e deserv ed something better than this miserable
pavement where she could not even pick up the five francs which she
w anted for the requirements of the next day But there ! In this ia
fernal Paris in this swarm ing crowd of competitors who all jostled ea ch
other courtesans like artists did not attain to eminence until their
la ter years In that they resemble d precious stones as the most val u
able of them are those that have been set the oft enest
And that was why tall Fanny who was later to become one of the
richest and most b rilliant stars of Parisian gallan try was walking about
th
e streets on this b itter D ecember night without a halfpenny in h
er
pocket in spite of the head of a bacchante and the body of a god d ess
and in all the fu ll splendor of her twenty three years
However it was too late now to hope to meet anybody ; there was
not a single foot passenger about ; the street was decidedly emp ty
d ul l and lifeless Nothing was to b e heard except the whistling of su d
den gusts of wind and nothing was to be seen except the flickerin g
gaslights which looked like dyin g butterflies Well ! The only thing
was to return home alone
But suddenly tall F anny saw a human form standing on the pave
m ent at the next crossing It seemed to be hesitat ing and uncertain
which way to go The figure which was very small and slight was
wrapped
i n a long cloak which reached almost to the ground
“
”
Perhaps he is a hunch back the girl sai d to herself They like
”
tall women ! An d she walked quickly toward him from hab it al ready
”
“
say in g :
P st! Pst! Come home with m e you han d some d ark fellow !
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE MAUPASSANT
88
What luck ! The man did not go away but came toward Fanny
,
al
though somewhat timidly whil e she went to meet him repeatin g her
wheedlin g words so as to reassure him She went all the quicker as
e saw that he was staggering with the zigzag walk of a dru nke n
sh
“
e thought to herself :
When once they sit down there
m an and sh
is no possibility of getting these beggars up again for they want to
go to sleep just where they are I only hope I shall get to him before
he tumbles down
Luckil y she reached him just in time to catch him in her arms but
a s soon as sh
e had done s o sh
e almost let him fall in her astonish ent
It was neither a drunken man nor a hunchback but a child of twelve
or thirteen in an overcoat who was crying and who said in a weak
“
voice : I beg your pardon madame I beg yo ur pardon If you only
knew how hungry and c old I am ! I beg your pardon ! Oh ! I am so
”
c old
“
”
Poor child ! she said putting her arms around him an d kissin g
him And she carried him off with a full but happy heart and while
“
he continued to sob she said to him mechanically : D on t be fright
ened my l ittle man You will see how nic e I can be ! And then
u
o
y
”
c an warm yourself ; I have a capital fi
re
B ut the fire was out; the“ room
however was w arm an d the child
“
said as soon as they got in : Oh ! How comfortable it is here ! It is a
great deal better than in the streets I can tell you ! And I have been
”
living in the streets for s ix days He began to cry again and a dd ed :
”
“
I beg your pardon madame I have eaten nothing for two d ays
Tall Fanny O pened her cupboard which had glass doors The middle
shelf held all her linen and on the u pper one there was a box of
Albert biscuits a drop of b randy at the b ottom of a bottle and a few
small lumps of sugar in a cup With that and some water out of a jug she
concocted a sort of broth which he swallowed ravenously and when
he had done he wis hed to tell his story which he did yawning all the
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His grandfather (the only one of his relatives whom he had ever
known ) who had been a painter and decorator at Soisson had died
about a month before but b efore his death he had said to him
“
When I am gone little man you will find a letter to my brother
who is in busines s in Paris among my papers You must take it to
him and he will be certain to take care of you However in any case
you must go to Paris for you have an aptitude for painting and only
”
there can you hope to b ecome an artist
When the old man was dead (he died in the hospital ) the chil d
started dressed in an old coat of his grandfather s and with thirt y
francs which was all that the ol d man had left behind him in his
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THE D EBT
89
p ocket B ut when he got to Paris there was nobody of the name at
the address mentioned on the letter The dead man s bro ther had left
there six months before ; no b ody knew where he had gone to and so
the child was alone F or a few days he managed to exist on what he
had over after paying for his journey After he had spent his last
franc he had wandered about the streets as he had no money with
which to pay for a bed buyin g his b read by the halfpennyw orth until
for the last forty eight hours he had been without anything a b solutely
without anything
He told her all this while he was half asleep amid sobs and yawns
im any more questions in
so that the girl did not ven ture to ask h
Spite of her curiosity but on the contrary cut him short and undresse d
h
im while she listened and only interrupted him to kiss him and to
“
There there my poor child ! You shall tell me the rest
say to him :
tomorrow You cannot go on now so go to b ed and have a good sleep
im to b ed where he im m edi
And as soon as he had finished she put h
ately fell into a profound sleep Then sh
e undressed herself quickly
got into bed by his side so that she might keep him warm an d went
to sleep crying to herself without exactly knowing why
The next day they breakfasted and dined together at a co m mon
eating house on money that she had borrowed and when it was dark
“
e said to the child :
sh
Wait for me here ; I will come for you at
closing time She came b ack sooner however a b out ten o clock She
had twelve francs which she gave him tell in g him that she had earned
“
and she continued with a laugh : I feel that I shall make some
th
em
more I am in luck this evening and you have brought it me D o not
”
be impatient but have some m ilk posset while you are waiting for me
She kissed him and the kin d girl felt real maternal happiness as she
went ou t An ho u r later however she was arrested by the police for
having been found in a p rohibited place and off she went food for St
’
Laz are
And the child who was turned ou t by the proprietor at closing time
and then driven from the furnished lodgings the next morning where
they told him that ta l l Fanny was in ja il b egan his wretched v aga
bond life in the s treets again with only the twelve francs to depend on
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Fifteen years afterwar d the newspapers announced one morning
“
that the famous F anny Cl ariet the celebrated horizontal whose ca
prices had caused a revolution in high life that queen of frail b eauties
for whom three men had committed suicide and so many others had
ruined themselves that incomparable living statue who had attracted
‘
A p rison in Paris
,
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,
.
SHORT STORIE S OF DE M AUPASSANT
90
a ll Paris to the theater where she irnp ersonated Venus in her tr ans
p arent skin tights made of woven air and a knitt ed nothing had been
s hut up in a l u natic asylum She had been seized suddenl y ; it w as an
attack of general paralysis and as her debts were enormous when h
er
e woul d have to end her days at La
e state had bee n li q uidated sh
,
.
,
Sal p é triere
“
No
,
.
certainl y not ! Fran cois Gu erl and the p ainter said to him self
“
when he read the notice of ”it in the papers No the great F anny shall
certainly not end like that F or it was certainly she; there could be
no doubt about it For a long time after she had shown him that act
ild had tried to see his
of ch arity which he could never forget the ch
benefactress again But Paris is a very mysterious place and b e him
self had had many adventures before he grew up to be a m an and
nost somebody ! But he only found her in the distan ce ;
even tuall y a h
he had recognized her at the theater on the stage or as she was gettin g
into her carriage which was fit for a princess And how coul d he ap
roach her then? Coul d he remind her of the time when her price was
v e francs ? No assuredly not and so he had followed her thank ed
her and blessed her from a distance
But now the W e had come for him to pay his debt an d he pai d
it Although tolerably wel l known as a p ain ter with a futu re in store
for him he was not rich But what d d that matter ? He mortgaged
that fu ture which people prophesied for him and gave himself over
hand and foot to a pictu re dealer Then he had the poor woman taken
to an excellent asylum where she could have not only every care but
“
every necessary comfort and even luxury Alas however gener al
p aralysis never forgives Sometimes it releases its prey like the crue l
cat releases the mouse for a brief moment only to lay hold of it again
l ater more fiercely than ever F anny had that period of a b atement in
her symptoms and one morning the physician was able to s ay to the
young man : You are anxious to remove her? Very well ! But you will
soon have to bring her b ack for the cure is o nly apparent and her
present state will only endure for a month at most and then only if
”
the patient is kept free from eve ry excitement and excess !
“
”
And without that precaution? Gu erl and asked him
”
“
Then the doctor replied the final crisis will b e all the nearer;
that is all But whether it would be nearer or more remote it will not
”
be the less fatal
“
”
You are sure of that?
“
Absolutely sure
F ran cois Gu erl and took tall Fanny out of the asylum install e d her
in splendid apa rtm ents and went to live with her there She had grown
old bloated with white hair and sometimes wandered in h r mind
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SHORT STORIES OF DE M AUPASSANT
92
al though he tried to l ook in another direction and in a few d a va they
knew each other without having spoken He gave up his p ce to
her when the omnibus was full and got outside though he was very
so rry to do it By this time she had gone so far as to greet him with
a little smile and although she always dropped her eyes under his
l ooks which she felt were too ardent yet she did not appear offend ed
at bein g looked at in such a manner
They ended by spe aking A kind of rapid intimacy had bec ome es
tabl ish
ed b etween them a d aily intimacy of half an hour which was
ce rtainly one of the most charming half hours in his life to him H e
thought of her all the rest of the time saw her continually d uring the
l ong oflice hours for he was haunted and bewitched by that floating
and yet tenacious recollection which the im age of a beloved woman
l eaves in us and it seemed to him that the entire possession of tha t
little person would be maddenin g happiness to him almost above
hum an realization
Every morning now she shook han d s with him and be preserv ed
the feeling of that touch and the recollection of the gentle pressure of
her little fingers un til the next day He ahnost fancied that be pre
served the imprint of it on h
is skin and he anxiously waited for this
short omnibus ride all the rest of the time while Sundays seemed to
him heartbreakin gdays However there w as no d ou bt that she loved
h
im for one Sunday in spring sh
e promised to go and lunch w ith h
im
tte the next day
at M aison Lafi
,
a
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She was at the rail way station first which surprised him but she
said : Before going I want to speak to you We have tw enty minutes
”
and that is more than I shal l take for what I have to say
She trembled as she hung on his arm and looked down while her
“
cheeks were pale b ut she continued : I do not want you to be de
ceiv ed in me and I shall not go there with you unless you promise
unless you swe ar— not to do— not to do anything that is at all im
proper
She had suddenly become as re d as a p ep p y and said no m ore He
did not know what to reply for he was happy and disappointed at
the same time At the bottom of his heart he perhaps preferred that
it should be So and yet during the night he had indulged in anticipa
tions that sent the hot blood flowing through his veins He shoul d
love her less certainly if he knew that her conduct was light but
then it would be so charming so delicious for him ! And he m ad e all
a man s usual sel fi sh ca lculations in love affairs
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THE FATH ER
93
he d id not say anything she began to speak again in an agitated
“
voice and with tears in her eyes : If you do not promise to respect
me altogether I shall return home
And so he squeezed her arm tenderly and replied : I prom ise you
”
shall only do what you like She appeared relieved in mind and asked
“
”
with a smile : D o you really mean it ?
”
And he looked into her eyes and replie d I swear it
“
Now you may take the tickets she said
During the journey they could hardly speak as the carriage was
fu l l and when they got to Maison Lafi
tte they went toward the Seine
The su n which shone full upon the river upon the leaves and upon
the turf seemed to reflect in them his brightness and they went h and
in hand along the bank looking at the shoals of little fish swimming
near the bank brim ming over with happiness as if they were rais e d
from earth in their lightness of heart
“
At last she said : How foo lish you must think me !
”
“
W
hy? b e asked
“
To come ou t like this all alone with you
“
”
Certaml y not ; it is quite natural
“
No no it is not natural for m e —because I do not wish to commit
a fault and yet this is how girls fall But if you only knew how wretched
it is every day the same thing every day in the month and every
month in the year I live quite alone with Mamma and as she has had
a great deal of trouble she is not very cheerful I do the best I can
and try to laugh in spite of everything but I do not always succee d
But all the same it was
wrong in me to come though you at any
”
rate will not be sorry
By the way of an answer he kissed her ardently on the ear that was
nearest him but she started away from him with an abrupt move
“
ment and getting suddenly angry exclaimed : Oh ! Monsieur Fran cois
”
after what you swore to me ! And they went b ack to Maison Lafi
tte
They had lunch at the Petit Havre a low house b uried under four
enormous poplar trees by the side of the river The air the heat the
small bottle of white wine and the sensation of being so close together
made them red and silent with a feeling of oppression but after
the coffee they regained their high spirits and having crossed the
Seine started off along the bank toward the v illage of La Frette
“
Suddenly he asked : What is your name ?
“
Louise
“
Louise b e repeated and said nothing more
The river which describ ed a long curve b athe d a ro w of white
houses in the distance which were reflected in the water The girl
p icked the daisies and made them into a great bunch while he sang
As
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPASSANT
94
as intoxicated as a colt that has been turned into a meadow
On their left a vine covered slope followed the river Suddenly Fran cois
“
”
Oh ! Look there ! he sai d
stopped motionless with astonishment :
The v ines had come to an end and the whole slope was covered
with l il ac bu shes in flower It was a violet colored wood ! A kin d of
great carpet stretched over the e arth reaching as far as the village
’
more than two miles Ofl She also stood surpris ed and delighted an d
”
“
murmured : Oh ! How pretty ! And crossing a meadow they walked
toward that curious low hill which every year furnishes all the l ilac
which is sold through Paris on the carts of the flower peddlers
A narrow path went beneath the trees so they took it and when
they came to a small clearing they sat down
Swarms of flies were buzzing around them and making a continu
ou s gentle sound and the sun the bright su n of a perfectly still day
shone over the bright slopes and from that wood of flowers a powerful
aroma was borne toward them a wave of perfume the b reath Of the
flowers
A church clock struck in the distance They embra ced gently then
cl asped each other close lying on the grass without the kn owledge
of anything except of that kiss She had clos ed her eyes and held h
im
in her arms pressing him to her closely without a thought with her
reason b ewildered and frO
m head to foot in passionate expectation
And she surrendered herself altogether without knowing that she ha d
given herself to him But she soon came to herself with the feel ing
of a great misfortune an d sh
e began to cry and sob with grief with
her face buried in her hands
He tried to console her but she wanted to start to return and go
hom e immediately and she kept saying as she walk ed al ong quickly :
”
“
Good heavens ! Good heavens !
“
He said to her : Louise ! Louise ! Please let us stop here But no w
her cheeks were red and her eyes hollow and as soon as they got to
th
e left him without even saying goo d by
e railway sta tion in Pari s sh
ly
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When he met her in the omnibus next day she appeared to him to
“
be changed and thinner and she said to him : I want to speak to you ;
we will get down at the boulevard
“
As soon as they were on the pavement she said We must bid each
”
o ther good b y ; I cannot meet you again after what has happened
“
But why ? he asked
"
Because I cannot ; I have been culpable and I w ill not be so again
Then he implored her tortu red by desire maddened by the wish
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SHORT STO R IE S OF D E M AU PASSAN T
96
a l ady was dresse d s im l y and looked self possessed and d ignifie d
He looked at her from a istance for he did not venture to go near
but the little boy raised his head and Fran cois Tessier felt hims elf
tremble It was his own son; there could be no dou b t of that And as
he looked at him he thought he could reco g
nize himself as he ap
e ared in an ol d photograph taken years ago He remained hidd en
behind a tree waiting for her to go that he might follow her
He did not sleep that night The idea of the child especiall y har
as sed him H is son! Oh ! If he could only have known have been
sure But what could he have done ? However he went to the house
where she had once lived an d asked about her He was told that a
neighbor an honorable m an of strict morals had been touched by
her distress and had married her ; he knew the fault she had com
m itted and had m a rried her and had even recognized the chil d h
is
Fran cois T essier s child as his own
He returned to the Parc Monceau every S un d ay for then he a lways
tible l ong
saw her and each time he was seized with a mad
ing to take his son into his arms cover him with kisses and to steal
him to carry him off
He suffered horribly in his wretched iso l ation as an old bache lor
with nobody to care for him and he also suffered atrocious mental
torture torn by pate rnal tenderness springing from remorse longing
and jealousy and from that nee d of lo ving one s own children which
nature has implanted in all And so at last he determined to m ake a
despairin g attempt and going up to her as she entered the park he
said standin g in the middle of the p ath pale and with trembling l ips :
“
You do not recognize me ? She raised her eyes looked at him u t
tered an exclamation of horror of terror and taking the two chil
dren by the hand she rus hed away dragging them after her while he
went home and wept inconsolab ly
M onths passed without his seeing her again He suffered d ay an d
night for he was a prey to his paternal love H e would gladly have
died if he could only have kissed his son; he would have committed
murder performed any task braved any danger ventured anything
He wrote to her but she did not reply and after writing her some
twenty letters he saw that there was no hope of altering her deter
mination Then he formed the desperate resolution of writing to her
husband being uite prepared to receive a bullet from a revolver if
need b e H is l etter only consis te d of a few lines as follows
of
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Mowsm tm
You must have a perfect horror of my name but I am so miser
able so overcome by mis ery that my onl y hOp e is in you and
,
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97
THE FATHER
therefore I venture to request
only five minutes
I have the honor etc
y
ou
to grant me an interview
.
.
,
e
Th
next day he received the reply
MONS IEUR
I shall expect
’
y
ou
tomorrow Tuesday at five o clock
,
,
.
V
’
As
he went up the staircase Fran cois T essier s heart beat so vio
l entl y that he had to stop several times There was a dull and violent
noise in his b reast the noise as of some animal galloping ; he coul d
only breathe withdifficulty and had to hold onto the banisters in ord er
not to fall
He rang the hel l on the thir d floor and when a maidservant h a d
”
D oes Monsie
u r F lamel live here ?
opened the door he asked :
”
“
Yes monsieur Kindly come in
He was shown into the drawing room ; he was alone and waite d
bewildered as in the midst of a catastrophe until a d oor
O pened and a man came in He was tall serious and rather stout ; he
Wore a black frock coat and pointed to a chair with his hand Fran cois
Tessier sat down and said panting : Monsieur— monsieur— I do not
know wh ether you kn ow my name— whether y ou know
“
M Fl am el interrupted him : You need not tell it me monsieur ;
I know it My wife has spok en to me about you
He spoke it in the dignified tone of voice of a good man who wishes
to be severe with the commonplace stateliness of an honorable man
“
and Francois Tessier continued : Well monsieur I want to say this
I am dying of grie f of remorse of shame and I would like once only
once to kiss the child
M Flamel rose and rang the bell and when the servant came in he
“
”
said : Will you bring Louis here ? When she had gone ou t they re
mained face to face without spe aking ha ving nothing more to say to
one another and waited Then suddenly a little b oy of ten ru shed
into the room and ran up to the man whom he be lieved to be his
father but he stopped when he saw a stranger and M Fl am el kisse d
“
”
him and said : Now go and kiss that gentleman my dear And the
child went up to Tessier nicely and looked at him
F ran cois Tessier had risen ; he let his hat fall and was ready to fall
himself as he looked at his son while M Flamel had turned away
from a feelin g of delicacy and was lookin g ou t of the window
The child waited in surprise but he picked up the hat and gave it
to the stranger Then Fran cois taking the child up in his arms b egan
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE MAUPASSAN T
98
i
to kiss him wildly all over his face on his eyes his cheeks on hs
mouth on his hair and the youngster frightened at the shower of
kisses tried to avoid them turned away his head and pushed away
the man s face with his little hands But suddenly Fran cois Tessier
”
put him down cried : Good by l Good byl and rushed ou t of th
e
room as if he ha d been a thief
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T HE
“
BA
! M ONS IEUR
”
ARTI S T
th
e ol d
mountebank said to me ; i t is a matter of
exercise and hab it that is all ! Of course one requ ires to be a l ittle
n ered but what is chiefly
gifted that way and not to be b utter fi
g
”
necessary is patience and daily practice for long long ye ar s
His modes ty surprised me all the more because of all performers
who are generally infatuated with their own skil l he was the most
wonderfully clever one I had met Certainly I had frequently seen
him for everybody had seen him in some circus or other or even in
at consists of putting a m an or
traveling shows performing the trick th
woman with extended arms against a wooden target and in throwing
knives between their fingers and round their heads from a distance
There is nothing very extraordinary in it after all when one knows
e tricks of th
e trad e and that the knives are not the least sharp an d
th
stick into the wood at some distanc e from the flesh It is the rapidi ty
litter of the bla des and the cu rve which the h andles
of the throws the g
make toward their living object which give an air of danger to an
exhib ition that has become commonplace and onl y requires very
middling skill
But here there was no trick and no deception and no dust thrown into
the eyes It was done in good earnest and in al l sincerity The knives
were as sharp as razors and the ol d mountebank planted them close
to the flesh exactly in the angle between the fingers He surrounded
the head with a perfect halo of knives and the neck wi th a coll ar
from which nobody could have extricated himself without cutting his
carotid artery ; while to increase the d ifficulty the old fellow went
through the p erformance without seeing his whole face being covered
“
with a close mask of thick oilcloth
Natu rally like other great artists he was not understood by the
crowd who confounded him with vulgar tricksters and his mask onl y
appeared to them a trick the more and a ve ry com mon trick into the
bargain
H
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SHORT STOR IE S OF D E MAUPASSANT
100
heard it for it was a har d and v ery
mocking laugh I had always attributed that sort of reply to an artifice
which the occasion required It w as intended I thought to accentuate
the danger she incurred and the contempt that she felt for it thanks
to the sureness of the thrower s hands and so I was very much sur
prised when the mounte b ank said to me
“
Have you o b served her laugh I say? Her evil laugh which m akes
fun of me and her cowardly laugh which defies me ? Yes cowardly
because she knows that nothing can happen to her nothing in spite
e deserves in spite of all that I ought to do to her in spite of
of all sh
all that I wa nt to do to her
“
W
hat do you w ant to do?
“
Confound it ! Cann ot you guess ? I want to kill her
“
To kill her b ecause she has
“
Because she has deceived me ? No no not that I tell you again
I have forgiven her for that a long time ago and I am too much accus
tom ed to it ! But the worst of it is that the first time I forgave her when
I told her that all the s ame I might someday have my revenge by
c utting her throat if I chose without seeming to do it on purpose as
If it were an accident mere awkwardness
“
”
Oh ! So you said th
at to her ?
“
Of course I did and I meant it I thought I might be able to do
it for you see I had the perfect right to do so It was so simple so
easy so tempt ing ! Just think ! A mistake Of less than half an inch an d
her skin would be cut at the neck where the jugular vein is an d the
ju g
ular would be severed My kn iv es cu t very well ! And when once
the jugular is cut— good b y T he blood would spurt ou t and one two
three red jets and al l would be over ; she would be dead and I shou l d
”
have had my revenge !
“
T
hat is true ce rtainly horribly true !
“
And without any risk to me eh? An accident that is all ; bad luck
one of those mistakes which happen every day in our b usiness What
could they accuse me of? Whoever would think of accusing me even?
Homicide through irnp ru dence that would b e all ! They wou ld even
‘
pity me rather than accuse me My wife ! My poor wife ! I should s ay
‘
sobbin g My wife who is so necessary to me who is half the bread
w inner who t akes part in my performance ! You must acknowledge
”
that I should be pitied !
“
Ce rtainly t h
ere is not the least doubt about that
And you must allow that such a revenge would be a very nice
revenge the b est possible revenge which I could have with assure d
im punity
“
Evidentl y that is so
was
very significant when
one
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TH E ARTIST
“
Very
101
well ! But when I told her so as I have told you and more
forcibly still threatening her as I was mad with rage and ready to do
th
e dee d that I had dreamed of on the spot what do you think sh
e
”
said ?
“
That you were a good fellow an d woul d certainly not have the
atrocious courage to
“
Tut ! tut ! tut ! I am not such a good fellow as you think I am not
fri ghtened of blood and that I have proved already though it would
be useless to tell you how and where But I had no necessity to prove
it to her for she knows that I am capable of a good many things e ven
”
of crime ; especially of one crime
“
”
An d sh
e was not frightened ?
“
No She merely replied that I cou ld not do what I said ; you un d er
”
stand That I could not do it!
“
”
W
hy not?
“
Ah ! monsieur so you do not understand ? Why do you not? Have
I not exp lained to you by what constant long daily practice I have
”
learne
d
to plant my knives without seeing what I am doing?
”
“
Yes ; well what then ?
“
Well ! Cannot you understand what she has und erstood with such
terrible results that now my hand would no longer obey me if I
”
wished to m ake a mistake as I threw?
“
”
Is it possible?
“
Nothing is truer I am sorry to say For I really have wishe d to ha ve
the revenge which I have dreamed of and which I thought so easy
Exasperated by that bad woman s insolence and confidence in her own
safety I have several t imes made u my mind to kill her and have
exerted all my ener g
y and all my s 11 to make my kn ives fly aside
when I threw them to make a b order round her neck I have tried with
all my might to make them deviate half an inch just enough to cut
her throat I wanted to and I have never succeeded never An d
always the slut s horrib le laugh makes fun of me always always
And with a deluge of tears with something like a roar of unsatiated
and muzzled rage he ground his teeth as he wound up : She knows
me the jade ; she is in the secret of my work of my patience of my
trick routine whatever you may call it ! She lives in my inne rmost
being and sees into it more closely than you do or than I do myself She
knows what a fau l tness machine I have b ecome the machine of which
sh
e makes fun the machine which is too well wound up the machine
which cannot get ou t of order— and she knows that I ca nnot make a
”
m istake
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SHORT STOR IE S O F D E MAUPASSAN T
102
FA L S E
“
I HAVE
A
HO RR O R
A LAR M
”
of
pianos said Fremecourt of th ose
hateful boxes which fill up a drawing room and have not even the
soft sound and the queer shape of the mahogany or veneered sp inets
to which our gran dmothers sighed ou t exquisite long forgotten balla ds
allowin g their fingers to run over the keys while around them there
floated a delicate odor of powder and muslin and some littl e abbé or
other turned over the leaves continually makin g mistakes as he looked
at the patches close to the lips on the white skin of the player instead
of at the music I wish there were a tax upon them or that some eve
res of them which
ning during a riot the people would make huge bonfi
woul d illuminate the whole town They simply exasperate me an d
affect my nerves and m ake me think of the tortu res those p oor girls
must suffer who are cond emne d not to stir for hou rs but to keep on
cons tantly strumming away at the chromatic scales and monotonous
arpeggios and to have no other O bject in life except to win a prize at
th
e conservatoire
“
Their incoherent music suggests to me the s ufferings of those who
abandone d wounded It proceeds from every floor of every
are ill
house ; it irritates you nearly d rives you mad and makes you break
ou t into ironical fits of l aughter
“
An d yet when that madcap L alie Spring honore d me with her l o ve
— I never can refuse anything to a wom an who smells of rare per
fume and who has a large store of promises in her looks and who puts
e were goin g to offer
ou
ou t her red smiling lips imme d iately as if sh
y
hansel money— I bought a iano so that she might strum upon it to
her heart s content I got it owever on the hire purchase system an d
‘
paid so much a month as gris ettes do for their furniture
“
At that time I had the a artrnents I had so l ong dreamed of: warm
elegant light well arrange with two entrances and an incomparable
rter s w ife who had b een canteen keeper in a Zouave re irnent and
g
Ezew everythin and understoo d everything at a wink
It was the
d of apa rtm ent from which a woman has not the
courage to esca e so as to avoid temptation where she b ecomes weak
an d roll
hersel
on
the
soft
cider
down
cushions
like
a
cat
where
u
s
p
sh
e is appeased and in spite of herself thinks of love at the sight of
the low wide couch so suitable for caresses rooms with heavy cur
tains which quite deaden the sound of v oices and of laughter an d
P E RFE CT
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Workgirl a nam e ap plied
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to
those whose virtue is not too ri gorous
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SHORT STORIES OF DE M AUPASSAN T
104
ese an d Italian women who instill a little artificial life into that ol d
city asleep amid the melancholy silence of the lagoons— was pro
longed and Stanis was as much at home in my rooms as he was in his
n
,
,
,
own
q
“
Madame Pi
.
u i noll es ,
the
retired
canteen
keeper
took
g
reat interest
g
in this adventure watched over their little love aff air and as sh
e use d
to say was on guard as soon as they arrived one after the other the
marchioness covered with a thick ve il and slipping in as quickly as
possible always uneasy and afraid that Monsieur de Freju s might be
foll owing her and Stanis with the assured and satisfied look of an
is little wife after ha ving
jam orou s husband who is going to meet h
been away from home for a few days
“
Well one day during one of those d elicious moments when h
is
beloved one fresh from her bath an d invigorated b y the coo l ness of
the water was pressing close to her lover recl ining in his arm s an d
smiling at him with half closed eyes during one of those moments
when people do not speak but continue their dream the sentine l
without even asking l eave suddenly burst into the room for worthy
nol l es was a terrible fri ht
M adame
P i u ig
“
A few minutes before a wel l dresse gentleman followe d by tw o
others of seedy appearance but who looked very strong and fit to
knock anybody down ha d questione d an d cross questione d her in a
rough manner and tried to turn her inside out as she said askin g her
whether Monsieur de Fremecourt live d on the first floor without
giv ing her any explanation When she declared that there was nobo dy
o c cupy ing the apartments then as her lodger was not in France Mon
sieur de Fr ejus— for it could certainly be nobody b ut he — had burst
‘
ou t into an evil laugh and Said : Very well ; I sha ll go an d fetc h th
e
police commissary of the district and he will make you let us in !
“
An d as quickly as possible while she was telling her story now in
a l ow and then m a shrill v o ice the woman picked up the marchioness s
dress cloak lace edge drawers silk petticoat and little varnished shoes
pulled her out of bed without giving her time to let her know what
sh
e was doing or to moan or to have a fit of hysterics and carried her
off as if sh
e had been a d oll with al l her pret ty toggery to a large
empty cu
u b oard in the dining room that wa s concealed by F lemish
tap estry p on are a man Try to get out of the mess she said to Stanis
‘
as she shut the door ; I will be answerable for Madame An d the
enormous wo man who was out of breath by hurrying upstairs as she
had done and whose kind large red face was dripping with p ersp ira
tion while her ample bosom shook beneath her loose jacket took
Madame de Fr ejus onto her knees as if she had been a baby whose
nurse was trying to quiet her
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105
FALSE ALARM
“
She
felt the poor little cul p r1t s heart beating as if it were going
to burst while shivers ran over her sk in which was so soft and delicate
that the porter s wife was afraid that she might hurt it with her coarse
hands She was struck with wonder at the cam b ric chemise which a
gust of wind would have carried off as if it had been a pigeon s
feather and b y the delicate odor of that scarce flower which filled the
narrow cup b oard and which rose up in the darkness from that supple
body which was impregnated with the warmth of the b ed
“
She would have liked to be there in that profaned room and to
te ll them in a loud voice— with her harids upon her hips as at the tirne
when she used to serve bran dy to her comrades at D addy l Arb i s
that they had no common sense that they were none of them good for
much neither the police commissary the husband nor the su b
ordinates to come and torment a pretty young thing who was having
a little bit of fun l ike that It was a nice jo b to get over the wall in
that way to be a b sent from the second call of names especially when
they were all of the same sort and were glad of five francs an hour!
She had certain ly done quite right to get ou t sometimes and to have
a sweetheart and she was a charming little thing and that she would
e were called before the court as a witness
s ay if sh
“
And she took Madame de Fr ejus in her a rms to quiet her and
repeated the same thing a dozen times whispered pret ty things to her
and interrupted her occasionally to listen whether they were not
‘
searching all the nooks and corners of the apartment Come come
‘
sh
e said ; do not distress yourself Be calm my dear It hurts me to
ear you cry like that There will b e no mischief done ; I will v ouch
or it
“
The marchioness who was nearly fain ting and who was prostrate
‘
with
terror could only s ob out : Good heavens ! Good heavens !
“
She scarcely seemed to be conscious of anything ; her head seemed
vacant ; her ears buzzed and she felt b enumbed like one who goes to
sleep in the snow
“
o
Ah! Only to forget everything as her love dream was over to g
ou t quickly like those little rose colored tapers at Nice on Shrove
Tuesday evening
“
Oh ! Not to awake any more as the tomorrow would come in black
and sad because a whole array of b arristers ushers solicitors and
judges would b e against her and distu rb her usual quietude woul d
torment her cover her with mud as her delicious amorous adventure
— her fi
rst— which had been s o carefully enveloped in mystery and
had been kept so secret behind closed shutters and thick veils would
become an everyday episode of adultery which would get wind and b e
discussed from door to door The lilac had faded and she was oblige d
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE MAUPASSANT
106
to bid farewell to happiness as if to an ol d friend who was goin g far
very far away never to return !
Suddenly however she st arted an d sat up with her neck stretched
ou t and her eyes fixed whil e the ex canteen keeper who was trem bling
with emotion put her hands to her left ear which was her best like
a spe aking tru mpet and tried to hear the cries which su cceeded each
other from room to 1 0 0 m amid a noise of O pening and shutting O f door s
“‘Ah ! Upon my word I am not blind It is Monsieur de Stanis
“
who is lookin g for me and making all that noise D on t you he ar : Mme
nol l es Mme P i u i nol l es? Saved saved !
Pi u ig
g
“
Stanis was still quite pale and in a panting voice he crie d ou t to
‘
at fool Fr emecourt Who lent me the
them : Nothin g serious only th
rooms has forgotten to pay for his piano for the last five months a
”
hundred francs a month You understand ; they came to claim it an d
as we did not reply why they fetched the police commissary an d
gained en trance in the name of the law
“A nice fright to give one! Madame Pi ui nol l es said throwing
g
‘
herself onto a chair Confoun d the nasty piano !
“
It may be us eless to add that the marchioness has quite renounce d
es as our forefathers used to say and would deserve a prize for
trifl
v irtue if the Academy would only show itsel f rather more gallant
toward pretty women who take crossroads in order to become virtuous
”
“
Emotions like that cu re people of runnin g risks of that kind !
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T HA T
“
THE RE
MY FR IE
PIG
ND I said to
OF A
M OR I N
‘
‘
you have just repeate d those
‘
five words That pig of a Morin Why on earthdo I never hear Morin 3
”
is b ein g called a p ig
name ment ioned without h
?
Lab arb e who is a deputy looked at me with eyes like an owl s an d
“
said D o you mean to say that you do not know Morin 3 sto ry and yet
come from La Rochelle ? I was obliged to declare that I did not know
Morin 8 story and then Lab arb e rubbed his h ands and began his
recital
“
You kn ew Morin did you not and you remember his large linen
”
draper s shop on the Quai de la Rochelle ?
“
Y
es perfectly
“
All ri ht then You must know that in 18 62 or 68 Morin went to
spend a ortni h
in
Paris
for
pleasure
or for h
i
s pleasures b ut un d er
t
g
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,
Lab arbe
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
108
the sleeping girl and woke her so she sat up looked at the country
then at Morin and smiled She smiled like a happy woman with an
engagin g and b right look and Morin trembled Certainly that smile
was intended for him ; it was a discreet invitation the sign al which he
‘
was waitin g for That smile meant to say : How stupid what a ninny
what a dolt what a donkey you are to have sat there on your seat
like a post all night Just look at me am I not charming? And you
have sat like that for the whole night when you have been alone with
a pretty woman you great sim pleton !
“
She was still smilin g as she looked at him ; she even began to laugh
and he lost his head trying to fi
n d something suita b le to say no matter
i
what But he could think of nothing _
and
then
seized
with
a
noth
ng
‘
c oward s courage he said to him self : So much the worse ; I wil l risk
everything and suddenly without the slightest warning he went
toward her his arms extend ed his lips protruding and seizing her in
his arm s kissed her
“
‘
She sprang up with a boun d crying ou t: Help ! help ! an d scre am
e opened the carriage d oor and wav e d her arm
ingwith terror ; then sh
outsid e ; then mad with terror she was trying to jump ou t while
M orin who was almost d is tracted and feel ing sure that
she woul d
‘
throw herself out held her by her skirt and stammere d : Oh mad ame !
Oh madame !
“
The train slackened speed and then stopped Two g
uards rushe d up
e threw herse l f into their
at the young woman s frantic signals and sh
‘
to
to
An d then
arm s stammering : That man wanted— wanted
sh
e fainted
“
They were at Mau z é station an d the gendarme on duty arreste d
M orin When the v ictim of his brutality had regained her conscious
ness she made her charge against him an d the police d rew it up The
oor linen draper did not reach home till night with a prose cution
panging over him for an outrage on morals in a public place
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II
“
At that time I was editor of the Fa na l des Cha rentes an d I used to
meet Morin every day at the Café du Commerce The day after his
adventure he came to see me as he did not know what to do I did
‘
not hide my opinion from him but said to h
im : You are no better than
a pig No decent man behaves like that
“
“
He cried His wife had given him a beatin g and he foresaw his
trade ruined his name dragged through the mire and dishonored his
friends outraged and t aking no more notice of him In the end he
excited my pity and I sent for my colleague Rivet a bantering but
very sensible l ittle man to give us his advice
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THAT
“
He
OF A M ORI N
P IC
109
advised me to see the public prosecutor who was a frien d of
m in e and so I sent Morin home and we nt to call on the magistrate
He told me that the wom an who had been insulted was a young la d y
M ademoiselle Henriette Bonnel who had jus t received her certificate
as go verness in Paris and spent her holidays with her uncle and a unt
wh
o were v ery respectable tradespeople in Mauz e and what ma d e
M orin s case all the more serious was that the uncle had lodge d a
e public ofl
icial had consented to let the matter drop
complaint But th
if this complaint were withdrawn so that we must try and get him to
d o“
this
I went back to Morin s an d foun d him in bed ill with excitement
and dis tress
His wife a tall rawboned woman with a beard was
abus ing him continually and sh
e showed me into the room shouting
‘
at me : SO you have come to see that pig of a Morin Well there he is
the darling ! And she planted herself in front of the bed with her han ds
on her hips I told him h
ow matters stood and he begged me to
o an d
g
see her uncle and aunt It was a d elicate mission but I undertook it
‘
and the poor devil never ceased repeating :
I assure you I d id not
ev en kiss her no not even that I will take my oath to it !
“
I replie d : It is all the same ; you are nothing but a pig An d I took
a thousand francs which he gave me to employ them as I thought bes t
but as I did not care v enturing to her uncle s house alone I begge d
Rivet to go with me which he agreed to d o on the condition that w e
went immediately for he ha d some urgent business at La Roche lle
that afternoon So two hours l ater we rang at the door of a nice cou n
try house A pretty girl came and Opene d the door to us who was
assuredly the young lady in question an d I said to Rivet in a l ow
‘
:
voice
Confound it ! I begin to understand Morin !
“
The uncle Monsieur Tonnelet subscribed to the Fa na l and was a
fervent political co religionist of ours He received us with open arms
and congratulated us and wished us joy ; he was delighte d at having
‘
the two editors in his house and Rivet whispered to me : I think we
shall be able to arrange the matter of that pig of a Morin for him
“
The niece had left the room and I introduced the delicate sub
ect I waved the specter of scandal before h
is eyes ; I accentuated the
j
inevitable depreciation which the young lady woul d suffer if such an
affair got known for nobody would believe in a simple kiss The good
man seemed undecided but could not make up his mind about any
thing without his wife who would not be in until late that evening
‘
But suddenly he uttered an exclamation of triumph : Look here I have
an excellent idea I will keep you here to dine and sleep and when
my wife comes home I hope we shall be able to arrange matters
“
Rivet resisted at first but the wish to extricate that pig of a Morin
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S HORT S TORIE S OF DE MAU PASSANT
110
decided him and we acce te d the invitation So the uncl e got up
radi ant called his niece an proposed that we shoul d take a stroll in
‘
his grounds saying : We will leave serious matters until the morning
Rivet and he began to talk politics while I soon found myself lagging
a l ittl e behind with the girl who was really charm ing ! charming ! and
with the greatest precaution I began to spe ak to her about her adven
ture and try to make her my ally She did not however appear the
least con fused and listened to me like a person who was enjoying the
whole thing very much
“
‘
I said to her : Just think mademoiselle how unpleasant it will be
for you You will have to appear in court to encounter mal icious looks
to S pe ak before every b ody and to re count that unfortunate occurrence
in the railway carriage in pu b lic D o you not think between ourselves
that it would have b een much better for you to have put that dirty
sooun drel back into his place without calling for assistance and merely
‘
to have changed your carriage ? She beg an to laugh and rep l ied : What
ou s a
i
s quite true ! But what could I do ? I was fr
ghtened
an
d
i
y
y
when one is frightened one does not stop to reason with oneself As
soon as I realized the situation I was very sorry that I had cal led ou t
but then it was too late You must also remem ber that the idiot threw
himself upon me like a madman without saying a word and lookin g
like“a lunatic I did not even know what he wanted of me
She looked me full in the face without being nervous or intimidate d
‘
and I said to myself : She is a funny sort of girl that ; I can quite see
how that pig Morin came to make a mistake and I went on jokingly :
"
‘
Come mademoiselle confess that he was excusable ; for after all a
m an cannot find himself opposite such a pretty girl as you are withou t
feelin g a legitimate desire to kiss her
‘
“
She laughed more than ever and showed her teeth and said : Be
tw een the desire and the act monsieur there is room for resp ect It
was a funny exp ression to use although it was not very clear an d I
‘
as ked abruptly : Well now supposing I were to kiss you now what
would you do ? She st 0 p ed to look at me from head to foot and then
‘
s aid calmly : Oh ! you ? T at is quite another ma tter
“
I kn ew perfectly wel l b y Jove that it was not the same thing at a ll
‘
as everybody in the neighborhood called me Handsome Lab arbe I
‘
was thirty years old in those days b ut I asked her : And why pray ?
‘
“
She shrugged her shoulders and replied : Well because you are
‘
not so Stu pid as he is And then she added looking at me slyly : Nor
so ugly either
“
Before she could make a movem ent to avoid me I had im l anted a
he arty kiss on her cheek She sprangaside but it was too ate and
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
112
queezed an d kiss ed her hands an d she l istened to it as to something
e was
new and agreeable without exactly knowing how much of it sh
to believe while in the en d I felt agitated and at last really myself
believed what I said I was pale anxious and trembling and I gently
put my arm round her waist and spoke to her softly whispering into
the little curls over her ears She seemed dead so a b sorbed in thought
was she
“
Then her hand touched mine and she pressed it an d I gently
circled her waist with a trembling and gradually a firmer gras p She
did not move now and I touched her cheeks with my lips and su d
denl y without seeking them mine met hers It was a long long kiss
and it would have lasted longer still if I had not heard a H u m ! hu m !
just behind me She made her escape through the bushes an d I turn
ing round saw Rivet coming toward me and walking in the middl e of
‘
the path He said without even smiling : So that is the way in which
ou settle the affair of that pig Morin
y “
‘
I replied conceitedly : One does what one can my de ar fellow But
what about the uncle ? How have you got on with him? I will answer
for the niece
‘
I have not been so fortunate with him he replie d Whereupon I
took h
is arm and we went in d oors
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III
“
D inner made me l ose my head altogether I sat beside her an d my
h and continually met hers under the tablecloth
my foot touched hers
"
and our looks encountere d each other
“
After dinner we took a walk by moonlight an d I whispere d all th e
tender things I could th ink of to her I held her close to me kissed her
every moment moisten ing my l i against hers while her uncl e and
R ivet were disputing as they w ap:ed in front of us We went in and
soon a messenger brought a telegram from her aunt saying that she
would return by the first train the next morning a t seven O clock
‘
‘
Very well Henriette her uncle said go and show the gentlem en
their rooms She showed Rivet his first and he whispered to me :
‘
rst
There was no danger of her taking us into yours fi
Then she took
me to my room and as soon as she was alone with me I took her in
my arms again and tried to excite her senses and overcome her resist
ance but when she felt that she was near succumbing she escaped
ou t of th
e room : and I got betw een the sheets very much put ou t an d
excited and feel in rather foolish for I knew that I should not sleep
much I was won ering how I could have committed such a mis take
when there was a gentle k‘n ock at my door and on my asking who was
there a low voice replied : I
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113
THAT PIG OF A M ORIN
“
I dressed
myse l f qui ckly and O pened the door an d she came in
‘
‘
I forgot to ask you what you take in the morning she said chocolate
tea or coffee ? I put my arms around her irnp etuou sl y and said devour
‘
ing her with kisses : I will take— I will take
But she freed herself
from my arms b lew ou t my candle and disappeared and left me alone
in the dark furious trying to find some matches and not a b le to d o so
At last I got some and I went into the passage feeling half mad with
my candlestick in my hand
“
What was I going to do ? I did not stop to reason ; I only wanted to
find her and I would I went a few steps without reflecting but then
‘
I sud denly thought to my self : Suppose I should go into the uncle s
room what should I say ? And I stood still with my head a v oid and
my heart beating
‘
“
But in a few moments I thought of an answer : Of course I shall
say that I was looking for Rivet s room to spe ak to him about an irn
portant matter and I began to inspect all the doors tryin g to find hers
an d at last I took hold of a handle at a ven ture tu rned it and went in
There was Henriette sitting on her bed and looking at me in tears
‘
So I gently tu rned the key and going up to her on tiptoe I said : I
forgot to ask you for something to read mademoiselle I will not tell
you the book I read but it is the most wonderful of romances the
most d ivine of poems And when once I had turned the first page she
let me turn over as many leaves as I liked and I got through so many
chapters
that ou r candles were quite burned ou t
“
Then after thanking her I was stealth ily returning to my room
when a rough
hand seized me and a voice — it was Rivet s— whispered
‘
in my ear : So you have not yet quite settled that affair of Morin s ?
“
At seven o clock the next morning she herself brought me a cup O f
chocolate I have never drunk anything like it soft velvety perfum e d
d elicious I could scarcely take away my lips from the cup and she ha d
hardly left the room when Rivet came in He seemed nervous and
‘
irritab le like a man who had not slept and he said to me crossly : If
n
k
o
u
o
li
e this you will end by spoiling the affair of that pig of a
y
g
M or
in
“
At eight o clock the aunt arrived Ou r discussion was v ery short
for they withdrew their complaint and I left five hundred francs for
the poor of the town They wanted to keep us for the day and they
arranged an excursion to go and see some ruins Henriette made si ns
g
to me to stay behind her uncle s back and I accepted but Rivet was
determined to go and though I took him aside and b egged and prayed
him to do this for me he appeared quite exasperated and kept say
‘
i gto me : I have had enough O f that pig of a Morin s affair do you
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ear?
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E M AU PASSAN
114
T
Of course I was ob lige d to g
o also an d it was one of the har d est
m oments of my life I could have gone on arranging that business as
long as I lived and when we were in the railway
carriage after shak
‘
inghands with her in s ilence I sai d to Rivet : You are a mere brute !
‘
An d he re lied : My dear fellow you w ere beginning to excite m e
,
.
,
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’
,
,
ly
confou nde
’
“
On getting to the
.
o ffice I saw a crow d waiting for us an d
‘
as soon as they s aw u s they all exclaimed : W ell have you settl ed the
affair of that pig of a Morin? Al l La Rochelle was excited about it
and Rivet who had got over his ill hum or on the journey had eat
‘
difficulty in keeping himself from l aughing as he said : Yes we ave
managed it thank s to Lab arb e An d we went to Morin s
“
He was sitting in an easy chair with mustard plasters on his l egs
an d cold bandages on his head nearly dead with misery He was
c oughin g with the short cough of a dying man without anyone know
inghow he ha d caught it and his wife seemed like a tigress ready to
eat him As soon as he saw us he trembled violently as to m ake his
‘
hands and knees shake so I said to him immediately : It is all settled
ou dirty scamp but don t do such a thing
y “
He got up choking took my hands and kiss ed them as if they h a d
belonged to a prince cried nearly fain ted embraced Rivet and even
kis se d Madame Morin who gave him such a push as to send him stag
gerin g back into h
is chair But he never got over the blow ; h
is min d
ha d been too much U pset In a ll the coun try roun d moreover he was
called nothing but that pig of a Morin and the epi thet went through
“
him like a sword ‘thrust every tim e he heard it When a stree t b oy
called after him : Pig ! he turned his head instinctively His friends
al so overwhelmed him with horrible jokes and used to cha ff him
‘
whenever they were eatin g ham by saying : It s a bit of you ! He
died two years later
“
As for myself when I was a candidate for the Chamber of D epu
ties in 18 7 5 I called on the new notary at Foncerre Monsieur Bell
O ncle to solicit his‘ vote and a tall handsome and evidently wealthy
l ady
received me You do not know me again? she said
“
‘
I stammered out : But— no madame
Henriette Bonnel ?
‘
Ah ! And I felt myself turning pale while she seemed perfectly at
her case and looked at me with a smile
“
“
As soon as she had left me alone wi th her husband he took both
my hands and squeezing them as if he meant to crush them he said :
‘
I have been intending to go and see you for a long time my dear sir
for my wife has very often talked to me a b out you I kn ow under what
p ainful cri cumstances you made her ac uaint ance and I know a lso
Fana l
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SHORT STOR IE S OF D E MAUPASSANT
116
“
M me Renard inte ”rupt d him And for good reasons too ; they l au gh
e
r
bes t
:
who laugh last
He turned toward her frankly Oh ! v ery well I can blame you
”
since you were the cause of it
Then facing the president again he said
“
I will continue We used to go to Passy every Saturday evening so
as to be a b le to b egin fishing at daybreak the next morning It is a
h abit which has become second nature with us as the saying is Three
ye ars ago this summer I discovered a place oh! such a spot ! There in
the shade were eight feet of water at least and perhaps ten a hole
with a retou r under the bank a regular retreat for fish and a paradise
for any fisherman I might look upon that hole as my prope rty Mon
s ieur l e Président as I was its Christopher Columbus Every body in
e neighborhood kn ew it without making any O pposition They use d
th
‘
to say : That is Ren ard s place ; and nobody woul d have gone to it
not even Monsieur P l u m s ay who is reno wned be it said wi thout any
offense for appropriating other people s places
“
Well I went as usual to that place of which I felt as certain as if I
had owned it I ha d scarcely got there on Saturday when I got into
Delil a with my wife D elila is my Norwegian boat which I had built
by F ourm ais e and which is light and safe Well as I s aid we got into
the boat and we were going to bait and for baiting there is nobod y
to be compared with me and they al l know it You w ant to know with
what I bait ? I cann ot answer that q uestion ; it has no thing to do with
the accident ; I cannot ans wer that is my secret There are more than
thr ee hundre d people who have asked me ; I have been offered glass es
‘
to make me tell ! But just
of brandy and liquors frie d fish matelots
go an d try whether the chub will come Ah ! they have patted my
stomach to get at my secret my r ecipe Onl y my wife knows an d she
”
w ill not tell it any more than I shall ! Is not that so M elie?
The president of the co u rt interrupted him
“
”
Just get to the facts as soon as you can
“
The accused continue d : I am getting to them ; I am ge tting to
ve
ve twenty fi
them Well on Satur d ay July eighth we left by the fi
train and before dinner we went to ground bait as usual The weather
‘
promised to kee fi
n e and I said to Mé l ie : All right for tomorrow !
‘
And she rep l ie
It looks like it We never talk more than that
together
“
An d then w
e returned to d inner I was happy an d thirs ty an d that
‘
was the cause of everything I said to Mé l ie : Look here Mé l ie it is
‘
fine weather so suppose I drink a bottle of Cas ue a m é che That is a
little white wine which we have christened s o because if you drink
‘A pre aration of s everal kinds of fish with a shar sauce
p
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THE HOLE
111
too much of it it prevents you from sleeping and is the opposite of a
nightcap DO you understand me?
‘
“
She replied : You can do as you please but you will be ill again
and will not be able to get up tomorrow That was true sensible
prudent and clear sighted I must confess Nevertheless I coul d not
withs tand it and I drank my bottle It all comes from that
“
Well I could not sleep By Jove ! It kept me awake till two o clock
in the morning and then I went to sleep so soundly that I shoul d not
have heard the angel shouting at the Last Judgm ent
“
In short my wife woke me at six o clock and I jumped ou t of be d,
hastil y put on my trousers and jersey washed my face and jumped on
board D elila But it was too late for when I arrived at my hole it was
already taken ! Such a thing had never happened to me in three years
and it made me feel as if I were bein g rob b ed under my own eyes
‘
I said to mysel f Confound it all ! Confoun d it ! And then my wife
‘
began to nag at me Eh ! What about your Cas u e ci m eckel Get along
“
you drunkard ! Are you satisfied you great fool I could say nothin g
because it was all quite true and so I landed all the same near the
spot and tried to profit by what was left Perhaps after all the fellow
m ight catch nothing and go away
“
He was a little thin man in white linen coat and waistcoat and with
a l arge straw hat and his wife a fat woman who was doing em broid
ind him
er
y“was beh
e saw us take up ou r position close to their place sh
When sh
e
‘
murmured : I suppose there are no other places on the river ! And my
‘
wife who was furious replied : People who know how to behave
make inquiries about the habits of the neighborhood before occupying
res erved spots
“
‘
As I did not want a fuss I said to her : Hold your ton g
ue Mé l ie
Let them go on let them go on ; we shall see
“
Well we had fastened D elila under the willow trees and had
l anded and were fishing side by side Mé l ie and I close to the two
others ; but here monsieur I must enter into details
“
We had only been there a b out five minutes when our male neigh
bor s float began to go down two or three times and then he pulle d
ou t a chu b as thick as my thigh rather less perhaps b ut nearly a s
big ! My heart b eat and the perspiration stood on my forehead and
‘
Mé l ie said to me : Well you sot did you see that?
“
Just then Monsieur Bru the grocer of Poissy who was fond of
‘
gudgeon fishing passed in a boat and called out to me : So somebody
‘
has taken your usual place Monsieur Renard ? And I replied : Yes
Monsieur Bru there are some people in this world who do not know
the usages of common politeness
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPAS SAN T
118
“
The little
man in linen pretend e d not to hear nor his fat lump
,
of
wife either
“
Here the presid ent interrupted him a second time : Take care you
”
are ins ulting the wi d ow
Madame Flam eche who is present
“
Renard made his excuses : I beg your pardon I beg your p ardon
my anger carrie d me away
Well not a quarter of an hour had
pas sed when the littl e man caught another chub and another almost
im mediately and ano ther five minutes later
“
Th
e tears were in my eyes and then I knew th
at M a d ame Renar d
‘
was boil ing with rage for she kept on nagging at me : Oh how horrid !
D on t you see that he is robbing you of your fish? D o you think that
1 wil l catch anything ? Not even a h
o
g nothing whatever Why my
£2;“ds are burning just to think of it
But I said to myself : Let us wait until twelve O clock Then this
oaching fellow will go to lunch and I shal l get my place aga in As
por me Monsieur l e Président I lunch on the spot every Sunday ; we
bring our provisions in D elila But there ! At twelve o clock the wretch
odu ced a fowl ou t of a newspaper and while he was eating actually
caught another chub !
E“
Mé l ie and I had morse l also just a mouthful a mere nothing for
our heart was not in it
“
Then I took up my newspaper to aid my digestion Every Sun d ay
1 read the G il B l as in the shade like that by the side of the water
It is Colu mbine s day you know Columbine who writes the articles
in the G il B las I generally put Madame Renard into a passion by pre
tending to know this Colum bine It is not true for I do not know her
e wri tes v ery
and have never seen her but that does not matter ; sh
well and then she says thin gs straight ou t for a woman She suits me
and there are not many of her sort
“
Well I b egan to tease my wife but she got angry imme diately
our two
an
ry
and
At
that
moment
and v e r
so I held my tongue
y
g
witnesses who are present here Monsieur Ladureau an d M onsieur
Durdent appeared on the other side of the river We knew each other
by sight The little man began to fish again and he caught s o many
‘
that I trembled with vexation and his wife said : It is an uncommonly
good spot and we will come here always Desiré As for m e a col d
‘
shiver ran down my back and Madame Renard kept repeatin g : You
are not a m n; you have th
e blood of a chicken in your v eins ; and
a
‘
su d d enly I said to her : Look here I would rather go away or I shall
only be doing someth ing foolish
“
And she whispered to me as if she had put a re d hot iron und er my
‘
nose : You are not a man Now you are going to run away and
render your place ! Off you go B az aine !
a
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SHORT STORIES OF DE M AU PASSANT
12 0
was
It “
very we ll to
n
that
but
I
can
ot
sw
m
and
sti
ll
l
ess
d
ive
i
!
y
At l ast the man from the dam c ame and two gentl emen with boat
hooks but it ha d taken over a quarter of an hour He was found at
the bottom of the hole in eight feet of water as I have said but h e
was dead the poor little m an in h
is linen suit ! There are the fa cts su ch
”
as I have swo rn to I am innocent on my honor
all
sa
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The witnesses having deposed to the same effect the a ccused
ac quitted
,
was
.
FA M I LY
A
I wa s c o m e to see my friend Simon Radevin once more for I had not
seen him for fifteen years F ormerly he was my most in timate friend
and I used to spend long quiet and happy evenings with him He was
os e men to whom one tells the most intimate affairs of the
one of t h
heart and i n whom one finds when quietly talking rare clever ingemi
ou s and refined thoughts— thoughts which stim ulate and cap tu re the
mind
For years we had scarcely been separated : we ha d lived travel ed
thought and dreamed toge ther had liked the same things with the
same liking admired the same books comprehended the same works
shivered with the same sensations and very often laughed at the same
individuals whom we understood completely by merely exchanging
a glance
Then he married— q uite unexpectedly married a little girl from the
provinces who had come to Paris in search of a husband How ever
could that little thin insipidly fair girl with her weak hands her light
vacant eyes and her clear silly voice who was eitactl y like a hun dred
thous and marriageable dolls have picked up that intelligent cle er
young fellow? Can anyone understand these things ? No doubt he ha d
hoped for happiness simple quiet and long enduring happiness in
the arms of a good tender and faithfu l woman ; he ha d seen all that
in the transparent looks of that schoolgirl with light hair
He had not dreame d of the fact that an active living and vibrating
man g
rows tired as soon as he has comprehended the stupid reality of
a commonplace life unless indeed he becomes so brutalized as to be
callous to extem al s
What would he be like when I met him again? Still lively witty
rough
l ight hearted and enthusias tic or in a state of mental torp or t h
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A FAMILY
12 1
pro v incial life ? A man can change a great d eal in the course of fifteen
ears
!
y
ot ou t of the carriage
The tr a in stopped at a small station an d as I g
a stout a very stout man with red cheeks and a big stomach rushed
”
“
up to me with O pen arms exclaiming : George !
I embraced him but I had not recognized him and then I s aid in
“
astonishm ent : By Jove ! You have not grown thin !
“
And he replied with a laugh : What did you expect ? Good living
that is my
a good table and good nights ! Eating and slee ping
”
existence !
I looked at him closely trying to fi
n d the features I held so d ear in
that broad face His eyes alone ha d not altered but I no longer s aw
the s ame look in them and I said to myself : If looks be the reflection
of the mind the thoughts in that head are not what they us ed to b e
”
those thoughts which I _knew so well
Yet his eyes were bright full of pleasure and friendship but th ey
had not that clear intelligent expression which tells better than do
words the v alue of the min d Suddenly he said to me :
“
Here are my two eldest children A girl of fourteen who was
irteen in the dress of a pupil from a
almost a woman and a b oy of t h
lycée came forward in a hesitating
and awkward manner and I said
”
in a l ow voice : Are they yours ?
“
”
Of course they are he replied laughing
”
“
H ow many have you ?
“
F ive ! There are three more indoors
He said that in a prou d sel f satisfi
ed almost triumphant manne r
and I felt profound pity mingled with a feeling of va gue contemp t
for this v ainglorious and simple reproducer of his species who sp em
h
is nights in his country house in uxorious pleasures
I got into a carriage which he drove himself and we set off through
the town a dul l sleepy gloomy town where nothing was moving in the
streets save a few dogs and two or three maidservants Here and there
a shopkeeper standing at his door took off his hat and Simon retu rned
the salute and told me the man s name— no doubt to show me that he
knew all the inhabitants personall y The thought struck me that he
was thinkin g of becoming a candidate for the Chamber of D eputies
that dream of all who have burie d themselves in the provinces
We were soon ou t of the town ; the carriage turned into a garden
had some pretensions to a park and step p ed in front of a turreted
which tri ed to pass for a ch ateau
“
That is my den Sim on said so that he might be complimented
on it and I replied that it was delightful
A lady appeared on the steps dressed up for a visitor her hair done
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S HORT STORIE S OF DE MA UPASSAN T
122
a vis itor and with phrases ready prepared for a visitor She was
no longer the light haired insipid girl I had seen in church fifteen years
ou nces one of those ladies of
previously but a stout la d y in curls and fi
u ncertain age without intellect without any of those things which
c onstitu te a woman In short she was a mother a stout commonplace
m other a human layer and brood mare a machine of flesh which
ro
p
creates without mental care save for her children an d her housekeep
ingbook
Sh
e welcomed me and I went in to the hall where three ch ldren
ranged according to their height were ranked for review like firemen
”
before a mayor Ah ! ah ! so there are the others ? said I And Simon
“
who was radiant with pleasure named them : Jean 8 0 phie an d
for
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Contran
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The door of the drawing room was O pen I went in an d in the d epths
of an easy chair I saw something trembling a man an ol d paralyze d
“
man Mme Radevin came forward and said : This is my grandfather
”
monsie u r ; he is eighty seven And then she shouted into the shaking
“
This is a friend of Simon s grandpapa
ol d man s ears :
”
“
The ol d gentleman tried to say Good day to me and he muttered
”
“
Oua ou a ou a and waved his hand
“
I took a seat saying : You are v ery kind monsieur
S imon had just come in and he said with a laugh : So ! You h av e
made Grandpapa s acquaintance He is priceless is that ol d man He
is the delight of the ch ildren and he is so greedy that he al most kills
himself at every meal You have no idea what he would eat if he were
allowed to do as he pleased But y ou will see you will see He l ooks
a ll the sweets over as if they were so many g
irls You have never seen
”
anythin g funnier ; you will see it presently
I was then shown to m y room to change my d ress for dinner an d
hearing a great clatter behind me on the stairs I turned round and
s aw that all the children were following me behind their father— to d o
me honor no doubt
My windows looked ou t onto a plain a bare intermin able p l ain an
ocean of grass of wheat and of oats without a clump of trees or any
ris ing ground a striking and melancholy picture of the life which they
m ust be leading in that house
A bell rang ; it was for d inner an d so I went downsta irs M me
Radevin took m y arm in a ceremonious manner and we went into the
dining room A footman wheeled in the old man s armcha ir who ave
a greedy and cu rious look at the dessert as with difficulty he tu rne his
s hakin g head from one d ish to the other
”
“
Simon rubbed his hands saying : You will be amused All the
c hildren understood that I was going to be in dulged with the sight of
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SHORT S TORIE S OF D E M AUPASSAN T
124
e longer the spectacl e of his imp otent greediness in the fam ily ?
There was nothing left for him to do in this life nothing whatev er
He had one single wish left one sole ple asure ; why not grant him that
l ast solace constantly until he d ied ?
After playin g cards for a long time I went up to my room an d to be d
I was low spirited and sad sad sad! I sat at my window but I hear d
nothing but the beautiful warb l ing of a b ir d in a tr ee somewhere in
the distance No doubt the bird was singing thus in a l ow v oice during
the night to lull his mate who was sleeping on her eggs
And I thought of m y poor friend s five chil dren and to myse lf p io
is ugly wife
tured him snoring by the side of h
tim
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BE LL F LO WE R
S TRAN GE are those
H ow
ol d
1
recollections which haunt us without
our
being able to get rid of them !
This one is so very old that I cannot un d erstand how it has c lung s o
vividly and tenaciously to my memory Since then I have seen so many
sinister things either affecting or terrib le that I am astonished at not
being able to pass a single day without the face of Mo ther Bell fi
ower
recurring to my mind s eye just as I knew her formerly long l ong
ago when I was ten or twelve years ol d
She was an old seamstress who came to my parents house once a
week every Thursday to men d the linen My parents live d in one of
those country houses called Ch ateaux which are merely old houses with
pointed roofs to which are attached three or four adjacent farms
The village a l arge village al most a small market town was a fe w
hundred yards off and nestle d roun d the church a red brick church
which had become black with age
Well every Thursday Mother B el l fi
ower cam e b etw een half past six
and seven in the morning an d went immediately into the linen room
and began to work She was a tall thin bearded or rather hairy wom an
for she had a beard all over her face a su rprising an unexp ected beard
rowing in improbable tu fts in curly bunches which looke d as if they
ad been sown by a madman over that great face the face of a gen
darme in petticoats She had them on her nose under her nose roun d
her nose on her chin on her cheeks and her eyebrows which were
extraordinarily thick and long an d quite gray bushy and bristl ing
l ooked exactly like a pair of mustaches s tuck on there by mistake
She limped not like l ame people generally do but like a ship pitch
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Clochette
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,
BELL F LOWER
125
ing When she planted her great bony vibrant body on her sound l eg
sh
e seemed to b e preparing to mount some enormous wave and then
suddenly she dipped as if to disappear in an abyss and bur1ed herself
in the grou nd Her walk reminded one of a s hip in a storm and her
head which was always covered with an enormous white cap whose
ribbons fluttered d own her back seemed to traverse the horizon from
north to south and from south to north at each limp
I adored Mother B ell flower As soon as I was up I used to go into
the linen room where I found her installed at work with a foot warmer
under her feet As soon as I arrived she made me take the foot warmer
and sit upon it so that I might not catch col d in that large chil ly room
u nder the roof
“
That draws the blood from your head she would say to me
She told me stories whil e mending the linen with her long crooked
nimble fingers ; behind her ma gnifying spectacles for age had impaired
her sight her eyes appeared enormous to me strangely profound
double
As far as I can remember from the things which sh
e told me and by
which my childish heart was moved she had the large heart of a poor
woman She told me what had happened in the village how a cow had
escaped from the cow house and had been found the next mornin g in
front of Prosper Malet s mill looking at the sails turning or about a
hen s egg which had been found in the church belfry without anyone
being able to understand what creature had been there to l ay it or
the queer story of Jean Pila s dog who had gone ten leagu es to bring
back his master s breeches which a tramp had stolen while they were
hanging up to dry ou t of doors after he had been caught in the rain
She told me these simple adventu res in such a manner that in my
mind they assumed the proportions of never to be forgotten dramas of
gr and and mysterious poems ; and the ingenious stories invented by the
poets which my mother told me in the evening had none of the
fla vor none of the full ness or of the v igor of the peasant woman s
narratives
Well one Thursday when I had spent all the morning in lis tening
to Mother Clochette I wanted to go upstairs to her again during the
day after picking hazelnuts with the manservant in the wood behind
the farm I remember it all as clearly as what happened only yesterday
On opening the door of the linen room I saw the ol d seamstress l y
ing on the floor by the side of her cha ir her face turned down and her
arms stretched out but still holding her needle in one hand and one of
my shirts in the other One of her legs in a blue stocking the longer
one no dou b t was extended under her chair an d her spectacles glis
tened by the wall where they had rolle d away from her
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPASSAN T
12 6
I ran away uttering shrill cries They all came running an d in a
few minutes I was told that Mother Clochette was dead
I c annot describe the profound poignant terrible emotion which
stirre d my chil dish heart I went slowly down into the drawing room
and hid myself in a dark corner in the depths of a great old armchair
where I knel t and wept I remained there for a long time no doubt
for night came on Suddenly someone came in with a lamp— without
seein g me however— and I heard my father and mother tal king with
the medical man whose voice I recognized
He had b een sent for imm ed iately and he was explaining the cause
of the accident of which I understood nothing however Then he sat
d own and had a glass of liqueur an d a bis cuit
He went on talking and what he then said will remain engraved on
my mind until I die ! I think that I can give the exact words which he
used
“
Ah ! he said The poor woman ! she broke her leg the d ay of my
arrival here I had not even had time to wash my h ands after ge ttin g
off the diligence before I was sent for in all haste for it was a bad
case very had
“
She was seventeen and a pretty girl very pretty ! W oul d anyone
believe it ? I have never told her story before ; in fact no one but m y
self and one o ther person who is no longer living in this p art of the
country
ev er knew it Now that she is dead I may be less discreet
“
A young assistant teacher had jus t come to live in the vill age ; he
was good lookin g and had the be aring of a soldier All the girls ran
after him but he was disdain ful Besides that he was very much afrai d
ooh
n aster ol d Crab u who occasionally got ou t
of h
is superior the sch
of bed the wron
foot first
“
Old Grahn
eady employe d pretty Hortense who has just died
here and who was afterward nicknamed Clochette The assistant master
singled ou t the pretty young girl who was no doubt flattered at being
chosen by this disdainful conqueror ; at any rate she fell in love with
him and he succeeded in persuading her to give him a first meetin g
in the hayloft behind the school at night after she had done her d ay s
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sewm
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Sh
i pretended to
g
home but instead of going do wnstairs when
s e went upsta irs and hid among the hay to wait
sh
e left the Grabus
for her lover He soon joined her and he was beginning to say pretty
thin gs to her when the door of the hayloft opened and the schoolmaster
‘
appeared and asked : What are you doing u p there Sig
isb ert? F eel
ingsure that he would be caught the young schoolmaster lost h
is
‘
presence of mind and replied s tupidly : I came up here to rest a li ttl e
among the bundl es of hay Monsieur Crabu
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SHORT STORIES OF DE MAUPASS AN T
12 8
I N T HE
TH E
MAY O R was just going to sit
W OO D
d own to breakfast when he was to ld
,
that the rural policeman was waitin g for him at the m a irie with two
prisoners He went there immediately and found ol d H ochedur stan d
ngup and watching a middle class couple O f mature years with ste m
.
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ik
OO s
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.
The man a fat ol d fellow with a re d nose and white hair seeme d
utterly dejected while the woman a little roundabout stout creature
with shining cheeks looked at the agent who had arrested them with
d efiant
eyes
“
What is it? What is it H ochedur?
The rural policeman made his deposition He had gone ou t th at
morning at his usual tim e in order to patrol his beat from the forest O f
am
i
oux as far as the b ou nderies of Argente u il He had not notice d
Ch
p
anything unusual in the country except that it was a fine day and that
the wheat was doing well when the son Of ol d B redel who was going
“
over his vines a second time c alled out to him : Here D addy Hoche
dur go and have a look into the skirts O f the wood in th
e first thicket
and you l l catch a pair of pigeons there who must be a hun dre d and
”
thirty years Ol d between them !
He went in the direction that ha d been indicated to him and ha d
gone into the thicket There he had h
eard words and gasps which mad e
him suspect a flagrant breach of morality Advancing therefore on his
hands and knees as if to surprise a poacher he had arrested this couple
at the v ery moment when they were going to abandon themselves to
their natural instincts
The mayor looked at the culprits in astonishment for the man was
certainly sixty and the woman fi
fty fi
ve at least SO he began to ques
tion them beginning with the man who replied in such a weak v oi ce
that he could scarcely be hear d
“
”
What is you r name ?
“
”
Nicolas Beaurain
“
Y
our occupation ?
“
”
Haberdasher in the Rue d es M artyrs in Paris
”
“
What were you doing in the wo od ?
The haberdasher remained silent with his eyes on his fat stomach
and his hands resting on his thighs and the mayor continued :
”
“
D o you deny what the Officer Of the municipal authorities states?
N O monsieur
”
SO you co nfess it ?
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I N THE W OO D
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Yes monsieur
“
What have you to y in your defense?
”
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Nothing monsieur
129
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sa
”
“
Where did you meet the partner in your misdemeanor?
”
“
She i my wife monsieur
“
Y
our wife ?
“
Yes monsieur
“
Then— then—
d o n t l ive together in Paris?
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I beg your pardon
“
B ut in that case
o
u
o
y
”
monsieur but we are living together !
ou must be mad altogether mad my dear sir to
y
”
et caught like that in the country at ten o clock in the morning
g
The haberdasher seemed ready to cry with shame and he murmured
“
It was she who enticed me ! I tol d her it was stupid but when a wom an
has got a thing into her head you know you cannot get it ou t
The mayor who l iked Open speaking sm iled and replied
“
In your case the contrary ought to have happened You would not
e ha d had the idea only in her head
be here if sh
Then M Beaurain was seize d with rage and turning to his wife he
“
DO you see to what you have brought us with your poetry ? An d
s ai d :
now we shall have to go before the courts at our age for a breach O f
morals ! And we shall have to shut up the shop sell our goo d will an d
”
o to some other neighborhood ! That s what it h
as come to!
g
M me Beaurain got up and without lookin g at her husband explaine d
herself without any embarrassment without useless modesty and al
m ost without hesitation
“
Of course monsieur I know that we have made ourselves ridicu
lous Will you allow me to plead my case like an advocate or rather
like a poor woman? And I hope that you wil l be kind enough to sen d
us home and to spare us the disgrace of a prosecution
“
Years ago when I was young I made Monsieur Beaurain s acquaint
ance on Sunday in this neighborhood He was employe d in a draper s
shop and I was a saleswoman in a ready made clothing establ B M ent
I remember it as if it were yesterday I used to come and spend Sun
days here occasionally with a friend of mine Ros a Leveq ue with whom
I lived in the Rue Pigalle and Rose had a sweetheart while I ha d not
He used to bring us here and one Saturday he told me laughing that
he should bring a friend with him the next day I quite understoo d
what he meant but I replied that it woul d be no good for I was
virtuous
monsieur
“
The next day we met Monsieur Beaurain at the railway station In
those days he was good lookin
but I had made up my mind not to
im and I did not yie (1 Well we arrived at Bezons It was
y ield to h
a lovely day the sort of day that tickles your heart When it is fi
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S HORT STORIE S OF D E
130
M AUPAS SAN T
even now just as it use d to be formerly I ow quite foolis h an d when
I am in the country I utterly lose my hea The verdure the swallows
flying so swiftly the smell of the grass the scarlet poppies the daisies
all that makes me quite exxcited! It is l ike champagne when one is
not used to it !
“
W ell it was lovely weather warm an d bright an d it seeme d to
penetrate into your body b y your eyes when you looked and by your
mouth when you breathed Rose and Sim on hugged and kissed each
other every minute and that gave me something to look at ! Monsieur
B eaurain and I walked behind them without spe aking much for when
people do not kn ow each other well they cannot find much to ta lk
about He looked tim id and I liked to see his embarrassment At last
we got to the little woo d ; it was as cool as in a bath there and we all
four sat down Rose and her lover joked me because I looked rather
stern but you will understand that I coul d not be otherwise And then
they began to kiss and hug again without putting and more restraint
upon themselves than if we had not been there Then they whispered
together and got up and went Off among the trees without saying a
word You may fancy how I felt alone with this young fellow whom
I saw for the first time I felt so confused at seeing them go that it
gave me courage and I began to talk I aske d him what his business
was and he said he was a linen draper s assistant as I told you just
now We talked for a few minutes and that made him bold and he
wanted to take lib erties with me but I told him sh arply to keep his
”
at true Monsieur Beaurain ?
own place Is not th
M Beau rain who was looking at his feet in confusion did not repl y
“
and she continued : Then he saw that I was v irtuous and he began
to make love to me nicely lik e an honorable man and from that time
he came every Sunday for he was very much in love with me I was
very fond Of him also very fond of him ! He was a good looking fello w
fo rmerly and in short he married me the next September and we
started busin ess in the Rue des Martyrs
“
It was a hard struggle for some years monsieur Business did not
prosper and we could not a fford many country excursions and then
we b ecame unaccustomed to them One has o ther things in one s head
and thinks more O f the cashbox than O f pretty S peeches when one is
in bus iness We were g
Old by degrees without perceiving it
row in
l ike quiet people who do not
ink much about love But one does not
regret anything as long as one does not notice what one has lost
“
And after that monsieur bus iness went better and we became
tranquil as to the future ! Then you see I do not exactl y know what
passed within me— no I really d o not know— but I began to dream
like a little boarding school gir l The sight of the little carts fu ll of
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE M AUPASSAN T
132
“
We were at dinner when a letter was brought in
my father
Opened it You know my father who thinks that he is king of Fr an ce
I call him Don Quixote because for twelve years he has
ad interim
been running a til t against the windmil l of the Republic without quite
knowing whether it was in the name of Bourb on or of Orléans At pres
ent he is holding the lance in the name O f Orléans alone bec ause there
is nobody else left In any case he thinks himself the first gentlem an
in France the best kn own the most influential the head O f the p arty
and as he is an irremovable senator he thinks that the neighboring
kings thrones are very insecure
“
As for my mother she is my father s inspiration the sou l of the
kingdom and of religion the right arm of God on earth and the scourge
of evil thinkers
“
Well this letter was brought in while we were at d inner M y father
‘
Opened and read it and then he said to my mother : Your brother is
dying She grew very pale My uncle was scarcely ever mentione d
in the house and I did not kn ow him at all ; all I knew from public
talk was that he had led and was stil l leading the life of a bu floon
After havin g spent his fortune with an incalculable number of women
he had only retained two mistresses with whom he was living in small
apartments in the Rue des M artyrs
“
An ex peer O f France and ex colone l Of cavalry it was said that
he believed in neither Cod nor devil Having no faith therefore in a
future life he had abused this present life in every way and had become
a living wound to my mother s heart
‘
Cive me that le tter Paul she said an d when she ha d rea d it I
asked for it in my turn Here it is :
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M ONS IEUR L E COMTE : I think I ought to let you know that your
brother in law Count Fu m erol is going to die Perhaps you woul d
make preparations and not forget that I told you
“
Your servant Mi LANI
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W e must think my father murmured In my position I ought to
watch over your b rother s last moments
“
‘
My mother continued : I will send for Abbé Poivron and ask his
advice and then I will go to my brother s with him and Roger Stop
here Paul for you must not compromise yourself but a woman can
and ought to do these things For a politician in your position it is
ano th er matter It would be a fine th ing for one O f your O pponents to be
able to bring one Of your most laudable actions up against you
‘
‘
You are right ! my father said D o as you think best my d ear
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A quarter of an hour l ater the Abbé Poivron came into the d rawing
Q
MAR
T HE
UIS DE FUME ROL
133
room and the situation was explained to him analyzed an d d iscussed
in all its bearings If the Marquis de Fu m erol one O f the greatest
names in France were to die without the succor of religion it wou ld
assuredly be a terri b le blow to the nobility in general to the Count de
T ou m evil l e in particular an d the freethinkers would be triumphant
The evilly disposed newspapers would sin g songs of victory for six
months ; my mother s name would be d ragged through the mire and
brought into the slander of socialistic journals and my father s woul d
be bespattered It was impossible that such a thing should occur
“
A crusade was therefore immediately decid ed upon which was to
be led by the Abbé Poivron a little fat clean slightly scented priest
the faithful vic ar of a large church in a rich and noble q uarter
The landau was ord ered and we three started my mo ther th e
c uré
an d I to admin ister the last sacram ents to my uncle
“
It ha d been decided that first of all we should see Madame M elani
who had written the letter and who was most likely the porter s wife
or my uncle s servant and I got down as a scout in front of a seven
storied house and went into a dark passage where I had great diffi
culty in finding the porter s den He looked at me distrustfully an d
I said
‘
Madame M elani if you please
‘
D
on t know her !
‘
But I have received a letter from her
‘
That may be but I don t know her Are you asking for some kept
woman
?
‘
No a servant probably She wrote me about a place
‘
A servantJ— a servant? Perhaps it is the marquis s Co and see
the fifth story on the left
As soon as he found I was not asking for a kept woman he became
more friendly and came as far as the passage with me He was a tall
thin man with white whiskers the manners O f a beadle and majestic
in movement
“
I climbed up a long S piral staircase whose balusters I did not
venture to touch and I gave three discreet knocks at the left hand
door on the fifth story It Opened immediately and an enormous dirty
woman appeared before me who barre d the entrance with her open
arm s which she place d upon the two doorposts an d grumble d out :
‘
W
hat do you want?
‘
Are you M adame Mé l ani?
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Yes
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I a m the Viscount d e T oum evil l e
‘
Ah! All right ! Come in
‘
Well the fact is my mother is downstairs with a priest
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SHORT STORIES OF DE MAUPASSAN T
134
Oh ! Al l right ; go an d bring them up but take care of the porter
I went downstairs and came up again with my mother who was
followed by the ab b é and I fancied that I heard other foots teps behind
us As soon as we were in the kitchen M e
lani O ffered us chairs and we
all four sat down to de l iberate
‘
Is he very ill ? my mother asked
‘
Oh yes madame ; he will not be here long
‘
D
oes he seem disposed to receive a visit from a priest ?
‘
Oh ! I do not think so
‘
Can I see him ?
‘
VVell — yes— madame — only— o nly— those young ladies are with
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What youn g ladies ?
‘
— why— his lady friends Of course
VVh
y
‘
Oh ! Mamma had grown scarlet and the Abbé Poivron had l ow
ered his eyes
“
‘
The affair b egan to amuse me and I said : Suppose I go in first? I
shall see how he receives me and perhaps I shall be able to prepare
h
is heart for you
‘
My mother who did not suspect any trick replied : Yes go my
d ear
“
‘
But a woman s voice cried ou t: Mé l ani!
‘
The fat servant ran ou t and said : What do you want Madem oi
selle Claire ?
“‘The omelet quickly
In a minute mademoiselle And coming back to us she explaine d
this summ ons
‘
They ordered a cheese omelet at tw o o clock as a slight collation
And immediately she began to break eggs into a salad bowl and began
to whip them vigorously while I went out O nto the landing and pulled
the bell so as to announce my O fficial arrival Mél ani Opened the d oor
to me and made me sit down in an anteroom wh
ile she went to tel l
my uncle that I had come Then she came b ack and asked me to go
in while the a bbé hid behind the door so that he might appear at the
first sign
“
I was certainly v ery much surprised at seeing my uncle for he
was ve ry handsome very solemn and very elegant— the old rake
“
Sittin g alm ost ly ing in a large armchair his legs wrappe d in
blankets with h
is hands his long white hands over the arms of the
chair he was waiting for death with bib lical dignity His white beard
fell on his chest and his hair which was also white mingled with it
on his cheeks
“
Standing behind his armchair as if to defend him ag ainst me were
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SHORT STORI E S OF DE MAUPASSAN T
136
‘
for breath : Leave this room— g
o ou t— robber of souls Go ou t from
here you violator of consciences ! Go ou t from here you picklock Of
dying men s doors !
“
The abbé went backward and I too went to the door beating a
retreat with him and the two little women who were avenged g
ot up
leaving their O melet half eaten and stood on either side of my uncle s
armchair putting their hands on his arms to calm him and to protect
him against the criminal enterprises of the family and of religion
“
The ab b é and I rejoined my mother in the kitchen and M elani
‘
again O ffered us chairs I knew quite well that you would fail that
way ; we must try some other means otherwise he will escape us
And we began deliberating afresh my mother being of one O pinion
an d the a b bé of another while I held a third
“
We had been discussing the matter in a low voice for half an hour
perhaps when a great noise of furniture being moved and of cries
uttered by my uncle more v ehement and terrible even than the former
had been made us all jump up
‘
“
Through the doors and walls we coul d hear him shouting : CO out
”
—
—
ou t— rascals — humbugs ; get ou t scoundrels
get out get ou t!
M elani rushed in but came back immediately to call me to help her
an d I hastened in Opposite to my uncle who was terrib ly excited by
anger ahnost standing up and vociferating two men one behind the
other seemed to be waiting till he should be dead with rage
“
By his long ridiculous coat his pointed English shoes by his man
ners— like those of a tutor out of a situation— by his high collar white
necktie and straight hair by his humble face I immediately recognize d
the first as a Protestant minister
“
The second was the porter of the house who belonged to the Re
formed religion and had followed us Having kno wn of our defeat he
had gone to fetch his own pastor in hope of a better fate My uncle
seemed mad with rage ! If the sight O f the Catholic priest of the priest
of his ancestors had irritated the Marquis de Fu m erol who had h
e
come a freethinker the sight of his porter s minister made him alto
gether beside himself I therefore took the two men by the arm an d
threw them ou t of the room so v iolently that they fell up against each
other twice between the two doors which led to the staircas e; then I
disappeared in my tu rn and returned to the kitchen which was our
headquarters in order to take counsel with my mother and the abbé
“
‘
B ut Mé l ani came back in terror sobbing ou t: He is dying— h
e is
dying Come immediately— he is dying
“
My mother ru shed ou t My uncle ha d fallen onto the carpet full
length along the floor and did not move I fancy he was already dead
My mother was superb at that moment ! She went straight up to the
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137
SAVED
girls who were knee lin g by the body and trying to raise it up and
to
the
door
with
irresistible
authority
di
nity
and
majes
t
y
ointin
g
p
‘
Now it is for you to go ou t
e sai
sh
“
And they went out without a protest an d without saying a word I
m ust add that I was getting ready to turn them out as unceremonious l y
as I had done the parson and the porter
“
Then the Abb é Poivron administered extreme unction to my uncl e
with all the custom ary prayers and remitted all his sins while my
e ex
m other sobbed kn eeling near her brother Suddenly however sh
‘
cl aimed : He recognized me ; he pressed my hand ; I am sure he recog
niz ed me and thanked me ! O God what happiness !
“
Poor Mamma l If she had known or guessed to whom those thanks
ought to have been addressed !
“
T‘hey laid my u ncle on his
bed ; he was certainly d ea d that time
‘
Madame M elani said we have no sheets to bury him in ; all the
linen belongs to those two young ladies and when I looked at the
Omelet which they had not finished I felt inclined to laugh and to cry
at the same time There are some strange moments and some strange
sensations in life occasionally !
two
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“
We
gave my uncle a magnificent funeral with five speeches at the
grave Baron de Croisel l es the senator showed in admirable terms
that God always returns victorious into well born souls which have gone
astray for a moment All the members of the Royalist an d Catholic party
followed the funeral procession with triumphant enthusiasm speak
”
ing of that beautiful death after a somewhat restless life
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Viscount Roger ceased speaking and those arou nd him laughe d
“
Then somebody said : Bah ! That is the sto ry Of all conversions in
.
,
extrem is
”
.
S AVE D
TH E
L ITTL E M ARQ
UISE DE RE NNE DON came rushing in like a ball through
the window She began to laugh before she spoke to laugh till she
cried like she had done a month previously when she had told her
friend that she had betrayed the marquis in order to have her revenge
but only once just because he was really too stupid and too jealous
The l ittle Baroness de Crangerie had thrown the book which she
was reading onto the sofa and looked at Annette curiously She was
already laughin g herself and at last she asked
“
”
What have you been doing now?
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S HORT STORIE S OF DE
13 8
“
Oh my
dearl— m y d ear ! It is too
saved ! — saved ! saved !
,
I
M AUPASSANT
funny— too funny Just fan cy
.
am
“
”
How do you mean saved ?
”
“
Y
es saved !
“
From what ?
”
From my hus band my d ear saved ! D elivered ! free ! free ! free !
”
“
How free ? In what ?
“
In what? D ivorce ! yes a divorce ! I have my divorce !
”
“
Y
ou are divorced ?
“
No not yet ; how stupid you are ! One does not get divorced in three
hours ! But I have my proofs that he has deceived me— c aught in the
”
—
very
act just thinkl in the very act I have got him tight
“
Oh do tell me all about it ! SO he has deceived you ?
“
Yes that is to say no— yes and no— I do not know At any rate I
”
have proofs and that is the chief thing
“
How did you manage it ?
How did I manage it ? This is how ! I have been energetic very eu
er etic For the last three months he has been odious altoge ther odious
g
brutal coarse a despot— in one word vile SO I said to mysel f : This
cannot last I must have a divorce ! But how?— for it is not very easy
I tried to m ake him beat me but he would not He vexed me from
mornin g till night made me go ou t when I did not wish to and to
remain at home when I wanted to dine ou t; he made my life unbear
able for me from one week s en d to the other but he never struck me
“
Then I tried to find out whether he had a mistress Yes he had one
but he took a thousand precautions iii going to see her and they could
”
never be caught together Guess what I did then ?
”
“
I cannot guess
“
Oh ! you could never guess I asked my brother to procure me a
”
photograph of the creature
“
Of your husband s mistress ?
‘
Yes It cost Jaques fifteen lo u is the price of an evening from seven
O clock till midnight includ ing a dinner at three louis an hour an d
he O btained the photograph into the bargain
“
It appears to me that he might have Obtained it anyhow by means
of some artifice and without— without— without being obliged to take
the original at the same tim e
Oh ! she is ) retty and Jaques did not mind the least And then I
wanted some d
etails about her physical details about her figu re her
”
breast her complexion a thousand things in fact
“
”
I do not un derstand you
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
140
and as I did not exactl y kn ow what she was I calle d her m adem oi
‘
selle but she said immediately : Oh ! pray madame only call me
R ose‘ And she began to talk
Well Rose you know why you have come here ?
‘
I can g
u ess it m adame
V ery good my girl— and that will not be too much bother for
z
F
ou
y ‘
Oh ! madame this wil l be the eighth divorce that I shall have
c aused
; I am used to it
‘
Why that is capital Will it take you long to succeed ?
‘
Oh ! madam e that depends entirely on Monsieur s temperament
When I have seen Monsieur for five minutes alone I shall be able to
tell you exactly
‘
You wil l see him soon my child but I must tell you that he is not
handsome
‘
That does not matter to me madame I have already separated
some very ugly ones But I must ask you madame whether you hav e
dis covered
his favorite perfume ?
‘
Yes Ros e — verbena
‘
So much the better madame for I am also very fond of that scent !
Can you also tell me madame whether Monsieur s mistress wears
sil k un derclothing and nightdresses ?
‘
No my child c ambric and lace
‘
Oh ! then she is altogether of superior station for silk undercloth
ing is getting quite common
‘
What you say is quite true !
‘
Well madame I will enter your service And so as a matter of
fact she did imm ediately and as if she had done nothin g e l se all her
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An hour later my husban d came home Rose did not even raise her
eyes to him but he raised his eyes to her She already smelled strongly
of verbena In five minutes sh
e left the room and he immediately asked
‘
me : Who is that girl ?
‘
Why— m y new lad y s maid
‘
Where did you pick her up ?
‘
Baroness de Orangerie got her for me with the be st referen ces
‘
Ah ! she is rather p retty l
‘
DO you th ink so?
‘
Why yes—i for a l ady s maid
I was delighted for I felt that he was a lread y biting and that same
‘
ev ening Rose said to me : I can now promise you that it wil l not take
more than a fo rtnight Monsieur is very easily caught !
‘
Ah ! you hav e tried already?
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SAVE D
14 1
‘
NO madame he only asked what my name was
,
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,
that he
so
might hear what my voice was like
‘
Very well my de ar Rose Ge t on as quick as you can
‘
DO not be alarmed madame ; I shall only resist long enough not
to make myself depreciated
“
At the end of the week my husban d scarcely ever went ou t; I saw
him roaming about the house the whole afternoon and what w as most
si gnificant in the matter was that he no longer prevented me from going
ou t An d I I was out of doors nearly the whole day long— in order
in order to leave him at liberty
“
On the ninth day whil e Rose w as un dressing me she said to me
‘
with
a timid air : It happened this morning madame
“
I w as rather surprised or rather overcome even not at the p art
‘
itself but at the way in which she told me and I stammered ou t : An d
— and —it went off well?
‘
Oh yes very well madame For the last three days he has been
pressing me but I did not wish matters to proceed too quickly You
will tell me when you want us to be caught madame
‘
Y
es certainly Here ! Let us say Thursday
‘
Very well madame I shall grant nothin g more till then so as to
keep Monsieur on the alert
‘
You are sure not to fail ?
‘
Oh quite sure madame I will excite him so as to make him be
there at the very moment which you may ap p om t
‘
Let us say five o clock then
‘
Very well madame and where ?
‘
VVell — in my b edroom
‘
Very good madame in your bedroom
“
You wil l understand what I did then my dear I went and fetche d
M amm a and Pappa first of all and then my uncle d Orvel in the presi
dent and Monsieur Rap l et the judge my husband s friend I had not
told them what I was goin g to show them b ut I made them all go on
tiptoe as far as the door of my room I waited till five O clock exactly
and oh how my heart b eat ! I had made the porter come upstairs as
well so as to have an additional witness ! And then— and then at the
moment when the clock began to strik e I opened the door wide Ah !
ah ! ah ! Here he was evidently— it was quite evident my dear Oh
what a head ! If you had only seen his head ! And he turned round the
i diot ! Oh ! how funny he looked— I laughed I laughed And papa was
angry and wanted to give my husband a b eating And the porter a
good servant helped him to dress himself before u s— b efore us He b ut
toned his braces for him— what a joke it was ! As for Rose she was
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
142
perfect absolutely perfect She cried— o h! she cried very well She is
an invaluable girl If you ever want her don t forget !
“
And here I am I came im mediately to tell you of the affair directly
I am free Long live divorce !
And she b egan to dance in the middle of the drawing room whil e
the little b aroness who was thoughtful and put ou t said :
“
Why did you not invite me to see it?
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T HE D E V I L
TH E
PEAS ANT
W AS
S TAND IN G OPPO S ITE the d octor by the be d sid e
,
of
the dying Ol d woman and she calmly resigned and quite lucid looke d
at them and listened to their talking She was going to die and she
did not rebel at it for her life was over— S he was ninety two
The July sun streamed in at the window and through the Open door
and cast its hot flames onto the uneven brown clay floor which had
been stamped down by four generations of clodhoppers The smell of
the fields came in also driven by the brisk wind and parched by the
noontide heat The grasshoppers chirped themselves hoarse filling the
air with the ir shrill noise like that of the wooden crickets which are
sold to children at fair tim e
The doctor raised his voice and said : Honoré you
cannot l eave your
”
mother in this state ; she may die at any moment And the peasant in
“
great distress replied : But I must get in my wheat for it has been
lying on the ground a long time and the weather is just right for it ;
”
what do you say about it Mother? And the dying woman stil l pos
sessed by her Norman avariciousness replied yes with her eyes an d
her forehead and so urged her son to get in his wheat and to leave
her to die alone But the doctor got angry and stamping his foot he
“
said : You are no better than a brute ; do you he ar? And I will not
allow you to do it D o you understand ? And if you must get in your
wheat today go and fetch Rap et s wife and make her look after your
mother I w il l have it And if you do not obey me I will let you die like
a dog when you are ill in your turn ; do you hear me ?
The peasant a tall thin fellow with slow movements who was tor
m ented by indecision b y his fear of the doctor and his keen love for
saving hesitated : calculated and stammered out : How much does
”
La Ra pet charge for attending sick people ?
How should I know? the doctor cried That depends upon how
lon S he is wanted for Settle it with her by Jove ! But I want her to
be ere within an hour ; do you he ar?
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SHORT S TORIE S OF DE MAUPASSANT
144
“
La Rapet an were d grave ly There are two prices
forty sous by d ay
and three francs by night for the rich and twenty sous by day and
”
forty by night for the others You shall pay me the twenty and forty
But the peasant reflected for he knew his mother well He knew how
tenacious of lif e how vigorou s and unyielding she was He knew too
that she might last ano ther week in spite of the doctor s O pinion and so
“
he said resolutely : No I would rather you woul d fix a price until the
en d I will t ake my chance one way or the other The doctor says she
will die very soon If that happens so much the better for you and
e worse for me but if sh
so much th
e holds out till tomorrow or l onger
”
so much the be tter for me and s o much th
e worse for you !
The nurse looked at the man in astonishment for she had never
treated a death as a specul ative job and she hesitated tempted by the
idea of the possible gain But al most immediately she suspected that
“
he wanted to juggle her I can say nothing until I have seen your
mother she replied
“
Then come with me an d see her
She washed her hands and went with him immediately They d i d
not speak on the road ; She walked with short has ty steps while he
strode on with his long legs as if he were crossing a brook at every
step The cows lyin g down i_n the fields overcome by the heat raised
their heads heavily and lowed feebly at the two p assers by as if to
ask them for some green grass
“
When they got near the house Honoré Bontemps murmu red : Sup
”
pose it is all over ? And the unconscious wish that it might be so
showed itself in the so und of his voice
But the old woman w as not dead She was lying on her back on her
wretched bed her hands covered with a pink cotton counterpane hor
n otty paws l ike some strange animal s or like crabs claws
th
n
k
i
rib l
y
hands closed b y rheumatism fatigue and the work of nearly a century
which she had accomplished
La Rapet went up to the bed an d looke d at the dying woman felt
her pulse tapped her on the chest listened to her breathing and asked
her questions so as to hear her speak ; then having looked at her for
some time longer she went ou t Of the room followed by Honoré H is
d ecided O pinion“
was that the old woman would not last out the night
”
“
an d he asked : Well ? And the sick nurse replied : Well she may
l ast two daysh p erha”p s three You will have to give me six francs
e very thing included
“
“
Six francs ! Six francs ! he shouted Are you ou t of your min d ?
”
I tell you that she cannot last more than five or six hours ! And they
disputed angrily for some tirne but as the nurse said she would go
home as the time was slipping away and as his wheat wo ul d not
s
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THE DEVIL
145
come to the farmyar d of its own accord he agreed to her terms at l ast
“
Very well then that is settle d ; six francs including everything u nti l
”
.
,
,
,
e
th
,
corpse is taken out
”
“
That is settled six francs
And he went away with l ong strid es to the wheat which was l ying
e
on the ground under the hot sun which ripens the grain while th
s ick nurse re turned to the house
She had brought some work with her for she worked without stop
ping by the side of the dead and dying sometim es for herself som e
times for the family who employe d her as seamstress also paying her
e asked :
rather more in that capacity Suddenly sh
“
Have you received the last sacrament Mother Bontemps ?
The ol d peasant woman said no with her head and La Rapet who
was very devout got up quickly Good heavens is it possible ? I will
”
go and fetch the curé and she rushe d off to the parsonage so quickly
that the urchins in the street thought some accident had happened
when they saw her trotting Off like that
The priest came immediately in his surplice preceded by a choir
e
boy who rang a bell to announce the passage of the Host through th
parched and quiet country Some men working at a distance took off
their large hats and remained motionless until the white v estm ent ha d
d isappeared behin d some farm buildings ; the women who were mak
ingup the sheaves stoo d up to make the sign of the cross ; the fri ght
ened black hens ran away along the d itch until they reached a we ll
known hole through which they suddenly disappeared while a foa l
which was tied up in a meadow took fright at the sight of the sur
l ice and began to gallop roun d at the length of its rope kicking vio
pently The choirboy in his re d cassock walke d quickly an d the priest
the square biretta on his bowed head followed him muttering some
prayers Last of all came La Rapet bent alm ost d ouble as if she
wished to prostrate h erself ; she walke d with folde d han d s as if she
were in church
“
Honoré saw them pass in the distance and he asked Where is our
”
“
priest going to ? And his man who was more acute replied : He is
”
taking the sacrament to your mother of course !
“
The peasant was not surprised and said : That is quite p o ssible
and went on with h
is work
M other Bontemps confesse d receive d absolution an d extreme unc
tion and the priest took his departu re leaving the two women alone
in the suffocating cottage La Rapet began to look at the dying woman
and to ask herself whether it could last much longer
The day was on the wane and a cooler air came in stronger puffs
m aking a m w of Epinal w hich was fastene d to the wall by two pins
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S HORT S TORIE S OF
146
D E MAU PASSANT
flap up and down The scanty wind ow curtains which had form erly
been white but were now yel low an d covered with flysp ecks looked
as if they were going to fly off an d seemed to struggle to get away like
the old wom an s soul
Lying motionless with her eyes open the O ld mother seemed to
await the death which w as s o near an d which yet delay ed its coming
with perfect indifference Her short breath whistled in her throat It
would st0 p al together soon an d there would be one woman less in
the world one whom no b ody would regret
At nightfal l Honoré returned and whe n he went up to the bed an d
“
”
How is she? just as he
s aw that his mother w as still alive he asked :
sh
h ad done formerly when
e had been sick Then he sent La Rapet
“
”
away saying to her : Tomorrow morning at five O clock without fail
“
Tomorrow at five O clock
e replied :
An d sh
She cam e at daybreak and found Honor é eating his soup which h
e
ha d made himself before going to work
”
“
W
ell is your mother dead ? asked the nurse
”
“
She is rather b etter on the contrary he replied with a malignant
is eyes Then he went ou t
l ook ou t Of the corners of h
La Rapet was seized with an xie ty and went up to the dying wom an
ic and impassive her eyes O pen
who w as in the same state lethar g
and her h ands clutch
ing the counterpane The nurse perceived that
might go on thus for two days four days eight days even an d
her avaricious mind was seized with fe ar She was excited to fury
again st the cunning fellow who had tri cked her and against the
woman who would not die
Neve rtheless she b egan to sew an d waited with her eyes fixed on
e wrinkled face of Mother Bontemps
When Honoré returned to
th
breakfast he seemed quite satis fied and even in a banterin g humor
for he was carry ing in h
is wheat under very favorable circumstances
La Rapet was getting exasperated ; every passing minute now seemed
er She felt a m ad
to her SO much tim e and money stolen from h
inclination to choke this Ol d ass this heads trong O ld fool this obs ti
nate ol d wretch— to stop that short rapid b reath which was robbing
her of her time and money by squeezing her throat a little But then
e reflected on the danger of doing so
sh
and other thoughts came
“
into her head so she went up to the bed and said to her : Have you
”
ev er see n the de vil ?
“
MOther Bontemps whispere d : NO
Then the sick nurse began to talk an d to te ll her tales likely to
“
terrify her weak and dying mind Some minutes before one dies the
”
“
d e vil appe ars she said to all He has a broom in his hand a sauce
pan on his hea d and he utters lou d cries When anybod y has seen
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SHORT S TORIE S OF DE M A U PASS A N T
148
known that marriages are made in heaven and at the birth of a boy
a divine voice calls ou t the name of his future wife and v ice versa
But just as a good father tries to get rid of his good wares ou t of doors
and only uses the damaged stuff at home for his children so God
bestows on the Talm udists those women whom other men would not
c are to have
Well God made an exception in th e case of our Talmudist and ha d
bestowed a Venu s on him perhaps only in or d er to confirm the rule
by means Of this exception and to make it appear less hard This
hil osop her s wife was a woman who would have done honor to any
ing s throne or to a pedestal in any sculpture gallery Tall and with
a wonderfully voluptuous figure she carried a strikingly beautifu l
head surrounded by thick black plaits on her proud shoulders Two
large dark eyes l anguished and glowed beneath long lashes and her
beautiful hands looked as if they were carved out of ivory
This glorious woman who seemed to have been designe d by nature
to rule to s ee slaves at her feet to provide occupation for the painter s
brush the sculptor s chisel and the poet s pen lived the life of a rare
a nd beautiful flower shut up in a h
oth
ou se Sh
e woul d sit the whole
d ay long wrapped up in her costly furs looking down dreamily into
th
e street
She ha d no children ; her husband the phil osopher s tud ie d an d
prayed and s tudied again from early morning until late at night ; his
“
mistress was the Veiled Beauty as the Talmudists call the Kabbalah
She paid no attention to her house for she was rich and everything
went of its own accord like a clock which has only to be wound up
once a week ; nobody came to see her an d she never went ou t of
th
e house ; she sat and dreamed and brooded and— yawned
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One day when a terrible storm of thunder and lightning ha d spent
its fury over the town and all win d ows had been O pened in order
to let the Messias in the Jewish Venus was sitt ing as usual in her
comfortable easy chair shivering in spite of her furs and thinking
Suddenly she fixe d her glowing eyes on her husband who was sittin
be ore the Ta lmu d swaying his body backward and forward an d sai
m i de u l !
“
Just tell me when will Messias the son of D avid come?
“
”
He wil l come the philosopher re lied when al l the Jews have
become either altogether virtuous or a together vic ious says the T a!
,
.
,
é
,
,
,
,
g
,
,
,
,
m ud
“
Do
.
”
u ous ?
believe
that
a
ll
the
Jews
w
i
ll
e
v
er
become
v
irt
the
y
Venus continued
ou
.
TH E
“
How
B RANIZA
VENUS OF
149
am I to believe that?
’
SO Messias Will come when all the Jews have become viciou s ?
The philosopher shrugged his shoulders and lost himself again in
the labyrinth of the Talmud ou t of which so it is said only one m an
returned in perfect sanity The beautiful woman at the window again
looked dreamily ou t into the heavy rain while her white fingers played
uncons ciously wi th the d ark furs of her splen d id robe
,
,
.
,
.
One d ay the Jewish philosopher had gone to a neighboring town
where an im portant question of ritual was to b e decided Thanks to
his learning the question was settled sooner than he had expected
and instead of returning the next mornin g as he had intende d he came
back the same evening with a friend who was no less learne d th an
is carriage at h
ot out of h
is friend s house and went home
hiinsel f He g
on foot He was not a little surprised when he saw his windows bril
l iantl y ill uminated and found an O fficer s serv ant comfortably smokin g
his pipe in front of his house
“
What are you doing here ? he aske d in a friendly manner but
with some curiosity nevertheless
“
I am on guard lest the husban d of the beautiful Jewess should come
”
home unexpectedly
“
Indeed ? Well mind an d keep a good l ookout
Sayin g this the philosopher pretended to go away but went into the
house through the garden entrance at the back When he got into the
first room he found a table laid for two which had evidently only
been left a short time previously H is wife was sitting as usual at her
bedroom window wrapped in her furs but her cheeks were susp i
uishing look
ciou sl
y red and her dark eyes had not their usual lan g
but now rested on her husband with a gaze which expressed at the
same time satisfaction and mockery At that moment his foot s tuck
against an O bject on the floor which gave out a strange sound H e
picked it up and examined it in the light It was a pair O f spurs
”
“
Who has been here with you ? asked the Talmudist
The Je wish Venus shrugged her shoulders contemptuously but did
not reply
“
”
Sh al l I tell you ? The captain of hussars has been with you
”
“
And why should he not have been here with me ? she sai d smooth
ing the fur on her jacket with her white hand
“
”
W
oman ! are you out of your mind ?
“
I am in full possession of my senses she replied and a knowin g
“
sm ile hovered round her red v olup tuous l ips But must I not also do
”
m y part in or d er that M essias m a
ewsl
c
ome
an
d
re
d
eem
u s poor J
y
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SH ORT S TORIE S OF DE M AU PAS SANT
150
T HE
R AB B I T
appeared at the door of his house at his u sual hour
between five and a quarter past five in the morning to look after his
men who were going to work
With a red face only half awake his right eye Open and the l eft
nearly closed he was buttoning his braces over his fat stomach wi th
some difficulty all the M e looking into every corner of the farm
yard with a searching glance The sun was d arting his oblique rays
through the beech trees by the side of the ditch and the apple trees
outside making the cocks crow on the d u nghill and the pigeons coo
on the roof The smell of the cow stall s came through the O pen door
mingling in the fresh morning air with the pungent odor of the stable
where the horses were neighing with their heads turned toward the
ht
l ig
As soon as his trousers were properly fastened Lecach
eur came ou t
and went first of all toward the hen hous e to count the morning s eggs
for he had been suspectin g thefts for some time But the servant gir l
ran up to h
im with lifted arms and cried
“
M aster ! Master ! They have stolen a rabbit d uring the night
”
“
A rab b it?
“
Yes master the big gray rabbit from the hutch on the left Where
upon the farmer quite Opened his left eye and said simply
”
“
I mus t see that
An d off he went to inspect it The hutch had been b roken O pen and
the rabbit was gone Then he became thoughtful closed his left eye
again scratched his nose and after a little consideration said to the
fri ghtened girl who was st anding s tupidly beforehim :
“
Go and fetch the gendarmes ; say I expect them as soon as possible
ul ed it
P airg
and
r
r l e Gras
Lecach
eu r was mayor of the v illage
y
like a ty rant on account of his money and position As soon as the
servant had disappeared in the direction of the village which was
only about five hundred yards Off he went into the house to have his
morning co ffee and to discuss the matter with his wife He found her
on her knees in front of the fire trying to get it to burn up quickly As
soon as he got to the door he said :
“
Somebody has stolen the gray rabbit
She turned roun d so u ickl y that she found herself sitting on the
floor and looking at her us band with distressed eyes she said :
OLD LE GACH E UR
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152
“
SHORT STORIE S OF D E M AUPASSAN T
'
obbery If I had seen him I should have made him eat it raw s k in
and flesh without a drop of cider to wash it down As for saying who
”
it is I cannot al though I believe it is that good for no thing Polyte
Then he related at length his troubles with Polyte his leaving his
service his bad reputation things which had b een told him accu m u
l ating insignificant and minute proofs Then the b rigadier who had
been listening very attentively while he emptied his glass
it again turned to his gendarme with an indifferent air and said
“
”
We must go and look in the cottage of Severin s wife At which
the gendarme smiled and nod d ed three times
Then Mme Lecacheu r came to them and v ery quietly with all a
peasant s cu nning questioned the brigadier in her turn The shepherd
Severin a sim pleton a sort of brute who had b een brought up from
youth among his bleatin g flocks and who knew of scarcely anything
besides them in the world had nevertheless preserved the peasant s
instinct for saving at the bottom of his heart F or years and years h e
had hidden in ho l low trees and crevices in the rocks all that he earned
either as shepherd or by curin g the fractu res of animals (for the
bonesetter s secret had been handed down to him by the old shepher d
whose place he took ) by touch or advice for one day he bought a
sm all property cons isting of a cottage an d a field of three thou s an d
fr ancs
A few months later it became known that he was going to m arry a
servant notorious for her bad morals the inkeep er s servant The young
fellows said that the girl knowing that he was pre tty well off had
been to his cottage every night and had taken him bewitche d him l e d
h
im on to matrimony little by little night by night
And then having been to the mayor s offi
ce and to church she live d
in the house which her man had bought while he continued to ten d
his flocks day and night on the plains
And the brigadier added
“
Polyte has b een sleeping with her for three weeks for the thief
”
has no place of his own to go tol
Th
e gendarme made a little joke
”
“
He takes the shepherd s blankets
Mme Lecacheu r seized by a fresh access of rage of rage increased
by a married woman s anger against debauchery exclaim ed
”
“
It is she I am sure Go there Ah ! The blackguard thieves l
But the b ri gadier was quite unmoved
“
“
A minute he said Let us wait until twelve o clock ; as Polyte
oes a nd d ines there every day I shall catch them with it under their
g
noses
The genda rm e sm iled pleased at his chief s idea and Lecacheu r
r
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TH E RABBI T
153
im
also smiled now for the affair of the shepher d stru ck h
funny : deceived husbands are a lways amusing
,
very
as
.
Twel ve o clock had just struck when the brigadier followed by his
’
,
man knocked gently three times at the door of a small lonely house
s ituate d at the corner of a wood some five hundred yards from the
vil la e
stood
close
aga
i
nst the wall so as not to be seen from within
e
TE
y
and waited As no b ody answered the brigadier knocked again in a
m inute or two It was so quiet that the house seemed uninhabited but
Lenient the gendarme who had very quick ears said that he hear d
somebody moving about inside Sénateur got an gry He would not
a l low anyone to resist the authority of the law for a moment an d
knocking at the loor with the hilt of his sword he cried out
”
“
Open the door in the name of the law
As this ord er had no e ffect he roared ou t
“
If you do not obey I shall smash the lock I am the brigadier of
”
the gendarmery by God ! Here Lenient
He had not finished speaking when the door opened and Sénateur
saw before him a fat girl with a very red color blowzy with pendent
breasts big stomach and broad hips a sort of sanguine and sensual
female the wife of the shepherd Severin He entered the cottag
e
“
”
I have come to pay you a visit as I want to make a little search
he said and he looked about him On the table there was a plate a
jug of cider and a glass half full which provided that a meal had been
going on Two knives were lying side by side and the shrewd gen
d arme winked at his superior cflicer
“
”
It smells good the latter said
“
One might swear that it was stewed rabbit Lenient added much
am used
“
Will you have a glass of brandy? the peasant woman asked
“
No thank you ; I only want the skin of the rabbit that you are
,
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g
pretended not to understan d
“
eatin
Sh
”
,
but she was trembling
.
What rabbit ?
The brigadier had t aken a seat and was calmly wiping his forehead
“
Come come you are not going to try and make us b elieve that
.
,
,
you live on couch grass What were you eating there all by yourself
”
for your dinner?
“
I ? Nothing whatever I swear to you A mite of butter on my
bread
“
You are a novice my good woman— a m ite of bu tter on your bread
.
,
.
.
,
.
SHORT S TORIE S OF DE M AUPAS SAN T
154
mist aken ; you ought to have said : a mite of butter on the
rabbit B y G od your butter smells good ! It is special butter e xtra
”
good butter butter fit for a wedding certaml y not household butter !
The gendarme was shaking with laughter and repeated :
“
N ot household butter cert ainly
As B rigadier S é nateu r was a joker al l the gendarmes h
ad grown
facetious and the o ffi
cer continued :
”
“
Where is your butter?
”
“
My butter ?
“
”
Yes your b utter
“
In the jar
”
“
Then where is the butter jar?
”
“
Here it is
S he brought out an ol d cup at the bottom of which there was a
l ayer of rancid salt butter The brigadier smelle d it and said with a
shake of his hea d :
“
It is not the same I want the butter that smells of the rabbit Com g
Lenient O pen your eyes ; look under the sidebo ard my goo d fellow
”
and I will look under the be d
Having shut the door he went up to the bed an d tried to move it
bu t it was fixed to the wal l and had not been moved for more than
half a century apparently Then the brigad ier stooped and ma de hn
u niform crack A button had flown off
”
“
Lenient he said
”
“
Yes Brigadier?
“
Come here my lad an d l ook under the be d ; I am too t all I will
”
l ook after the sidebo ard
”
He got up and waite d whil e his man executed his orders
Lenient who was short and stout took off his kepi l aid hims el f on
his stomach and putt ing his face on the floor looked at the black ca vity
under the bed Then suddenly he exclaimed
”
“
All right here we are !
“
”
W
hat have you got? The rabbit?
“
”
No the thief
”
“
The thief ! Pull him out pull him out !
The gendarme had put his arm s under the bed and laid hold of
something He pulled with all his might and at last a foot sh od in a
thick boot app eared which he was holding in his right hand The
brigadier grab b ed it crying :
“
”
Pull pull !
And Lenient who was on his knees by that tim e was p u llin g a t
the other leg But it was a hard job for the prisoner kicked out h ard
and arched up his b ack across the b ed
You
are
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SHORT STORIES OF DE MAUPASSANT
156
“
Yes has
,
he any right before the law
s
”
,
d
an
see ing that she is my wife
,
go to bed with Polyte ?
“
Why of course not of course not
“
If I catch him there again shall I have the right to thras h him an d
her“also ?
— why— why yes
VVh
y
“
Ve ry well then ; I will tell you why I want to know On e night last
week as I had my suspicions I cam e in suddenly and they were not
behavin g properly I chucked Polyte ou t to go and sleep som ewher
else but that was al l as I did not know what my rights were This
time I did not see them ; I only hear d of it from others That is over
and we will not say an y more about it ; but if I catch them again
b y G od! if I catch them again— I will make them lose all taste for
”
such nonsense Maitre Cacheux as sure as my name is Severin
to
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,
WA I TE R
WHY
,
,
A B OCK !
1
I enter a certain beer shOp ? I
c annot explain it It was bitterly cold A fine rain a watery mist floated
about veilin g the gas jets in a transparent fog making the pavements
under the shadow of the shOp fronts glitter which revealed the soft
slush and the soiled feet of the passers by
I was going nowhere in particular ; was sim ply having a short walk
after dinn er I had passed the Credit Lyonn ais the Rue Vivienne an d
several other stre ets Suddenly I descried a large café which was more
than half full I walked ins ide with no o b ject in mind I was not the
least thirsty
By a searching glance I d etected a place where I woul d not be too
much crowded So I went and sat down by the side of a man who
seemed to me to be old and who smoked a halfp enny clay pipe which
had be come as black as coal From six to eight b eer saucers were piled
u on the table in front of him indicating the number of b ooks he had
aE
eady a b sorbed With that same glance I had recognized in him a
”
“
regu lar toper one of those fre quenters of beerhouses who come in the
morning as soon as the place is Open and only go away in the evening
when it is a bout to close He was d irty bald to ab out the middle of
the cranium while his long gray hair fell over the neck of his frock
coat His clothes much too large for him appeared to have been made
for him at a time when he was very stout One could gu ess that his
ON
,
THI S
PARTI CUL AR EVENIN G
.
di d
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Bav ari an beer
.
WAITER A B OCK !
157
,
ntaloons
were
not
held
up
by
braces
and
that
this
man
coul
d
not
p
take ten paces without having to pull them up and readjust them D id
he we ar a vest? The mere thought of his boots and the feet they envel
Oped filled me with horror The frayed cuffs were as black at the e d ges
is nails
as were h
As soon as I ha d sat down near him this queer creature sai d to m e
in a tranquil tone of voice :
“
”
How goes it with you ?
I turned sharply ro u nd to him and closely scanne d his features
whereupon
he continued :
“
I see you do not recognize me
”
“
No I do not
“
D es Barrets
ed It w as Count j ean des Barrets my ol d college chum
I was stu p ifi
I seiz ed him by the hand so d umfounded that I could find nothing
to say I at length managed to stammer out:
“
”
And you how goes it with you ?
He responded placidly
“
With me ? j ust as I like
He became sil ent I wanted to be friendl y and I selected this phrase
“
”
W
hat are you doing now?
“
You see what I am doing he answere d quite resignedly
I“felt my face getting
red I insisted :
”
But every day ?
“
Every day is alik e to me was his respons e accompanie d with
a thick puff of tobacco smoke
He then tapped on the top of the marb le table with a sou to attract
e attention of the waiter and ca l led ou t
th
“
Waiter tw o b ooks
A voice in the distance repeate d
”
“
Two bocks instead of four
Another voice more distant stil l shouted ou t
”
“
Here they are sir here they are
Immediately there appeared a man with a white apron carrying two
books which he set down foaming on the table the foam running over ‘
th
e edge onto the sandy floor
Des Barrets emptied his glass at a single d raught and replaced it on
the table suckin g in the drops of beer that had been left on his m us
tache He next asked
“
W
hat is there new?
“
I know of nothing new worth mentioning really I stammere d
”
“
But nothin g has grown old for me ; I am a commercial man
In an equable tone of voice he said :
a
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SHORT STORIE S O F D E MAUPASSANT
158
“
”
Indeed— does that amuse you?
“
”
N o but what do you mean by that? Surely you must do something !
“
”
What do you mean by that?
”
“
I only me an how do you pass your h e?
“
What s the use of occupying myself with anything? For my part I
,
,
’
,
nothin g at all as you see never anything When one has not g
ot
a sou one can understand why one has to go to work What is the good
of working ? D o you work for yourself or for others ? If you work for
yourself you do it for you r own amusement which is all right ; if you
”
work for others you reap nothing but ingrati tude
Then sticking his pipe into his mouth he called ou t anew
“
W aiter a b ook! It makes me thirs ty to keep call ing so I am not
accu stomed to that sort of thing Yes I do nothing ; I let things slide
and I am growing ol d In dying I shall have nothing to regret If s o
I should remember nothing outside this public house I have no wife
no children no cares no sorrows nothing That is the very best that
”
could happen to one
He then emptied the glass which had been brought him pas sed h
is
tongue over his l ips and resume d his pipe
I looked at him stu p efi
ed and asked him
”
“
But you have not always been like that ?
”
“
Pardon me sir ; ever since I left college
“
It is not a proper life to lead my dear sir; it is simply horrible
Come you mus t indeed have done something ; you must have loved
”
something ; you must have friends
“
No I get up at noon ; I come here ; I have my breakfast ; I drink my
book; I remain until evening ; I have my dinner ; I drink b ook Then
about one in the morning I return to my couch b ecause the place closes
up And it is this la tter that embitters me more than anything For the
last ten ye ars I have passed six tenths of my tini e on this bench in my
com er and the other four tenths in my bed never changing I talk
”
sometimes with the habitués
”
“
But on arriving in Paris what di d you d o at first?
”
“
I paid my devoirs to the C afé de Mediis
”
“
W
hat next?
”
“
Next ? I crossed the water an d c ame here
”
“
W
hy did you take even that trouble ?
“
What do you mean ? One cannot remain all one s life in the Latin
Quarter The s tudents make too much noise But I do not move about
”
any longer Waiter a b ook
I now began to think that he was making fun of me and I continued
Come now be frank You have been the victim of some great sor
do
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S HORT STORIES OF D E
M AUPASSAN T
I was then thirteen years ol d happy satisfie d with everything as
one is at that age and full of joy an d vivacity
Now toward the en d of September a few days before entering the
160
,
,
,
.
,
,
lyc é e whil e I was enjoying myself in the mazes of the park climb ing
the trees and swinging on the branches I saw crossing an avenue my
father and mother who were walk ing together
“
I recall the thing as though it were yesterday It w as a very win d y
d ay The whole line of trees bent under the pressure of the wind
moaned and seemed to utter cries— c ries d ull yet deep —so that the
whole forest groaned under the gale
“
Evening had come on and it was d ark in the thickets The agita
tion of the wind and the branches excite d me made me skip about l ik e
an idiot and howl in imitation of the wolves
“
As soon as I perceived my parents I crept furtively toward them
Under the branches in or d er to s urprise them as though I had been
a v eritable wolf But suddenly seized with fear I stoppe d a few paces
from them My father a prey to the most violent passion cried
‘
Your mother is a fool ; moreover it is not your mother that is the
question ; it is you I tell you that I want money and I will make you
s ign this
“
My mother respond e d in a firm voi ce
‘
I will not sign it It is j ean s fo rtune ; I sh all gu ard it for him an d
I will not allow you to devour it with strange women as you have your
own heritage
“
Then my father full of rage wheele d ro un d and seized his wife by
the throat and began to slap her fu ll in the face with the disengaged
hand
“
My mother s hat fe ll O ff ; her hair became d ishevele d and fel l d own
her back ; she essayed to parry the blows but could not escape from
them And my father like a madman banged and banged at her My
mother rolled over on the ground covering her face in both her han d s
Then he turned her over on her back in order to batter her still more
pulling away the hands which were covering her face
“
As for me my friend it seemed as though the worl d ha d come to
an end that the eternal laws had changed I experienced the over
whelming dread that one has in presence of things supe rnatural in pres
ence of irreparable disaster My boyish head whirled round and soared
I began to cry with all my might without knowing why a prey to ter
ror to grief to a dreadful b ewilde rment My fathe r heard me I
believed that he wanted to kill me and I fled like a hunted anim al
running straight in front of me through the woods
“
I ran perhaps for an hour perhaps for two ; I know not D arkness
had s et in ; I tu m b led O er some thick herbs exhausted and I lay there
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16 1
D IVORCE
lost devoured by terror eaten up by a sorrow capab le of breaking for
TH E
SEQUEL
TO A
,
,
ever the heart of a child I became cold ; I became hungry At length
day broke I dared neither get up walk return home or save myself
fearing to encounter my father whom I did not wish to see again
“
I should pro b ably have died O f misery and of hunger at the foot
of a tree if the guard had not discovered me and led me b y force
“
I found my parents wearing their ordinary aspect My mother alone
spoke to me :
‘
How you have frightened me you naughty boy ; I have been the
whole night sleepless
“
I did not answer but began to weep My father did not utter a single
word
“
Eight days later I entered the lyc é e
“
Well my friend it was all over with me I had witnesse d the o ther
sid e of things the b ad side ; I have not been able to perceive the goo d
side since that day What things have passed in my mind what strange
henom ena have warped my ideas I do not know But I no longer
ave a taste for anything a wish for anything a love for anybody a
desire for anything whatever no ambition no hope And I always see
my poor mother lying on the ground in the avenue while my father
was maltreating her My mother died a few years after ; my father l ive s
”
still I have not seen him since Waiter a b ook
A waiter brought him his book which he swallowed at a gulp But in
taking up his pipe aga in trembling as he was he b roke it Then he
m ade a violent gesture
“
Zou nds ! This is indeed a grief a real grief I have ha d it for
”
month and it was coloring so beautifu l ly !
Then he went off through the vast saloon which was now full of
sm oke and of people drinking calling ou t :
”
“
Waiter a book— and a new pipe
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T H E SE
Q
UE L T O A
D I V OR C E
CE RTAIN LY although he had been engaged in the most extraord inary
,
,
most unlikely most extravagant and funniest cases and had won legal
games without a trump in his hand although he had worked out the
Obscure law of divorce as if it had been a California gold mine Maitre
Carru l ier the celebrated the only Carru l ier could not check a move
ment of surprise or a disheartening shake O f the head or a smil e when
,
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x
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‘
Title given
to
advocates
in
Fr nce
a
.
SHORT STORIES OF DE MAUPASSANT
162
the Countess de
B au dé m
explained her affairs to him for the first
ont
He had just opened his correspond ence and his slend er han d s on
which he bestowed the greatest attention buried themselves in a heap
of fem ale letters and one might have thought oneself in the confes
s ional of a fashiona b le preacher so impregnated w as the a tmosphere
with de l icate perfumes
Immediately even before she had said a word with the sharp glance
that look which made b eautiful
of a practiced man of the world
”
“
M me de Serp enoise say : He strips your heart bare ! the lawyer had
cl assed her in the third category Those who suffer came into his first
c ategory ; those who love into the second and those who are bored into
and she belonged to the latter
e third
th
She was a pretty windm il l whose sails tu rned an d flew roun d and
fretted the blue sky with a delicious shiver of joy as it were a nd ha d
the brain of a bird in which four correct and healthy ideas c ann ot
exist side by side and in which all dr eam s and every kind of foll y
reat kaleidoscope
ulfed like a g
are en g
Incapable of hurting a fly emotional cha rita ble with a feelin g of
tenderness for the street girl who sells bunches of violets for a penny
for a cab horse which the driver is il l us ing for a mel ancholy pauper s
funeral when the body without friend s or relations to fol low it is
being conveyed to the common grave doin g anything that might affor d
five minutes amusement not caring if she made men miserable for
the rest of their days and taking pleasure in kindling passions which
consumed men s whole being looking upon l ife as too short to be any
thing else than one uninterrupted round of gaiety and enjoyment she
thought that people might find plenty of tim e for being serious an d
reasonab le in the evenin g of life when they are at the b ottom of the
hill and their looking glasses reveal a wrinkled face surrounded with
white hair
A thoroughbred Parisian whom one would fol low to the end Of the
world like a poodle a woman whom one adores with the head the
heart and the senses until one is nearly driven mad as soon as one has
inhaled the delicate perfume that emanates from her dress and hair
or touched her skin and heard her laugh a woman for whom one woul d
fight a duel and risk O ne s life without a thought for whom a man
would remove moun tains and sell his soul to the devil several times
over if the devil were still in the habit of frequenting the places of ba d
repute on this earth
She had perhaps come to see this Carru l ier whom she had so O ften
heard mentioned at five o clock teas s o as to be able to describe him to
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPASSANT
164
“
All the better for her if it amuses her !
Then he bought Baron Sil b erstein s yacht and with some frien d s got
a
cruise
to
Ceylon
an
d
India
u
p
Marie Anne began by triumphing and felt as happy as a schoolgirl
going home for the holid ays ; she committed every possible folly and
usted began to yawn cried and found ou t
soon tired satiated and dis g
that she had sacrificed her happiness like a millionaire who has gone
mad and has cast his b ank notes and shares into the river and that she
was nothing more than a disabled waif and s tray Consequently she
now married again as the solitude of her home made her morose from
morning till night ; and then besides she found a woman requ ires a
m ansion when she goes into socie ty to race meetings or to the theater
And so while she b ecame a marchioness and pronounced her secon d
”
“
Yes before a very few friends at the o ffice of the mayor of the English
urban dis trict malicious people in the F au b ou rgwere making fun of
the whole affair and affirming this and that whether rightly or wrongly
and comparing the present husband with the former one even declaring
that he had partially been the cause of the former divorce Meanwhil e
M de Baud emont was wandering over the four quarters of the globe
trying to overcome his homesickness and to deaden his l ongi ng for
love which had taken possession of his heart and of his body like a
slow poison
He traveled through the most ou t of—the way places and the most
l ovely countries and spent months and months at sea and plunged into
every kind of dissipation and debauchery But neither the supple forms
nor the luxurious gestu res of the bayaderes nor the large passive eyes
O f the Creoles nor flirtations with English girls with hair the color of
new cider nor nights of waking dreams when he saw new constella
tions in the sky nor dangers during which a man thinks it all over with
him and mutters a few words of prayer in spite of h imself when the
waves are high and the sky black nothing was able to make him forget
that little Parisian woman who smelled so sweet that she might have
been taken for a bouquet of rare flowers ; who was so coaxing so
curious so funny ; who never had the same caprice the same smile or
the same look tw ice and who at bottom was worth more than many
others either saints or sinners
He thought of her constantly during l ong hours of sleeplessness He
carried her por trait a b out with him in the breast pocket of his pea
jacket— a charming portrait in which she was smiling and showing her
white teeth betw een her half Open lips Her gentle eyes with their
magnetic look had a happy frank expression and from the mere ar
rangement of her hair one could see that she was fair among the fair
He used to kiss that por trait of the wom an who had b een his wife as
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THE SEQ U EL TO A DIVOR CE
165
he wis hed to cflace it would look at it for hours and then throw
himself down on the netting and sob like a child as he looked at the
seeming to see their lost happiness the
im
infinite expanse before h
o s of their perished affections and the divine remembrance of their
y
love in the monotonous waste of green waters And he tried to accuse
himself for all that had occurred and not to be angry with her to
think that his grievances were imaginary and to adore her in spite O f
everything and always
And so he roamed about the world tossed to and fro suffering an d
hOp inghe knew not what He ventured into the greatest dangers and
sought for death just as a man seeks for his mis tress and death passed
close to him without touching him perhaps amused at his grief and
if
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m l se
dhe was as wretched
a stonebreaker as one of those poor d evils
who work and nearly break their backs over the hard flints the whole
day long under the scorching sun or the cold rain and Marie Anne her
e was pining for the past and remembered
self was not happy for sh
their former love
At last however he returne d to France changed tanned by e xpo
su re su n and rain and transformed as if by some witch s philter
Nobody would have recognized the elegant and effeminate clubman
in this corsair with broad shoulders a skin the color of tan with v ery
red lips who rolled a little in his walk who seemed to be stifled in
his black dress coat but who still retained the d istinguished manners
and bearing of a no b leman of the last century one of those who when
he was ruined fitted ou t a privateer and fell upon the English wher
ever he met them from St Milo to Calcutta And wherever he showe d
himself
his friends exclaimed :
“
Why ! Is that you ? I should never have known you again !
He was v ery nearly starting off again immediately ; b e even tele
graphed orders to Havre to get the steam yacht ready for sea directly
when he heard that Marie Anne had married again
He saw her in the distance at the Th eatre Fran cais one Tuesday
e was
and when he noticed how pret ty how fair how desirable sh
looking so melancholy with all the appearance of an unhappy sou l
that regrets somethin g— his dete rmination grew weaker and he de
layed his departure from week to week and waited without knowing
why until at last worn ou t with the struggle watching her wherever
e went more in love with her than he had ever been he wrote her
sh
long mad ardent letters in which his passion overflowed like a stream
of lava
He altered his handwriting as he remembered her restless brain and
her many whirns He sent her the flowers which he knew she like d
17
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPASSANT
166
best and tol d her that she w as his life that he was dying of waiting for
her of longin g for her for her his idol
At l ast very much puzzled and s u rprised guessing who knows ?
from the instinctive beating of her he art and her general emotion that
it must be he this time he whose soul she had tortur ed with such cold
cruelty
and knowing that she could make amends for the p ast and
bring b ack their fo rmer love she replied to him and granted him the
meeting that he asked for She fell into his arms and they b oth sobbe d
joy an d ecs tasy Their kisses were those which l ips giv e only when
they have lost each other and fou nd each other again at last when they
meet and e xhaust themselves in ea ch o ther s looks thirsting for tender
nes s love and enjoyment
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Last week Count de Baud emont carried off Marie Anne quietly and
cooly just like one resumes poss ession of one s hou se on retu rning from
a journey and drives ou t the intruders And when Ma itre C arru l ier w as
told of this u nheard of sc andal he rubbed his han ds— the long delicate
hands of a sensual prelate— and exclaimed
“
That is absolutely logic al and I shoul d like to be in their place
’
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TH E
C LO WN
stood at the end of the E splanad e on th
e
l ittle promontory where the jetty is an d where all the win ds al l the
rain and all the S pray met The hut both walls and roof was built of
ol d plank s more or less covered with tar ; its chinks were stoppe d with
o akum and dry wreckage was heaped up against it In the middle of
the room an iron pot stood on two bricks and served as a stove when
they had any co al but as there was no chimney it filled the room
which was ventilated o nl y by a low door with acrid smoke and there
the whole crew lived eighteen men and one woman Some had under
gone various terms of imprisonment and nobody knew what the others
ha d done but though they were all more or less suffering from some
physical defect and were virtually old men they were stil l all s trong
enough for haul ing F or Chamber of Commerce tolerated them there
and allowed them that hovel to live in on condition that they shou ld
be ready to haul by day and by night
For each vessel they hau led each got a penny by day and twopence
b y night It was not certain however on account of the competition
Tm
;
HAWK E R S
’
COT rA CE
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE M AUPASS AN T
168
but quite young by the side of him He was a tall thin fellow of about
forty and without a gray stre ak in his l ong hair He was dresse d only
in a pair of trousers and a shirt which he wore outside them like a
blouse and the trollop said
“
Here D addy la Bretagne you have two knitted vests on so just
”
gi ve him one
“
W
hy should I ? the hauler ask ed
”
“
Because I choose you to the woman rep lied I have been living
with you set of old men for a long time so now I want to have a youn g
one ; there he is so you must give him a vest and keep him here or I
shall throw you up You may take it or leave it as you like ; do you
understand me ?
The eighteen looke d at each other Openmouthe d an d good D add y
la “
Bretagne scratched his head and then said
What she asks is quite right an d we mus t give way he rep lie d
Then they explained themselves and came to an un d erst anding The
poor devil did not come l ike a conqueror for he was a wretched clown
who had just been released from prison where he had undergone three
years hard labor for an attempted outrage on a girl but with one e x
ce tion the best fellow in the world so people d eclared
p
“
”
And something nice for me the trol lop said for I can assure you
”
that I mean him to reward me for anything I may do for him
From that time the household of eighteen persons w as increased to
nineteen and at first all went well The clown was very humble an d
tried n ot to be burdensome to them Fed clothed and supplied with
tobacco he tried not to be too exacting in the other matter and if
need ful he would have hauled like the others but the woman woul d
not allow it
“
“
You shall not fatigu e yourself my l ittle man she sa id You must
”
reserve yourself entirely for home
And he did as she wishe d
And soon the eighteen who ha d never been jealous of each other
grew jealous of the favored l over Some tried to pick a quarrel with
him He resisted The best fellow in the world no doubt but he was
not goin g to be taken for a mussel shut up in its shell for all that Let
them call him as lazy as a priest if they liked ; he did not mind that
is
b u t when they put ha irs into his coffee armfuls of rushes among h
wreckage and filth into his soup they had better look out !
“
None of th at all the l ot of you or you wil l see what I can do h e
u sed to s a
y
They repeated their practical jokes however and he thrashed them
nd ou t who the culprits were b ut attacked th first
He did not try to fi
one he met so much the worse for him With a kick from hs wo oden
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clog (it
169
C LOWN
TH E
was
his specialty ) he smashed their noses into a pulp and
having thus acquired the knowledge of his strength and urged on by
his trollop he soon became a tyrant The eighteen felt that they were
s laves and their former paradise where concord and perfect equality
had reigned became a hell and that state of things could not last
”
“
“
Ah ! D addy la Bretagne growled if only I were twenty years
younger I would nearly kill him ! I have my Breton s hot head still
”
but my confounded legs are no goo d any longer
And he boldly challenged the clown to a duel in which the l atter
was to have his legs tied and then both of them were to sit on the
ground and hack at each other with knives
“
“
Such a duel he said would be perfectly fair ! he replied kick
ing him in the side with one of his clogs and the woman burst ou t
l aughing
and said :
“
At any rate you cannot compete with him on equa l terms as t e
”
gards myself so do not worry yourself about it
D addy la Bretagne was lying in his corner and spitting bloo d and
none of the rest spoke What could the others do when he the blus
em all had been served so? The jade had b een right when
terer of th
e had brought in the intruder and said :
sh
“
”
The king is here ol d fellow
Only she Ought to have remembere d that after all she alone kept
his subjects in check and as D addy la Bretagne said b y a right o b ject
With her to console them they would no doubt have borne anything
but she was foolish enough to cut down the ir food and not to fill their
common dish as full as it used to be She wanted to keep everything
for her lover and that raised the exasperation of the eighteen to its
height So one night when she and the clown were asleep among al l
these fasting m en the eighteen threw themselves on them They
wrapped the despot s arms and legs up in tarpaulin and in the pres
ence of the woman who was firmly bound they flogged him til l he was
black and blue
”
“
Yes
old Bretagne said to me him self Yes monsieur that was
our revenge The king was guillotined in 17 98 and so we guillotin e d
ou r king also
And he concluded with a sneer saying : But we wished tobe just
and as it was not his head that had made him our king b y j o ve we
”
settled him
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE M AUPASSANT
170
T HE M AD W O M A N
“
I CAN TE LL
”
a terrible story about the Franco Prussian W ar
M d E ndol in said to some “
frien ds assemble d in the smoking roo m of
Baron de Ravot s ch ateau You know my house in the Faubourg de
Corm eil I was living there when the Prussians came and I had for a
neighbor a kind of mad woman who had lo st her senses in consequence
of a series of misfortunes At the age of seven and twenty sh
e had lost
her father her husband and her newly born child all in the space of
a month
“
When death has once entere d into a house it al most invari ably
turns immediately as if it knew the way and the young woman ov er
whelmed with grief took to her bed and was delirious for six weeks
Then a species of calm lassitude succeeded that violent crisis and she
remained motionless eatin g next to nothing and only moving her eyes
E very time they tried to make her get up she screamed as if they
were about to kill her and so they ended by leav ing her continually
in bed and only t ak ing her out to wash her to change her linen and
to turn her mattress
“
An old servant remained with her to g
ive her something to d rink
or a little cold meat from time to tim e What passed in that despairing
min d ? N 0 one ever knew for she did not speak at all now Was she
thinking of the dead ? Was she dre amin g sadly without any precise
recollection of anything that had happened? Or was her memory as
stagnant as water without any current? B ut however this may have
been for fifteen years she remained thus inert and secluded
“
The war broke ou t and in the beginning of D ecember the Germans
came to Corm eil I can remember it as if it were but yesterday It was
freezing hard enough to split the stones and I myself was lying back
in an a rmchair being una ble to move on account of the gout when I
heard their heavy and regular trea d and coul d see them pass from my
window
“
l ed past interm inably with that peculiar motion of a pup
They defi
pet Ou w ires which belongs to them Then the oflicers billeted their
men on the inh abitants and I had seventeen of them My neighbor the
crazy woman had a dozen one O f whom was the commandant a regu
lar violent surly swashbuckler
“
During the first few days everything went on as usual The o ffi
cers
next door had been told that the lady was ill and they did not trouble
themselves about it in the least but soon that woman whom they nev e r
Y OU
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE M AUPASSANT
172
ant had died during the winter and nobody troub led any l onger
about the occu rrence ; I alone thought about it constantly What had
they done with the woman ? Had she escaped through the forest? Had
somebody found her and taken her to a hospital without being able
to Obtain any information from her ? Nothing happened to relieve my
d oubts but by degrees time assuaged my fears
“
Well in the followin g autumn the woodcock were very plentiful
and as my gout had left me for a time I dragged myself as far as the
forest I had already killed four or five of the long b illed birds when
I knocked over one which fell into a ditch full of b ranches and I was
obliged to get into it in order to pick it up and I found that it had
fallen close to a dead human body Immediately the recollection of
the mad woman struck me like a blow in the chest Many other people
ha d perhaps died in the wood during that disastrous year but though
I do not kn ow why I was sure sure I tell you that I should see the
hea d of that wretched maniac
“
And suddenly I understoo d ; I guesse d everythin g They had ab an
doned her on that mattress in the cold deserted wood and faithful
to her fixed idea she had allowed herself to perish under that thick
(1 light counterpane of snow without moving ei ther arms or legs
“
Then the wolves had devoured her and the birds had buil t their
nests with the wool from her torn bed and I took charge of her bones
I only pray that our sons may never see any wars again
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M AD E M O ISE LLE
H E HAD
B
EEN RE G IS TE RE D under the names
of
j ean Marie Mathieu
Valot b ut he was never called anything but Mademoiselle He was
th
e idiot of the district but not one of those wretched ragged idiots
who l ive on public charity He lived comfortably on a small income
which his mother had left him and which his gu ardian paid him
regularly SO he was rather envied than pitied And then he was not
one of those idiots with w ild looks and the manners of an animal for he
was by no means an unpleasing object with his hal f Open lips and
smiling eyes and especially in his constant make u p in female dress
For he dressed lik e a girl and showed by that how little he objected
to being called Mademoiselle
And why S hould he not like the nickname which his mother ha d
given him affectionately when he was a mere child so delicate and weak
and with a fair complexion —
not as ta ll
a poor little diminutive lad
as many girls of the same age ? It was in pure love that in h
is earlier
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173
MADEMOISELLE
years his mother whispered that tender Mademoisell e to him whil e his
ol d grandmother used to say jokingly
“
The fact is that as for the male element in him it is reall y not
”
worth mentioning in a Christian— no offense to God in saying so
“
And his grandfather who was equally fond of a joke used to add : I
onl y hope it wil l not disappear as he grows up
And they treated h
im as if he had really been a girl and coddled h
im
the more so as they were very prosperous and did not require to toil
to keep things together
When his mother and grandparents were d ea d Mademoise ll e was
almost as happy with his paternal uncle an unmarried man wh
o ha d
carefully attended the idiot and who ha d grown more and more at
tach
ed to him by dint of l ooking after him and the worthy man con
tinued to call j ean Marie Mathieu Valot Ma d emoiselle
He was call ed so in al l the country round as well not with the
slightest intention of hurting his feelings but on the contr ary becaus e
all thought they would please the poor gentle creature who harmed
nobod y in d oin g so
The v ery street boys meant no harm by it accustome d as they were
to c all the tall idiot in a frock and cap by the nickname but it would
have struck them as very extraordinary and would have led them to
rude fun if they had seen him d resse d like a boy
Mademoiselle however took care of that for his dress was as d ear
to him as his nickn ame He delighte d in wearing it and in fact cared
for nothing else and what gave it a particular zest was that he kne w
that he was not a g
irl and that he was living in dis guise And this was
evident by the exaggerated feminine bearing and walk he put on as
if to S how that it was not natu ral to him His enormous care fully filled
cap was adorned with large variegated rib bons His petticoat with
numerous flounces was dis tended behin d by many hoops He walked
with short steps and with exaggerated swaying of the hips while h
is
folded arms and crossed hands were distorted into pretensions of comi
cal coquetry
On such occasions if anybody w ished to make friends with him it
was necessary to say
“
Ah Mademoiselle what a nice girl you make
T
hat put him into a good humor and he used to reply much pleased
”
“
D on t I ? But people can see I only do it for a joke
But nevertheless when they were dancing at vil lage festivals in
the neighborhood he woul d always b e invited to dance as Mademoiselle
and would never ask any of the girls to dance with him and one eve
ning when somebody asked him the reason for this he Opened his eyes
wide laughed as if the man had said something very s tupid and replied
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S HORT STO R IE S OF D E
M AU PASSANT
“
I c annot ask the g
irls because I am not dressed like a l ad just look
”
174
.
my dress you fool !
As his interrogator was a judicious man he said to him
”
“
Then dress like one Mademoiselle
He thought for a moment and then said with a cunning look
“
But if I dress like a lad I shall no longer be a gir l and then I am
”
a girl
and he shrugged his shoulders as he said it
But the remark seemed to make him think
For some time afterward when he met the s ame person he woul d
ask him abruptly
“
”
If I dress like a lad will you still call me M ademoisell e ?
”
“
“
”
Of course I shall the other replied You will always be calle d so
The idiot appeared delighted for there was no doubt that he thought
more of his nickn ame than he did of his dress and the next d ay he
is pe tticoats an d
m ade his appearance in the village square without h
dressed as a man He ha d taken a pair of trousers a coat and a hat
from his guardian s clothes press This create d quite a revolution in
the neighborhood for the people who had been in the habit of smiling
im kindly when he was dres sed as a woman looked at h
at h
im in
e ind ulgen t could not help
astonishment and almost in fear while th
laughin g and visibly making fun of him
The involuntary hostility of some and the too evident ridicu le of
others the disa g
reeable surprise of all were too palpable for him not
to see it and to be hurt by it and it was still worse when a street urchin
sai d to him in a jeering voice as he d ance d round him
“
”
Oh ! Oh ! Mademois elle you we ar tro users ! Oh ! Oh ! Mademoise lle !
And it grew worse and worse when a whole ban d of these v agabon ds
were on his heels hooting and yelling after him as if he had bee n
somebody in a masquerading dress during the carnival
It was quite certain that the unfortunate creatu re looked more in
dis guise now than he had formerly By dint of living like a girl an d
by even exaggerating the fem inin e walk and manners he had totally
lost all masculine looks and ways His smooth face his long flax like
hair required a cap with ribbons and became a caricature under the
high chimney pot hat of the ol d doctor his grandfather
Mademoiselle s shoulders and especially his swellin g stern d ance d
about wildly in this old fashioned coat and wide trousers And nothing
was as funny as the contrast between his quiet dress an d slow trot
ting pace the winning way he used his head and the conceited move
ments of his hands with which he fanne d himself like a girl
e
Soon the older lads and the girls the old women men of ripe ag
and even the judicial councilor joined the little brats and hoote d
Mad emoisell e while the astonished idiot ran away an d rushed into
at
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SHORT STORIES OF DE MAUPASSANT
176
An d then
night when d ancin was over an d the couples were
oing
away
with
their
arms
roun
each
other
s
waists
a
terrible
g
s creaming w as hear d at the c orner of the wood through which those
going to the next village ha d to pass It was j osephine pretty j osephine
and when her screams were heard they ran to her assistance and ar
rive d only just in time to rescue her half strangled from Mademoisel le s
clutches
The idiot had watched her an d ha d thrown himself upon her in ord er
to treat her as the other young fellows did the girls but S he resisted him
so stoutly that he took her b y the throat and squeezed it with all h
is
might un til S he could not breathe an d was nearly dead
In rescuing j osephine from him they had thrown him on the groun d
but he jumped u p again imme d iately foaming at the mouth an d
slobbering and exclaime d
“
I am not a girl any longer ; I am a youn g m an I am a young m an
”
I te ll you
one
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A B AD E RROR
I
MADE
m e
M me jadell e s acquaintance in Paris this winter She pleas ed
infinitely at once You know her as wel l as I— no— pardon m e
’
.
.
nearly as well as I You know that she is poetic and fantastic at one
and the same time You know sh
e is free in her manner an d of im
impulsive
courageous
v
ent
u resome au d acious
ressionabl e heart
p
above all prejudiced an d yet in S pite of that sentimental d e licate
easily hurt tender and modest
S he was a widow and I adore widows from sheer l aziness I was
on the lookout for a wife an d I paid her my court I knew her an d
more than that she please d me The moment cam e when I believed it
would do to risk my proposal I was in love with her and in danger
is
of becoming too much s o When one marries he S houl d not love h
wife too much or he is likely to make hirnself foolish ; his vision is dis
torted and he becomes S illy and b rutal at the same tirne A man must
assert himself If he loses his head at first he risks being a nobody a
year later
So one day I p resented myself at her house with l ight gl o ves on and
I said to her : Madame I have the honor of loving you an d I h ave
come to ask you if there is any hope of my pleasing you enough to”
warrant your placing your happiness in my care and taking my name
“
nor
She answered quietly : What a question S ir ! I am absolutely ig
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ERR O R
A BAD
177
whether you will please me sooner or l ater or whether you will
not but I ask nothing better than to make a tri al of it As a man I do
ad It remains to be seen h
ow you are at he art an d in
not find you h
c haracter and habits For the most part marriages are tempestuous or
crimin al because people are not careful enough in yoking themselves
together Sometim es a mere nothing is sufficient a mania or tenacious
Opinion upon some moral or rel igious point no matter what a gesture
which displeases or some l ittle faul t or disagreeable quality to turn
anced couple
however tender and affectionate into a pair of
an affi
irreconcilable enemies incensed with but chained to each other until
d eath I will not marry S ir without knowing the depths and corners
and recesses of the soul of the man with whom I am to share my exist
ence I wish to study him at leisure at least for some months
Here is what I propose You will come and pass the summer in my
h ouse at D e Lau vil l e my country place and we Shall see then if we
are fitted to live side by side— I see you laugh ! You have a bad thought
Oh S ir if I were not sure of mysel f I would never make this proposi
tion I have for love what you call love you men such a scorn su ch
”
a dis ust that a fall is impossible for me We l l do
ou ac cept ?
g
y
I kissed her hand
“
”
When shall we start mad ame?
“
”
T
he tenth of May
“
It is agreed
A month later I was installed at her h ouse She was trul y a singu lar
woman From mornin g until evening S he was studying me As S he was
fond of horses we passed each day in riding through the wood talking
about everyt hing but she w as always trying to probe my innermost
thoughts to whi ch en d she observed my s l ightest movement
As for me I became foolishly in love and did not trouble myse lf
about the fitness of our characters But I soon perceived that even my
sleep was put under inspection Someone slept in a little room adjoin
ing mine entering very late an d with infinite precaution This espio
nage for every instant finall y mad e me impatient I wished to hasten
the conclusion and one evening thought of a way of bringing it
S he had received me in such a way that I had abstained from any
new essay but a Violent desire invaded me to make her pay in some
fashion for this restricted re g
im e to which I had submitted an d I
thought I knew a way
You know Cesarine her chambermaid a pretty girl from Granvill e
where al l the women are pretty and as blond as her mistress was bru
nette ? W ell one afternoon I drew the little S oubrette into my room and
putting a hundred francs in her hand I said to her
“
My d ear chil d I do not wish you to do anything vi ll ainous but I
ant of
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE M AUPASSANT
17 8
des
m e
the same pri vil ege toward your mistress that she takes toward
ir
e
.
T
he littl e maid laughed with a sly look as I continued
“
I am watched day an d night I know I am watched as I eat drink
”
dress myself shave and put“
on my socks and I know it
”
The little girl stammered Yes sir Then She was S ilent I continu e d
.
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“
You sleep in the room next to mine to
al oud ; you cannot deny it !
”
“
Then she was silent again
Y s si
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r
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s ee
if I snore
or
if I dream
.
I became excit ed Oh wel l my girl I said you und erstand that
it is not fair for eve rything to be known ab out me while I know
nothing of the person who is to be my wife I love her with all my
as the face th
e heart and mind that I have dreamed of
soul She h
and I am the happiest of men on this account ; nevertheless there are
some things I would like to know better
Cesarine decided to put my bank note in her pocket I un d erstood
th at the bargain was concluded
“
“
Listen my girl I said We men— we care much for cert ain
certain detail s physical details which do not hinder a woman from
being charming but which can change her price in our eyes I d o not
ask you to say anything ba d of your mistress or even to dis close to
me her d efects if she has any Only answer me fr ankly fou r or five
questions which I am going to put to you You know Madame jadell e
as we ll as
you do yourself S ince you dress and undress her every d ay
N ow then tell me this : Is she as plump as she has th
e appear an ce of
bein g
T l e little maid did not answer
“
I continued : You cannot my child be ignorant of the fact that
women put cotton padding you know where— where — where they
nouris h their infants an d also where they sit Tell me does she use
”
padding?
“
e said timidl y :
Ask whatever
Cesarine lowered her eyes Finally sh
”
ou want to S ir I will answer all at one time
y “
Well my girl there are some women whose knees meet so much
so that they touch wi th each step that they take and there are others
who have them far apart which makes their lim bs like the arches of
a bridge so that one might view the landscape b etween them This is
the pre ttier of the two fashions Tell me how are your mistress s
”
limbs ?
Still the maid said nothing
I continued : There are some who have necks so beautiful that they
form a great fold unde rneath And there are some that have large arms
with a thin figu re There are some that are very large before and
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SHORT S TORIE S OF DE MAUPASSANT
180
I was in the habit of go ing up on the tower of the house each m om
in to smoke a cigarette This was reached
l igted by a large window at the top of the
by a limestone staircase
first story
I advanced without noise my feet encased in morocco slippers with
wadded soles and was climbing the first steps when I perceived Ces
arine bending ou t the window looking down below
Not that I saw Cesarine entirely but only a p art of Cesarine and
that the lower part I loved this part just as much ; of Mme jadell e
I woul d have preferred perhaps the upper She was thus so ch arming
s o round this p art which offered its elf to me and only slightly clothe d
in a white S kirt
I approached so softly that the girl heard nothing I put mysel f on
my knees ; with infinite precaution I took hold of the two sides of the
s kirt and quickly I raised it I recognized there the full fresh plump
s weet ischial tub erosities of my mistress and threw there —
your par
don madame— I threw there a tender kiss a kis s of a lover wh
o
d ares anything
I was surprised It was verbena ! But I had no time for reflection I
received a sudden blow or rather a push in the face which seem ed
to break my nose I uttered a cry that made my hair rise The person
h ad turned around— it was Mme jadell e!
She was fighting the air withher hands like a woman who ha d l ost
consciousness She gasped for some seconds made a gesture of using
a horsewhip and then fled
T en minutes later Ces arine stup efi
ed brought me in a letter I rea d
Mm e Iad el l e hop es tha t M de B rives wil l im m edia tel y rid her of
his p res ence
I d eparted Well I am not yet consoled I have attempte d ev ery
means and all explanations to obtain a p ardon for my misunders tand
in g but all proceedings have been nipped in the bu d
Since that moment you see I have in m y— in my he art a scent of
v erbena which gives me an irnm 0 derate desire to sme l l the perfume
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C HAL I
ADMIRAL DE
L A VA LLEE who seemed to be half aslee p in his arm
chair said in a voice which sounded like an ol d woman s
“
I had a very singu lar little love adventu re once ; would you like
”
,
to
hear it ?
,
I!
C HALI
181
He spoke from the depths of his great armchair with that ever
las ting dry wrinkled smile on his lips that smile a la Voltaire which
made people take him for a terrible skeptic
,
,
,
.
I
I was thirty years of age and a first lieutenant in the navy when
I was intru sted with an astronomical expedition to Central India The
E nglish government provided me with all the necessary means for
c arrying ou t my enterprise and I was soon busied with a few fol lowers
in that v ast strange surprising country
“
I t would take me ten v olumes to relate that journey I went through
wond erfu lly magnifi cent regions was received by strangely handsome
rin
c
or two
es and was entertained with incredible magnificence
F
p
e
m onths it seem e d to me as if I were wa l king in a fairy kingdom on th
b ack of imaginary elephants In the midst of wild forests I discovere d
extraor d inary ruins delicate and chis eled l ike jewels fine as lace an d
enormous as mountains those fabulous divine monuments which are
race ful that one falls in l ove with their form as with a woman feel
so g
inga physical and sen su al pleasure in looking at them AS Victor Hugo
‘
Whilst wide awake I was walking in a dream
says
“
Toward the end of my journey I reache d Ganhard which was for
m er ly one of the most prosperous towns in Central Ind ia but is no w
m uc h d ecaye d It is governed by a wealthy arbitrary violent gen
a true oriental
erou s an d cruel prince H is name is Rajah Maddan
potentate delicate and barbarous affable and sangu in ary combining
feminine grace with pitiless ferocity
“
The city lies at the bottom of a valley on the bank s of a littl e l ak e
surrounded by pagodas which bathe the ir walls in the water At a
d istance the city looks lik e a white S pot which grows l arger as one
approaches it and by degrees you discover the domes and S pires the
slender and graceful summits of Indian monuments
“
At about an hour s distance from the gates I met a super b ly capari
soned elephant surrounded by a gu ard of honor which the S overeign
had sent me and I was conducted to the palace with great ceremony
“
I should have lik ed to have taken the time to put on my gala uni
form but royal impatience would not admit of it He was anxious to
m ake my acquaintance to kn ow what he might expect from me
“
I was ushered into a great hall su rrounded b y gal leries in the
midst of bronze colored soldiers in splendid uniforms while all about
were standing men dressed in striking robes studde d with precious
stones
“
I saw a Shining mass a kind of setting su n reposing on a bench
like our garden benches without a back ; it was the rajah who was
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E M AUPASSAN T
182
waiting for me motionless in a robe of the purest canary co lor He
ha d some ten or fifteen mil lion francs worth of diamon ds on him and
by itse l f on his forehead glistened the famous star of D elhi which
has always belonged to the il lustrious dynasty of the P ariharas of Mun
dore from whom my host was descended
“
He was a man of about five and twenty who seeme d to h ave some
Negro blood in his veins although he belonged to the purest
race He had large alrnost motionless rather v ague eyes fat lips a cu r l
y
be ard low forehead and dazzlin g sharp white teeth which he fre
quently showed with a mechanical smile He got up and gave me his
hand in the Englis h fashion and then made me sit down be side him on
a b ench which was so high that my feet hardly touch ed the
rm m d
g
and on whi ch I was very uncomfortable
“
He imm ediately proposed a tiger hunt for the next d ay ; w ar and
huntin g were his chief o ccupations an d he could hardl y understan d
how one coul d care for anything else He was e vidently fully per
im a little an d
su eded that I had o nly come all that distance to amuse h
to be the companion of his pleasures
“
is assistance I tri ed to flatter h
As I stood greatly in need of h
is
tastes and he was so pleased with me that he immediately wish e d
to sho w me how his trained boxe rs fought an d led the way into a
kind of arena situated within the palace
“
At his command two naked men appeared their h an d s covered
with steel claws They immediately began to attack each other trying
to strike one another with these sharp weapons which left long cu ts
from which the blood flowed freely down their d ark skins
“
It lasted for a long tim e ti ll their bo d ies were a mass of wounds
an d the com b atants were tearing each other s flesh with these pointe d
bl ades One of them had his jaw smashed while the ear of the o ther
was S plit into three pieces
“
e prince looked on with feroc iou s p l easure uttered gru nts of d e
Th
light and imitated all their movements wi th c areless gestures cry ing
out constantly :
‘
ardl
Stnke strike h
“
On e fell dow n un consciou s an d ha d to be carried out of the aren a
covered with b lood while the rajah uttere d a sigh of regret because
it was over so soon
“
He tu rned to me to know my opinion I was dis gusted but I con
ra tulated h
im loudly He then gave or d ers that I was to be con
u cted to Kuch Mahal (the pal ace of pleasure )
where I was to be
lod ed
‘
“
g
is b ijou palace w as situate d at the extremity of the royal park
Ih
and one of its walls was built into the sacred l ake of Vihara It was
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SHORT STORIES OF DE MAUPASSANT
184
nimals of all sorts which H arib ada presented to me with apparentl y
as grave respect as if I ha d been the sun himself although he he artil y
d espised
me at the bottom of his heart
“
Every day a procession of servants brought me in covere d dishes
9 portion of each course that was serv ed at the royal table Every d ay
he seemed to take an extreme pleasure in getting up some new enter
tainm ent for m e— dances by the bayaderes jugglers reviews of the
troops— and I was o b liged to pretend to be most delighted with it so
as not to h
urt his feelings when he wished to show me his wonderful
country in all its charm and all its splendor
“
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 foun d Hari
bada 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 tim e
“
Af ter these obscure remarks the ambassador bowed and withdrew
“
When I went in I saw six little girls standing against the wall
mo tionless side by side like smelts on a skewer The eldest was per
haps ten and the youngest eight years ol d For the first moment I
could not understand why this girls school had taken u p 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
?
There the more unripe the fruit is in the
an excess of generosity
higher estimation it is held
“
F or some time I remaine d confused embarrassed an d 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 ab
su rdl
it
was
in
my
way
At
last
thinking
that
I
must
b
e
looking
rather
y
ridiculous I a sked the eldest her name
‘
Ch ali shereplied
This little creature with her beautiful skin which was slightly yel
l ow like ol d ivory was a marvel a perfect statue with her face and
its long and severe lines
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,
CH ALI
18 5
I then asked in order to see what she would rep l v and also per
haps to em b arrass her :
‘
What have you come here for?
‘
She replied in her soft harmonious v oice : I have come to be al
together at my lord s disposal and to do whatever he wishes She was
evidently quite resigned
“
I put the same question to the youngest who answered imme diately
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 India n fashion I
made them all sit round me and began to tell them fairy tales for I
spoke their l anguage tolerably well
“
They listened very attentively and trembled wringing their hands
in agony Poor little things they were not think ing any longer of the
reason why they were sent to me
“
When I had finished my story I called Latchm an my confidential
servant and made him bring sweetrneats 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 begin
ning and the tallest always knocking against them a little because she
did not st0 0 p enough It made them shout with laughter and thes e
young voices soundin g through the low vaults of my sumptuous palace
seemed to wake it up and to people it with childlik e 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
“
F or 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 large nursery and my little friend s
dressed in b eautiful silk stuffs and in materials em b roidered with
gold and sil ver ran up and down the long galleries and the quiet rooms
l ike“little human animals
Ch ali was an adorable little crea ture timid and gentle who soon
et to love me ardently with some degree of shame with he sitation
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
186
if a fraid of Europe an morality with r eserve and scruples and yet
with
passionate tenderness I cherished her as if I had been her father
“
The others continu ed to play in the palace l ike a lot of happy kit
te ns but Ch ali never left me except when I went to the prin ce
“
We p assed delicio us hou rs together in the ru ins of the ol d c astle
among the monkeys who had b ecome our friends
“
She used to lie on my knees and remain there tu rning all sorts of
things over in her little sphinx 5 head or perhaps not thinking of any
thin g retaining that beautiful ch arming hereditary pose of that noble
and dre amy people the hieratic pose of the sacred statues
“
In a large brass dish I had one d ay brought pro visions 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
da rin g to come any nearer waiting for me to dis tribute my d elicacies
Then almost invariably a male more darin g than the rest would com e
to me with outs tretched hand like a beggar and I woul d give h
im
somethin g which he would take to his wife Al l the others M ediately
be gan to utter furious cries cries of rage and jealousy and I c oul d
not make the terrible racket cease except by throwin g ea c h one h
is
share
“
As I w as ve ry com fortable in the ru ins I ha d my instruments
brought there so that I might be able to w ork As soon however as
they saw the copper fittings on my scientific instrum ents the mon keys
no d oubt taking them for some deadly engines fled on all sides utter
in g the most piercing cries
“
I often spent my evenings with Ch ali on one of the e xternal gall er
ies that looked on to the lake of Vihara One night in silence we looked
at the b right moon gl iding over the sky throwing a mantle of trem
blin g silver over the water and on the further shore upon the row of
small pago d as like carve d mushrooms with their stalks in the water
T aking the thoughtful head of my little mis tres s be tween my hands I
pr inted a long soft kiss on her polis hed b row on her great eyes which
were full of the secret of that ancient and fab ulous land and on her
calm lips which o ened to my caress I felt a con fused powerful
a bove all a poe ticap 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 lo ad me with presents One
day he sent me a very unexpected obj ect which excited a passionate
admiration in Chali It was merely one of those cardboard b oxes
covered with shells s tuck on outside which can b e b ought at any Euro
e
a n seaside resort for a penny or tw o But the re it was a jewel beyon d
y
p
price and no doubt was the first that had foun d its w ay into the kin g
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SHORT STORIES OF DE M AUPASSAN T
We had b etter not speak of her
‘
Why ? She was a dear little woman
‘
She tum ed out badly sir
‘
VVl i at Ch ali ? What has become of her? Where is sh
e?
‘
I m e an to say that s he came to a bad end
A b ad end ! Is she dead ?
‘
Yes She committed a very d readful action
I was very much distressed I felt my heart beat ; my breast was
Opp ressed with grief and I insisted on knowing what she had done
and what had happened to her
“
The man became more an d more embarrassed and murmure d
You‘had better not ask about it
But I want to kn ow
‘
She stole
‘
VVh
o— Ch
aIi? What d i d sh
e steal ?
‘
Something that belonged to you
‘
To me ? What do you mean ?
‘
The day you left she stole that little b ox which the prince ha d
given you ; it was found in her hands
‘
What box are you talking about?
‘
The box covered with shell s
‘
But I gave it to her
‘
The Hindu looked at me with stupefaction and then repl ied : We ll
sh
e declared with the most sacred oaths that
ou had given it to her
y
but nobody could believe that you could have giv en 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 l ake from this
window from the window of the room in which we are where she ha d
committed the theft
“
I felt the most terrible grief that I ever experienced and ma d e a
sign to H arib ada 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 an d
pictured to myself her pretty little body lyi ng decomposed in a sack
in the dark waters beneath me
“
The next day I left again in spite of the rajah s entreaties an d
e vident vexation an d I now still feel as if I had never loved any
”
woman but Ch ali
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JER O B O AM
189
EROB
O
A
M
J
ANY ONE
WH O
S AID or even insinuate d that the Reveren d Will iam
,
,
G reenfield vicar of St Sampson s Tottenham did not make his wife
’
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,
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,
Anna perfectly happy would certainly have been ve ry malicious In
the ir twelve years of married life he had honored her with twelve
children and could anybody ask more of a saintly man?
Saintly even to heroism in truth ! For his wife Anna who was eu
d owed with invaluable virtues which made her a model among wives
and a paragon among mothers had not been equally endowed physi
cally In one word she was hideous Her hair which though thin was
c oarse was the color of the national half and half but of thick half
an d half which looked as if it had been al ready swallowed several
tim es Her complexion which was muddy and p irnp l y looked as if it
were covered with sand mixed with brick dust Her teeth which were
long and protruding seemed to start ou t of the ir sockets in order to
escape from that almost lipless mouth whose sulphurous breath ha d
turned them yellow Evidently Anna suffered from bile
Her china blue eyes looked different ways one very much to the
right and the other very much to the le ft with a frightened squint no
doubt in order that they might not see her nose of which they felt
ashamed They were quite right ! Thin soft long pendent sallow and
ending in a violent knob it irresistibly reminded those who saw it of
somethin g both ludicrous and indescrib able Her b ody through the
inconceivable irony of nature was at the same time thin and flabby
wooden and chub b y without either the elegance of slimness or the
rounded curves of stoutness It might have been taken for a b ody which
had formerly been fat but which had now grown thin while the cov
ering had remained stretched on the framework
She was evidently nothing but skin and bone but had too much
bone and too little skin
It will be seen that the reverend gentleman had done his duty his
whole duty in fact more than his duty in sacrificing a dozen times
on th
is altar Yes a dozen times bravely and loyally ! His wife could
not deny it or dispute the number because the children were there to
prove it A dozen times and not one less !
And a l as ! Not once more This was the reason why in spite of ap
earances Mrs Anna Greenfield v entured to think in the depths of
per heart that the Reverend William Greenfield vicar of St Sampson s
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE MAUPASSANT
190
Tottenham had not made her perfectly happy She thought so all the
.
,
more as for four years now she had been obliged to renounce all hOp e
of that annual sacrifice which had been so easy and so regu lar formerly
but which had now fallen into disuse In fact at the birth of her twelfth
child the reverend gentleman had exp ressly said to her :
“
God has greatly blessed our union my dear Anna We have reache d
the sacred num be r of the Twelve Trib es of I srael Were we now to
persevere in the works of the flesh it woul d be mere debauchery and
I cannot suppose that you would wish me to end my exemp l ary life in
”
lustful practices
His wife b lu shed and looked down and the holy man with that
l e gitimate pride of virtue which is its own rew ard audibly thanked
“
”
heaven that he was not as o ther men are
A model among wives and a paragon of mothers Ann a lived with
him for fo u r years on those term s without complaining to anyone She
contented herself by prayin g fe rventl y to God that He would inspire
her hus b and with the desire to begin a second series of the Twelve
Tribes At times even in order to make her prayers more efficacious
e tried to compass that end by cu l inary means She spared no pains
sh
an d gorged the reverend gentleman with highly seasoned dishes — h are
soup oxtails stewed in sherry the gr een fat in tu rtle soup stewe d
mushrooms j erusalem artichokes cele ry and horse radish hot sau ces
truffles has hes with wine and cayenne pepper in them curried lo b sters
pies made of cocks combs oysters and the soft roe of fish These dishes
w ere washed down by strong beer an d generous wines Scotch ale bur
— in a word b y tha t
dry
champagne
brandy
whisk
and
gin
im d
y
g y
numberless array of alcoholic d rinks with which the English peopl e
love to heat their blood
As a matter of fact the reverend gentleman s blood becam e very
h eated as was shown by his nose and cheeks But in spite of this the
powers a b ove were inexorable and he remain ed quite indifferent as
regards his wife who was unhappy an d thoughtful at the sight of that
protrudin g nasal appendage which alas was alone in its glory
She became thinner and at the same tim e flabb ier than ever S he
al most b egan to lose her trust in God when suddenly sh
e had an in
spiration : W as it no t perhaps the work of the de vil ?
She did not care to inquire too closely into the matter as she thought
it a very good idea It was this :
Go to the Universal Exhibition in Paris and there perhaps you will
discover how to make yourself loved
D ecidedly luck favored her for her husband immediately gave her
pe rm iss io n to go As soon as she got in to the Esplanade des Inval ides
e Al gerian dancers and s aid to herself
sh
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SHORT S TORIE S OF DE M AUPA S SAN T
19 2
clear
remember the lesson which you must le arn from this occurren ce
”
“
”
.
What lesson ? she asked humbly
“
”
That people ought never to depart from their usu al habits
“
”
“
But why then
am she as ked timid ly have you ch anged yom
”
habits ?
“
Hold your tongue ! he cried Hol d your tongue j ezebel ! Have you
not got over your intoxication yet ? F or twelve years I certainly followed
the divine precept : i ncrease and multiply once a year But since then
I have grown accustomed to something else and I do not wis h to alter
”
my habits
And the Reverend William Greenfield vicar of St Sampson s Totten
ham the saintly man whose b lood was inflame d by heating food an d
liquor whose ears were like full blown poppies and who had a nose
like a tomato left his wife and as had been his habit for four years
went
to make love to Polly the servant
“
”
“
Now Polly he said you are a clever girl and I me an through
u to teach Mrs Gree nfield a lesson sh
o
e will never forget I will try an d
y
”
s ee what I can do for you
And to accomplish this he took her to Mrs Greenfield c alled the
l atter
his little Jeze b el and said to her with an unctuous smil e :
“
Call me j ero b oam ! You don t understan d why? Neither do I but
that does not matter Take off all yo u r things Polly and show yourse lf
”
to Mrs Greenfield
The servant did as she was bid d en and the result was that Mrs
Greenfield never again hinted to her husband the desirab ility of laying
the foundations of a thirteenth tribe
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V I RT U E
IT
is
I N T HE B A L L E T
A ST RANGE FEE L IN G of pleasure that the writer about the sta e an d
g
about theatrical characters in general feels when he occasional y
covers a good honest human heart in the twilight beh ind the scenes
Of all the witches and semi witches of that eternal Walpurgis Night
whose bo ards rePresent the world the ladies of the ballet have at a ll
times and in all f
aces been regarded at least like saints although Hack
l ander repeated y tried in vain in his earlier novels to convince us that
true virtue appears in tights and short petticoats and is only to be found
in ballet girls I fear that the popular voice is right as a general rule
but it is equally true that here and there one finds a pearl in the d ust
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VIRTUE I N THE BALLET
193
and even in the dirt The short story that I am about to tell will best
justify my assertion
Whenever a new youthful dancer appe ared at the Vienna Opera
House the habitués began to go after her and did not rest until the
fresh young rose had b een plucked by some hand or other though
often it was old and trem b lin g F or how could those young and pre tty
sometim es even b eautiful girls— with every right to lif e love and
pleasure but poor and on a very small salary— resist the seduction of
the smell of flowers and of the flash of diamonds ? And if one resisted
it it was love some real s trong passion that gave her the stren g
th
generally however only to go after luxury all the more shamelessly
and se l fishly when her lover forsook her
At the beginning of the winter season of 18 5 the pleasin g news
was spread among the habitués that a girl of dazzling beauty was goin g
to appear very shortly in the ballet at the Cou rt Theater When the
evening came nobody had yet seen the much discussed phenomenon
but report S pread her name from mouth to mouth It was Satanell a
The moment the troupe of elastic figures in fluttering petticoats jumpe d
onto the stage every opera glass in the boxes and stalls was directe d
on the stage and at the same in stant the new dancer was discovered
although she tim idly kept in the b ackground
She was one of those girls who seem crowned with the bright halo
of virgini ty but at the same time present a S plendid type of woman
hood She had the voluptuous form of Ruben s second wife whom they
called not untruly a reincarnated Helen and her head with its deli
cate nose its small full mouth and its dark in quirin g eyes reminde d
people of the cele b rated picture of the Flemish Venus in the Belvedere
in Vienna
She took the old guard of the Vienna Court Theater by storm an d
the very next morning a perfect shower of billets doux jewels and
bouquets fell into the poor ballet girl s attic F or a moment she was
dazzled by all this splendor and looked at the gold b racelets the
brooches set with ru b ies and emeralds and at the sparklin g earrin gs
with flushed cheeks Then an unspeakable terror of being lost and of
sinking into degradation seized her and she pushed the jewels away
and was about to send them b ack But as is usual in such cases her
mother intervened in favor of the generous gentlemen and so the
jewels were accepted but the notes which accompanied them were
not an swered A second and a third discharge of Cupid s artillery fol
lowed without making any impression on that v irtuous girl ; in conse
quance a great num b er of her admirers grew quiet though some con
tinu ed to send her presents and to assail her with love letters One ha d
the courage to go still farther
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E M AUPASSAN T
194
He was a wealthy b anker who had cal led on the mother of Henri
etta as we shall call the fair haired ballet girl and then one evenin g
qu ite unexpectedly on the girl herself He by no means met with the
reception which he had expected from the pretty girl in the fade d
cotton gown Henrietta treated him with a certain amount O f good
hum ored respect which had a much more unpleasant e ffect on him
than that coldness and p rudery which is often coexistent with coquetry
In spite of
and selfish speculation among a certain class of women
everyth ing however he soon went to see her daily and lavished his
wealth on the beautiful dancer without request on her part and gave
her no chance of refusin g for he relied on the mother for everything
T he mother took pret ty small apartments for her daughter and herself
ed them elegantly h
ired a cook and
in the K arntnerstra sse and fuin ish
housemaid made an arrangement with a fly driver and lastly clothed
h
er daughter s lovely lines in sil k ve l vet and valuable lace
Henrietta persistently held her tongu e at all this ; only once she said
to her mother in the presence of the Stock Exchange Jupiter :
”
“
Haveyou won a prize in the lottery ?
”
“
Of cou rse I have her mother replied with a l augh
The girl however had given away her heart long b efore and con
e was ignorant
trary to all precedent to a man of whose very name sh
who sent her no diamonds and not even flowers But he was young
and good looking and stood so retiringly and so evidently in love at
the small side door of the O pera house every night when she got ou t
of her antediluvian and rickety fly and also when she got into it again
after the performance that she could hot help noticing him Soon he
began to follow her wherever she went and once he summoned up
courage to speak to her when she had been to see a friend in a remote
suburb He was very nervous but she thought all that he said very
clear and logical and she did not hesitate for a moment to conf ess that
she returned his love
You have made me the happiest an d at the same time the most
”
wretched of men he said after a pause
“
”
What do you mean ? she said innocently
”
“
D o you not belong to another man? he asked her in a sad voice
She shook her abundant light curls
“
Up till now I have belonge d to myself al one and I will prove it to
you by requesting you to call u pon me frequently and without restraint
Everyone shall know that we are lovers I am not ashamed of belongin g
”
to an honorable man b ut I will not sell myself
“
But your splendid apartments and your dresses her lover inter
“
posed shyly ; you cannot pay for them ou t of yo u r salary
“
My mother has won a large prize in the lottery or made a hit on the
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPASSANT
196
said at last and I shall not e ven known how I should manage to live
mysel f for my father is just the man to allow me to want if I defy him
That however is a very secondary consideration but as a man of
honor I cannot bin d you who have every right to luxury and enjoy
ment to myself from the moment when I cannot even keep you from
w ant
and so I must set you at liberty
“
But I will not give you up Henrietta said proudly
The young count shook his head sadly
”
“
Do you love me ? the ballet girl said quickly
“
More than my life
Then we will not separate as long as I have anything she con
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tinu ed
.
And she would not give up her connection with him and when
his father actually turned Count L
into the street she took her
lover into her own lodgings He obtained a situation as a copyin g clerk
in a lawyer s office and she sold her valuable dresses and jewels Thus
they lived for more than a year
The young man s father did not appear to trouble his head about
them but nevertheless he knew everything that went on in their small
home and knew every article that the ballet girl sold At last softened
by such love and strength of character he himself made the first ad
v ances to a reconciliation With his son
At the present time Henrietta wears the diamond s which formerly
belonged to the ol d countess and it is long since she was a ballet girl
N ow she sits bv the side of her husban d in a carriage on whose pane ls
their armorial bearings are painte d
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TH E
AH MY DEAR F E LL O W
D O U BLE P I N S
”
what jades women are !
“
”
What makes you say that?
“
Because they have played me an abominable
“
You?
“
Y
es me
“
”
W
omen or a woman ?
“
Two women
“
Two women at once ?
‘
Y
es
“
What was the trick?
The two young men were sitting outside a café on the boulevard
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3,
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THE D O U BLE PINS
197
drinking l iqueurs mixed with water those aperients which l ook
like infusions of all the tints in a box of water colors They were nearly
the same age : twenty fi
ve to thirty One was dark and the o ther fair
and they had the same semi elegant look of stockjobbers of men wh
o
go to the Stock Exchange and into drawin g rooms who are to be seen
everywhere who live everywhere an d l ove everywhere The d ark one
continued
“
I have told you of my connection with that little woman a trades
”
man s wife whom I met on the beach at D ieppe ?
and
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Yes
,
.
My dear fellow you know how it is I had a mistress in Paris whom
I love d early an old friend ”a good friend who is virtually a habit in
fact one I value very much
”
“
Your habit?
“
Yes my habit an d hers also She is marrie d to an excellent man
whom I also value very much a very cordial fellow and a capital
com
”
anion l
may
say that my lif e is bound up with that house
p ‘
Weu
“
Well ! They could not manage to leave Paris and I fou n d myse lf a
widower
at D ieppe
“
Why did you go to D ieppe ?
“
For a change of air One cannot remain on the boulevards the
whole
time
“
And then ?
“
Then I met the little woman I mentione d to you on the b each
”
there
“
The wife of that head of a public office ?
“
Yes she was dreadfully dul l ; her husband only came every Sun d ay
and he is horrible ! I u nderstood her perfectly and we laughed an d
”
danced
together
“
And the rest?
“
Yes but that came later However we met and we liked each other
I told her I liked her and she made me repeat it so that she might
”
e put no obstacles in my way
u nderstand it better and sh
“
”
D id you love her?
“
Yes a little ! She is very nice
”
“
And what about the other?
“
The other was in Paris ! Well for six weeks it was very pleasant
and we returned here on the best of terms D o you know how to
break with a woman when that woman has not wronged you in any
”
?
way
“
Yes perfectly well
“
How do you manage it?
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SHORT S T ORIE S OF DE MAUPASSANT
19 8
“
I give her up
“
How do you do it?
“
I do not see her any longer
.
“
But supposing she
“
I am not at home
“
.
comes to you ?
.
”
”
And if she comes again ?
”
“
I say I am not well
“
If she looks after you ?
“
I play her some dirty tr ick
e puts up with it ?
sh
“
I write her husband anonymou s le tters SO that he may l ook after
her on the days that I exp ect her
That is serious ! I cannot resist and do not kn ow how to bring about
a rupture and so I have a collection of mistresses There are some
who m I do not see more than once a year o thers every ten months
others on those days when they want to d ine at a restau ran t ; tho se
whom I have put at regular intervals do not worry me but I often
have great difficulty with the fresh ones so as to keep them at proper
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,
And then?
“
And then— then this little woman was al l fire and flame without
an
y faul t of mine as I told you ! As her hus b and spen ds all the whole
day at the O ffice she began to come to me unexpectedly and twice she
”
nearly met my regular one on the stairs
”
“
T
he devil !
“
Yes ; so I gave each of them her days regular days to avoi d con
fusion Sat urday and Mo nday for the ol d one Tuesday Friday an d
”
Sim day for the new one
“
W
hy did you Show her the preference?
“
Ah ! My de ar friend she is you nger
So that only gave you two days to yo u rsel f in a week
”
“
That is enough for one
“
Allow me to com p lnnent you on that
“
Well just fancy that the most ri diculous and most annoyin g th
ing
in the world happened to me For four months everything had been
go ing on perfectly ; I felt quite safe and I was rea lly v ery happy when
suddenly last Monday the crash came
“
I was exp ectin g my re gular one at the usua l time a qu arter past
on e and was smokin g a good cigar dreaming very well satisfied with
myself when I su ddenly saw that it was pa st the time I was much
surprised for she is very punctual but I thought that something
might have accidentally delayed her However half an hour passed
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
200
“
From
their le tters for on the s ame d ay they both gave me their
”
d ismissal
in identical terms
“
W
ell ?
“
This is how it was : You know that women always have an array
O f pins about them I know hairpins ; I doubt them and look after
them but the others are much more treacherous those confounded
little black headed pins which look all alike to us great fools that we
are but which they can distinguish just as we can distingu ish a horse
from a dog
“
Well it appears that one day my Ofl
icial s little wife l eft one of
those telltale instruments pinne d to the paper close to my lookin g glass
M y usual one had immediately seen this little black speck no bigger
than a flea had taken it out without saying a word and had l eft one
of her pins which was also black but of a different pattern in the
same place
“
The next day the ofl
icial s wife wished to recover her property
and immediately recognized the substitution Then her suspicions
were aroused and she put in two and crossed them My original one
replied to this telegraphic signal by three black pellets one on the top
O f the other and as soon as this method had begun they cont inued to
communicate with one another without saying a word just to sp y on
each other Then it appears that the regu lar one being bolder
wrapped a tiny piece of paper round the little wire point and wrote
upon it
C ; D Poste Restante Boulevar d Malherb es
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Then they wrote to each other You understand that was not every
thing that passed be tween them They set to work with precaution
with a thousand stratagems with all the prudence that is necessary
in such cases but the re g
ular one made a bold stroke and made an
appointment with the other I do not k now what they said to each
other all that I know is that I had to pay the costs of their interv iew
”
There you have it all !
”
“
Is that all ?
Yes
And you do not see them any more ?
“
I b e your pardon I see them as friends for we have not
u arrel e
altogether
“
And have the y met again ?
“
Yes my dear fellow they have become intimate friends
”
“
And has not that given you an id ea?
”
NO what idea ?
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H OW H E COT T H E
“
Yo
OF
LEGION
2 01
HONOR
great b ooby ! The idea of making them put back the pins where
they foun d them
u
.
HOW HE GO T T HE L E G I O N O F HO N OR
S O ME PEOP L E are born with a predominant instinct with some v oca
tion or some desire which demands recognition as soon as they begin
to speak or to think
Ever since he was a child M Caillard had onl y had one idea in his
head— to be decorated When he was still quite a small boy he use d
to wear a zinc Cross of the Legion of Honor in his tunic just like other
children wear a soldier s cap an d 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 s tudies were not a success and he failed in his exam ination for
b achelor 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 lik e 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 b e a minister someday
while two chiefs of division were among his friends
But M Caillard could not get rid of his one absorbing idea an d he
felt constantly unhappy because he had not the right to wear a little
bit of colored ribb on in his b uttonhole
When he met any men who were decorated on the boulevards he
looked at them askance with intense jealousy Sometim es when he
had nothing to do in the afternoon he could count them and say to
“
himself : Just let me see how many I shall meet between the Ma d e
lein e and the Rue D rouot
Then he would walk slowly looking at every coat with a practi ce d
eye for the little bit of red ribbon and when he had got to the end
“
of h
is walk he always said the num b ers ou t loud
Eight ofl
icers and
seventeen knights As many as that ! It is stupid to sow the cross broad
cast 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 Op era
than in the Rue de la Paix while the right side of the boulevard was
more fre quented by them than the left
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SHORT S TORIE S OF D E MAUPAS S ANT
202
They al so seem ed to prefer certain cafés an d theaters Whenever he
saw a group of white haired old gentlemen standing together in th
e
middle of the pavement interfering with the trafi
c he used to say to
”
himself : They are o fficers of the Legion of Honor and he felt inclin e d
to take Off his hat to them
He had often remarked that the offi
cers ha d a different hearing
from mere knights They carried their heads higher and you felt that
they enjoyed greater o ffi
cial consideration and a more widely extende d
im portance
Sometimes again the worthy m an would be seized with a furio u s
hatred for everyone who was decorated ; he felt lik e a Socialist toward
them Then when he got home excited at meetin g so many crosses
jus t l ike a poor hun gry wretch is on passin g some dain ty pro vision
he used to ask in a loud voice :
“
When shall we get rid of this wretched governm ent? And his wife
wou ld be surpris ed and ask :
‘
?
W hat is the matter with you today“
“
I am indi gnant he would reply at the injustice I see going on
”
arou nd us Oh ! The Communards were certainly right !
After dinner he would go ou t again and look at the shops where all
th
e d ecorations were sold and ex amine all the em b lems of v arious
shapes and colors He would have liked to possess them all and to have
wal ked gravely at the head of a procession with his crush hat under
his arm and his breast covered with decorations radian t as a star ami d
a buzz of admiring wh spers an d a hum of respect But al as! He ha d
no right to wear any decoration whatever
“
cul t for any m an to
He used to say to himself : It is really too diffi
obtain the Legion of Honor unless he is some public function ary
”
Suppose I try to get appointed an O ffi
cer of the Academy !
But he did not know how to set about it and spoke to his wife on
th
e subject who was stupefied
”
Officer of the Academy ! What have you done tod eserve it?
“
He got angry I kno w what I am talking a bout ; I only w ant to
know how to set about it You are quite stupid at times
“
She smiled You are quite right ; I don t un derstand anything abo ut
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“
An idea struck him Supp os e
were to speak to Monsieur Ros
selin the deputy he might be able to ad vise me You understan d I
cannot broach the subject to him directl y It is rather difficult and del i
”
cate but coming from you it might seem quite natural
Mme Caillard did what he asked her and M Rosselin promis ed to
speak to the minister about it Then C aillard began to wo rry him til l
:
you
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPASSANT
2 04
He tol d Caillard what new studies he ought to undertake ; he intro
du ced him to learned societies which took up particularly obscure
points of science in the hope of gaining credit and honors 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 favor for
you The Committee on Historical Works is going to intrust you with
a commission There are some researches to be made in various librar
ies in France
Caillard was so d elighted that he could scarcely eat or drink an d
a week later he set out He went from town to town studying cata
u es rummaging in lofts full of dusty volumes and was a bore to
l og
al l 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 twe lve
at night
He had his latchkey so he went in without making any noise d e
lighted 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
d oor
“
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 quickl y
U
ree tim es
and
down
her
room
barefoot
two
or
th
shaking
the
p
furniture till the vases and glasses sounded Then at last she aske d
“
”
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 arm s
ex claiming
“
Oh ! What a fright ! What a s u rprise ! What a pleasure !
He began to undress himself methodicall y like 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 remaine d motionless struck
d um
b
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 ma d e a mistake— give it to me
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A C RISIS
205
B ut 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
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”
has the Legion of Honor on it
She tried to take it from him terrified and hardl y able to say
“
Lis ten— listen— give it me I must not tell you— it is a secret
”
l isten to me
But he grew angry an d turned pale
“
I want to know how this overcoat comes to be here It does not
belong to me
Then she al rnost screamed at him
“
Yes it does ; l isten— 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 armcha ir
“
I am — you say I am — d ecorated?
“
Yes but it is a secret a great secret
She had put the glorious garment into a cupboar d an d came to her
hus“
b and” pale and trembling
“
Yes she continued it is a new overcoat that I have had mad e
for y ou But I swore that I would not tell you anything about it as it
will not be O fficially announced for a month or six weeks and you were
not to have known till your return from your business journey Mon
”
sieur Ros sel in managed it for you
”
“
Rossel in! he contrived to utter in h
He has Obtaine d the
is joy
”
decoration for me ? H e
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 Caillard picked it up ; it was a visiting card and he
read out
“
Rossel in— d eputy
“
You see how it is? said his wife
He almost cried with joy and a week later it was announced in the
Journa l O l ciel that M Caill ard had b een awarded the Legion of
Honor on account of his exceptional services
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C RI S I S
A
A B IG F IRE W AS B UR NIN G and the tea table was set for two The
Count de Sal l ure threw his hat gloves and fur coat on a chair while
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SHORT STORIE S O F D E MAUPASSANT
2 06
the countess who had removed her O pera cloak was sm iling arniabl y
at herself in the glass and arrang ing a few stray curls with her jeweled
fingers Her hus b and had been looking at her for the past few min
tes
s if on the point Of saying something
but hesitatin g ; finally
e saia
“
”
You have flirted outrageously tonight ! She looked him straight in
the eyes with an expression of tri umph and defiance on her face
”
“
Why certainly she answered She sat down poured ou t the tea
and her hus b and took his seat O pposite her
“
”
It made me look quite— ridiculous !
“
”
Is this a scene ? she asked archin g her b rows DO you mean to
”
criticize my conduct ?
“
Oh no I only meant to say that Monsieur B u rel s attentions to you
were positively im prope r and if I had the right— I— would not tolerate
”
it
“
Why my dear boy what has come over you? You must have
changed you r views sin ce last year You did not seem to mind who
courted m e and who did not a year ago When I found out that you
had a mistress a mistress whom you loved passionately I pointed ou t
to you then as you did me tonight (but I had good reasons ) that you
were compromis ing yourself and Madame de Sery y that your conduct
rieved me and made me look ridiculous ; what did you an swer me ?
g
That I was perfectly free that marri age b e tween two intelligent people
was simply a partnership a sort Of social bond but not a moral bond
Is it n ot true ? You gave me to understand that your mistress was far
more captivatin g than I that she was more womanly ; that is what you
‘
said : more womanly Of course you said all this in a very nice way
and I ackn owledge that you did your very best to spare my feelin gs
for which I am very grateful to you I assure you b ut I understand
perfectly what you meant
“
We then decided to live practicall y separated ; that is under the
same r oof but apart from each other We had a chil d and it was nec
essary to keep up appearances before the world but you intim ate d
that if I chose to take a lover you would not Object in the least pro
vidin git was kept secret You even made a long and very interesting
discourse on the cleverness of women in such cases ; how well they
could manage such things etc etc I understood p erfectly my dear
boy You loved Madame de Servy very much at that time and my
conjugal— legal— a ffection was an impediment to your hap p m ess but
since then we have lived on the very best of terms We go out in society
together it is true but here in our own house we are complete
strangers Now for the past month or two you act as if you were jealou s
”
and I do not understand it
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SHORT STORIES O F D E MAUPASSANT
208
I catch that man devouring you with his eyes like he did to night— I— I
will thrash him !
Could it be possible that you are in l ove with me?
“
-
Why not? I am sure I could do much worse
“
”
Thanks I am sorry for you— because I do not love you ny more
a
The count got up walked aroun d the tea ta ble and going behin d
his wife he kissed her q uickly on the neck She sprang up and with
“
fl ashing eyes said : How dare you do that ? Remember we are ab so
”
l u tel y no thin g to each other ; we are complete strangers
“
Please do not get angry ; I could not help it ; you look so l ove ly
tonight
“
Then I must have improved wonderfully
“
You look positively charmin g ; your arms and shoulders are beau
tiful and your skin
“
Would captivate Monsieur Burel
“
H OW mean you are ! But really I do not recall ever having seen a
woman as captivatin g as you are
“
Y
ou must have been fasting lately
”
“
VVh
at s that ?
I say you must have been fasting lately
‘
— what do you mean ?
VVh
y
“
Z
I mean just what I say You must have fasted for some time an d
now you are famished A hungry man will eat things which he will
not eat at any other time I am the neglected— d ish which you woul d
not m ind eating tonight
M argu erite ! Whoever taught you to say those things ?
“
You did To my knowledge you have had four mistresses Ac tresses
society women gay women etc so how can I explain your sud d en
”
fancy for me except by your long fast?
You will think me rude brutal but I have fallen in l ove with you
for the second time I love you madly !
”
“
VVel l well ! Then you— wish to
“
Exactly
“
Tonight?
”
“
Oh Marguerite !
“
There you are scandalized again My dear boy let us talk quietl y
We are strangers are we not? I am your wife it is true but I am
free I intended to engage my affection elsewhere but I will giv e you
providing— I re ceive the same compensation
e preference
th
”
“
I do not understand you ; what do you mean?
”
“
I will spe ak more clearly Am I as goo d l ooking as your m istresses?
“
A thousand times better
Better than the nicest one?
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.
A CRISIS
2 09
“
Y
es a thousand times
“
H ow much did she cost you in three months ?
”
“
Really— what on ea th do you mean ?
“
I mean how much did you spend on the costliest of your mistresses
.
,
r
,
”
,
in jewelry carriages suppers etc in three months ?
”
How do I know ?
“
You ought to know Let us” say for instance five thousand franc s
a month— is that about right?
”
“
Yes— about that
“
Well my dear b oy give me five thousand francs and I wil l be
”
yours for a month beginning from tonight
”
“
Marguerite ! Are you crazy ?
“
NO I am not but just as you say Good night !
The countess entered her boudoir A vague perfume permeate d
the whole room The count appeared in the doorway
How lovely it smells in here !
D o you think
s o? I always us e Peau d E s a ne ; I never use any
p
g
”
other perfu me
“
Really? I did not notice— it is lovely
“
Possib ly but be kind enough to go ; I want to go to bed
”
“
M arguerite !
”
“
Will you please go ?
The count came in “
and sat on a chair
Said the countess : You will not go ? Very well
She slowly took off her waist revealin g her white arms and neck
then she l ifted her arms above her head to loosen her hair
e count took a step toward her
Th
“
The countess : DO not come near me or I shal l get real angry do
”
you hear ?
He caught her in his arms and tri ed to kiss her She quickly took a
tumbler of perfumed water standing on the toilet tab le and dashed it
is face
into h
He was terrib ly angry He stepped back a few paces and murmur ed
”
“
How stupid of you !
“
Perhaps— but you know my conditions— fi
ve thousand francs !
”
“
Preposterous !
”
“
Why pray?
“
Why? Because— whoever heard of a man paying his wife?
“
Oh ! How horribly rude you are !
“
I suppose I am rude but I repeat the idea of paying one s wife
”
is preposterous ! Positively stupid !
“
Is it not much worse to pay a gay woman ? It certainly would be
”
stupid when you have a wife at home
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SHORT STORIES OF D E M AUPASSANT
2 10
That may b e but I do not wish to be ridicu lous
The countess sat down on the bed and took off her stockin g
s
revealing her bare p ink feet
The co u nt approached a littl e nearer and s aid tenderly
“
”
W
hat an odd idea of yours Marguerite !
“
?”
What idea
”
“
To ask me for five thousan d francs !
“
ers? You s a
Odd ? Why should it be odd? Are we not shang
u
o
y y
are in love with me ; all well and good You ca nnot marry me as I am
already your wife so you buy me Mon Dieu ! Have you not bought
other women ? Is it not much better to give m e that money than to a
strange woman who would squander it? Come you will acknowl edge
that it is a novel idea to actually pay your own wife ! An intelligent
man like you ought to see how amusing it is ; besides a man never
really loves anything unl ess it costs him a l ot of money It would ad d
new zest to our— conjugal love by comparing it with your illegitimate
”
love Am I not right ?
She went toward the bell
“
N ow then sir if you do not go I will ring for my maid !
The count stood perplexed displeased and suddenly taking a
handful of b ank notes ou t of his pocket he threw them at his wife
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Hire are
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thousand you witch but remember
The cou ntess picked up the money counted it and said
”
“
What?
“
”
You must not get used to it
She burst out laughing an d sai d to him
“
F ive thousand francs each month or else I shall send you back to”
your actresses and if you are pleased with me— I shall ask for more
six
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A
TH E
F RE NC H
E N O C H A RD E N
L A SHE S the shore with its sho rt
and
monstrous waves Little
white clouds are scudding quickly across the great blue sky swept
by a rapid w ind like birds and the village in the fold of the valley
which runs do w
n to the ocean l ies broiling in the sun
Quite at the entrance is the house of the Martin Levesques alone
at the side of the road It is a little fi
sh
erm an s cottage with clay walls
and a thatch ed roof adorned with blue iris flowers A garden as big
a few ca b bages some
as a handkerchief where S prout some onions
SE A
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
2 12
The Martin woman waited for her secon d husband ten years bring
ing up her children with great difficulty ; then as she was a good strong
woman a fisherman of the neighborhood Levesque a widower with a
boy asked her in marriage She married him and had two children
by him in three years
They lived painful ly laboriousl y B read was d ear and meat almost
unknown in the household They ran in debt at times with the b aker
in winter during the stormy months The l ittle ones were well never
el es s People said
th
“
They are brave folk the Martin Leves q ues The wife is a har d
”
ing
worker and Levesque has not his equal for fish“
The little girl seated at the gate repeated : You would think that
he kn ew us Perhaps it is some poor man from Epreville or from
”
o
Au z eb og
But the mother was not deceived No no it wasn t anyone of the
country surely !
As he mov ed no more than a stake and as he kept his eyes glued
to the Martin Levesques cottage the woman became furious an d
fear making her brave she seized a shovel and went out of the d oor
“
What are you doing there ? she called to the v agabond
He answered in a gruff voice
“
I am takin g the fresh air ! D oes that d o you any h arm ?
She replied :
”
“
Why are you spyin g like this on my house ?
T
he man replied :
“
I am not injuring anybody Isn t it permitte d to sit down by the
roadside ?
Not finding an answer ready she went back into the house
The day passed slowly Toward noon the man disappeared but he
c ame by again toward five O clock They did not see any more of him
d uring the evening
Levesque returned at dusk They told him about it He remarke d
”
“
It is some skulker or good for nothing
He went to bed undisturb ed while his wife dreamed of this prowler
who had looked at her so strangely
When day came there was a great wind and the sailor seeing that
he could not start out to sea helped his w ife at mending nets
About nine o clock the eldest daughter a Martin who ha d gone ou t
to get some bre ad came back running with a frightened air and c ried
”
“
Ma there he is again !
e mother was startled and very pale said to her husban d
Th
“
im Levesque so that he won t watch us like tbiS
CO and speak to h
”
because it wo rries me to death
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A FREN C H ENO C H AR D EN
2 13
And Levesque a big sail or w ith a complexion like a brick a thi ck
ened beard blue eyes s tr ong neck a lways wearing w oolen garments
on account of the wind and rain at sea walked ou t quietly an d
approached the straggler
And they began to talk
The mother and the child ren l ooke d on from the distance anxious
and trembling
Suddenly the unknown rose and came toward the house with
Levesque
The wife terrified drew back
Her husband said to her
“
Give him a piece Of brea d an d a glass of cider He hasn t eaten
anythin g since the day before yesterday
They both entered the house followed by the woman and the chil
dren The vagabond sat down and began to eat with his head lowere d
beneath the glances
im Th e two big gir l s th
The mother standing up scrutinized h
e
Martin s leaning against the door one of them holdin g the latest baby
fixed their eager eyes upon him and the two boys seated in the ashes
of the fireplace had stopped playing with the black kettle to look at
this stranger too
Levesque having taken a chair asked him
“
D o you come from a distance ?
“
I have come from Cette
”
“
On foot as far as that ?
”
“
Yes on foot A man has to walk when he cannot afford to ride
“
And where are you going?
”
“
I was coming here
“
Y
ou know someone here ?
“
That might b e
They were silent He ate slowly although he was famishe d an d
he took a sip of cider after each mouthful of b read He had a worn
wrinkled face and seemed to have s uffered much
Levesque b ru s u el y asked him
“
What i s your name p?
“
My name is Martin
A strange shudder shook the mother She took a step forward as if
to scan the vagabond more closely and stoo d O pposite him with her
arms hanging down and her mouth O pen Nobody said anything
further Levesque finally resumed
“
”
Are you from here ?
“
He answered : I am from here And as he raised his head the
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SHORT ST ORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
2 14
woman s eyes and his met and rem aine d fixe d upon each other as if
their glances were fastened
nly said in a change d voice l o w an d trembling
She
sudde
“
”
Is it you my husband ?
He slowly replied
“
Yes it is I
He did not move continuing to masticate the bread
Levesque more surprised than moved s tammered :
“
”
It is you Martin ?
The other man said sim ply
“
”
Yes it is I
An d the second hus b and aske d
“
”
Whe re have you come from?
He first told his story
“
From the coast to Africa ; I was wrecke d on a reef Three of us
were saved Picard V atinel and me And then we were captured by
savages who held us twelve years Picard and V atinel are dead An
English traveler pas sin g that way took me and brought me to Cette
(I here I am
The woman began to weep her face in her apron
Levesque said
“
”
What shall we do now?
Martin asked
“
”
You are her husband ?
Lev esque replied :
“
Yes I am
They looked at each other and were sil ent
Then Martin gazing at the children in a circle aroun d him nodd ed
toward tw o little girls
”
“
Those are mine
Levesque said
“
They are yours
He did not rise ; he did not kiss them ; b e merely remarked
“
Good God ! How tall they
Levesque repeated
“
What shall we do ?
Mart in perplexed could not tell Finally he decided
“
I will do as you wish I don t want to injure you It is vexing all
the same considering the house I have two children ; you have three
ea ch his Own B ut the mother is she yours or mine ? I will consent to
whatever you wish b ut the house is mine since my father left it to
me S ince I was born here and since there are papers for it at the
”
notary s
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S HO RT S TORIES OF
2 16
D E MAUPASSAN T
U
L
I
E
RO
M
A
I
N
J
tw o years ago I was walkin g along the shores of
the Mediterranean What is more charming than to dream while walk
ingover a lonely road ? One enjoys the s u nlight and the caressing win d
when climbin g the mountains or strolling by the seashore And in his
d aydreams what ill usions what love poems what adventures pass in
tw o hours through the mind of one who idles along a road Every
ssib l e h
0 e
confuse d and joyous penetrates him wi th the w arm
p
ght air ; he ih
hal es them with the breeze and they give birth in his
bein g to an appetite for happiness that increases like the hunger h
e
a cquires in wa lkm g Sweet an d fleeting thoughts sing in h
is soul as he
comes closer to nature
I foll owed the road that l ea ds from S aint Raphael to Italy or rather
I made my way through that superb and chan ging scenery which seems
made to be celebrated in all the l ove poems of the earth It seemed to
me a pity to think that from Cann es to Monaco scarcely anyone comes
into this part of country save to make trouble to juggle with money or
to display under this delicious sky and in this garden of roses an d
oranges base vanities s tupid pretensions and vil e covetousness an d to
show the human mind as it is— s ervil e ignorant arrogan t and grasping
Suddenl y in one of the curves of the ravishing bays I saw a group
of villas four or five only fronting on the sea at the foot of the moun
tain Behind them was a wild forest of pines which covere d two great
v alleys apparently without roads or outlet Involuntarily I stopped in
front of the gate of one of these chalets so pretty w as it a little white
cottage with brown decorations covered with roses that climbed to
e roof The garden w as filled with flowers of all colors and every size
th
c oquettishly arranged in studied dis order The lawn was dotted with
flower beds ; a vase with trailing vines stood on the step of the veranda
and over the windows hung clusters of p u rple grapes while the stone
balustrade that surrounded this charm ing dwell ing was covered with
glories
that
looked
like
spots
Of bloo d Behind
e normous red m om in
g
which
e house stretched a long alley of oran ge trees in flower
th
reach ed as far a s the foot Of the mounta in
“
On the door of the villa In small gilt letters I read this name : Vil la
d Antan I asked m y self what poet or fa iry inhabited the place what
insp ired recluse had discovered it and created this dream of a dwell
ing that appeared to spring from masses of flowers
IN
THE
sp nm c rrME
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ROMAIN
U
L
IE
j
2 17
A workm an was breaking stones on the road at a short distance I
asked him the name of the proprietor of the chalet He replied that it
belonged to the famous Mme Julie Romain
J u lie Romain ! In my childhood I had often heard her spoken of the
great actress the rival of Rachel ! No woman had been more applauded
above all ! H ow many duels had been
or more loved— more loved
fought and how m any suicides had been committed b ecause of her
and how many wild adventu res had been undertaken for her sake !
What was her age now that seductress ? Sixty— no seventy— seventy
five years Julie Romain ! Here in this house ! I recalled again the emo
tion created throughout France (I was twelve years ol d then ) by her
flight to Sicil y with one l over a poet after her notorious quarrel with
another adorer
rst night re re
She fled with her ne w l ov e one evening after a fi
p
sentation durin g which the audience had applauded her for ha l f an
hour and call ed her ou t eleven M es in succession She went away
with the poet in a post chaise as was the custom then ; they had crosse d
the sea in order to love in that antique island daughter of Greece
under the immense grove of orange trees that surroun d s Pale rmo
“
which is c alle d the Conque d Ov
Their ascent O f Etna was gossipe d about and also how they hung
over the immense crater a rm in arm cheek against cheek as if they
d esired to throw themselves into the gulf of fire
He was dead now the writer of affecting v erses of poems so bril
l iant that they dazzled a whole generation and so subtle and m ysteri
ou s that they O pened a new world to other poets
The other lover was dead also the abandoned one who created for
her those musical exp ressions that remain in all hearts expressions of
triumph and despair that are at once intoxicating and heart rending
She lived here in this house veiled with flowers
I hesitated no longer I rang the bell A domestic came to open the
door a boy of eighteen years awkward and shy with hands that ap
eared to be in his way I wrote on my card a gallant compliment to
p
the O ld actress and an ardent prayer that she would receive me
Perhaps she might know my name and allow me to see her
The young v alet disappeared but soon returned and asked me to
follow him He showed me into a neat drawing room co rrect in every
d etail in the style of Louis Philippe with furniture of a cold and cum
b ersom e fash
ion the coverings O f which were bein g removed in my
honor by a little maid of about sixteen years with a slender figure
but not much beauty
Then the servants left me alone I looke d around the room with
interest On the wall s hung three portraits one was of the actress in a
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPASSANT
2 18
e poet lover wearing a l ong froc k
celebrated role another was of th
coat tight at the wais t and the ruffled shirt of those days an d the
third was of the musician seated before a clavichord The lady was
blonde and charmin g in herportrait but her pose was a little aff ecte d
as was the fashion O f that day Her charmin g mouth and blue eyes
and the techni que of the painting was O f a high
s miled graciously
d e gree of excellence Those three remarkable faces s eemed to be look
ing already at the next generation and their surroundings had an air of
a day that was past and of indivi dualities that were no more
A door Opened and a little woman entered She w as v ery ol d v ery
Somehow She rem inded
smal l with eyebrows and bands O f white hai
me of a w
hite mouse quick and furtive in her movements She gave
me her hand and with a v oice that was still fresh vibrating and son or
“
Thank you monsieur It is very kin d of the
ous sh
e said graciously :
”
men of today to remember the women O f yesterday ! Be sea te d !
I told her that her house had attracte d me that I had tried to learn
e name of the proprietor an d having l earned it I could not resis t
th
e desire to ring her bell
th
”
“
“
Yo u r visit gives me the greater p leasure m onsieu r sh
e sai d
as
as happened When your car d was
it is the first time such an event h
handed to me with the gracious comp l iment it carried I was as
startl ed as if someone had announ ced an ol d friend who h ad been
gone these twenty years I am forgotten truly forgotten ; no one re
members me ; no one will think of me until the day of my death ; then
al l th
e papers will ta lk for three days of Jul ie Romain tell ing anec d o tes
giving details and souvenirs and scandals and perhaps pompous
eu l ogies
Then that will be the end of me !
“
Sh
e w as silent a moment an d th
en resum e d : And that will not be
l ongnow In a few months in a few days perhaps the little woman
”
who is now alive will b e nothing but a corpse !
S he raised her eyes to her portrait which met her gaze as if smiling
at that withered carica ture of its elf ; then she looked at the two men
th
e scornful poet and the inspired musician both O f whom seeme d to
“
”
W hat does that ruin ask of us ?
say :
An indescrib able keen irr esis tible sadness seize d my heart the
sa dne s s that overwhelms those whose lives are finishe d and who
s truggle
sti
ll with memories as a drownin g man struggles in deep
“
water
From the place where I sat I coul d see brilliant an d swiftl y moving
carriages pass ing along the road goin g from Nice to Monte Carlo
And seated inside were beautiful young women rich and happy and
m en smiling and satisfie d Sh
h
lance
an
d
c
mpre
en
d
e foll owed my
o
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S HORT STORIE S OF DE
220
“
You
M AUPASSAN T
monsieur with most people the heart grows ol d with the
bod y W ith me that has not happened My poor body is seventy fi
ve
ears Ol d but my heart is only twenty And that is the reason why I
”
yve all alone with my flowers and my dreams
Again a long silence fell between us After a time she calme d herse lf
and again spoke smil ingly :
“
How you would laugh at me monsieur if you knew how I pas s
m y eve nings when the weather is fine ! I am ashamed of my folly an d
”
pity myself at the same time
It was useless for me to beg her to te ll me ; she woul d not d o so;
“
”
then I rose to go at which she cried What ! so soon ?
I told her that I had intende d to dine at Monte Carlo an d at on ce
“
sh
e aske d a little timidly :
Would you not like to dine with me ? It
would give me very much pleasure
I accepted her invitation immediately She appeare d delighte d and
rang the bell ; then when she ha d given a few orders to the littl e mai d
e said S he would lik e to S how me her house
sh
A kind of glass covered v eranda ful l O f plants O pene d from the
dining room and permitted one to see from one end to the other the
long alley of orange trees extending to the foot of the mountains A
l ow seat hid d en under the shrubbery indicated that the aged actres s
often came to sit there
Then we went into the gar d en to look at the flowers Evening cam e
on softly one Of those calm warm evenings that brings forth all th
e
perfumes of the earth It was a lmost d ark when we placed ourselve s
at the table The dinner was excellent and we sat long over it We
became quite intimate friends A profound sym pathy for her b ad
S prung up in my heart She drank a glass of wine and became more
friendly and confidential
“
Let us go ou t and look at the moon she sai d at l ast I a d ore the
moon the lovely moon ! It has been the witness of my greatest joys
It seems to me that all my sweetest memories are treasured there an d
that I have only to look at it in order to have them come back to me
And sometimes in the evening I arrange for myself a pretty scene so
pretty— if you only knew ! But no you would laugh at me too much
I cannot tell you— I don t dare— nO— no I cannot tell you
”
“
“
Ah madame continue I pray ! I begged of her What is you r
”
—
little secret ? Tell me ! I promise you not to laugh I swear it !
She hesitated ; I took her hands her poor little hands so thin an d
cold and kissed them one after the other many times as her lovers
were wont to do in former days She w as move d though she still
hesitated
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22 1
JULIE ROMAIN
“
You promise me not to laugh
?
”
“
Yes I swear it madame !
he said timidly
s
”
“
Well then come ! she sai d with a smile
.
,
,
,
.
We rose from the table and as the awkward youth in green livery
d rew back the chair behind her she spoke a few low quick words in
his ear
“
He replie d respectfully Yes mad ame im mediately
She took my arm and led me upon the veranda The orange tree
w a lk was a beautiful sight The moon cast a slender line of silver
among the trees a long l ine of light that fell on the yellow sand be
tween the dense and rounded branches AS the trees were in bloom
their d elicious and penetrating perfu me filled the air and among the
d ark foliage were thousands of fireflies whose tiny flames looked lik e
e seed O f star s
th
“
Oh what an ideal en vironment for a scene of love ! I crie d
“
”
S he smiled Is it not ? Is it not? You will see presently !
She made me sit down beside her an d murmured
“
Th
e memory of such scenes is what makes me regret life B ut
o
u
y
h ardly dream of those things you men of today You are merely money
m akers businessmen You don t know h
ow to talk to us even When I
‘
say us
I mean women who are you ng Love a ffairs have become
merely liaisons which origin ate often in an unacknowledge d bill of
the dressmaker If you find the bill more important than the woman
v alue than the
you disappear but if you esteem the woman of greater
”
bill you pay ! Nice manners and charming affections !
“
”
She took my hand Look ! she said
I was astonished and transported with pleasure at the charming
picture that appeared Below us at the end of the alley and in the full
m oonlight a youth and a maiden were coming toward us clasping
each other around the waist
They advanced their arms entwined
w alking slowly in the moon s rays the soft eflu l gence of which bathe d
them completely
They disappeared in the d arkness for a moment then reappeare d
farther down the avenue
The youth was dressed in a white satin costume of the last century
with a broad hat over which hung an ostrich feather The maiden wore
a skirt with wide b oom and her head was dressed with the high pow
dered coiffure affected by b eautiful dames in the days of the Regency
At last they came to a halt about a hundred steps away from us and
standing in the middle Of the alley they embraced after saluting each
other gracefully
Suddenly I recognized the two little servants ! Then I was seize d
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SHORT STORIES O F DE MAUPASSANT
222
with one of those irresis tib le desires to laugh tha t sh ake one all over
I did not laugh however I resisted the im pul s e and waited to see the
next scene in this extraordin ary comedy
The lovers now re turned toward the end of the val ley and distance
a gain made them appear charming They withdrew farther and farther
away and at last disappeared like figures in a dream The all ey seemed
l onely without the m
I took my departu re also I l eft imme diately so that I should not
see them again for I thought it pro b able that the sp ectacle was made
to l ast a long time in order to reca l l al l the past— that past of love
and scenic e ffect that fictitious past de ceiving and seductive falsely
yet tru ly charming— to ca use the tender heart to throb again in the
rom antic breas t of the old actress an d to use me as a fina l instrum ent
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AN U N RE AS O N ABLE
A GRE AT
wm
W O M AN
was whistling outs ide an autumn wind groa nin g and
galloping ; one of those winds which kil l the last leaves and carry them
away to th
e clouds
The hunters had finis he d their dinner and w ere s til l b ooted red
They were those d emi Norman lords h al f
animate d and ligh ted up
country squire h alf peas ant rich an d vigorous shap ed for cu tting the
horns of beeves when they stopp ed them in the m arket
They had hunted all day on M B londel s estate M Blond e l the
m ayor of E p arvill e and they were ea tin g now around the great tabl e
in a kind of farm villa of which their host was the proprietor
They were talking like a whirlwind laughing like a roar
animal s and drinkin g like cisterns their legs s tretched ou t their elbows
on the cloth their eyes shining under the flame of the l amps hea ted
by a hearth fi
re s o formidable as to send to the ceiling its ruddy glow
They chatted of hunting and dogs But they had come to the hour
when other ideas come to men half tip sy and all eyes followed the
s trong girl with plump cheeks who carried at the end of her red wrists
great platters filled with food
Suddenl y a d evil of a fellow who had become a veterinary after
ha ving studied for a priest and who looked after all the anim als of the
district by name Sejour said
My eyes ! Monsieur Blondel you have a girl there who is not
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
22 4
some thing would be suspected an d people would talk If I kept her
there the condition wo u ld soon be recogniz ed and then I could
tu rn her away
“
I spoke to my uncle about it the B aron de Creteuil an ol d buck
who has known more than one su ch case and asked his advice He
responded tranquilly
‘
You must marry my boy
‘
‘
I made a leap Marry Uncle ? I sai d M arry whom ?
“
He shrugged his shoul ders gentl y as he replied
‘
Whom you wis h ; that is your affair not mine If one is not stu pi d
there is always someb ody to be fou nd
“
I reflected for two weeks upon this idea and ended by saying to
‘
myself : My uncle is right
“
Then I commen ced to rack my brain to think of someone when
one evening the ju stice of the peace with whom I was dining sai d
to me
‘
Mother Paumelle s son is into mischief again ; it is true that a goo d
d og“shows his race
This Mother Paumelle was a sl y ol d gyp sy of whom the youth could
have all they desired For six francs she would certainly have sold her
s oul an d her rake of a son followe d in her footsteps
“
I went and found her and very gently made her understand the
state of my affairs As I was somewhat embarrassed in my expl anations
sh
e demande d all at once :
‘
Well how much will you give to this li ttle one?
“
She was malicious this old woman but as I was not stu pid I was
prepared for business I owned three pieces of wastelan d beyond Sass o
v ille which belong to my three farms in Villebon The farmers were
always complaining that it was too far away ; in short I took back the
three fields s ix acres in all an d as my farmers fo u nd fault I retu rne d
to them up to the end of each lease all the ir ren ts in poul try In this
way the thin g was settled Then having b ought a piece on one side
from my neigh b or Monsieur Au m onte I had a little house constructe d
down there the whole th ing for a b out fifteen hundred francs in all
In this way I had got together a littl e farm which had not cost me very
much that I could give to the little girl for a marriage portion
‘
“
The old woman cried out : It is not enough but I wil l wait ; we will
leave
it without decidinganything
“
Th
enext day at daybre ak the lad came to find me I could s ca rcely
r ecall his face but when I s aw him I was reassu red ; he was no : bad for
a peasant but had the air of a rude fell ow
“
He looked at the affair from a dis tance as if he were buying a cow
When we had agreed he wished to see the property and we set ou t
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U N RE AS ON ABLE W OMAN
AN
2 25
over the fields The scam kept me going for three hours o ver
the land ; he surveyed it m easurep it took up the earth and crumbled
it in his hands as if he were afraid of being deceived in the merchan
d ise The house was not yet roofed ; he exacted slate instead of thatch
because it needed less repairs ! Then he said to me
‘
An d the furniture ; you must give that
‘
I protested : No It is enough to give ou a farm
y
“
He sneered : Yes a farm and a child
I colore d in spite of myself He went on
Come now you must give a bed a table the chest of drawers
three cha irs and the kitchen dishes or nothing can be done
“
I c onsented to it
“
Then we started to return He had not yet said a word about the
irl
But
suddenly
with
a
c
nstrained
air
he
asked
sl
o
y
g ‘
But if she should die who would it go to this farm ?
‘
“
I answere d : T o you naturally
“
That was what he had wanted to kn ow since morning Immediately
he extended his hand to me with a satisfied appearance We were of
one accor d
Oh ! But I had difficulty in making Rose consent She dragge d
herself at my feet sobbed and kept repeating : It was you proposed it
to me ! It was you ! It was you ! F or more than a week she resisted in
spite of my reasoning and my prayers They are stupid these women !
As soon as they get love i nto their heads they understand nothin g
ing ; it is love a b ove all and all for love !
else Wisdom is not h
“
F inally I got angry and threatened to throw her out Then she
yielded little by little on the condition that I would allow her to come
and see me from time to time
“
I mysel f condu ted her to the altar paid for the ceremony an d
gave the wedding dinner I did the thing up grandly in short Then
‘
Good by my children ! I went to pass six months with my brother
in Touraine
“
When I returned I learned that she had been at the house every
week asking for me And I had scarcely b een home an hour before I
s aw her coming with a b a b y in her arms Believe me if you will but
it affected me in some way to see this little monkey I believe I even
em b raced it
“
As for the mother she was a wreck a skeleton a shadow She
looked thin and old Ye gods ! It was evident this marriage was not to
her liking I said to her mechanically
“Are you happy?
Th
en she began to weep like a fountain and with hiccups an d sob s
e cried
sh
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE MAUPAS SANT
226
‘
I can never never leave you now I would rather die ; I cannot
She made a devil of a noise I consoled her as well as I coul d an d
conducted
her back to the gate
“
I learned that her hus b and beat her and that her mother in law
made l ife hard for her the old cabbagehead
“
Two days later she re turned She took me in her a rms and dragged
‘
‘
herself upon the earth Kill me she said but I will never go b ack
down there
“
This is exactly what Mirza would have said could she have sp oken !
These stories b egan to be very tiresome to me and I went away again
for ano ther six months
“
When I returned— when I returned I learned that she had died
three weeks before having visited the castle every Sunday— just like
Mirza The child had also died eight days b efore
“
As for the husb and the cunning rascal he inherited the p roperty
He has tu rned out well since it appe ars and is now municipal
”
counselor
M
de V arnetot added laughing
“
It is a fact that I made the fortl m e of that man !
And M Sejour the veterinary concl u ded gravely carrying a glass
of brandy to his lips :
“
Say what you will but with women l ik e that such things should
”
not be
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RO S ALI E
Thu
P R U DE N T
was A M YSTE R Y
in tha t affair abou t Rosalie Prudent
neither the j u ry nor the judge nor the prosecu ting attorney of the
Republic himself could understand
The girl Rosalie w as a servant at the house of the V aram b ot famil y
of M antes She became enceinte and unknown to her employers had
given birth to a child in the garret d u ring the night and had then
killed the child and buried it in the garden
It was the ord inary story of most of the infanticides committed b y
servants But one act remained inexplica ble The examination of the
“
gir l s room had resu lted in the dis covery of a complete layette for an in
fant made by Rosalie herself who had passed her nights during three
months in cutting out the garments and sewing them The grocer where
sh
e had bought her candles (paid for out of her wages ) in order to per
form this long task came forward and testified to the fact of their p ur
rs:
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OF DE
SHORT STORIES
22 8
MAUPASSANT
myself be pleased me to be sure What would you have d one ?
Anyone listens to those things when one is alone— as I am I am alone
on the earth monsie u r There is no one to whom I can talk— no one
to whom I can tell my troubles I have neither father nor mother nor
brother nor sister— no one ! He seemed like a brother who had come to
me when he began to talk to me And then he asked me to go down
to the river one evening so that we might talk without making so much
noise And I went down there Could I have known what would hap
pen? He put his arm s around my waist— o f course I didn t want to
no no ! I couldn t help it I wanted to cry ; the air was so soft and warm
—it was clear moonlight— I couldn t help it ! No I swear to you I
couldn t help it— he did what he pleased That lasted three weeks as
long as he remained I would have followed him to the end of the
world But he went away and I didn t know that I was enceinte— I
didn t ! I didn t know it until the month afterward
She began to weep so violently that they were obliged to give her
time to compose herself Then the judge S poke in the tone of a father
“
”
confessor : Co on my girl go on
‘
She continued : W hen I knew that I was enceinte I told Madame
Boudin the midwife to whom one can tell these things and I aske d
her what to do in case that happened without her And then I mad e
night after night until one O clock in the morning ; and
th
e clothes
then I looked for another place for I knew very well I should be dis
charged but I wished to remain in that house until the end in order
to economize the pennies seeing that I had no money and that I would
”
need it for the little one
Then you did not wish to kil l him ?
”
Oh ! Surely not monsieur
“
Why did you kill him then?
“
Here s how it happened It came sooner than I thought it woul d It
took me in the kitchen as I was washing my dishes Monsieur and Mad
ame V aram b ot had retired already so I went upstairs without trouble
h olding to the banisters I lay down on the floor in my room so as not
to soil the b ed That lasted perhaps one hour— but it may have been
two or three— I can t tell so much pain did I have— and then— and
then it was over and I took up my ba b y !
‘
Oh y es ! I was happy for sure ! I did everything that Madame Boudin
told me everything ! Then I laid him on the b ed and then another
pain began and it was a pain to kill anyone If you knew what that
was you others you wouldn t do as much I m sure ! I fell on my knees
and then on my b ack on the floor and then it began all over again and
that too lasted one hour or perhaps two and there I was all alone
For
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’
HIPPOLYTE S CLAIM
229
Finally there came another little one yes another two of them lik e
that ! I took it up as I took the first one and I put it on the b ed by the
side of the other One— two ! Can it be possib le I said ? Two babies !
And I who earn twenty francs a month ! Say— was it possib le for me
to take care of them ? T o care for one— yes I might do that by
depriving myself b ut not two!
“
The thought of that tu rned my head What do I know about it I ?
C ould I choose say? D o I know ? I saw myself come to my last day !
I couldn t keep two so I put the pillow on them without knowing what
I was doing and I threw myself on the bed and upon them too And
I stayed there rolling and crying until daylight which I saw through
the window I looked at them— they were both dead under the pillow
quite d ead Then I took them under my arm I went down the stairs
and ou t in the garden ; I took the gardner s spade and I buried them
in the ground as deep as I coul d one here and the other there not
together so that they could not talk of their mother if they do talk
e little dead children Do I know ?
th
“
And then I went back to my be d and I was so sick that I coul d
not get up They made the doctor come and he understood every
thing That is the truth Monsieur the ! udge D o what you want to me
I am ready
During her speech half of the juryrnen had been wiping their eyes
over and over again trying to hide their emotion All the women in
the courtroom were sobbin g
“
At what spot in the garden d id y ou b ury the other infant ? aske d
e u dge
th
“ hichone did you find ? Rosalie inquire d
”
“
The one that was under the artichokes
“
Ah ! The other is buried under the strawberries beside the well !
The poor girl began again to sob so loud that it was enough to break
one s heart to hear her The jury acquitted her
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H I PP OLYTE S
TH E
FAT JU STI CE
OF
THE
PEACE with
,
C LAI M
n eye closed an d the oth er
o e
half O pen is listening with evident displeasure to the plaintiffs Once
in a while he gives a sort of grunt that foretells his Opinion an d in a
thin v oice resembling that of a child he interrupts them to ask ques
tions He has just rendered ju d gement in the case of M Joly against
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPASS ANT
23 0
M P etitp as the contestants having come to court on account of the
boundary of a field which had been accidentally overstepp ed by M
e latter was plowing
P etitp as s farm hand while th
Now he calls the case of Hippolyte Lacour ves tryman an d iron
monger against Mme Céleste Cé sarine Luneau widow of AnthMe
Isidore Luneau
Hippolyte Lacour is forty fi
ve years ol d ; he is tall and gaunt with
a clean shaven face and long hair and he speaks in a slow s ingsong
v o rce
Mme Luneau appears to be about forty ye ars of age She is built
l ike a priz e fighter and her plain dress is stretched tightly over her
portly form Her enormous hips hold up her overflowing b osom in front
while in the b ack they support the great rolls of flesh that cover her
shoulders Her face with strongly cut fea tures 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 ab out to become a
mother and her huge form protrudes like a mou ntain
The witnesses for the defense are waitin g to be called
H is Honor begins : Hippolyte Lacour state your compla int
The plaintiff speaks : Your honor it will be nine months on Saint
M ichael s D ay that the defendant came to me one evening af ter I had
rung the An gelus and began an explanation relating to her barrenness
T H E J U S T I CE OF THE PEACE : Kindl y be more explicit
H I PPO LYT E : Very well your honor Well she w anted to have a child
and d e
sired my participation I didn t raise any objection and she
promised to give me one hundred fr ancs The thing was all cut an d
dried and now she refuses to aclm owl edg
which I renew
e my claim
before your honor
T H E J U S T I CE : I don t understand in the least You s ay that sh
e
wanted a child ? What kind of a child ? D id she wish to adopt one?
H I PPO LYTE : No your honor she wanted a new one
T H E J U S T I CE : What do you mean by a new one ?
H IPPO LYTE : I mean a newborn child one that we were to beget as
if we were man and wife
T H E J U S TI CE : You astonish me To what en d d i d she make this ah
normal proposition ?
H I PPO LYT E : Your honor at first I could not make out her reasons
d was taken a little aback But as I don t do anything without thor
o ughly investigating b eforehand I called on her to explain matters to
me which she did You see her hus b and Anthirne Isidore whom you
knew as well as you know me had died the week b efore and his money
reverted to his fam ily This greatly displeas ed her on account of the
lo s s it mean t s o she went to a lawyer who told her all about wha t
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SHORT STORIES OF DE MAUPASSANT
23 2
MME LUNEAU It s a lie is it? How about the re d haire d ones th en?
’
:
-
,
I suppose they re yours too ?
T H E J U S TI CE Kindly refrain from personal attacks
’
:
,
or
I shall
be
obliged to call you to order
MM E LUNEAU : Well your honor I had my doubts about him an d
said I to myself two precautions are better than one so I explained my
“
position to C esaire 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 ou t to b e unreliable But as soon as the other
w itnesses heard that I wanted to make sure against any disappointment
I could have had more than a hundred your honor if I had wante d
them That tall one over there Lucas Chandelier swore at the M e
that I oughtn t to give Hippolyte Lacour a cent for he hadn t d one
more than the rest of them who had obliged me for nothing
H I PP OLYTE : What did you promise for ? I expected the money you r
honor No mistake with me —a promise given a promise kept
MM E LUNEAU (b esid e hersel f) : One hundred francs ! One hun dre d
francs ! One hundred francs for that you liar ! The others there didn t
a sk a red cent ! Look at em
all six of em ! Make them testify your
honor ; they ll tell sure (To H ip p ol yte ) Look at em you liar ! they re
as good as you They re only six but I could have had one tw o th
re e
five hundred of em for nothing too you robber !
H I PPO LYTE : Well even if you d had a hundred thousand
MME LUNEAU : I coul d if I d wante d em
H I P P O LYTE : I did my duty so it doesn t change matters
MM E L UNEAU (s la p p ingher p rotu bera nt form with bothha nds )
Then prove that it s you that did it ; prove it you robber ! I defy you
to prove it !
H I PPO LY TE (cal m l y ) : Maybe I didn t do any more than anybo d y
else But you promised me a hundred francs for it What did you ask
the others for afterward ? You had no right to I g
u ess I could have
done it alone
MME LUNEAU : It is not true robber ! Call my witnesses you honor ;
they ll answer sure
The justice calls the witnesses in behalf of the defense Six re d
awkw ard individuals appear
T H E J U S T I CE : Lucas Chandelier have you any reason to suppose
that you are the ‘father of the child Ma d ame Luneau is carrying?
LUC AS CHANDE LI E R : Yes Sir
T H E J U S T I CE : Célestin Pierre Sidoin e have you any reason to suppose
that you are the father of the child Madame Luneau is carrying?
CELE ST rN P IE E H E SIDOINE : Yes sir
The four other witnesses testify to the same effect
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B ENOIST
23 3
The justice after a pause pronounces judgment : Where as the
p l ain tiff has reasons to believe himsel f the father of the child which
M adame Luneau desired Lucas Chandelier Célestin Pierre Sidoine
and others have sim ilar if not conclusive reasons to lay claim to the
child
But whereas Madame Luneau had pre viously asked the assis tance of
Hippolyte Lacour for a duly stated co nsideration
And whereas one may not question the absolute good faith of Hip
polyte Lacour though it is questionable whe ther he had a perfect
right to enter into such an agreement see in g that the plaint iff is m ar
ried and compelled b y the law to remain faithfu l to his lawful spouse
Therefore the court condemns Madame Luneau to pay an indemnity
of twenty fi
ve francs to Hippolyte La cour for l oss of time and un us ti
j
fi
abl e abduction
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BE N CI S T
IT ALL
CAME over him
S u nday after M ass He went out of church
and followed the crossroad that led to his house when he found him
s elf behin d the Martin girl who was al so returning home
The father walked b eside his daughter with the im portant step of
a rich farmer D isdaining the blouse he wore a kind of waistcoat of
gray cloth and had on his head a melon shaped hat with a wide brim
She laced in a corset which she only wore once a week walked very
straight her waist drawn in her shoulders large hips projecting switch
ing a little Her hat was all flowers the confection of an Yvetot milliner
and she showed her round s trong supple neck where little ten dri ls of
hair were flutt ering moistened by the air and sun
Benoist saw onl y her b ack b ut he knew her face wel l which was
the reason he had noticed her still further Suddenly he said to him
”
self : My but she is pretty just the same that Martin girl !
He looked at her as she walked along admiring her crudely and fee l
ing himself moved with des ire He had no need of seeing her fa ce
none at all He planted his eyes upon her figure repeating to himse l f
”
“
as if he were speaking : She is a pretty girl !
The Martin girl turned to the right to enter Martinére the farm of
John Martin her fa ther As she turned she looked back and saw Benois t
“
”
who looked queer to her She cried out : Good morning Benoist He
answered : Good morning Mademoiselle M artin ; good mo rning Mon
”
sieur Martin and passed on
one
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D E MAUPASSANT
ST ORIE S OF
SHORT
234
'
When he entered his house the soup was on the table H e seated
himself O pposite his mother beside the hired m an and boy while the
maidservant went to draw the cider He ate a few spoonful s then
pushed his plate aside His mother asked
“
What is the matter
; don t you feel well ?
“
He answered : No I have something like a burnin g in my stomach
and I have no appetite
He watched the o thers eat breaking off from time to tim e a mouth
fu l of bread which he carried slowly to his lips and ma sticated a lon g
“
t ime He kept thinking of the Martin girl : All the same she is a
pretty girl And strange to say he had never perceived it until this
time and now it had come to him so sud denly and so strongly that he
was unable to eat any more He scarcely touched h
is stew
“
His mother said to him : Com e now Benoist do eat a li ttl e ; it is a
side O f mutton and very good When one has no appetite it is well to
force oneself a little sometimes
“
He sw allowed a mouthful then pushed back his plate : No I can
not d ecidedly
Upon risin g he made a tour of the farm and gav e the boy a half
holiday promising to drive up the cattle in passing The country was
emp ty ; it was a day of repose From place to place in a field of clover
the cows moved slowly with bodies exp anded ruminatin g under the
full sun Some detached plows were standing in a corner of a plowed
field and the upturned earth ready for the seed displayed its large
b rown ridges in the midst of patches of y ell ow where bits of wheat an d
oat s traw were left to decay after a l ate reaping
An au tumn wind somewhat dry was blowing ov er the pl ain an
nou ncinga cool evening after sunset Benoist s at do wn bes ide a ditch
put his hat on his knees as if he need ed the air on h
is head and sai d
“
aloud in the S ilence of the field : W hen it comes to pretty girls there
”
is a pretty girl !
He thought of her still in the even ing in his bed and again on waking
the next day He was not sad ; he was not discontented ; he could not
have told what was the trouble with him But there was something
which held him some th ing that fastened to his soul an idea which
would not leave him and which made a kind of tickling in his heart
Sometim es we find a large fly shut up in a room We hear it flying
around and buzzin g until the noise possesses us irritates us Suddenly it
e forget about it but again it st arts forcing our attention We
stops ; W
can neither catch it nor kill it nor m ake it stay in place F inally we re
sign ourselves to its humming So the remembrance of the Martin gir l
agitated Benoist s mind ; it was l ike an im prisoned fly
Then a d esire to see her again took possession of him and he passed
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SHORT STORIES OF DE MAUPASSAN T
236
c ould only get a glimpse of her at Mass on Sunday An d then one Sun
.
day after the sermon the curate announced from the high pulpit th at
there was a promise of marriage between Victoire Adelaide M
and Joseph Isidore Vallin
Benoist felt as if he had raised blood His ears buzze d ; he could no
longer hear anything and be perceive d after some time that he was
weeping into his prayer b ook
For a month he kept to his room Then he began to work again But
he was not cured and still thought of her always He shunned passing
along the roads that surrounded her dwelling not wishing to see even
the trees of her yard and this forced him to make a large circuit m om
ing and evening
She was now married to Vallin the richest farmer in the dis trict
B enoist no longer spoke to him although they had been com rades
since infancy
Then one evening as Benoist was passing across the com mon he
learned that she was enceinte Instead of resenting this or its affecting
him with a great grief he found in it a kind of solace It was finishe d
now well finished They were more separate d by this than by mar
ria e Tru ly it was best so
g
Some months passed and still some months He saw her sometimes
walking to the village with S low step She blushed on seeing him
lowered her head and hastened her steps And he tu rned ou t of his
way in order not to cross her and look into her eyes
But he thought with the same error as on that first morning of
finding himself face to face with her and obliged to speak to her What
could he say after all he had said to her in former times holding her
hands and kissin g the locks about her cheeks ? He stil l often thought of
their meeting place by the side of the ditch It was villainous to do as
sh
e did after so many promises
However little by little anger left his heart ; there was no l onger any
thin g b ut sadness And one day he took his old way by the farm where
sh
e lived He s aw the roof of the house from afar She was in there !
Living with another ! The apple trees were in blossom ; the fowls were
singing about the barnyard The whole place seemed empty the fo lk
having gone to the fields for the spring work He stopped near the
fence and looked into the yard The dog lay sleeping b efore his ke nnel
Three calves were walking slowly one behind the other towar d
the pool A large turkey cock was wheeling about before the door
parading before the poultry after the manner of a stage singer
Benoist leaned against a post and suddenly felt him self seize d wi th
a desire to weep But just then he he ard a cry a great appealing cry
coming frbm the house He stood lost in amazement his hands clinched
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BEN OIST
2 37
pon the bars ever listening Another cry prolonged piercing came
to his ears and entered his soul and his flesh It was she who was in
trouble ! She !
F inally he started hurriedly across the inclosure pushed open the
d oor and saw her stretched out upon the floor in agony her face livid
her eyes haggard seized with the p ains of childbirth
He stood there paler and trembling more than she murmur ing
“
I am here my friend ; here I am
“
An d she replied in gasps : Oh do not l eave me Benoist ; do not
”
leave me !
He looked at her not knowin g what to say or what to do She began
“
to cry ou t again : Oh ! Oh ! This tears me in two ! Oh ! Benoist !
Suddenly a furious desire to
An d sh
e seemed frightfully tortured
help her came over Benoist ; he must appease her su ffering free her
from this agony He bent over and took her up and carried her to her
bed And although she groaned continu al ly he then undressed her
taking off her kerchief her frock and her skirt She b egan to bite her
hands in order not to cry ou t Then he d id for her as he was accus
tom ed to do for beasts cows sheep and mares : he aided her an d
received into his hands a large infant which began to squal l
He wiped it and wrapped it in a cloth which was drying before the
fi
re then placed it on a pile of linen that lay on the table and returned
to the mother He put her on the floor again changed the be d and put
“
”
her in it She whispered : Thanks Benoist you have a brave he art
An d S he wept a little as if some regret had seized her
As for him he loved her no longer not at all It was finished Why?
H ow ? He could not have told What had come to pass had cured h
im
better than ten years of a b sence
“
She asked weak and trembling : What is it?
He answered in a calm voice : It is a girl and a handsome one
They were again silent At the end of a few seconds the mother in
”
“
a feeble voice said :
Show her to me Benoist
He went and got the little one and was presenting it to her as if
it were bread that had been blessed when the door O pened and Isidore
Vallin ap peared He could not understand at first then suddenly he
uessed
it
all
g
Benoist somewhat disconcerted murmured : I was passing ; I was
just passing
when I heard a cry— and I came Here is your child
”
Vallin
Then the husban d wi th tears in his eyes took the frail little monkey
that was held out to him em b raced it and stood for some se conds
overcome ; then he placed the child on the bed and extended both h ands
“
to Benoist saying : D one now Benoist ; you see b etween us all is said
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE M AUPASSANT
2 38
If you wish we sha ll from this time be friends ; just that a pair
friends
”
—
And Benoist replied : I am willing ; certainly I am will ing
,
of
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.
F EG U ND I TY
TH E Y WE RE
W AL K IN G these two ol d friends in the garden all in blos
,
,
where the gay sprin gtime stirred with life
One was a senator and the other a mem ber of the F rench Academy
grave both of them full of reason and logic but solemn— people of
mark and reputation
They were spe aking at first of politics exchangin g thoughts not
u pon ideas but men pe rsonaliti es which in these matters always pre
cede rea son Then they rose to rem iniscences ; then they were silent
continuing to walk side by side bo th softe ned by the s weetness of the
s om
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A great basket of radishes sent forth their Odor fresh an d d eli cate
A heap of flowers of every kind and color threw their sweetness to the
breeze while a r adi ant ebony tree full of yellow berries scattere d to
th
e wind its fine powder a golden smoke which reminded one of honey
a nd which carried like the caressing powder of the pe rfumer its em
b almed seed across S pace
oat
Th
e senator stopped b reathe d in th
e fertil e sw eetness that was fl
ing by him looked at the b lossoming tree resplendent as a sun from
which the pollen was now escapin g And he said
“
When one thinks that these imperceptible atoms which sm el l goo d
can bring into existence in a hundred places miles from here plants
O f their own kin d can start the sap and fiber of the female trees creat
ingfrom a germ as we mortals do they seem m ort al and they will be
”
replaced by other beings of the same essence forever like usl
Then planted before the radi ant ebony tree whose vivifyin g per
fume permeated every breath of air the senator added as if addressing
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Ah ! My jolly fellow if you were to count your children you would
be woefu lly em b arrassed And behold ! Here is one that accomp l ishes
them easily wh
o lets himself go wi thout remorse and dis turbs himse lf
”
little ab out it afte rward
”
“
The academician replied“
We do as much my friend
:
The senator answered : Yes I do not deny th at ; we do forget our
s elves somet imes
but we know it at le ast and that con stitutes our
s u p eriority
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
24 0
way he was taken with intolerable weariness and it was with great
dif“
cul ty that we were able to reach Pont l Abb é
fi
There at least there was an inn My friend went to be d , an d the
d octor whom we calle d from u irnp er foun d a high fever without
quite
determining the nature of it
“
D o you know Pont l Abb é ? No ? We ll it is the most characteristi c
B reton town from Point Raz to Morbihan— a region which contains
the essence of Breton morals and legen d s and customs Today even
‘
this co m er of the country has scar cely changed at all I say today
even because I retu rn there now every year alas !
“
An O ld castle ba thes the foot of its towers in a dis mal pon d sad
with the call of wild birds A river deep enough for coasters comes
up to the town In the streets narrowed by the old houses the men
wear great hats and embroidered waistcoats and the four coats one
above the other ; the first a b out the size of the hand covers at l east
e shoulder blades while the last stops just below the breeches
th
“
The girls who are large pretty and fresh l ooking wear a bodice
of thick cloth which forms a breastplate and corset constraining and
l eaving scarcely a suspicion of their swell ing martyrized busts Their
headdresses are also of strange fashion : over the temples two em broi
d ered bands in color fr ame the face binding the hair which falls in a
sheet behind the head and is mounted by a singular bonnet on the
very
summit often of tissue of gold or silver
“
The servant at our inn was ei g
hteen years ol d or more with blue
eyes a pale blue which were pierced with the two little black dots
of th
e pupils and with teeth short an
d white which she showe d always
in laughing and which seemed made for biting granite
“
She did not know a word of French spe aking only the Breton patois
as do most of her compatriots
“
Well my friend was no better and although no malad y decl ared
itself the doctor forbade his setting out orderin gcom p l ete rest I spent
e days near him the little maid coming in frequentl y b ringing per
th
haps my dinner or some drink for him
“
I teased her a little which seemed to amuse her but we did not
talk na turally since we could not un d erstand each o ther
“
But one night when I had remained near the sick man very l ate
I met in going to my chamber the girl entering h ers It was just op
os ite my open door Then brusquely with
out reflecting upon what I
p
was doing and more in the way of a joke than anything I seized her
around the waist and b efore she was over her astonishment I ha d
tak e n her and shut her in my room She looked at me startled excited
terr ified not daring to cry out for fea rof scandal and of b eing driven
ou t by her master at first and her father afterward
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FE C U NDITY
“
I ha d d one this in laughter
24 1
but when I saw her there the d esire to
possess her carried me away There was a long an d silent struggle a
struggle of body aga inst body after the fas hion of athletes with arm s
drawn contracted twisted respiration short skin moist with p ersp ira
tion Oh ! she fought v aliantly and sometimes we would hit a piece of
furniture a partition or a chair ; then always clutching each other we
would remain immovable for some seconds in the fear of some noise
that would awaken someone ; then we would commence again ou r excit
e resisting E xhausted finally sh
e fell and I
ingbattle I attacking sh
took her br utally upon the ground upon the floor
“
As soon as She was released she ran to the door drew the bolts
and fled I scarcely met her for some d ays following She would not al
l ow me to approach her Then when my comrade was strong and we
were to continue our journey on the eve of our departure she entere d
my apartment at midnight barefooted in her chemise just as I was
a bout to retire
“
She threw herself in my arms d rew me to her passionately and until
d aylight embraced me caressed me weeping and sob b ing giving me
all the assurances of tenderness and de 5pair that a woman can give
when
sh
e does not know a word of ou r language
“
A week after this I had forgotten this adventure so common an d
frequent when on a journey the serv ants of the inns be ing generally
d estined
to divert travelers thus
“
Thirty years passed without my thinking of or returning to Pont
l Abbé Then in 18 76 in the course of an excursion through Brittany
I happened to go there as I was compiling a document which require d
statistics from the various parts of the country
“
Nothing seemed to have changed The castle still soaked its gray
w all s in the pond at the entrance of the little town ; the inn was there
too although repaired remodeled with a modern air On entering I
was received by two young Bretons of about eighteen fresh and gen
teel enlaced in their straight girdles of cloth and encap p ed with silver
embroidery over their ears
“
It was a b out six o clock in the evening I had sat down to dine
to serve me himself— fatality without dou b t
when the host coming
‘
led me to ask him : D id you know the former master of this house ? I
passed a fortnight here once thirty years ago I seem to be speaking
to you from afar
“
He answered : Those were my parents sir
Then I recounted the occasion of my stopping there recal l ingmy
heingdetained by the illness of my comrade He did not allow me to
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Oh ! I remem b er that perfectly he said ; I was fifteen
’
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or
sixteen
.
SHOR T STORIE S OF D E MAUPASSAN T
242
then You slept in the room at the end of the hall and your frien d in
e one that is now min e upon the street
th
“
Then for the first time a l ively remem brance of the pretty maid
‘
came b ack to me I asked : You rec all a genteel pretty
your father had who had if I remember S p arkling eyes an d fine
teeth?
“
“
He replied : Yes sir; she d ied in childbed some time after
“
And poin tin g toward the courty ard where a thin lame m an was
‘
taking ou t some manure he added : That is her son
‘
“
I beg an to laugh He is not beautiful and does not resemble his
mother at all T akes after his father no dou b t
“
‘
The innkeeper replied : It may be but they never knew who his
father was She died without telling and no one here knew she ha d
a lover It was a famous surprise when we found it out No one was
wil l ing to believe it
“
A kind of disagreeable shiver went over me one of those p ainful
suggestions that touch the he art like the approach of a heavy v exation
I looked at the man in the yard He came now to draw some water for
the horses and carried two pail s limping making grievous effort with
the l im b that was shorter He was ragged and hideously dirty with
long yellow ha ir so matted that it hung in strings on his cheeks
‘
“
ing but is taken
Th
e innkeeper added : He doesn t amount to anyth
care of by charity in the house Perhaps he would have turned out
better if he had been brought up like anyb ody But you see how it is
My p arents took pity on him as
sir? No father no mo ther no
a chil d but after all — he was not theirs you see
“
I sard noth ing
“
I went to bed in my ol d room and all night I could think of nothing
‘
but that fri ghtfu l hostler repeatin g to myself : What if that were my
son? Could I have killed that girl and brought that creature into exis
tence ?
“
It was possible su rel v I reso lved to speak to this m an and to find
ou t exactly the date of h
is b irth A d ifference of two months wou ld
arrest my doubts
“
I had him come to me the next d ay But he could not speak Fren ch
at all He had the appearance of understanding no thing Besides he
was absolutely ign orant of his age which one of the maids asked him
for me And he ,held h imself with the air of an idiot before me rolling
his cap in his knotty paws laughing stu pidly with something of the
old laugh of the mother in the corners of his mouth and eyes
“
But the host becoming interested went to look up his birth on
the records He entered into life eight months and twenty Six days after
my departure from Pont l Abbé because I recalled perfectly arriving at
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E M AUPASSAN T
2 44
fire to the house striking one of the horses a blow with a p ickax an d
finally ended the score by going to sleep in the mud out in the rain
thanks to my generosity They begged me the next day not to give
him any more money Liquor made him furious and when he ha d
‘
tw o sous in his pocket he drank it The innkeeper added : To give him
money is the s ame as wishing to kill h
This man had absolutely
im
never had any money save a few centim es thrown to him by travelers
and he knew no other destination for it but the alehouse
“
Then I passed some hours in my room with an O pen b ook which
I made a semblance of reading but without accomplishin g anythin g
except to look at this brute My son! My son ! I was trying to discover
if he was anything like me By force of search ing I believed I recog
niz ed some similar lines in the brow and about the nose And I was
immediately convinced of a resem b lance which only d ifferent c lothing
and the hideous mane of the m an disguised
“
I could not stay there very long without becomin g suspecte d an d
I set out with breaking heart after having left with the innkeeper some
money to sweeten the existence of his valet
“
F or six years I l ived with this thought this horrible uncertainty
this abominable doubt fi
n d each year I condemned myself to the
p unis hment of seeing this brute wallow in his filth imagining that he
resembles me and of seeking al ways in v ain to be helpful to h
im
“
And each year I come back more undecide d more torture d more
anxious I have tried to have him instructed but he is an idiot without
resource I have tried to render life less pa inful to him but he is an
irremediable d runkard and uses all the money that is given him for
drink And he knows very well how to sell his clothes and procure
l i uor
‘
“
I have tried to arouse pity in h
is emp l oyer for h
im that he might
treat him more gently oflerm ghim money always The innkeeper
‘
astonished finall y remarked very sagely : All this that you would like
to do for him only ruins him He must be kept like a prisoner As
soon as he has time given him or favors shown he b ecam es un
manageab le If you wish to do good to abandoned children choose
one that will respond to your trouble
“
What could I say to that ?
“
And if I should disclose a suspicion of the d oubts which tortu re
m e this creatu re would certainly turn rogu e and exploit me com
‘
p romi se me ruin me He would cry ou t to me
Papa as in my dre
“
An d I tell myself that I have kille d the mother and ruined this
ied be ing larva of the sta b le hatched and bred of vileness this
at mp h
man who treated as others are might have been like others
“
And you wil l not understand the sensation s tran ge confuse d and
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A WAY TO WEALTH
245
intolerable the fear I have in h
is presence from thinkin g that this
has come from me that he belongs to me by that intimate bond which
binds father to son that thanks to the terrible laws of heredity he is
is blood and his hair and h
a part of me in a thous and thin gs by h
is
flesh and that he has the s ame germs of sickness and the s ame ferments
of passion
“
And I have ever an unappeasable nee d of seeing h
im a nd the sight
of h
im makes me suffer horribly an d from my window down there I
l ook at ‘him as he works in the dunghill of the beasts repeating to
m yself : That is my son i
“
And I feel sometimes an intolerable desire to embrace him But
”
I have never even touched his sordid hand
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was silent And h
The acad emician
is companion the politica l man
“
Yes indeed ; we ought to occupy ourselves a little m ore
m urmured
”
with the child ren who have no fathers
Then a breath of win d traversing the great tree shook its berries an d
enveloped with a fi
ne odorous cloud the tw o ol d men who took long
draughts of the sweet perfume
“
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And the s enator added : It is good to be twenty
”
t is e ven good to have children like that
-
fi
ve
ol d, and
years
.
A
”
WAY T O WE AL T H
”
NO
W what has become of Lerem y?
“
He is captain of the Sixth D ragoons
”
And Pinson ?
“
”
Subprefect
Do
YOU K
.
.
And Racoll et?
”
“
D ead
We hunte d up other names which recall e d to us youn g figures
c rowned with caps trimme d with gold braid Later we found some of
these comrades bearded bald married the fathers of m any children ;
an d these meetings these changes gave u s some disagreeable shivers
as they showed us how short life is how quickly everything changes
(1 passes away
“
My friend asked : And Patience the great Patience ?
I roared
Oh ! If you want to hear about him listen to me : Four or five
weeks ago as traveling inspector at Limoges I was awaitin gthe
dinner hour Seated before the Gran d Café in Theater Square I closet?
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
246
my eyes we arily The tradesmen were coming in twos or threes or
fours taking their absinthe or vermouth talkin g in a loud voice of
their business and that of others laughin g violently or lowerin g their
v oi“
ces when they communicated something important or delicate
‘
I said to mysel f : W hat am I going to do after dinner? And I
thought of the long evening in this provincial town of the slow un
interesting walks through the unknown streets of the overwhel ming
sadness which takes possession of the solitary traveler of the people
who pass strangers in all things and through all things the cut of their
provincial coats the ir hats their trousers their customs local a ccent
their houses shops and c a rriages of singular shape And then the or
dinary sounds to which one is not accustomed the harassing sadness
which presses itself upon you little by little until you feel as if you
were lost in a dangerous country which O ppresses you and makes you
wish yo u rself b ack at the hotel the hideous hotel where your room
preserves a thousand suspicious odors where the bed makes one hesi
tate and the basin has a hair glued in the d irt at the bottom
“
I thought about all this as I watched them light the gas fee lin g
my isolated dis tress in crease b y the falling of the shadows What was
I goin g to do after dinner? I was alone entirely alone and lamentably
lonesome
“
A big man came in seated himself at a neighboring table and
commanded in a formidable voice :
‘
Waiter my bitters
‘
The my in the phr ase soun d ed l ike the report of a cannon I under
“
stood im med iately that every th ing in e xistence was his belonged to
him and not to any other th
at he had his character and b y j ovel his
appetite his pantaloons his no matter what after his own fashion ab so
lute and more complete than im portant He looked a b out him with a
satisfied air They brought him his bitters and he cal led :
‘
My p aper
‘
I asked myself : Which is his paper I wonder? The name of th at
would certainly reveal to me his Opinions his theories his ho b bies an d
his nature
The waiter brought the T im es I was surp rised Why the T im es
a grave som ber doctrinal heavy journal ? I thought
‘
He is then a wise man of serious ways regular habits in short
a good commoner
“
H e p l a ced onh
is nose some gold eyeglasses turned around an d
before commencing to read cast another glance all around the roo m
He no ticed me and immediately began to look at me in a persistent
uneasy fashion I was on the
int of askin g him the reason for his
attention when he cri ed ou t om where he s at:
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
24 8
I recalled that night surely an d the memory of it amuse d me
Other facts were brought to mind and s till others One would s ay :
‘
D o you remember the time we shut up the fawn in Father La
toque s cellar ?
“
And he would laugh strik ing his fist upon the table repeating
“‘Yes— es— yes— and you remember the mouth of the professor
y
in geography Monsieur Marin when we sent off a cracker on the map
of the world just as he was orating on the principal volcanoes of the
e ar th ?
“
Then bru squely I asked him
‘
And you are you married ?
‘
“
He cried : For ten years my d ear fellow and I have four child ren
m ost astonishing monkeys but you will see them and their mother
“
We were talkin g loud ; the neighbors were looking around at us in
is watch a chronometer
a stonishm ent Suddenly my friend looke d at h
as large as a citron and cried out :
‘
Thunder ! It is rude but I shall have to leave you ; I am not free
this evening
“
He rose took both my hands and shook them as if he wishe d to
break off my arms and said
‘
Tomorrow at noon you remember?
‘
I remember
I passed the morning at work at the house of the general treasurer
He wished to keep me for luncheon but I told him that I had an ap
pointment with a friend He accompanied me ou t I asked him
‘
D o you know where Coq qui chante Street is?
‘
“
He answered : Y es it is five minutes from here As I have nothing
to do I will conduct you there
“
And we set out on the way Soon I notice d the street we sought It
w as wide pretty enough at the border of the town and the country
I noticed the houses and perceived number 17 It was a k ind of hote l
with a garden at the back The front ornamented with frescoes in the
Italian fashion appeared to me in bad taste There were goddesses
hanging to u rns and others whose secret beauties a cloud concealed
Two stone Cupids held U p the
number
‘
“
I said to the treasurer : Here is where I am going
“
And I extended my hand by way of leaving him He made a b rusque
pressing
the
hand
held
out
and sin ular gesture but said nothing
g
I ran g A maid appeared I said
‘
Monsieur Patience if you please Is he at home ?
“
‘
She replied : He is here s ir D o you wish to speak wi th him ?
‘
Yes
“
The vestib ule was orn amented with paintings from the brush of
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WAY TO WE ALTH
A
“
24 9
ome l oca l artist Paul and Virginia were embracing under some pa lms
drowned in a rosy light A hideous oriental lantern hung from the
ceiling There were many doors masked by showy hangings But
that which s truck me particularly was the odor— a permeating per
fumed odor recalling rice powder and the moldiness of cellars— an
nab l e odor in a heavy atmosphere as overwhelmin g as stifling
indefi
in which the hum an b ody becomes petrified I ascended behind the
a marble staircase which was covered by a carpet of some
m aid
oriental kin d and was led into a sump tuous drawing room
“
Left alone I looked about me
“
The room was richly f urnished but with the pretension of an il l
bred parvenu The engravings of the last century were pretty enough
representin g women with high powdered hair and very low cut
bodices surprised by gallant gentlemen in interestin g postures Another
l ady was lying on a great bed toying with her foot with a little dog
drowned in draperies Another resisted her l over complacently whose
hand was in a suspicious place One design showed four feet whose
bodies could be divined although concealed behind a curtain The
v ast room surrounded b y soft divans was entirely impregnated with
this enervating odor which had a l ready tak en hold of me There was
somethin g suspicious a b out these walls these stuffs this exaggerate d
lux“
ury in short the whole place
I approached the window to look into the garden of which I could
see but the trees It was large shady superb A broad path was ou t
l ined on th
e turf where a jet of water was play ing in the air brought
in under some maso nry some distance off And suddenly three women
appeared down there at the end of the garden between two shapely
shrubs They were walk ing slowly takin g hold of each other s arms
clothed in long white dresses clouded with lace Two of them were
blonde and the other a brunette
“
They disappeared immediately among the trees I remained trans
fixed charmed before this short but delightful apparition which
brought surging to my mind a whole poetic world They were scarcely
to b e seen at all in that bower of leaves at the end of the park so
secluded and delicious I must have dreamed and these were the
beautiful ladies of the last century wandering under the elm tree hedge
the ladies whose light loves the clever gravures on the walls recalled
And I thought of those happy times flowery incorporeal tender when
customs were so sweet and lips so easy
“
A great voice behind me made me leap back into the room Patien ce
had come in radiant extendin g both his hands
“
He looked at me ou t of the end of his eyes with the sly air of som e
~
am orous confidence and with a lar e co m
rehensive
est
e
a
u
r
N
a
g
p
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSAN T
250
u re pointed out h
gest
i
s sump tuous drawing room his park
p
with the three women passing again at the back and in a tri umph ant
voice‘ that s ang Of pride said :
And when you think that I commence d with nothing— m y wife
and my sisters in l awl
ol eonic
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A M I I N S ANE ?
IN SAN E
jealous ? I know not which but I suffer horribly I
committed a crime it is true but is not insane je al ousy be trayed love
and the terrible pain I endu re enough to make anyone c ommit a crirne
W ithout actually b eing a crimin al ?
I have loved this wom an to madness— an d yet is it true? Did I
love her ? No no ! She owned me body and soul ; I was her plaything ;
l
e ru ed me by her smil e her look th
e divine form O f her body It
sh
was all those things that I loved but the wom an contained in that
bod y I despise her hate her I always have hated her for she is but
an im pure
erfi
d
i
ous creatu re in whom there was no soul ; even less
p
than that she is but a mass of soft flesh in which dwells inf amy !
The first few months of our union were delicious ly strange Her eyes
were three d ifferent colors NO I am not insane ; I swe ar they were
were gray at noon shad ed g
reen at twilight and b lue at sunris e
"
In moments of love they were blue the pupils dilated and nervous
Her lips trembled and often the tip of her pink ton gue could be seen
as that Of a reptile ready to h
iss When she raised her hea vy l ids and
I s aw that ardent look I shuddered not onl y for the unceasing desire
to possess her but for the desire to kil l this b east
When she walked across the room each step resoun de d in my he art
When she disro b ed and emerged infamous but rad iant from the white
m as s O f linen and lace a sudden weakness seized me ; my l imbs gave
way beneath me and my chest heaved ; I was faint coward tha t I
AM
1
or
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was !
Each mo rnin g when she awakened I waited for that first l ook ; my
h
e art fi l led with rage hatred and disdain for this beast whose slave
I was but when she fixed those lim pid b lue eyes on me that lan guish~
ing look showingtraces of lassi tude it was lik e a burning unquench
able fire within me inci ting me to passion
When she Opened her eyes that day I saw a d u ll indifferent l ook a
look devoid of des ire and I knew then sh
e was tired of me I saw it
b rew it fel t right away that it was all o ver an d each ho u r and
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E M A U PASSANT
2 52
hidden In my breast as if I were going to fight a duel I drew the r o
across the path tying it to a tree on each side and hid myself in (I
:
55 Presently I heard her horse s hoofs ; then I saw her coming at a
£ 3Ious pace her cheeks flushed an insane look In her eyes She s eeme d
enraptured transported into another sphere
As the animal approached the rope he struck it with his fore feet
and fell Before she had struck the ground I caught her in my arms
and helped her to her feet I then approached the horse put my
pis tol close to his ear and shot him — as I would a man
She turned on me and dealt me tw o terrific blows across the fa ce
w ith her riding whip which felled me and as she rushed at me again
I shot her !
Tell me am I insane?
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F ORB I DD E N F R U I T
BE F ORE
MARRIA GE they ha d l oved each other chastely in the star lig
ht
.
At first there was a charming meetin g on the shore O f the ocean H e
found her delicious the rosy young gir l who passed him with her
“
bright umbrellas and fresh costumes on the mar ine backgroun d H e
l oved this blonde fragile creature in her setting of blue waves an d
im mense skies And he confounded the tenderness which this scarcely
fledged woman caused to be born in him with the vague and p oweb
ful emotion awakened in h
e
is sou l in his heart and in his v eins b y th
lovely salt air and the great seascape full of sun and waves
She loved him because he paid her attention because he was youn g
and rich enough genteel and d elicate She loved him because it is
natural for young ladies to love young men who say tender wor d s to
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Then for three months they l ive d sid e by sid e ey e to eye and h and
to hand The greeting which they exchanged in the morning before
the bath in the freshness of the new d ay and the adieu of the evening
upon the sand under the stars in the warmth of the calm night mur
mure d low and still lower had already the taste O f kisses although
their lips had never met
They dreamed of each other as soon as they were asleep thought of
each other as s oon as they awoke and without yet saying so calle d
for an d desired each other with their whol e soul and body
After marriage they adored each other above eve rything on earth
It was at first a kind Of sensual in d efatigable rage then an exalted
ten d erness made of palpable poesy of caresses alrea dy refine d an d of
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FORBI DDEN FR UIT
2 53
both genteel and ungenteel All their looks sig
nifi
ed som e
ure and all their gestures recalled to them the ardent in
the night
Now without confessin g it without realizin g it; perhaps they com
m enced to weary of one another They l oved each other it is tru e
but there was nothing more to reveal nothing more to do that had
not O ften been done nothing more to learn from each other not even
a new word of love an unforeseen motion or an intonation which some
times is more expressive than a known word too often repeated
They forced themselves however to relight the flame enfeeble d
from the first embraces They invented some new and tender artifice
eac h day some simple or complicated ruse in the v ain attempt to re
new in their hearts the unappeasable ardor of the first days an d in
their v eins the flame of the nuptial month
From time to time by dint O f whippin g their desire they again
found an hour of factitious excitement which was immediately fol
l owed by a disgusting lassitude
They tried moonlight walks un der the leaves in the sweetness of the
night the poesy of the cliffs bathed in mist the excitement of public
festivals
Then one morning Henrietta said to Pau l
“
”
Will you take me to dine at an inn?
“
W
hy yes my dearie
“
In a very well known inn?
”
“
Yes
He looke d at her questioning with his eye un d erstanding well that
e had something in mind which she had not spoken
sh
She continued : You know an inn— how shall I exp lain it? —in a
”
l
a
lant
inn
where
people
make
appointments
to
meet
each
other
?
g
“
”
He smiled Yes I understand a private room in a l arge café ?
“
That is it But in a large café where you are known where you have
already taken supper— no dinner— that is— I mean— I want— no I
d o“
not dare say it !
Speak ou t ché rie; between us what can it matter? We are not
”
e those who have little secrets from each other
“
NO I dare not
”
“
Oh ! Come now ! D on t be so innocent Say it
“
Well —Oh! Well— I wish— I wish to be taken for your mistres s
and that the waiters who do not know that you arre married may l ook
upon me as your mistress and you too— that for an hour you belie ve
m e your mistress in that very place where y ou have remembrance s
That s all ! And I myself will believe that I am your mistres s
of
I w ant to commit a great sin— to deceive you— with yourself— there!
inventions
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUP ASSANT
254
It is v ery bad b ut that is what I want to do DO not m ak e me blush
ine m y wanting to take the trouble
I feel that I am blushing— irnag
to dine with you in a place not quite the thing— in a p rivate room
where people devote themselves to love every evening— every evening
”
I t is very bad I am as red as a peony ! D on t look at me !
He laughed very much amus ed and responded
“
Yes ” we will go this evening to a very chic place where I am
known
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Toward seven O clock they mounte d the staircase O f a l arge c afé
on the boulevard he smiling with the air of a conqueror sh
e timi d
veiled but delighted When they were in a little room furnishe d with
four armchairs and a large sofa covered with red velvet the steward
in b lack clothes entered and presented the bill of fare Paul passed it
is wife
to h
”
“
W
hat do you wish to eat? he said
“
I don t know ; what do they have that is good here ?
Then he read Off the list of dishes while t aking Off his overcoat
which
b e hande d to a waiter Then he said
“
Serve this menu : Bisque soup deviled chicken sides of hare duck
”
American style vegetable salad and desert We wi l l drink champagne
The steward smiled and looked at the young lady He took the car d
”
“
murmur ing : Will Monsieur Paul have a cordial or some champagne ?
“
”
Cham p agne very dry
Henrietta was happy to find that this man kn ew her husb and s name
They sat down side by side upon the sofa and began to eat
Ten candles lighted the room reflected in a great m irror mutilated
by the thousands of names traced on it with a diamond making on
the clear crystal a kind of huge cobweb
Henrietta drank glass after glass to animate her although she felt
h
i
t
s
iddy
from
the
first
one
Paul
excited
by
cer
ain
memories
kisse
d
g
wife s hand repeatedly Her eyes were bril liant
She felt strangely moved by this suspicious situ ation ; she was ex
l ed Two grave waiters
cited and happy although she felt a little defi
mute accustomed to seeing everything an d forgetting all entered onl y
when it was necessa ry and went out in the moments of overflow going
and coming quickly and softly
Toward the middle of the dinner Henrietta was tipsy completely
is force She
is gaiety pressed her knee with all h
tipsy and Paul in h
prattl ed now boldly her cheeks red her look lively and dizzy
“
“
Oh come Paul she said confess now won t you? I want to know
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What do you mean
,
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,
hé rie?
c
”
SHORT STOR IES OF D E MAUPASSANT
256
o d rank this morning an d that has been less thoroughly was hed
”
—you may be certain of it
“
”
Oh be still ; you are revoltin g
“
But why ask me then if I have ha d mistresses ?
“
Then tell
me were your mistresses all girls all of them— the whole
”
hundred ?
“
Why no— no Some were actresses— some little working girls
”
and some women of the worl d
“
How many of them were women of the world?
,
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.
,
,
,
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,
.
Six
”
.
Only six?
“
Y
es
“
”
Were they pretty
?
”
“
Yes of course
”
“
Prettier than the girls?
.
.
,
“
N
“
Which did you prefer ”girl
“
Women O f the world
O
.
s or
,
women
of
the world ?
”
”
“
Oh ! How filthy ! Why ?
”
“
Because I do not care much for amate r talent
“
Oh ! Horror ! Y are abominable d o you know it ? But tell
.
u
ou
it
,
v“
ery amusing to p ass from
one
.
”
to another like that ?
m e,
is
Yes rather
”
“
V ery ?
“
Very
“
What is there amusing about it? Is it because they do not resemble
each other ?
“
They do not
“
Ah! The women do not resemble each other ?
”
“
N ot at all
“
In no thing?
“
In nothing
“
That is strange ! In what respect do they d iffer ?
”
“
In every respect
”
“
In body ?
”
“
Yes in body
“
In the whole bod y ?
”
“
Yes in the whole body
”
“
An d in what el se?
“
Why in the manner of— O i embracing of speaking of saying the
”
lea“
s t thing
”
Ah ! And it is v ery amusing this changing?
”
“
Yes
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THE CHARM D ISPELLE D
257
“
An d are men different too ?
”
“
That I do not know
”
“
You do not know ?
“
N
They must be different
”
“
Yes without doubt
She remained pensive her gl ass of champagne in her hand It was
e drank it at a draught ; then placing the glass upon the
full and sh
table she threw both arms around her husband s neck and murmured
in h
is mouth
“
Oh my dear ho w I love you ! He seize d her in a passionate em
brace
A waiter who was entering d rew back closing the door an d the
service was interrupted for about five minutes
When the steward again appeared with a grave d ignified air bring
e was holdin g another glassfu l
in g in the fruits for the dessert sh
between her fingers and looking to the bottom O f the yellow trans
parent liquid as if to see there things unknow n and dre amed of she
murmured with a thoughtful voice :
“
Oh yes ! It must b e very amusing all the same !
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T HE C HA R M D I S P E LLE D
with people As the passage promise d to be
good many people of Havre were making a trip to Trouville
They loosed the moorings ; a l ast whistle announced the departure
an d immediately the entire body of the vessel shook while a sound
of stirring water was heard al l along the sides The wheels turne d for
some seconds stopped and then started gently The captain upon his
”
bridge having cried Go ahea d ! through the tube which extends
into the depths of the machinery they now began to beat the w aves
with great rapidity
We passed along the pier covere d with people Some that w ere On
as if they were setting ou t for
e boat waved their handkerchiefs
th
m erica and the friends who remaine d behind responded in th
e sam e
AT
TH E
BO
wa s FIL LE D
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ph
as
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ion
.
The great Iul y sun fell upon the re d umbrellas the bright costume s
the joyous faces and upon the ocean scarcely move d by any undu l a
tions As soon as they had left the port the l ittle vessel made a sharp
tu m
pointing its nose directly for the far Off coast rising to meet the
,
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-
,
On
ou r
left
was th
e
mouth
of
the Seine more than twelve
,
m
il es
SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPASSANT
258
wide Here and there great buoys pointed ou t banks of sand and one
could see at a distance the fresh muddy water of the river which had
.
,
,
,
not yet mingled with the salt brine outlined in broad yellow stripes
upon the immense pure green sheet of the Open sea
As soon as I boarded the boat I felt the need of walking u p an d
d own like a sailor on his watch Why? That I cannot say But I began
to circulate among the crowd of passengers on deck
Suddenly someone called m y name I turned aroun d It was Henry
S idonie whom I had not seen for ten years
After we had shaken hands we resumed the walk of a bear in h
is
cage which I had been taking alone while we talked of people an d
e two lines of travelers seated on both
things And we looked at th
sides of the boat chatting all the while
Al l at once Sidonie exclaimed with a veritable exp ression O f rage
”
“
It is crowded with English here ! Nasty people !
The boat was full of English in fact Men stan d in g about scanne d
the horizon with an important air which seemed to say : It is the
”
English who are masters of the sea! Boom ! Boom ! Here we are !
An d the white veils upon their white hats had the air of flags in then
cienc
self su ffi
y
The thin young g
irls whose boots recalle d th e naval cons truction of
their country wrapping their s traight figures and thin arms in multi
c olore d shawl s smiled vague ly at the radiant landscape Their little
heads perched on the top of their long bodies wearing the peculi arly
shaped English hat were finished at the back of the neck by their
thin hair coiled around to resemble sleeping adders
And the Old spinsters still more l ank O pening to the win d their
national jaw appeared to threaten sp ace with their enormous yello w
teeth In passing near them one smells an odor of caoutchouc or some
kin d of dentifrice
Sidonie repeated with an increasing anger
“
Nas ty p eOp l e ! Why couldn t they be hindere
d from coming to
”
France ?
“
I in uired laughin gly : Why what do you care ? As for me I am
”
perfect y indifferent to them
“
He answered : Yes you are indeed ! But I— I married an English
”
woman And there you have it !
”
“
I stopped and laughed in his face The devil ! I s aid ; tell me
”
about it Has she made you so unhappy ?
“
He shrugge d his shoulders as he replied : N 0 not precisely
”
“
Then she— she has— deceived ou ?
“
Unfortu nately no That wou l give me a cause for divorce an d I
”
should be free
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
2 60
evening we had many long conversations resembling spoken enigm as
“
I married her ! I loved her foolishly as one can love a dream For
the true lover adores nought but a dream which takes the shape of a
woman You recall Louis B ou il het s admirable verse :
“
ose ra rest da s
You onl y were in th
y
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,
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’
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,
A
com m on
ins tru m
ent u nd er m
a rt;
y
Like th
e b ow, on th
e iol d amour it p la ys,
’
eart
I drea m ed m y drea m o er your em p ty h
v
’
.
“
Well my dear the greatest mistake I made was to give my wife a
,
,
teacher of F rench As long as she made a martyr of the dictionary an d
punished the grammar I was fond of her Our talks were very simple
She showed a surprising grace of mind an incomparable elegance in
her actions She seemed to be a marvelous speaking jewel a d oll of
flesh made to kiss knowing how to make known or at least indicate
the things she desired uttering at times the strangest exclamations and
expressing rather complicated sensations and emotions in a coquettish
fashion with a force as incomprehensible as it was unforeseen She
‘
‘
much resembled those pretty playthings which say papa and mamma
‘
‘
pronouncing them ba b a and bamban
“
Could I have believed that
“
She S peaks now— she speaks— badly— very badly She makes just
as many mistakes but I can understand her Yes I understand— I
know— and I know her
“
I have O pened my doll to see what was inside I have seen An d
one must talk my dear !
“
Ah ! You don t know you could never imagine the theories the
ideas the O pinions Of a young Englishwoman well b rought up in
whom there is nothing to reproach who repeats to me morning an d
evenin g all the phrases in the dictionary of conversation in u se at the
schools for young people
“
You have seen those favors for a cotill ion those pretty gilt pa er
covere d execra ble bonbons ? I had one of them I tore it Open I wisp e d
to taste what was inside and became so dis g
usted that now there is a
rebellion in my feelings if I but see one of her compa triots
“
I have carried a par akeet to whom an Ol d tirne instructress ha d
”
taught French D o you un d erst and ?
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Th
port of Trouvil le now showe d its wooden piers covere d with
people I said
“
Where is your w ife ?
He answered : I have just taken her back to Etretat
“
And where are you going?
‘
.
.
M AD AME PARISSE
2 61
”
“
I ? I am going to try and d ivert“myself at Trouville
Then after a silence he adde
d
:
You cannot imagine how irksom e a
”
.
wife can become sometimes
.
M A D A M E P AR I S S E
I W AS S EATED on the mole of the littl e port of Ob em on near the haml et
of La Salis watchin g Antibes in the setting su n I have never see n
The little town inclosed within
anything so wonderfully beautiful
its heavy fortifications of masonry (cons tructed by M de Vauban )
was situated in the middle of the Gulf of Nice The great waves ro l led
in from afar to throw themselves at its feet surrounding it with a gar
l and of fo am and above the ramparts the houses could be seen clim b
ing one above another up to the two towers pointing to the sky l ike
two horns on an ancient helmet and standing out against the milky
whiteness of the Alps— an enormous illimita b le wal l of snow that
appeared to shut off the entire horizon Betw een the white foam at th
e
foot of the walls and the white snow on the b order of the sky the
little city sparkling and upright on the blue background Of the nearest
m ountain shone in the rays of the setting su n looking lik e a pyrami d
of red roofed houses the fa cades of wh
ich were white yet of such
different shades of white that they seemed to be of many hues
The sky above the Alps was of a pale blue that was almost white
as if the snow had given to it some of its own whiteness A few silvery
clouds floated near the pale summit and on the other side of the
N ice lay on the edge of the water like a white ribbon between the sea
and the mountains Two great lateen sails forced onward by a strong
breeze appeared to run b efore the waves I gazed at the scene en
chanted with its beau ty It was one of those sights so cha rming so
rare so exquisite which seem to take possession O f you and become
one of those moments never to be forgotten l ike certain happy mem
ories We th ink we enjoy we s u ffer we are moved from various
causes but we love by seeing ! He that can feel deep emotion through
the power of sight exp eriences the same keen joy refined and pro
foun d felt by the man with a sensitive and nervous ear when listening
to music that s tirs the heart
I said to my companion M M artini a pure blooded sou them er
“
That is certainly one of the rarest spectacles that it ever has been
my good fortune to admire I have seen Mont Sain t Michel that enor
mous jewel of granite spring forth from the sands at sunrise I have
er ui fifty kilometers in length shine
seen in the Sahara Lake Raianech
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SHORT STORIE S O F D E MAUPASSANT
2 62
under a moon as bril liant as our sun and exhale towar d the cl ou d s a
v apor as white as milk I have seen in the Lipari Islands the fantastic
sulphur crater of V ol canell o a gian t flower the center of which is a
volcano that smokes and burns with a l imitless yellow flame that
spreads out over the ocean But I have seen nothing more im pressive
than An tibes standing b efore the Alps In the setting su n And I cannot
tell why at this moment souvenirs of olden days haunt me Verses of
Homer come into my mind It is a city of the old Orient Anti b es ; it is
a city Of the Odyssey it is a western Troy— even though Troy was far
from the sea
M Martin i drew from his pocket a Sarty gui de and read
‘
The ci ty was originall y a colony founded b y the Phoenicians of
M arse illes a b out the year 3 40
It received from them the Greek
” “
name of Antip ol is that is to say city over aga inst city in front of
”
another b ecause in reality it was situated Opposite Nice another
colony of Marseill es After the conquest of the Cauls the Romans
made of Anti b es a m u nicipal city and her inhab itants enjoyed the
privileges of a Roman city
‘
“
‘
We kn ow
he continued
by an epigram of M artial that in
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I interru pted him sayin g I don t care what it was ! I tell you I have
before my eyes a city of the Odyssey Coast of Asia or coast O f Europ e
they are a l ike and there is nothing on the other shore of the Medi
”
terranean that awakens in me the memory of heroic days as does this
Th
e sound of an approaching step caused me to t um my head ; a
tall d ark woman was passing along the road that follows the sea in
the d irection of the cape
“
M Martin i murm ured emphasiz in g the last words : It is Madame
”
Parisse— you kn ow !
NO I did not know but this name thrown ou t the name of the
shepherd of Troy confirmed me in my dream
“
I said however Who is this Madame Pariss e?
He appeared s u rprised that I did not kn ow her story I reaffirmed
that I did not know it and I looked at the woman who went on with
ou t seein g u s dreaming walkin g wi th a slow stately step l ike the
dames of antiquity without doubt She was a b out thirty five years O ld
and b eautiful yet very beautiful though perhaps a nifle too plump
After she had pass ed out of sight M Martini told me this story
“
M adame P arisse a Mademoiselle Com b el om b e had married a
year before the war Of 1870 Monsieur Paris se an employee of the
government She was then a be autiful young girl as slender and gay
as she has since become stout an d sad She had accepted Monsieur
Parisse rel uctan tly ; he was one of those little red tape men with short
’
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
2 64
‘
One evening however she said to him as if by chance : My hus
band has just gone to Marseil les and is going to remain there four
days
“
Jean d e Carm el in threw himse lf at her feet begging her to open
her door that very evening near eleven O clock But she would not
listen to him and re turned home as if an gry The commandant was in
a bad humor all the evening
and the next day beginning at day
bre ak he walk ed on the ramp arts in a rage going from the dru m
cers and
s choo l to the platoon school and ni etingout reprimands to O ffi
men like one throwing stones into a crowd But on returning for bre ak
fast he found under his napk in a note containing these four word s
“
This evening ten o clock And he gave five francs without any
apparent reason to the boy who served him
“
e day seemed long He passed a p art of it in prinkin g and per
Th
fuming himself At the moment when he placed himse l f at the ta b le
for dinner another envelope was handed to him He found inside this
r am :
tele g
My darlin g b usin ess terminated I return this evening : train
at nine
PARIS SE
“
The commandant gave vent to an oath so violent that the boy let
the soup tureen fall on the floor What should he do ? Ce rtainly he
wanted her and that very night too let it cost what it might and he
would have her He would have her by some means or another if he
h ad to arrest and im prison her hus band Suddenly an insane i d ea
crossed his mind He called for paper and wrote :
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“
M ADAM E He will not return this evenin g I swear it to you
:
.
and I will be at ten o clock at the pl ace you know F ear nothing
I guarant ee everything on my honor as an officer
“
J EAN DE CARME LIN
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’
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“
And having sent this letter he d ine d tran q uilly About eight O clock
’
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,
be
summoned Captain Crib ois who was next in command and said
is fingers the rumpled dispatch of Mon
to him while rolling b etween h
‘
sieur Parisse : Captain I have received a telegram of s ingu lar char
acter which it is impossible for me to communicate to you You must
go im mediately and gu ard the gates O f the city in su ch a way that no
one— you understand no one— either comes in or goes out b efore six
o clock tomorrow morning You must place guards in the streets also
an d compel the inha b itants to
o into their houses at nine o cl ock
g
Anyone who is found outside after that hour wil l b e conducted to his
domicil e m a nu m il ita ri If your m en meet me during the ni g
ht they
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MAD AME PARISSE
265
must retire at once with an air of not recognizing me D o you un d er
”
stand me thoroughly ?
‘
Yes Comm andant
‘
I make you responsible for the execution O f these orders Captain
‘
Yes Commandant
“
Would you like a glass of chartreuse?
‘
With pleasure Comm andant
They touched glasses drank the yellow liquor and Captain Cribois
d e arted
The train from Marseilles came into the station at exactly nine
O clock and left on the platform two travelers then went on its w ay
toward Nice
“
One of the travelers was tall an d thin He was a Monsieur Saribe
m erchant in oils The o ther passenger was short and stout— it was
M ons ieur Parisse They started on their way together the ir traveling
bags in their hands to reach the town a kilometer distant But on
arriving at the gate the sentinels crossed the ir bayonets and ordered
them off
“
Al armed amaze d and filled with astonishment they drew aside an d
d eliberated ; then after taking counsel together they retu rned with
precaution to parley and to m ake known their names But the soldiers
must have received peremptory orders for they threatened to shoot
and the two travelers greatly frightened took fli ght at the top of their
speed leaving behind them their bags which impeded their flight
“
The two unfortunate travelers made the circle of the ramparts an d
presented themselves at the Porte de Cannes This also was closed an d
gu ar d ed as well b y a menacing sentinel Messieurs Sarib e and Parisse
like prudent men insisted no longer but returned to the station to fin d
a shelter for the road around the fortifications w as not very safe after
sunset
“
The employee at the station su rprise d and sleepy gave them per
mission to remain until daylight in the waiting room They s at there
without l ight side b y side on the green velvet covered bench too
frightened to think of sleepin g The night w as long for them
Toward half past six they learned that the gates w ere open an d
that one could at last enter Antib es They started for the town but
d id not find their bags along the way When they had passed through
the gates still a little uneasy the Commandant de Carm el in with a
sl y l ook and h
is head in the air came himself to meet and question
them He b owed to them politely and made excuses for having caused
th m to pass a bad night but said he had been o b liged to execut e
or ers
“
The people of Antibes were mystifie d Some talked of a surprise
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SHORT STORIE S O F D E MAUPASSANT
266
meditated by the Italians others Of the landing of the imperial prin ce
and stil l others imag ined an Orl e
anist plot The truth was not gu essed
u ntil later when they learn ed that the battalion of the commandant
ha d been sent far away and that Monsieur de Carm el in had been
”
severely punished
M Martini ceased speaking and soon after Mme Parisse reappeared
her walk being finished She passed sedately near me her eyes on the
Al ps the summits of which were ru d dy with the last rays of the setting
,
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su n
.
I desired to salute her that poor saddened woman who m ust think
al ways of that one night of love now so far in the past and of the
bold man who had dared for a kiss from her to put a whole city in
a state of siege and compromise his future Today he has probably
forgotten her unless sometimes after drinking he relates that auda
cl ous farce so comic and so ten d er
Had she ever seen him again? D id she l ove him still? And I thought
“
Here indeed is a trait of modern love grotesque and yet heroic
The Homer who will sing of this Helen and of the adventures of her
M enelaus must have the soul of a Merim ee And yet the captain this
lover of that deserted woman was valiant bold , b eautiful strong as
”
Achilles and more cunning than Ulysses
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MAKI N G
A
C O NVE RT
WHE N SAB O I E NT E R E D the Martinville Inn they all laughed in advance
This rascal of a Sabot how farcical he was ! See how he disliked cu
rate s for example ! Ah yes yes ! He was ready to eat them this me rry
fello w
Sabot (Thé odu l e ) master carpenter represented the progressive
party at M artinville He was a tall thin man with gay cunning eyes
“
ha ir glued to his temples and thin lips When he said : Our holy
”
father the priest in a certain fashion everyb ody was convu lsed He
made it a point to work on Sunday during Mass Every year he would
kill his pig on Monday of Holy Week in order to have bl ood pudding
until Easter and when he passed the curate he would always say in
a way of a joke
“
Heres a man who finds his good God upon the roof
The priest a large man very tall also dreaded him b ecause of his
talk which made partisans F ather Maritime was a politic man a
frien d of ease The stru ggle betw een them had gone on for ten years
a secret struggle provoking and incessant Sabot was municipal coun
’’
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SHORT STORIE S O F D E MAUPASS A NT
2 68
The priest responded without looking at him all occupied with the
al tar
“
”
Good even ing Monsieur Carpenter
Sabot ou t of his element could say nothing further After a silence
”
he said however You are going to make some repa irs ?
“
Father Maritime answered Yes we are approaching the month
"
of Mary
”
Sabot repeated That s it that s it an d then he was silent
,
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He felt now like withdrawing without saying anything more but a
glance O f the eye around the cho ir res traine d him He perceived that
there were sixteen stalls to be made six to the right and eight to the
left the door of the sacristy occupyin g two places more Sixteen stalls
in oak would be wo rth three hundred francs and in round numbe rs
there ought to b e two hundred francs profit on the work if it was
m anaged well Then he stammered
“
”
I— I ve come for the work
The curate appeared surprised He asked
“
What work ?
“
murmure d Sabot desperately
The work of the repairs
Then the priest turned toward him and looking him straight in the
“
eye said : And you spe ak to me of working on the choir st alls O f m y
”
church !
The tone of Father Maritim es voice cause d a cold chill to run d o wn
the back of T hé odu l e Sa b ot and gave him a furious desire to scamper
a way Nevertheless he responde d with humili ty
“
Why yes Monsie u r Curate
Then the priest folded his arm s across his ample front an d as if
i
owerless
from
surprise
repl
ed
p “
You— you— you— Sab ot come to ask that from me ! You— the onl y
irnp iou s soul in my parish ! Why it would be a scandal a public scan
dal The archbishop woul d reprimand me and send me to another
”
place perhaps
He breathed hard for some seconds then in a calmer tone he con
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ti nu ed
“
I understand that it would be hard for you to
a work of so
much importance go to a carpenter in a neighboring parish But I
could not do otherwise at least not unless— no—”it is impossible You
“
would never c onsent— and without that— never
Sabot regarded criticall y the line of benches that came a l most up to
the d oor of the sacris ty Christopher ! If one might be able to make
“
this alteration ! An d he asked : W hat is it you c onsider ne cess ary ?
”
Sav it
s ee
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A C O NVERT
M AKING
269
The priest in a fi
rm tone re lied
It would b e necessary for me
oo
wil l
to have a statement Of your g
“
Sa b ot murmured I should say nothing I shoul d s ay nothing— that
would be understood “
The curate declared I t would be necess ary to take public com
:
,
,
.
:
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.
:
n on at High Mass next Sunday
e carpenter grew pale and without answerin g asked
Th
“
And the church benches are they goin g to b e replaced with new
ones too?
“
“
Y
es but that will come l ater
e priest responded with assurance :
Th
“
Sabot repeated : I would say nothing ; I say no thing In fact I feel
nothin g d erogatory to religion and I believe in it certainly ; what
ru ffles me is the practice of it but in this case I should not sho w
myself contrary
The Ladies of the Virgin having got down from their chairs con
ceal ed themselves behind the altar ; they were listening pale with
em otion
The curate
seeing himself victorious suddenl y became fri endly an d
”
“
familiar : Well and good ! Well and good ! he said You have spoken
W is ely instead of being foolish you understand We shall see We shall
mu i
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“
Sabot sm iled in a constraine d way as he asked Isn t there som e
”
way O f giving this communion the slip ?
see
.
’
:
The priest with severe countenance replied
“
At the moment that this work is given to you I wish to be certain of
“
your conversion Then he continued more gently : You will come to
confess tomorrow
for it will be necessary for me to ex amine you at
”
l ea st twice
“
Sabot repeated : At least twice ?
“
Yes
“
The priest sm iled You understand that it wil l b e necessary to have
a general clearin g out a complete cleansin g I shall expect you then
”
tomorrow
”
T
he carpenter much moved asked : Where do you d o this ?
“
Why in the confessional
“
In— that b ox there— ih the corner? That is— scarcely— big enough
for me your b ox
”
“
Why so ?
“
See ing that— seeing that I am not accustomed to it And seeing
that I m a little hard of hearing
“
The curate showed himself lenient Ah wel l you can come to my
house in my dining room
There we shall be all alone face to face
”
H ow wil l that suit you ?
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE MAU PASSAN T
2 70
”
That s it That su its me but yo u r box no
“
Well tomorrow then after the day s work at six O cl ock
“
It is understood a ll plain and agreed u pon ; till tomorrow then
M onsieur Curate and the rack for him who retracts
And he extended his great rude hand into which the priest l et fall
his own heartily The smack of this handshake ran along under the
arches and died away b ack in the organ pipes
éodu l e Sabot was not tranquil whil e he was at work the next d ay
Th
The apprehension he felt was something like what one feels when he
is going to have a tooth pulled Every moment this thought would
“
come to him : I must go to confession this even ing And his troub led
soul the soul of an atheist not wholly convinced b ecame excited
from the confused and powerful fear of some divine my stery
He directed his steps toward the rectory when he had fi nished his
day s work The curate was waiting for him in the garden readin ghis
breviary as he walk ed up and down a narrow path He seemed radiant
(1 said with a great laugh
“
Ah well here you are ! Come in come in Monsieur Sabot nobo d y
”
is going to eat you
And Sa b ot passed in first He stammered
“
If you re not too busy I should be pleased to finish up our littl e
”
bus iness right away
“
The curate answered : At your service I will get my surplice One
”
minute and I will listen to you
The ca rpenter so disturbed that he no longer had two ideas
watched him cover himself with the white garment with its presse d
folds The priest made a sign to him
”
“
Put your knees on this cushion
Sabot remained standing ashame d to have to k neel He mu ttere d
”
“
VVhat s the use ?
“
B ut the priest became majestic” One can only approach the tri
"
bunal O f penitence on the knees
And Sabot kneeled
“
teor
The priest said : Recite the Confi
”
“
Sab ot asked : VVhat s that?
“
The Confi
teor If you do not know it repeat one by one after me
”
the words I pronounce
And the curate articulated the sacre d prayer in a deliberate voice
s c anning the words for the carpenter to repeat ; then he sai d
“
Now confess
But Sa b ot said nothing more not knowing how to commence
Then F ather Maritime came to his ai d
“
My child I will ask you some questions until you become a littl e
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPASS ANT
27 2
“
The curate answered severe
l
y Take not a single centime for that
‘
is robbery DO it no more F alse witness shalt thou not be ar nor l ie
”
about anythin g Have you lied ?
“
No not that I am no liar I am not that kind If you ask if I h ave
ot told some stories for the sake of talking I could not deny it An d
h
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that I have not made people believe what was not so when it
”
was for my interest to do so I could not But as for lies I tell no lies
”
“
The priest simply said : Be a little more careful Then he
pronounced
‘
’
Things of the flesh thou shalt not des ire except in marriage al one
”
“
Have you desir ed or possess ed another woman than your own?
“
Sab ot exclaimed with sincerity : Oh no ! As for that no Monsieur
Cur ate D eceive my poor wife ? No ! no ! Not as much as the end O f
”
you r finger Not in thought say nothing O f action ! That s true
He was very silent for some seconds then very low as if some
“
doubt had come over him he sai d : When I go to town to say that I
never go into a house you know one of the houses of license for the
s ake of a bit of laughter and frolic an d see another kind of skin that I
coul d not say— but I always pay Monsieur Curate I always pay but
I won t em b arrass you wi th this that you have neither seen nor
known
The curate did not insis t but gave the absolution
to
s ay
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éodu l e
Th
Sa b ot executed the work of the choir stal ls an d received
th
e sacrament in the months following
.
A L I TT LE
WAL K
WHEN FATHE R LE RA S bookkeeper with Messrs Labuz e and Company
went ou t of the store he stood for some minutes dazzled by the
,
,
,
,
brill iancy of the setting sun
He had toiled all day und er the yellow light of the gas jet at th e
end of the rear shop on the court which was as n arrow and deep as a
well The little room in which for forty years he had spent his days
was so dark that even in the middle of s u mmer they could hardly
d isp ense with the gas from eleven to three O clock
It was always cold and d amp there and the emanations from th at
e gloomy room
sort of hole on which the window looked c ame into th
fill ing it with an odor moldy and sewerlike
M Leras for fo rty years arrived at eight o clock in the morning at
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A LITTLE WAL K
273
bis prison and he remained till seven at night bent o ver his books
writing with the faithfu ln ess of a good employee
He now earned three thousand francs per year having begun with
fifteen hu ndred francs He had remained unmarried h
is means not
h
i
m to tak e a wife And never having enjoyed anything he
erm ittin
g
did not desire much From time to time nevertheless weary of his
m onotonous and continuous work he made a platonic vow
“
Cristi if I had five thousand livres income I would enjoy life !
He had never enjoyed l ife never having had more than his monthly
i
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sal
il; ex istence
!
passed without events without emotion and almost
without hopes The faculty of dreaming which everyone has in him
had never developed in the mediocri ty of his ambitions
He had entered the employ of Messrs Lab u z e and Company at
one years of age And he had never le ft it
twenty —
In 18 56 he had lost his father then his mother in 18 59 An d since
then he had experienced nothing but a removal his landlord having
w anted to raise his rent
Every day his mornin g alarm exactly at six O clock made him jump
ou t of b ed b y its fear ful racket
Twice however thi s machin e had run d own in 18 66 an d in 1874
without his ever knowing why
He dressed made his bed swept his room dusted his armchair an d
th
e top of h
is commode All these duties required an hour and a ha lf
Then he went out bought a roll at the Lahu re b akery which ha d
had a dozen different proprietors without losing its name and he s et
ou t for the Ofl
ice eatin g the bread on the way
H is whole existence was thus accomplished in the narro w d ark
Office which was adorned with the same wallpaper He had entered
the em loy young an assistant to M B urm ent and with the desire of
t aking pis place
He had taken his place and exp ected nothing further
Al l that harvest of memories which other men make during the ir
lives the unf oreseen events the sweet or tragic love affairs the adven
turous journeys all the hazards of a free exis tence had b een str ange
to him
The days the weeks the months the seasons the years were a ll
a like At the same hour every day he rose left the house arrived at the
Office took his lu ncheon went away dine d and retired without e ver
having interrupted the monotony of the same acts the same d ee ds
and the same thoughts
Fo rmerly he looked at his blond mustache and curly hair in the little
round gl ass left b y his predecessor He now looked every mornin g
fa
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2 74
SHORT STORIE S OF DE MAUPASSANT
goin g ou t at his white mustache and his bald head in the sam e
glas s Forty years had flown long and rapid empty as a day of sor
row and like the long hours of a bad night— forty years of which
nothing remained not even a memory not even a m isfortrm e since
is parents nothing
e death of h
th
That day M Leras stood dazzle d at the s treet door by the brillian cy
of the setting su n and instead of returning to h
is house he had the
idea of taking a little walk before dinner somethin g which he did
four or five tim es a year
He reached the boulevard where many people were passing un d er
the budding trees It was an evenin g in sprin gt ime one of those first
soft warm evenings which stir the heart with the intoxication of life
M Leras walked along with his mincing Old man s step with a
gaiety in his eye happy with the unusual joy an d the mildness of the
before
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He reached the Champs Elys ees and proceed ed reanirnated by th e
od ors of youth which filled the breeze
Th
e whole sky glowed and the Triumphal Arch stood with its dark
a ra
m ass against the shining horizon lik e a giant struggling in a confl
g
tion When he had nearly reached the s tupendous monument the O l d
un r
bookkeeper felt h
gy and went into a wineshop to dine
They served him in front of the shop on the sidewalk a sheep s foot
us and M Leras made the best dinner
ste w a salad and some aspara g
he had made in a long whil e He washed d own his B rie cheese with
a sm all bottle of go od Bordeaux ; he d rank a cup of coffee which
seldom occurr ed to him and fi nally a tin y glass of brandy
When he had paid he felt quite l ively and brisk even a littl e per
“
turb ed He said : I will continue my walk as far as the entrance to
”
e Bois de Boulogne It will do me good
th
He started An ol d air which one of his neighbors u sed to sing l ong
ago came to his mind :
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When the p a rk grows green a nd gay
ra ce l over sa ,
en dothm
b
Th
y
y
Co m e withm e m y s weet a nd
”
et a b r eathof a ir
To g
“
,
fa ir
,
.
He humme d it continually beginning it over again an d again Night
ha d fallen upon Paris a night without wind a night of sweet cairn
M L eras followed the Avenue de Bois de Boulogne and watched the
ey came with their b right lam ps one after another giving
ca bs pass Th
a fleeting glimpse of a con l e embracing the woman in light colored
dress and the man clad in lack
It was a l ong procession of lov ers driving under the starry an d
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E M AUPASSANT
2 76
The c arriages
passing He saw appearin g and disappearing in
in the rapid flight ofthe O pen a cre the two beings sile nt and em b rac
ing It seemed to him that the whole of humanity was filin g b efore him
intoxicated with joy with pleasure with happiness And he was alone
looking on at it al l alone He would be still alone tomorr ow alone
a lways alone as no one else is alone
He rose took a few steps and suddenly fati gued as if he had walk ed
for many miles he sat down on the next bench
What was awaiting him ? What did he hope for? Nothing He thought
n d on getting home little
how good it must be when a man is old to fi
prattl in g children there To grow old is sweet when a person is sur
rounded by those b eings who owe him their life who love him who
caress him saying those charming foolis h words which warm the heart
and console him for everything
And thinkingof his empty room neat and sad where never a person
a feeling of distress overwhelmed his soul It
entered but himself
seemed to him that room was more l amenta ble even than h
is little
o ffi
ce
No one came to it ; no one S poke in it It was dead silent without
the echo of a human voice One would say that the walls had some
thing of the people who lived within something of their l ook their
face their words
The houses inhabited by happy families are more gay than the h ab
itations of the wretched H is room was empty of memories like h
is
life and the thought of going back into that room all alone of sleep
ing in his bed of doing over aga in all his actions and all his duties of
evenin g terrified him And as if to put himself farther away from thi s
gloomy lodging and from the moment when he would have to return
to it he rose and finding all at once the first pathway of the park
he entered a clump of woods to sit upon the grass
He heard round about him above him everywhere a con fused
soun d immense and continuous made of innumerable different v oices
near and far a vagu e and enormous palpitation of life — the breath of
Paris respiring like some colossa l being
ke ) t
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Th
e
already high cast a floo d of light upon the Bois d e Bou
ne Some carriages began to circulate and the horseback ri d ers
l og
gaily arrived
A couple were going at a w a lk through a lonely bridle path
Suddenly the young woman raising her eyes perceived some
brown among the bushes ; she raise d her hand astonished
distu rbe d
"
“
Look— what is tha t?
sun
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A WIFE S CONFESSION
’
2 77
Then uttering a scream she let herself fall into the arms
,
of
‘
her
panion who placed her on the ground
The gu ards quickly summoned unfastened an ol d man h an ging to
a branch by his braces
It was agreed that the d eceased ha d hanged hiinself the evening
before
Th
e papers found upon him disclose d the fact that he was the hook
keeper for Messrs Lab u z e and Company and that his name was Leras
They attrib uted his death to suicide for which the cause could not
be d etermined Perhaps a sud d en attack of madness
com
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A W I F E S C O NF E S SI O N
MY
FRIE ND you have asked me to relate to you the liveliest
,
l l ec‘
reco
my life I am very old without relatives without children so
I am free to m ak e a confession to you Promis e me one thing— never
h
o reveal my name
I have been much loved as you know ; I have often myself love d
I was very beautiful ; I may say this today when my b eauty is gone
Love was for me the life of the soul just as the air is the life of the
body I would have preferred to die rather than exist without aflec~
tion without having somebody always to care for me Women often
preten d to love only once with al l the strength of their hearts ; it has
often happened to be so violent in one of my attachments that I
though t it would b e impossible for my transports ever to end H ow
ever they always died ou t in a natural fashion like a fire when it has
no more fuel
I will tell you today the first of my adventures in which I was v ery
innocent b ut which led to the others The horri ble vengeance of that
dreadfu l chemist of Pecq recall s to me the shocking drama of which I
was in S pite of mysel f a spectator
I had been a year married to a rich man Comte Herv e de Ker
a Breton of ancient fam ily whom I did not love you un derstand True
love needs I b elieve at any rate freedom and impediments at the
same time The love which is imposed sanctioned by law and blesse d
by the priest— c an we really call that love ? A legal kiss is never as good
as a stolen kiss My husband was tall in stature elegant and a really
fine gentleman in his manners But he lacked intelligence He s oke
e of
in a downright fashion and uttered opinions that ou t lik e the bla d
a knife He created the impression that his mind was full of ready made
is father and mother who had themselves
vie w s instil led into him by h
tions of
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE M AUPASSANT
2 78
got them from their ancestors He never hesitated but on every subject
immediately made narrow minded suggestions without showing any
embarrassment and without real izin g that there might be other ways
of looking at th ings One felt that h
is head was closed up that no ideas
c irculated in it none of those ideas which renew a man s mind and
make it sound lik e a b reath of fresh air passin g through an open
window into a house
The ch ateau in which we lived was situ ated in the midst of a de so
late tract of country It was a large melancholy structure surrounded
by enormous trees with tufts of moss on it resemblin g old men s white
beards The park a real forest was inclosed in a deep trench calle d
the ha ha and at its extremity ne ar the moorland we had b ig ponds
full of reeds and floating grass Between the two at the edge of a
stream which connected them my husband had got a little hut buil t
for shootin g wild ducks
We had in addition to our ordin ary servants a keeper a sort of
brute devoted to my husb and to the death and a chambermaid al m ost
a friend passionately attached to me I had brought her b ack from
Spain with me five years before She was a deserted child She might
have b een taken for a gypsy with her dusky skin her dark eyes her
h air thick as a wood and always clusterin g around her forehead She
was at the tim e sixteen years ol d but she looked twenty
The autumn was beginning We hunted much sometimes on neigh
bo ri ng estates sometimes on our own and I noticed a youn g man
whose visits at the ch ateau became singularly fre
e Baron de C
th
quent Then he ceased to co me ; I thought no more about it but I
perceived that my husband changed in his demeanor toward me
He seemed tacitu m and preoccupied ; he did not kiss me an d in
spite of the fact that he did not come into my room as I insisted on
separate ap artrn ents in order to live a little alone I often at night
heard a furtive step drawing near my door and withdrawing a few
m inutes after
As my window was on the ground floor I thought I had also oft en
heard someone prowling in the shadow around the ch ateau I told my
husband about it and having looked at me intensely for some second s
he answered
It is nothing— it is the keeper
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Now one evenin gjust after dinner Herv e who appeared to be
extraordinarily gay with a sl y sort of g ai ety said to me :
“
Would you like to Sp Ond three hours out with the guns in ord er to
"
shoot a for who com es every evening to eat my hens ?
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SHORT S TORIES OF D E MAUPASS ANT
2 80
“
N ot at all
I d id not co m e to go back without d oing anything You
"
seem queer this evening
He murmured :
”
“
As you wish An d we remaine d th ere without moving
At the end of about half an hour as nothing broke the oppressive
stil lness of this bright autumn night I said in a low tone :
“
Are you quite sure he is pas sing this way ?
Herv e winced as if I had bitten him an d with his mouth cl ose to
m y ear he said
"
“
M ake no mistake about it ! I am quite sure
An d once more there was silence
I believe I was beginn ing to get drowsy when my hus ban d pressed
is v oice changed to a hiss said
m y arm and h
”
“
Do on see him there un d er the trees ?
I 10 0 ed in vain ; I could dis tinguish nothing An d s lowly Hervenow
cocked his gun all the tim e fixing his eyes on my face
I was myself making ready to fire and su d d enly thirty paces in
front of us appeared in the full light of the moon a man who was
hurrying forward with rapi d movements his bod y bent as if he w ere
trying to escape
I was so stu p efi
ed that I uttere d a l oud cry but before I co uld turn
round there was a flash before my eyes ; I he ard a deafening report
round like a wolf hit by a bullet
and I s aw the man roll in g on the g
I burst into dread ful shrieks terrified a lmost going mad ; then a
fu rious han d— it was Herv es— seized me by the throat I was flung
d own on the ground then carried off by his strong arms He ran hold ;
ingme up till he reache d the body lying on the grass and he thre w
m e on top of it violently as if he wanted to break my head
I thought I was lost ; he was going to kill me and he h a d just
rais ed h
is heel up to my forehead when in his turn he was gripp ed
knocked down before I coul d yet realize what had happened
I rose up abruptly and I s aw kneeling on top of him P or uita my
maid clingin g like a wil dcat to him with desperate energy tearing off
his heard his mustache and the skin of his face
Then as if another idea had suddenly taken hold of her mind she
rose up and fl
inging herself on the co rpse she threw her arms aroun d
the dead man kissing his eyes and his mouth opening the dead l ips
with her own lips trying to fi
nd in them a breath and the long long
kiss of lovers
My husband picking himse lf up gazed at me He understood an d
falling at my feet said :
“
Oh forgive me my darling I sus p ected you and I killed this gir l s
lover It was my keeper that deceived me
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A DEAD W OMAN S SECRET
’
B ut I
281
watching th e strange kisses of that d ea d man and th at
l iv ing woman and her sobs and her writhings of sorrowing love an d
at that m oment I understood that I might be u nfaithful to my husban d
was
,
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A
D E AD W O M AN
’
S S E C RE T
HAD DIE D painlessly tranquilly like a woman whose life was irre
abl e and sh
e now lay on her back in bed withclosed eyes ca lm
roach
p
SH E
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features her long white hair carefully arranged as if she had again
made her to ilet ten m inutes before her death Her pale physiognomy
was so composed now that she had passed away so resigned that one
felt sure a sweet soul had dwelt in that body that this serene grand
m other had spent an untroubl ed existence that this vir tuous woman
had ended her life without any shock without any remorse
On his kn ees beside the bed her son a magistrate of inflexib le
principles and her daughter Margu erite— in religion Sister Eulalie
were weeping dis tractedly She had from the tim e of their infancy
arme d them with an inflexible code of morality teaching them a reli
gion without weakness and a sense of duty without any compromise
He the son had become a magistrate and wielding the weapon of
the law s truck down without pity the feeble and the erring She the
daughter quite penetrated with the virtue that ha d bathed her in
this austere family ha d become the spouse of God through dis g us t
with men
They had scarcely known their father ; all they knew was that he
had made their mother unhappy without learning any further details
The nun passionately kissed one hand of her dead mother which hun g
down a hand of ivory like that of Christ in the large crucifix which
lay on the be d At the Opposite side of the prostrate body the other
hand seemed still to grasp the rumpled sheet with that wondering
movement which is called the fold of the dying and the l in es had
retain ed little creases as a memento of those last motions which p re
cede the eternal motionlessness A few light taps at the door cause d
the two sobbing heads to look up and the priest who had just dine d
entered the apartment He was flushed a little puffed from the e ffects
of the process of digestion which had just commenced for he had put
a good dash of brandy into his coffee in order to counteract the fatigu e
caused by the last nights he had remained up and that which he
anticipated from the ni ght that was still in store for him He had put
on a look of sadness that simulate d sadness of the priest to who m
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MA UPASSAN T
28 2
death is a means of live lihood He ma d e the sign of the cross and
coming ov er to them with his professional gestures s aid :
“
Well my poor children I have come to help you to pass these
”
mournful hours
But Sister Eulalie su d denly rose up
“
Thanks F a ther but my brother an d I woul d l ike to be left al one
with her These are the last moments that we now have for seeing her
so we want to feel ourselves once more the three of us just as we were
ye ars ago when we— we —we were only chil dren and our poor— poor
mother
She was unable to finish with the flood of tears that
ushed
from
her
eyes
and
the
sobs
that
were
choking
her
g
But the priest bowed with a more serene look on his fa ce for he
“
”
was think ing Of his bed j ust as you please my children
Then he kn eeled down again crossed himself prayed rose an d
“
”
softly stole away murmuring as he went :
She was a saint
They were left alone the dead woman and her children A hidd en
timepiece kept regularly ticking in its dark corner and through the
Open window the soft O dors of hay and of woods p enetrated with
faint gleams of moonlight NO sou nd in the fields outside save the
wandering croak O f toads an d now and then the humming of som e
nocturnal insect d arting in like a bal l and knocking itself against the
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An infinite peace a divine mel ancholy a sil ent serenity surroun d ed
this d ea d woman seemed to emanate from her to evaporate from her
into the atmosphere outside and to c alm Nature hersel f
Then the magistrate still on his knees his head pressed against the
bed clothes in a far OH heartbroken v oice that pierced through the
sheets and the co verlet exclaimed :
”
“
Mamma Mamma Mammal An d the sister sinking down on the
floor striking the wood with her forehead fanatically twis ting hersel f
“
about and quivering like a person in an epileptic fit groan ed : Ie sus
”
Jesu s— Mamma— jesu sl
And both O f them shaken by a hurricane O f gri ef panted with a
rattlin g in their throats
Then the fit gradually subsided an d they now wept in a less violent
ion like the rainy calm that follows a s q uall on a storm beaten
fas h
Then after some time they rose and fixed their gl ances on the
sea
belov ed corpse , And memories those memories of the past so sweet
eir minds with al l those littl e for
so tortu ring today c ame back to th
gotten details those l ittle details so intimate and familiar which m ake
the being who is no more live over again They rec al led circumstances
words smiles ce rtain intonations of voice which be l onged to one
whom they should never hear speaking to them again They saw her
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SHORT STORIES OF DE M AU PASSAN T
2 84
flesh un d er my flesh I l ove y ou ! I l ove you ! You have mad e m e
m adl My arms Op enl I p ant with an imme nse desire to posse ss
ou ag ain My whole body call s ou t to you wants you I have
”
kept in my mouth the taste of your kisses
.
.
.
,
.
The magistrate rose up ; the nun stoppe d reading He snatche d the
letter from her
and sought for the signature There was none save und er
“
”
“
”
e wor d s
He who adores you the name Henry Their father s
th
.
.
,
’
was
n ame
.
,
,
René So then he was not the man
T hen the son with rapid fingers fumbled in the packet
took another of them and read
.
.
,
“
I c an d o
,
without your caresses no l onger
of
letters
,
”
.
An d stan d ing up with the severity O f a ju d ge passing senten ce he
gaz ed at the impassive face of the dea d wom an
The nun straight as a statue with tear drops standing at each corn er
of her eyes looked at her brother waitin g to see what he meant to do
Then he crossed the room slowly reached the window and looke d out
t
thou h
y into the night
VVI
ren he
tu rned back Sis ter Eulal ie her eyes quite d ry stil l
remained standing near the bed with a downcast look
He went over to the drawer and flu ng in the letters which he had
picke d up from the floor Then he d rew the curtain round the bed
And when the d awn made the candles on the table look pale th
e
son ro se from his armchair and without even a parting glance at th
e
"
mother whom he had separated from them an d condemned he said
,
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,
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q
,
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,
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sl owl
“
t
,
my sister let
us
,
le ave the room
”
.
’
L O VE S AWA KE N I N G
NO
was surprised at the marriage of M Simon Lebrum ent an d
Mlle jeanne Cordier M Lebrum ent came to buy out the Office of
M Papillon ; he needed it was understood money with which to pay
for it and Mlle j eanne Cordier had three hundred thousand fran cs
clear in stocks and bonds
M Leb ru m ent was a handsome bachelor who ha d style the styl e
O f a notary a provincial style but after all some style which was a
rare thing at Boutigny l e Rebours
M l le Cordier had grace and freshness grace a littl e awkw ar d an d
ONE
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L OVE S AWAKENIN G
’
285
freshness a little fixed up but she was nevertheless a pretty girl
d esirable and entertaining
The wedding ceremonies turned Boutigny topsy turvy The marri ed
c ouple was much admired when they returned to the conjugal domi
cile to conceal their happiness havin g resolved to m ake a little sim ple
journey to Paris after they had spent a few days together
It was charming these few days together as M Leb ru m ent knew
h ow to m anage his early relations with his wife with a del icacy a
d irectness
and sense of fitness that was remarkable He took for his
”
“
Everything comes to him who w aits He knew how to be
m otto :
patient and energetic at the same time H is su ccess was rapid an d
complete
At the end of four d ays Mme Lebrum ent adored her hus ban d She
im He m us t be ne ar h
could not be ar to be a moment away from h
er
e might caress h
is hands his beard h
is nose etc
al l d ay long that sh
is kn ees and t akin him by the ears would say :
Sh
e would sit upon h
g
“
is mouth wi th
Ope n your mouth and shut your eyes He O pened h
confi
dence shut his eyes hal fway and then would receive a very long
is back And in h
sweet kiss that made great shivers in h
is turn he
ne ver had enough caresses enough lips enough hands enough O f
ing with which to enjoy h
is wife from morning until e v ening
anyth
and from evening until mo rning
As soon as the first week ha d slippe d away he said to h
is young
companion
“
If you wish we might leave for Paris Tuesday of next week We
shall be like two lovers who are not married go about to the theaters
e restaur ants the concert cafés and everywhere everywhere
th
”
“
“
S he jum ped for joy Oh yes yes l she replied Let us go as soon
”
as possible
“
And as we must not forget anything you might ask you r father to
have your dowry ready”; I will take it with me and at the same tim e
pay Monsieur Papillon
“
”
She answered : I will speak to him abou t it tomorrow morning
Then he seized her in his arms and began again the little tender
nesses she loved so much and had reveled in now for eight days
The Tuesday following the father in law and the mother in l aw
acc ompanied their daughter and s on in law to the station whence they
e fath
er in law remarked :
set ou t for the capital Th
“
I tell you it is imprudent to carry so much money in you r pocket
book And the youn g notary smiled
“
D o not be dis turb ed F ather in law he answere d I am accus
tom ed to these thin gs You know that in my profession it O ften happens
th
at I have nearly a mil lion about me By c arrying it with me w e
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,
S HORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
286
es ca pe a l ot of formal ities and delays to say the l east D o not give
yourself any uneasiness
”
Then the trainman cried out All aboard ! and they hurried into a
com p am nent where they found themselves with two O ld ladies
“
Lebru m ent murmur ed in h
is wife s ear :
How annoying ! Now I
”
c annot smoke
“
She ans wered in a l ow tone : I am sorry too but not on account of
your cigar
The engine p uffed and started The journey lasted an hou r du ring
which they could not say anything of importance b ecause the two Ol d
ladie s did not go to sleep
When they were in the Saint Lazare station in Paris M Lebrum ent
is wife
said to h
“
If you wish my dear we will first go and breakfast on the boule
vard then return at our leisure to find our trunk and give it to the
porter O f some hotel
“
She consented immediately Oh yes she said l et us breakfast
”
in some restaurant Is it far from here ?
“
Yes rather far but we will take an omnibus
”
“
She was astonished Why not a cab ? she asked
“
He groaned as he said smilingly : And you are economical ! A cab
for five minutes ride at six sous per minute ! You do not deprive your
sel f O f anythingl
That i true she said a littl e con fused
A large omnibus was passing with three horses at a trot Lebru m ent
”
“
hailed it : Conductor ! Eh condu ctorl
The hea vy carriage stoppe d The young notary pushed his w ife
ins ide saying hurriedly in a low voice
“
You get in while I c l imb up on the outside to smoke at least a
”
c igarette before breakfast
She had not time for any "answer The conductor who had seiz ed
her b y the arm to aid her in mounting the steps pushed her into the
bus where she landed half frightened upon a seat and in a sort of
stu por watched the feet Of her husband through the windows at the
back as he clim bed to the top of the imperial
There she remained immovable between a large gentleman who
sm elled of a pipe and an old woman who smelled of a dog All the
other travelers in two mute lines— a grocer s b oy a workman a ser
geant of infantry a gentleman with gold rimmed S pectacles an d a silk
cap with enormous visors like gutters and two ladies with an
“
portant mincing air which seemed to say : We are here although we
should be in a b etter place Then there were two good sisters a little
h
irl
in
long
hair
and
an
un
d
ertaker
T
e assemblage ha d the appea r
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MA UPAS S AN T
28 8
“
On
the outside
On the outside ! It has been a l ong time since there was anybod y
”
th ere
She made a terrifi
ed gesture Then she said
“
How can it be ? It is not possible He got up there when I entere d
e omnibus Look again ; he must be there
th
“
The conductor became rude Come little one this is talk enough
If there is one man lost there are ten to be found Scamper out now !
”
You will find another in the street
The tears sprang to her eyes She insisted : But sir you are m is
taken ; I assure you that you are mistaken He had a large po cketbook
”
in his hand
“
The employee began to l augh A l arge pocketbook ? I remember
Yes he got out at the Mad eleine Tha t s right ! H e s left you beh
in d !
Ha ! Ha !
The carriage was standing still She got d own and looked up in
e e e
spite of herse l f to the roof with an instinctive movement of th
y
It was totall y deserted
Then she b egan to weep al oud without thinking that anyone was
l ooking at or li stening to her F inally”she said :
“
What is going to become of me ? “
The inspector came up and inquire d : VVhat s the matter?
The conductor answere d in a jocose fashion :
”
“
This lady s husband has left her on the way
”
“
The other rep l ied : Now now that is nothing I am at you r service
And he turned on his heels
Then she began to walk ahead too much frightened too much
Where w as she going?
e was going
excited to think even where sh
What should she do ? How could such an error have occurred ? Such
an act of carelessness of disregard of unhe ard of distraction !
She had two francs in her pocket T o whom could she apply? Sud
e remembered her cousin Barral who was a clerk in the cfi
ce
denl y sh
of Naval Affairs
She had just enough to hire a cab ; she would go to him And she
met him just as he was starting for his office Like Lebrum ent he
carried a lar e pocketb ook under his arm
She leane dou t of the carriage and cal led : Henry !
He stopped much surprised
“earine he said “
h
ereP— and alone ? Where do you come from ?
j
What are you doing ?
She stammered with her eyes fu ll of te ars : My hus band is lost
”
somewhere
”
“
Lost? Where ?
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”
“
On the omnibus
”
“
On the omnibus ! Oh !
B ED
N O 29
289
.
.
related to him the who l e story weeping much over the
e
And sh
,
adventure
He listene d reflectivel y and then asked
“
This morning? And was his head perfectly clear?
“
Oh yes ! And he had my dowry
”
“
Your dowry ? The whole of it ?
“
is offi
ce
Yes the whole of it— in order to pay for h
“
We l l my dear cousin your hu”s band whoever he is is probab ly
watching the wheel— this minute
My husband— you
Sh
e did not yet comprehend She stammer ed :
.
.
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,
,
,
,
,
.
.
“
I s
that he has run
a
y”
off
with your— your capital— and that s
'
a
ll
b ut it
She remained standing there suffocated with grief m u rmuring
“
l —a wretch !
Then he is — he is—
Then overcome with emotion she fell on her cousin s sho ul der s ob
bing violently
As people were stopping to l ook at them he guided her gently into
the entrance of his house supporting her body They mounted the steps
and as the maid came to open the door he ordered her
“
Sophie run to the restaurant and b ring breakfast for two persons I
”
dia l ! not go to the office this morning
a o
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BE D
NO
.
29
WHE N CAP TAIN E P IV E NT passed in the street all the ladies turne d to
look at him He was the true type of a handsome officer of hussars He
‘
.
.
was
always on parade always strutted a little and seemed preoccupied
and proud of his leg his fi g
ure and his mustache He had superb ones ,
it is true a superb leg figure and mustache The last named was b lond
very heavy falling martially from his lip in a b eautiful sweep the color
of ripe wheat care fully turned at the ends and falling over b oth sides
is mouth in two power ful sprigs of hair cut square across His waist
of h
was thin as if he wore a corset whil e a vigorous masculine chest
bulged and arched spread itself above his wais t His leg was admirable
a gy mnastic leg the leg of a dancer whose muscular flesh outline d
eachmovement under the clingin g cloth of the red pantaloon
He walked with muscles taut with feet and arms apart and with the
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
290
sl
ightly bal anced step of the cavalier who knows how to m ake the most
of his lim b s and his carriage and who seems a conqueror in a uniform
but looks comm on place in mufti
Like many other o fficers Captain E p ivent carried a civil costum e
badly He had no air of eleg ance as soon as he was clothed in the gray
or black of the sh0 p clerk But in his proper set ting he was a triumph
He had besides a handsome face the nose thin and curved blue eyes
and a good forehead He was bald without ever b eing ab le to com
prehend why his hair had fallen off He consoled himself with thinking
that with a hea vy mustache a head a little bald was not so bad
He scorned everybody in general wi th a difference in the degrees of
his scorn
In the first place for him the middle class did not exist He looked
at them as he would look at animal s without according them more
cers
of his attention than he would give to sparrows or chickens Offi
alone counted in his world but he did not have the s ame esteem for
all officers He only respected handsome men an imposing presence
th
e true military quality being first A soldier w as a merry fellow a
devil created for love and war a m an of brawn muscle and hair
e generals of the French army according
nothing more He classed th
to their figure their bearing and the stern look of their faces Bo u rbaki
appeared to him the greatest warrior of modern tim es
He often laughed at the officers of the line who were sho rt an d fat
and puffed while marching And he ha d a sp ecial scorn
recruits from the polytechnic schools those thin littl e men with spe c
b s eemed as much made for a uni
ta cl es awkward and u nskill ful wh
form as a wolf for saying Mass as he often asserted He was indignant
that they should be tolerated in the army those abortions with the l ank
lim bs who marched like crabs did not drink ate little and seemed to
love equations b etter than pretty gir ls
Captain E p ivent himself ha d const ant successes an d triumphs with
the fair sex
Every time he took su pper in company with a woman he thought
him self certain of fin ishing the night with her u pon the same mattress
and if unsurmountable obstacles hinder ed that evening his victo ry was
s u re at least the followin g day His comrades did not like him to meet
their mistresses and the merchants in the shops who had their pretty
wives at the counter knew him feared him and hated him desperately
When he passed the merchants wives in spite of themselves exchange d
a l ook with him through the glass of the front windows one of those
looks that avail more than tender words which contain an appeal an d
a response a desire and an avowal And the hus b ands who turned
away w ith a sort of instinct retu rne d brus uely casting a furious look
-
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SHORT STORIES OF DE M AUPASSANT
2 92
They all came at five o clock the cfi
icers
hour to the Boieldieu mall and d ragged their skirts up and down the
len gth of the walk two by two while the lieutenants captains an d
commanders two by two dragge d their swords along the groun d be
fore entering the café
One evening the beautiful Irma the mistress it was said of M
T em p l ierl P ap on the rich manufacturer stopped her carriage in front of
the Comedy and getting out made a pretense of buying some paper
or some visiting cards of M P au l ard the engraver in order to
before the offi
cers tables and cast a look at Captain E ivent w i ch
p
“
”
When you wil l so clearly that Colonel Prune who
seemed to s ay :
was drinking the green liquor with his l ieutenant colonel could not
h elp
muttering :
“
Confou nd that fellow ! He has the chances that scamp !
The remark of the colonel was repeated and Captain E p ivent moved
by this approbation of his superior passed the next day and many
times after that under the windows of the beauty in his most cap tivat
ingattitude
She saw him showed herse lf an d smiled
That same evenin g he was her lover
They attracted attention made an exhibition of their attachment an d
m utually compromised themselves both of them proud of their ad
v enture
N othing was so much talked of in town as the beautiful Irma an d
the officer M Templier Papon alone was ignorant of their relation
Captain E p ivent beamed with glory; every instant he would s ay :
“
”“
”
“
Irma happene d to say to me I rma tol d me tonight or Yester
d ay at dinner Irma said
For a whole year they walked with and d isplayed in Rouen this
love like a flag t aken from the enemy He felt himself aggrandized by
this conquest envied more sure of the future s u rer of the decoration
so much desired for the eyes of all were upon him and he was satis
fi
ed to find himself well in sight instead of b eing forgotten
But here war was declared and the captain s regiment was one of
e first to be sent to the front
th
The adieux were lamentable They
l asted the whole night long
Sword red breeches cap an d jacket were all overturned from the
back of a chair upon the floor ; ro b es sk irts silk stockings also fallen
down were spread around an d mingled with the uniform in distress
upon the carpet the room upside down as if there had b een a battle ;
Irma wild her hair unbound threw her despairing arms around the
officer s neck straining him to her then leaving him rolled upon the
who would carry him
off
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BE D NO
.
29
293
floor overturning furniture catching fringes of the armchairs biting
their feet while the captain much moved but not skillful at consola
tion repeated
“
Irma my littl e Irm a do not cry so; it is necessary
He occasionally wiped a tear from the corner of his eye with the en d
is finger They separated at daybreak She followed her lover in
of h
her c arriage as far as the first stopping place Then she kissed him b e
fore the whole regiment at the moment of separation They even
foun d this v ery genteel worthy an d v ery romantic and the comrades
pressed the captain s hand and said to him
“
”
Confound you ro g
ue she has a heart all the same the little one
They seemed to see something patriotic in it
,
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’
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e
Th
regiment was sorely proved d uring the campaign The captain
conducted himself heroically an d finally received the Cross of Honor
Then the war ended ; he returned to Rouen and the garrison
Immediately upon his return he asked of news of Irma but no one
was able to give him anything exact Some one said she was marrie d
to a Prussian major O thers that sh
e ha d gone to her parents who were
farmers in the suburbs of Yvetot
He even sent his orderly to the mayor s office to con sult the regis
is mistress was not to be found
try of deaths The name of h
He was v ery angry which fact he paraded everywhere He even
is unhappiness attributing to the Prussians
took the enemy to task for h
wh
o had occupied Rouen
the disappearance of the young girl
d e c“
laring :
In the next war they shall pay well for it the beggars !
Then one morning as he entered the messroom at the b reakfast hour
ol d porter in a b louse and an oilcloth cap gave him a letter which
he Opened and read
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,
MY Dea nna I am in the hospital very ill very ill Will you not
come and see me ? It would give me so much pleasure !
IRMA
The captain grew pale and moved with pity declare d
:
.
,
.
“
It s too bad ! The poor girl ! I will go there as soon as I breakfast
,
,
’
An d
.
during the whole time at the table he told the officers that Irma
was in the hospital and that he was going to see her that blessed m om
ing It must b e the fault of those unspeaka ble Prussians She had d ou b t
less found herself alone without a sou broken down with misery for
they must certainly have stolen her furniture
”
“
Ah the dirty whelps !
E very body listened with great excitement Scarcely had he slipped
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SHORT STORIES O F D E MAUPASSANT
2 94
his napkin in his wooden rin g when he rose and takin g his sword
from the peg and swell ing ou t his chest to m ak e him thin hooked his
belt and s et out with hurried step to the city hospital
But entrance to the city hospital building where he expecte d to
enter immediately was sharply refused him and he was obliged to
find his colonel and explain his case to him in order to get a word
from him to the director
This man after having kept the handsome captain waiting some
time in his anteroom gave him an authorized pass and a cold and
disapprovin g greetin g
Inside the door he felt himself constra ined in this asylum of misery
and suffering and death A b oy in the service showed him the way He
w al ked upon tiptoe that he might make no noise through the long
co rridors where floated a slight moist odor of illness and medicines
A murmur of voices alone disturbed the silence of the hospital
At times through an O pen door the captain perceived a dormitory
with its rows of beds whose clothes were raised by the forms of the
bodies
Some convalescents were seated in chairs at the foot of the ir couches
sewing and clothed in the u niform gray cloth dress with white cap
u ide suddenly stopped before one of these corridors filled with
H is g
”
patients He read on the d oor in large letters : Syphilis The captain
st arted then he felt that he was blushin g An attendant was p reparing
a med ic ine at a little wooden table at the door
“
“
I will show you she said ; it is b ed 29
“
And she walked ahead of the o fficer She indicated a bed : There
”
it is
There was nothing to be seen but a bundle of bedclothes Even the
head was con cealed under the coverlet Everywhere faces were to be
seen on the couches pale faces astonished at the sight of a uniform
the faces of women young women and ol d women but al l seemingly
plain and common in the hum ble re gulation garb
The capta in very much dis turbed supporting his sword in one hand
(1 carrying h
is cap in the other murmured
”
“
Irma
There was a sudden motion in the bed and the face of his mistress
appeared b ut so changed so tired so thin that he woul d scarcely have
known it
She gasped overcome by emotion and then said
“
Albert ! Al b ert ! It is you ! Oh ! I am so glad— s o glad And the te ars
ran down her cheeks
The attendant brought a chair Be seated sir she s aid
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPASSANT
2 96
“
Still Colonel Prune He was twice wounded
“
She continue d And your comra d es ? Have some
”
.
.
:
of t em
h
been
kill ed ?
“
Yes Saint T irnon Savagnat Po li Sap rival R obe rt De Courson
l Santa! Caravan and P oivrin are dead Sahel had an arm
P as afi
”
’
ht eye
is ri g
carried ofl and Cou rvoison a leg amputated Paquet lost h
She listened much interested Then suddenly she stammered :
“
Wil l you kiss me say before you leave me? Madame Langlois is
”
not there
And in S pite of the disgu st which came to h
is lips he place d them
a gainst the wan forehead whil e sh
her a rms aroun d h
e thro n
im
is blue jacket
sc attered random kisses over h
“
Then she said : You will come again ? Say that you will come again
”
Promise me that you will
“
”
Y
es I promise
“
”
W
hen now? Can you come Thurs d ay ?
”
“
Yes Thursday
”
“
T
hursd ay at two o clock ?
“
“
Yes Thursday at two o cl ock
”
“
You promise ?
”
“
I promise
”
“
Adieu my dearie
”
“
Adieu
e
And he went away confused by th e staring gl ances of those in th
d ormito ry bending his tall form to make himself seem smaller An d
when he was in the street he took a long “
breath
“
That evening his comrades asked him : Well how is I rma ?
“
He answered in a constrained voice : She has a trouble wi th the
”
lungs ; she is very ill
But a little lieutenant scenting something from his m anner went to
headquarters and the next day when the captain went into mess he
was welcomed by a v olley of laughter and jokes They had foun d venge
ance at last
It was learned further that Irma had made a spite marriage with
the staff major of the Prussians that she had gone through the country
on horseback with the colonel of the Blue Hussars and many others
and that in Rouen she was no longer cal led anything but the
wife of
e Pru ssians
th
For eight days the captain was the victim of his regiment He re
ose who can reveal the
ceived by post and b y messenger notes from th
past and the future circulars of specialists and medicines the nature
of which was inscrib ed on the package
And the colonel catching the drift of it s aid in a severe tone
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“
We ll
BE D NO
,
297
29
.
c
apta in had a pretty acquaintance ! I sen d him
”
th
e
compliments
m
y
.
At the end of twelve d ays he was appeal ed to by another l etter
from Irma He tore it up with rage and made no reply to it
A week l ater she wrote him again that she w as very il l and wished
to see him to say farewel l
He d id not answer
some
days
more
he
r
eceived a note from a chapl ain of th
e
_
After
hospital
The girl Irma P avol in is on her deathbed and begs you to come
.
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.
He dared not refuse to oblige the chaplain but he entered the hos
pital with a heart swell ing with wicked anger with wounded vanity
and humiliation
He found her scarcely changed at all and thought that she ha d de
“
”
What do you wish of me ? he asked
ceived him
“
I wish to say farewell It appe ars that I am near the end
He did not believe it
“
Listen he said you have made me the laughingstock of the regi
”
m ent and I do not wish it to continue
“
”
She asked : What have I done?
He was irr itated at not knowing how to answer But he said
“
Is it nothing that I retu rn here to be joked by everybody on your
”
acco u nt ?
She looked at him with l an guid eyes where shone a pale light of
ger and answered :
“
What can I have done? I have not been genteel with you perhaps !
Is it because I have sometimes asked for something ? But for you I
would have remained with Monsieur Templier Papon and wo ul d not
have found myself here today No you see if anyone has reproaches
”
to make it is not you
He answered in a clear tone : I have not made reproaches but I
cannot continue to come to see you b ecause your conduct with the
”
Prussians has b een the shame of the town
She s at up with a little shake in the bed as she replied
“
My conduct with the Prussians ? But when I tell you that they took
me and when I tell you that if I took no thought of myself it was b e
cause I wished to poison them ! If I had wished to cure mysel f it
woul d not have b een so difficult I can tell you ! But I wis hed to ki ll
"
them and I have kill ed them come now ! I have killed them !
“
”
”
“
He remained standin g In any case he said it was a shame
She had a kin d of suffocation and then replie d
“
Why is it a shame for me to caus e them to die an d try to exterm i
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPASSANT
298
nate them tell me ? You did not talk that way when you used to com e
to my house in jeanned Arc Street Ah ! It is a shame ! You have not
d one as much with your Cross of Honor ! I deserve more merit than
u do you understand ? More than you for I have kil l ed more Prus
o
y
”
sians than you !
He stood stup efi
before her trem b ling with indignation He
ed
stammered : Be still— you must— b e still— b ecau se those things— I
c annot allow— anyone to touch
upon
“
But she was not listenin g What harm have you done the Prussians ?
Wo u ld it ever have happened if you had kept them from coming to
Rouen? Tell me ! It is you who should stop and listen An d I have
d one more harm than you I yes more harm to them than you and I
am going to die for it while you are singing songs and making
”
self fine to inveigle women
Upon each bed a head was raised and all eyes look ed at this man
in uniform who stammered again
“
You mu st be stil l— more quiet— you kn ow
But she would not b e quiet She cried out :
‘
Ah yes you are a pretty poser ! I know you well I know you An d
I tell you that I have done more harm than you— I— and that I have
killed more than all your regim ent together Come now you coward
He went away ; in fact he fled stretching his long legs as he passe d
betwee n the two rows of beds where the syp hilitic patients were be
comin g excited And he heard the gasping stifled voice of Irma pursu
in 8 him
More than you— yes— I have kille d more than you
He tumbled down the staircase four steps at a time an d ran until
he was shut fast in his room
The next day he heard that sh
e was d ead
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MARROCA
You
ASK
ME my dear friend to send you my impressions of Af rica an d
,
,
an account of my adventures especially of my l ove affairs in this
seductive land
You laughed a great deal beforehand at my dusky
swee thearts as you called them and declared that you could see me
retu rn ing to F rance followed by a tall ebony colored woman with a
yellow silk handkerchief round her head and wearing voluminous
bright colored trousers
No dou b t the Moorish dames will have their turn for I have seen
sev eral who made me fee l very much inclined to fall in love with them
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE MAU PASSAN T
3 00
.
ruins in al l directions on the
hills round the town fragments of Roman walls bits of Saracen monu
m ents and remains of Arabic buildings
I had taken a small Moorish house in the upper town You know
those dwell in s whi ch hav e been described so often They have no
w indows on t e outside but they are lighted from top to bottom by
an inner court On the first floor they have a large cool room in which
one S pends the days and a terrace on the roof on which one spen ds
the nights
I at once fell in with the custom of all hot countries that is to say
of taking a siesta after lunch That is the hottest time in Africa the
time when one can scarcely breathe when the streets the fields an d
the long dazzling white roa d s are deserted when everyone is as leep
or at any rate trying to sleep attired as scantily as possible
In my drawin g room which had colum ns of Ara b ic architecture
I had placed a large soft couch covered with a carpet from D jebe l
Amour There very nearly in the costume of Assan I sought to rest
but I coul d not sleep as I was tortured by continence There are tw o
forms of torture on this earth which I hOp e you will never know : the
want of water and the want of women an d I do not know which is
the worst In the desert men would commit any infamy for the sake
of a glass of clean cold water and what would one not do in some
of the towns of the littoral for th
e companionship of a hands ome
woman ? There is no lack of girls in Africa ; on the contrary they
abound but to continue my comparison they are as unwholesom e
as the muddy water in the pools of Sahara
Well one day when I was feel ing more enervated than usual I was
fly ingin vain to close my eyes My legs twitched as if they were be
ing pricked and I tossed about uneasily on my couch At last unable
ot day
to bear it any l onger I got up and went ou t It was a terribly h
in the middle of july and the pavement was hot enough to bake bread
on My hr which was soaked with perspiration clung to my body ;
on the h
orizon there was a slight white vapor which seemed to be
palpa b le heat
I went down to the sea and c ircling the port walke d along the shore
of the pretty bay where the baths are There was nobody about an d
no thing was stirring ; not a sound of bird or of beast was to be heard ;
e very waves did not lap and the s ea appeared to be asleep in the
th
C ate o vergro wn with ivy an d there
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Sud d enly behind one of the rocks which were half covere d by the
s ilent water I heard a sli ht movement Turning round I s aw a tall
taking a hath; no
naked girl sitting up to
er bosom in the water
e reckoned on being alone at that hot
er1od of the day Her
doubt sh
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MARROCA
301
hea d was turne d towar d the sea an d she was mov ing gently up an d
d own without seeing me
Nothing could be more surprising than that picture of a beautifu l
,
.
,
woman in the water which was as clear as crystal under a blaze of
l ight She was a statue She tu rne d round uttered a cry and half
swimming half walking hid herself al together behind her rock I knew
sh
e must necessarily come ou t so I s at down on the beach and waite d
Pr esently she just showed her head which was covere d with thick
bl ack plaits of hair She ha d a rather large mouth with full lips l arge
bold eyes and her skin which was tanned by the clim ate looke d
l ike a piece O f old hard polishe d ivory
“
S he cal led ou t to me : Go away ! and her full v oice which corre
s onded to her strong buil d had a gu ttu ra l accent As I di d not mo ve
“
”
8p e added :
It is not right of you to stop there monsieu r I did not
m ove however and her hea d disappeared Ten minutes pas sed an d
then her hair then her forehea d an d then her eyes reappeared but
slowly an d prudently as if sh
e wer e playing at hide and seek and were
looking to see who was near This time she was furious and called ou t:
“
You will mak e me catch a chill for I shall not come ou t as long as
”
ou are there
T
hereupon
I
got
up
and
went
away
but
ot without
n
y
looking round several times When she thought I was far enough ofl
e came ou t of the water Bending down and tu rning her back to m e
sh
e d isappeared in a cavi ty of the rock behind a petticoat that was
sh
hanging up in front of it
I went back the next day She was bathing again but she ha d a
bathing cos tume and she began to laugh and showed her white teeth
A week later we were friends and in another week we were eager l ov
ers Her name was Marroca and she pronounced it as if there were a
d oze n rs in it She was the daughter of Spanish colonists and had mar
rie d a Frenchman whose name was P ontabez e He was in government
em ploy though I never exactly knew what his functions were I found
ou t that he was always ve ry busy and I did not care for anything else
She then altered her time for having her bath and came to my house
ev ery day to take her siesta there What a siesta ! It could scarcely be
c alled reposing ! She was a splen d id girl of a somewhat animal but
Her eyes were always glowing with passion ; her half
superb type
open mouth her sharp teeth and even her smiles had something fero
lovi
g
about
them
and
her
curious
long
and
conical
breasts
n
ciou sl
y
gave her whole b ody something of the animal made her a sort of in
ferior yet magnificent being a creature destined for unbridled l ove
and roused in me the idea of those ancient deities who gav e expres
s ion to their tenderness on the grass an d under the trees
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAUPASSANT
302
And then her min d was as simple as two and two are four an d a
sonorous laugh served her instead of thought
Instinctively proud of her beauty she hated the slightest covering
and ran and frisked about my house with darin g and unconscious im
modesty When she was at last overcome and worn out by her cries
and movements she used to sleep soundly and peace fully while the
overwhel ming heat brought out minute spots of perspiration on her
brown skin
Some times she re turned in the evening when her hus band was on
duty somewhere and we used to lie on the terrace scarcely covered
by some fine gauzy oriental fa b ric When the full moon lit up the
town and the gulf with its surrounding frame of hil ls we s aw on all
th
e other terraces a recu m b ent army of silent phantoms who wou ld
o ccasionally get up
change their places and lie down again in the
langu orous warmth of the starry night
In spite of the brightness of African nights Marroca would ins ist
upon strippin g herself a l most nake d in the clear rays of the moon ; she
did not trouble herself much a b out any b ody who might see us and
O ften in spite of my fears and entreaties she uttered long res ound
ing cries which m ade the d ogs in the distance howl
One night when I was s l eeping under the starry sky she came an d
kneeled down on my c arpet and putting her lips which c ur le d sligh tly
close to my face she said
“
You must come and stay at my house
I did not understand her an d asked
“
W
hat do you mean?
“
Yes when my husban d has gone away you must come and be
with me
”
“
I could not help laughing an d said : W hy as you come here?
ot
And she went on al rnost talking into my mouth sending her h
breath in to my throat and moistening my mustache with her lips
”
“
I want it as a remembrance
Still I did not grasp her meaning Then she put her arms around my
”
“
neck and said : When you are no longer here I shall think of it
“
I was touched and amused at the same tim e and replied : You must
be mad I would much rather st0 p here
As a matter of fact I have no l iking for assignations und er the con
jugal roof ; they are mousetraps in which the unwary are always
caught But she begged and prayed and even cried and at last said
”
“
You shall see how I will love you there
Her wish seemed so strange that I could not explain it to mysel f
but on thinking it over I thought I coul d discern a profound ha tred
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SHORT STORIES OF DE MAUPASSANT
804
I hear d kisses a little pat on her nak ed flesh and a l augh an d he
said in a strong Marseilles accent : I forgot my purse so I was obliged
”
to come back ; you were sound asleep I su ppose ?
He went to the cupboard and was a long time in finding what he
wanted ; and as Marroca had thrown herself on the bed as if she were
tired out he went up to her and no doubt tried to caress her for sh
e
flung a volley of angry rs at him H is feet were so close to me that I
felt a stupid inexplicable longing to catch hold of them but I re
strained myself When he saw that he cou ld not succeed in his wish
“
”
he got angry and said : You are not at all nice tonight Go od by
I heard another kis s then the big feet turned and I saw the nails
in his shoes as he went into be next r oom ; the front door was shut
and I was saved !
I came slowly ou t of my retreat feeling rather humil iated an d whil e
Marroca danced a jig around me shouting with laughter and clapping
her hands I threw myself heavily into a chair But I jumped up with
a bound for I had sat down on something cold and as I was no more
dressed than my accomplice was the contact made me st art I looked
round I had sat down on a small ax used for cutting wo od an d as
sharp as a knife How had it got there ? I had certa inly not seen it when
I went in but Marroca seeing me jump up nearly choked with l augh
ter and coughed with both hands on her sides
I thought her amusement rather ou t of place ; we had risked our
lives stupidly I still felt a col d shiver down my back and I was rather
hurt at her foolish laughter
“
”
Supposing your husband had s eenme ? I said
“
There was no danger of that she replied
“
What do you mean ? No d anger? That is a go od joke ! If he had
”
stooped down he must have seen me
She did not laugh any more ; she only looked at me with her l arge
eyes which were bright with merriment
“
”
He would not have stoop ed
”
“
“
Why ? I persisted j ust sup p ose he had let his hat fall he woul d
have b een sure to pick it u and then— I was well prepar ed to de
p
fend myself in this costume !
She put her two strong round arms about my neck and lowering
”
“
her voice as she did when she said I adorf e you she whisPered :
”
“
T hen he would ne ver have got up again
”
“
I did not understand her and said : What do you mean ?
She gave me a cunning wink and put her hand to the chair on which
I had sat down and her outstretched hands her smile her half open
l ips her white sharp and ferocious teeth all drew m y attention to
the l i ttle ax which was used for cutting wood the sharp blade of which
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A PH ILO S OPHE R
3 05
glistening in the can d lelight While she put ou t her han d as if she
were going to take it she put her left arm rou nd me and drawing me
e made a
to her and puttin g her lips against mine with her right arm sh
mo tion as if she were cutting off the head of a kneeling man !
This my friend is the manner in which p eople here understa n d
”
conjugal duties love and hospitality !
was
.
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P H I LO S O P HE R
A
had been my most intimate friend from childhood ; we ha d no
secrets from each other an d were united heart and soul b y a b rotherly
intimacy and a boundless co nfidence in each other I had b een intru sted
with the secret of all his love affairs as he had been with mine
When he told me that he w as going to get married I was hurt just
as if he had be en gu ilty of a treacherous act with regard to me I felt
that it mus t interfere with that cordial and absolute a ffection which had
u nited us hitherto His wife would come between us The intim acy of
the m ani ag
e b ed establishes a kind of complicity a mysterious alli ance
betw een two persons even when they have ceased to love each other
M an and wife are like two discreet partners who will not let anyone
else into their secrets But that close b ond which the conjugal kiss
astens is widely loosened on the day on which the woman takes a
over
I remember Bl érot s wedding as if it were but yesterday I would
not be present at the signing of the marriage contract as I have no
p articular likin g for such ceremonies I only went to the civil wedding
and to the church
H is 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 undulatin g motion as if she were on b oard a ship and seemed
to adv ance with the succession of long graceful courtesies
Bl é rot seemed very much in love with her He looked at her con
stantl y and I felt a shiver of an immoderate desire for her pass through
my frame
I went to see him in a few days 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 b ut he put
“
the tips of his fingers to his lips with a gestu re w hich signified divine !
”
d elicious ! perfect ! and
a good deal more b esides
“
I asked laughing W hat ? All that ?
“
Everything that you can imagine was his answer
He introduced me to her She was v ery pleasant on easy terms with
BLé ROr
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SHOR T STO RIE S OF D E MAUPASSANT
8 06
natural an d begged me to look upon their ho use as my
own I felt that he B l é rot did not belong to me any longer : Our inti
ma cy was altogether checked and we hardly found a word to s ay to
each other
I soon took my leave and shortly afterward went to the East return
ing b y way of Russia Germ any Sweden and Hol land after an a b sence
of eighteen months from Paris
The morning after my arrival as I was walk ing along the boulevards
to b reathe the air once more I s aw a pale man with sunken cheeks
coming toward me who was as much like B l é rot as it was possib le for
a physical emaciated man to resem b le a strong ruddy rather stout
“
man I looked at him in surprise and asked myse l f : Can it possibly be
”
he ? But he saw me and came toward me with outstretched arms an d
we em b raced in the middle of the boulevard
After we had gone up and down once or twice from the Rue D rouot
to the Vaudeville Theater 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 al l he sai d
He looked l ike a man who was going to die and I felt a flood of
affection for my old fri end the onl y real one that I had ev er had I
s ueezed his hands
”
“
W
hat is the matter with you ? Are you in pain ?
“
A little tired but it is nothing
”
“
W
hat does your doctor s ay?
“
He ca l ls it anemia and has ordered me to eat no white meat an d
to t ake tinc ture of iron
A suspicion flashed across me
”
“
Are you happy? I asked him
“
Y”es very happy ; my wife is charm ing and I love her more than
ev er
But I noticed that he grew rather red an d seemed embarrassed as if
he were 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 look ing him straight in the face I said :
”
“
Look here ol d fellow just tell me the exact truth
I have nothing to tell you he stammered
“
“
That is not tru e I replied firmly You are il l 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 an d turning his head away he
sa id
me
was
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE M AUPASSAN T
308
that I am d ying But one look of her eyes one of those l ooks in which
I can read the ardent desire of her lips is enough for me and I su c
‘
cum b at once saying to myself : This is really the end I will have no
more of her death giving kis ses and then when I have yielded again
like I have today I go out and walk and walk thinking of death and
sayin g to myse l f that I am lost that al l is over
“
I am mentally so il l that I went for a walk to Pere Lachaise ceme
raves standing in a row like d omi
tery yesterday I l ooked at all the g
‘
noes and I thought to mysel f : I shall soon be there and then I re
tu rned home quite determined to pretend to be ill and so esca pe but
I could
not
“
Oh ! You don t know what it is Ask a smoker who is poisoning
him self with nicotine whether he can give up his delicious and dea dly
habit He will tell you that he has tried a hundred times without su c
‘
cess and he will perhaps add : So much the worse but I woul d
ra ther 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 en tirely
He g
ot up and gave me his han d I felt seized with a tumul t of rage
and with hatre d for this woman this c areless charming terrible
woman and as he was buttoning up his coat to go ou t I said to him
brutally perhaps :
But in God s name why don t you let her have a l over rather th an
”
kill yourself like that?
He shrugged his shoulders without replying and went off
For six months I did not see him Every mornin g I exp ecte d a l etter
is funeral but I would not go to his house from a
of invitation to h
c omplicated feeling of contempt for him and for that woman of anger
of indignation of a thousand sensations
One lovely S prin g morning I was in the Champs Elys ees It was one
O f those warm days which makes our eyes bright and st ir up in us a
tum ul tuous feeling of happine ss from the mere sense of existence Some
one tapped me on the shoulder and
turning round I s aw my ol d
friend looking well stout and rosy
He gave me both hands beaming with pleasure an d exclaime d
“
”
Here you are you erratic individual !
I looked at him utterly thunderstruck
“
Well on my word— yes By j ove ! I congratulate you ; you have in
deed 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 uncomfortab le
so I went on :
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A PHILOSOPHE R
“
So— now—
o
u are
y
—completely
309
cured ?
He stammered hastily :
“
“
Yes perfectly thank you Then changing his tone How lucky
that I should have come across you ol d fellow I hope we shall often
”
meet now
But I would not give up my idea ; I wanted to know how matters
really stood so I asked
“
D on t you remem b er what you tol
d
me six months ago ? I su ppose
”
— I— eh—suppose you resist now?
”
“
Please don t talk any more about it he replied uneasily ; forget
th at I mentioned it to you ; leave me alone But you know I have no
intention of letting y ou go ; you must come and dine at my house
A sudden fancy took me to see for myself how matters st ood so that
I might understand all about it and I accepted
H is wife received me in a most charming manner and she w as as a
m atter of fact a most attractive woman Her long hands her neck an d
c heeks were beautifully white and delicate an d marked her bree ding
and her walk was undulating an d delightful
René gave her a brotherly kiss on the forehead and said
“
”
H as not Lucien come yet ?
“
”
Not yet she replied in a cl ear 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
d ark with a thick beard and looked like a modern Hercules We were
introduced to each other ; his name w as Lucien D elabarre
Rene an d he shook hands in a most friendly manner and then we
went to dinner
It was a most enjoyable me al without the least constraint My ol d
friend spoke with me constantly in the ol d famil iar cordial manner
”“
“
You know old fellow ! I say old fel
us t as he used to do It was :
” “
”
ow ! j ust listen a moment ol d fellow ! Suddenly he exclaimed :
“
You don t know how glad I am to see you again ; it t akes me back
to O ld tim es
I looked at his wife and the o ther man Their attitu de was per
correct though I fancied once or twice that they exchanged a rapi d
and furtive look
As soon as dinner was over Ren é 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 chat along the boulevards to remind us of ol d
times I am leaving you in very good company
The young woman smiled and said to me as she shook hands with
me :
“
D on t keep him too long
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE M AUPASSANT
3 10
As we went along arm in arm I could not help saying to him for I
was determined to kn ow how matters stood
“
”
What has happened ? D o tell me !
He however interrupted me roughly and answered like a man who
has been disturb ed without any reason
”
ust
look
here
l
d
fellow
leave
one
alone
with
your
questions
o
;
j
Then he added half aloud as if talking to himself :
“
After all it would have been s tupid to have let onesel f go to
perdition like that
I did not press him We walked on quickly and b egan to talk All
of a sudden he whispered in my ear
“
”
I say suppose we go and have a bottle of fizz with some girls ! Eh?
I could not prevent myself from laughing heartily
“
just as you like ; come along let us go
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A
M IS TA KE
THA T DAY Boniface the letter carrier f oun d in leaving the post oflioe
,
,
that his route would not be so long and therefore felt a lively delight
He had charge O f the country around V irevil l e and when he re
turned in the evening he often found he had covered over twen ty
mil es in his long march
Today the distri bution woul d be easy ; he coul d even stroll a l ong a
little and be home b y three o clock in the afternoon What luck !
He went out along the Sennem are road and commenced his work
It was j une the month of verdure and flowers the true month of the
fields and meadows
The man in his blue blouse and black cap with red braid cros sed
through bypaths fields of millet oats and wheat buri ed to the
shoulders in their depths ; and his head moving a long above the feath
ery waves seeme d to float upon a calm and verdant sea which a light
breeze caused to undulate gently He entered the farms through
wooden gateways built on the slopes and shaded by two rows of b eech
”
tree s greeted the farm er by name : Good mornin g Monsieur Chicot
and passed him his newspaper T he Littl e Norm a n
The farmer would wi e his hand on his trousers rece ive the paper
and slide it into his poc k
et to read at his ease after the midday meal
The d ogs asleep in barrels under the drooping apple trees yapped
with fury ulling at their chains but the carrier without tu rning pro
is military gait stretching his long lim b s the left arm over
ceeded at
his bag the right manipulating his cane which marched like himself
in a continuous hurried fashion
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE M AUPA S SAN T
3 12
if he himself might be in some danger He notice d nothing suspicious
except a man s footprints on a strawberry bed
But suddenly he remained motionless as he was passing a win d ow
powerless from fright A groan came from the house
He ap p roached nearer and stepping over a b order of thyme glued
his ear to the opening in order to hear better ; assure dl y someone was
groaning He could plainly hear long dolorous sighs a kind of rattle
a noise of s truggle Then the groans b ecame louder and oft repeated
finally being accentu ated and changing into cries
Then Bonif ace no longer dou b tful that a crim e was be ing com
m itted took to his legs recrossed the little garden flew across the
field and the meadow running until he was out of breath his bag
shakin g and hitting against his hip and arrived gaspin g and in dis
m ay at the door of the police headquarters
Brigadier Mal au tou r was mending a b roken chair by means of some
brads and a hammer Gendarme Ranter held the damaged piece of
fu rniture between his knees and placed a n ai l at the edge of the crack
then the b rigadier chewing his mustache his eyes round and moist
with interest in his work would pound— blows which fell on the
fingers of his su b ordinate
When the letter carrier perceived them he cried ou t
“
Come quick ; someone is assassinating the tax collecter Q u ick !
”
u ickl
Q
The two men ceased their work and raised their heads the astonishe d
heads of people surprised and pe rplexed
Boniface seeing more surprise than haste repeated
“
Quick ! Quick ! The robb ers are in the house I heard the cries
There is no time to be lost
How
e brigadier placing his hammer on the groun d rem arked :
Th
”
w as it you found out about
this ?
“
The carrier answered : I went to carry the paper and two letters
when I noticed that the door was locked and that the collector had
not been out I walked around the house tryin g to account for it
when suddenly I heard someone groan as if he were bein g strangled
as if his throat were bein g cut— and then I started as soon as I coul d
to get you There s no time to be lost
”
“
And you didn t try to help any ?
The carrier m uch frightened replied
”
“
I was afraid that one was too small a number
Then the brigadier convinced said :
“
Give me time to get into my uniform and I will follow you
And he went into the b uilding fol lowed by his subordinate who
as
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A M ISTAKE
3 13
carried the chair They reappeared almost immediately and all three
started in quick trained step for the scene of the crime
Arriving near the house they slackened their pace through p recau
tion and the brigadier drew his revolver ; then they went softly into
the garden and approached the walls of the dwelling There was
nothing to indicate that the malefactors had gone away The door
remained locked the windows closed
“
Let us wait for them murmured the brigadier
But Boniface palpitating with emotion made them pass around to
“
the other side and showed them an Opening It is there he said
The b rigadier advanced alone and fixed his ear against the board
The two others waited ready for anything watching him closely
He remained a long tim e motionless listening The b etter to bring
his head near the wooden shutter he had removed this three cornered
hat and held it in his right hand
What did he hear ? His face revealed nothing for some time then
suddenly his mustache rose at the corners ; his cheeks took on fold s
as in a silent laugh and stepping over the b order of thyme he came
toward the two men who were looking at him in a kind of stupor
Walking along on the tips of his toes he made the sign for them to
follow and when they came to the gate he advised Bon iface to slip
the paper and the letters under the door
The amazed carrier obeyed with perfect docility
“
And now b ack again said the b rigadier
When they had gone a little way he turned to the letter carrier with
a jocose air his eyes uptu rned and shining with fun and said in a
bantering tone
“
Well you are a rogue you are !
“
Th
e old fellow asked :
Why ? I heard something I swear to you
I heard something
Then the brigadier no longer able to restrain himself laughed aloud
He laughed to suffocation his two hands holding his sides dou b ling
himself up his eyes full of tears and makin g frightful grimaces about
the nose Both of them were frightened to look at him
As he cou ld neither speak nor cease laughing nor make them under
stand he made a ges ture a popular meaning gesture As they could
not comprehend that either he kept repeating it motioning b ack al
ways with his head
F in ally his subordinate caught the meaning suddenly and in his
turn broke into formidable laughter The old fellow remained stu pe
ed between these two men who were twistin g themselves into a ll
fi
shapes
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SHORT STORIES O F D E M AUPASSANT
3 14
The brigadier finally became calm and giving the ol d man a great
ta p on his waistcoat lik e a jolly good fellow he cried
“
What a farce ! A holy farce ! I shall record it as the Crime of F ather
Boniface !
T
he carrier O pened his enormous eyes and repeated
“
”
I swear to you that I heard something
The b rigadier began to laugh His subordinate sat down on the g
rass
beside the ditch and laughed at his ease
“
Ah ! You heard something And your wife d o you assassinate her
that way hey you Ol d joker ?
”
“
My wife ?
And he stood reflecting a long time then he continued
“
My wife Yes she bawls if I strike her— and baw ls that are bawls
why? Was Monsieu r Chapatis beating his wife?
Then the brigadier in a delirium of humor tu rned him around by
the shoulders as if he had been a puppet an d whispered in his ear
something tha t caused him to look besotte d with astonishment
Then the ol d man murmured p ensively :
“
No ? Not th at— not that She said nothing— mine— I would nev er
ha ve believed
Is it possible ? One would swear that a murder
And con fuse d disconcerted and ashamed he went on his way
a cross the fields
while the two policemen laughing continually and
c al ling back to him from afar with b arrack room wit w atche d his
black cap as it d isappeare d in the tranquil sea of grain
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C O N S I D E RAT I O N
S IM ON B O MB ARD often found life very bad ! He was born with an un
believable aptitude for doing nothing and with an imm oderate desire
to follow this vocation All effo rt whether moral or physical each
movement accomplished for a purpose appeared to him beyond his
s trength As soon as he heard anyone speak of anything serious he
became con fused his mind being incapable of tension or even a tten
tion
T he son of a novel ty merchant of Caen he glide d along smoothl y
as the y said in the family until he w as twent
ve years of age But as
y fi
his parents were always nearer b ankruptcy than fortune he suffered
greatly for want of money
He was a tall large pretty youth with red whiskers worn Norman
fashion O f florid complexion blue eyes sensual an d gay c orpul ence
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SHORT STORIES
316
OF DE
MAUPASSANT
”
“
He said to himself Wait wait wait ! F or he had passe d her no w
:
,
,
third time and perceived that she had noticed him this matu re
woman experienced and courageous who was making a bid for his
attention He had notice d her before on the days preceding because
sh
e seemed also in quest of someone She was an Englishwoman rather
tall a li ttle thin an audacious Englishwoman whom circumstances
and much journeying had made a kin d of man Not bad on the
whole wal king along slowly with short steps soberly and simply
clothed but wearing a queer sort of hat as Englishwomen always do
She had rather pretty eyes high cheekbones a little re d teeth that
were too long and always v isible
When he came to the pier he retu rned upon his steps to see if she
would meet him again He met her and she threw
him a knowing
”
“
glance a glance which seemed to say : Here I am !
But how should he speak to her ? He returned a fifth time and when
he was again face to face with her she dropped her umbrella He
threw him self forward picked it up and presented it to her saying :
“
Permit me madame
“
She responded : Oh you are very kind !
And then they looked at each other They knew nothing more to
e blushed Then becoming courageous he said
say But sh
“
”
We are having b eau tifu l weather here
“
And she answered : Oh delicious !
And then they remained opposite each other embarrassed neither
thinking of going away It was she who fin ally had the audacity to
“
”
ask
Have you b een about here long?
“
”
He answered laughing : Ohyes about as l ong as I c are about it
“
Then brusquely he p rOp osed : Would you like to g
o down to th
e
”
”
pier ? It is pretty there such d ays as this
“
She sim ply said : I Should be much please d
And they walked along side by side she with her harsh d irect
allurement he allu ring her with his dandyism which makes for rakish
ness later on
for the
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Three months later the notabl es in the commercial worl d of Caen
received one morning a square white card which said
M and Mme Prosper Bombard have the honor to announce
the marriage of their son M S imon Bombard to Mrs Kate Rob
e t tson
an d on the other side
Mrs Kate Robertson has the honor of announc ing her marriage
to M Simon Bombard
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C ONSI D ERATIO N
They went
the wife amounte d to
fi
fteen thousand fr ancs a year income free and clear Sirnon wished
to have four hu ndred francs a month for his personal expenses He
had to prove that his tenderness merited this amount ; he did pro ve it
e asily and Obtained what he asked for
At first everything went well Young Mme Bombard was no longer
young assuredly and her freshness had undergone some wear b ut
e ha d a way of exacting things which made it impossible for anyone
sh
to refuse her She would say with her grave will ful English accent :
”
“
Oh Sim on now we must go to bed which made Simon start to
“
”
ward the bed like a dog that had been o rdered To your kenn el An d
e knew how to have her way by day and night in a manner there
sh
was no resisting
She did not get angry ; she made no scenes ; she never cried ; she
never had the appearance of being irritated or hurt or even dis turbe d
S he knew how to talk ; that was all and she spoke to the point and in
a tone that admitted no contradiction
More than once Simon was on the point of rebelling but before
the brief and imperious desires of this singular woman he found him
self unable to stand ou t Nevertheless when the conjugal kisses began
to be meager and monotonous and he ha d in his pocket what woul d
bring him something greater he paid for satiety but with a thousan d
precautions
Mme Bombard perceived all this without his surmising it an d one
e announced to him that sh
evening sh
e had rented a house at Mantes
where they would live in the future
Then existence b ecame harder He trie d various kin ds of diversion
which did not at all compensate for the conquests he had a tas te for
He fished with a line learned how to tell the places which the gud
geon liked which the roach and carp preferred the favorite S pots of
the bream and the kinds of bait that divers fishes will take
But in watching his b o b as it trembled on the su rface of the water
other visions haunted his min d Then he became the friend O f the
chief of the office of the subprefect and the captain of the police an d
they played whist of evenings at the Commerce Café but his sorrow
ful eye would disro b e the queen of clubs or the lady of the diamonds
while the problem of the absent legs on these two headed figures
would brin g up images suddenly that confused his thoughts
Then he conceived a plan a true Norman plan of deceit He would
have his wife take a maid who would be a convenience to him not a
beauti ful girl a coquette adorned and showy but a gawky woman
rough and strong backed who would not arouse suspicions an d whom
he would acquaint beforehand with his plans
to
l ive in Paris The fortune
3 17
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of
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSAN T
3 18
She was recommende d to them by the director of the ci ty farm his
acc omplice and obliging frien d who gu aranteed her under all relations
And Mme B ombard accepted with c onfi dence the
and conditions
treas ure they brought to her
Simon was happy happy with precau tion with fear an d with un
believable diflicu l ties He could never un dress beyond the watchfu l
is wife except for a few short moments from time to h e
eye of h
and then without tranquil lity He sought some plan some stratagem
and he ended by finding one that suite d him perfectly
Mme Bombard who had nothing to d o re tired early whil e Bom
bard who played whist at the Commerce Café returned each eve
ning at half past nine exactly He got Victorine to wait for him in
the passageway of his house under the v estibule steps in the d arkness
He only had five minutes or more for he was always in fear of a
su rprise but five minutes from time to w e s u fficed his ar d or an d
he slid a louis into the servant s hand for he was generous in his
pleasures and she would quickly remount to her garret
An d he laughe d he triumphed all alon e an d repeate d alou d like
King Midas barber fishing for the goldfish from the reeds on th
e
“
”
riverbank :
The mistress is safe within
And the happiness of having Mme Bombard safel y fixe d within
m ade up for him in great part for the im perfection an d incomplete
is conquest
ness of h
One evening he foun d Victorine waiting for him as was her cus
tom b i1t sh
e appeared to him more lively more animated than u su al
and he remained perhaps ten minutes in the rendezv ous in th
e
corridor
When he entered the conjugal chamber Mme Bombard was not
there He felt a cold chill run down h
is back an d sank into a chair
tortured with fear
She appeared with a candlestick in her hand H e aske d trembling
”
“
You have been ou t?
”
“
S he answere d quietly : I went to the kitchen for a glass of water
He forced him se l f to calm his suspicions of what she might have
he ard but she seemed tran quil happy confident and he was re
as sure d
When they entered the d ining room for bre akfast the ne xt morning
Victorine put the cutlets on the table As she turned to go ou t Mme
B ombard handed her a louis which she held up delicately betwee n
her two fingers and said to her with her ca lm serious accent
“
W ait my girl here are twenty fran
c
s which I d epri ve d you of
”
l as t night I wish to give them to you
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SHORT S TO R IE S OF D E M AUPASSANT
3 20
than that : her waist was too slight her shoul d ers too narrow her
breast too full no d oubt but I prefer those exquisite hum an d o lls to
that great statuesque corpse the Venus O f M ilo
“
And then this sort of woman trots along in an incomparab l e fashion
and the very rustle of her skirt fills the marrow of yo u r bones with
desire She seemed to give me a side glance as she passed me But
these women give you all sorts of looks— you never can tell
“
One morning I s aw her S itting on a bench with an open book be
tw een her hands I came across and sat down beside her Five
minutes later we were friends Then each day after the smiling
‘
‘
salutation : Good day madame Good day monsieur we begin to
chat She told me that she was the wife of a government cl erk that
her l ife was a sad one that in it pleasures were few and cares numer
ou s and a thousand other things
“
I tol d her who I was partly through thoughtlessness an d partl y
perhaps through vanity She pretended to b e much astonished
“
Next day she called at the Ministry to see me and she came again
there so ofte n that the ushers having their attention drawn to her ap
earan ce used to whisper to one another as soon as they saw her the
p
‘
nam e with which they had chris tened her : Madame Léon — that is
my Christian name
F or three months I saw her every morning without growing tired
e able incessantly to give variety
of her for a second so well was sh
d piquancy to her physical attractiveness But one day I saw that
her eyes were bloodshot and glowing with suppressed tears that she
c ould scarcely speak so much was she preoccupied with secret troubles
I begged of her I implored of her to tell me what was the cause
of her agitation
‘
“
She faltered ou t at length with a S hudder : I am — I am enceinto!
“
And she burst out so bb ing Oh ! I made a dreadful g
rirn ace and I
have 110 doubt I turned pale as men generally do at hearing such a
piece of news You cannot conceive what an unpleasant sta b you fe el
in your breast at the announcement of an unexpected paternity of this
kind But you are sure to know it sooner or later So in my tu rn I
‘
gasped : But— but— you are married are you not ?
‘
“
She answered : Yes but my hus b and has been away in Italy for
the last two mon ths and he w ill not be back for some time
“
I was determined at any cost to get out of my responsibil i ty
‘
“
I said : You must go an d join him im mediately
She reddened to her very temples and with do wncast eyes mur
‘
mured : Yes— b ut
She either dared not or would not finish the
sentence
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32 1
WOMAN S WILE S
“
I understood and I prudently inclosed in an envelope the exp enses
of
her journey
.
“
E ight days later sh sent me a letter from Genoa The following
week I received one from F lorence Then letters reached me from
Leghorn Rome and Naples
“
She said to me
e
,
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.
.
,
I am in good health my d ear l ove but I am looking frightful
I would not care to have you see me till it is all over ; you would
not love me My hus b and suspects nothing As his b usiness in
cou ntry will require him to stay there m u chl onger I will
not return to F rance until after my con fi
nement
.
,
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‘
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.
“
And at the end of about eight months I received from Venice these
few words
It
is
a
b oy
.
Some time after she suddenly entered my study one morning
fresher and p rettier than ever and flung herself into my arms An d
ou r former connection was renewed
“
I left the Ministry and she came to live in my house in the Rue de
Grenelle She often spoke to me ab out the child but I scarcely lis tene d
to what she said about it ; it did not concern me Now and then I place d
‘
a rather rarg
e su m of money in her hand saying
Put that b y for him
“
Two more years gl ided by and she was more and more eager to
‘
tell me some news a b out the youngster— about Léon
‘
Sometimes S he would say in the midst of tears : You don t care
about him ; you don t even wish to see him If you coul d kn ow what
grief you cause m e!
“
At last I was so much harassed by her that I promis ed one day to
go next morning to the Cham ps Elys ees when S he took the child there
for an airing
But at the moment when I was l eaving the house I was stopped by
a sudden apprehension Man is weak and foolish W hat if I were to
get fond of this tiny bein g of whom I was the father— m y son?
I had my hat on my head my gloves in my hands I flu ng down
the loves on my desk and my hat on a chair
g decidedly I will not go ; it is wiser not to go
My door flew O pen My b rother entered the room He handed me
an anonymous letter he had received that morning
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE MAUPASSANT
32 2
“
W arn the Comte de L
your brother that the little woman
of the Rue Casette is impudently laughing at him Let him make
some inquiries about her
“
I had never told anybody about this intrigue an d I now tol d my
brother the history of it from the beginning to the end I added
‘
For my part I don t want to trouble myself any further about the
matter but will you like a good fellow go and find ou t what you can
about her?
“
‘
W hen my brother had left me I said to myself : In what way can
sh
e have deceived me ? She has other lovers ? What does it ma tter to
me ? She is young fresh and pretty ; I ask nothing more from her
She seems to love me and as a matter of fact sh
e d oes not cost me
much Really I don t understand this business
“
My brother speedily returne d He had learne d from the police all
that was to be known about her husband : A clerk in the Home D epart
ment of regular habits and good repute and moreover a thinking
m an but married to a very pretty woman whose expenses seeme d
somewhat extravagant for her modest position That was all
“
Now my brother having sought for her at her residence and fin d ing
that S he was gone out succeeded with the assistance of a little gold
‘
in making the doorkeeper chatter : Madame D
a v ery worthy
woman an d her husband a very worthy man not prou d not rich but
enerous
g“
My brother aske d for the sake of saying something
‘
How ol d is her little boy now ?
y she has not ot any little boy monsieur
at ? Little Léon
‘
NO monsieur y ou are making a mistake
‘
o
I mean the child she had while she was in Italy two years ag
“‘She has never been in Italy monsieur ; she has not quitted the
house she is living in for the l ast five years
“
My brother in astonishment questione d the d oorkeeper anew an d
then he pushed his investigation of the matter further No child no
journey
“
I was pro d igiously astonishe d but without clearly u n d erstan ding
the final meaning of this come dy
‘
‘
I w ant I said to him to have my min d perfectly cl ear about the
affair I will ask her to come here tomorrow You S hall receive her
instea d of me If she has d eceive d me you will hand her these ten
thousand francs and I wil l never see her again In fact I am begin
ning to find I have had enough of her
“
Would you be lieve it? I had been gri eve d th e night before because
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
324
’
It couldn t last forever Nonetheless I succeeded in doing it for three
years You will s ay many things to him on my behalf
“
She rose up My b rother con tinued questioning her
‘
But the child ? You had one to S how him ?
‘
Cert ainly— m y sister s child She lent it to me I d bet it was she
gave you the information
‘
Good ! And all those letters from Italy?
She sat down again so as to laugh at her ease
‘
Oh ! Those letters— well they were a b it of p oetry The comte was
not a minister of foreign affairs for no thing
‘
But —another thin g?
“‘Oh ! The other thing is my secret I don t want to compromise
anyone
“
im with a rather mocking smil e S he left the room
An d bowing to h
without any emotion an actress who had played her part to the end
And the Comte de L
added by way of moral
“
”
So take care about putting your trust in that sort of turtledove !
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M OO N L I GH T
MME jULIE
’
ROUB EZRE
was awaiting her elder sister Mme He nriette
Letore who had just re turned after a trip to Switz erland
The Letore household had left nearly five weeks ago Mme He nriette
had allowed her husband to return alone to their estate in Calva d os
where some matters of b us iness required his attention and came to
spend a few days in Paris with her sister Night came on In the quiet
p arlor darkened by twili ght shadows Mme Roub ere was reading in an
absent minded fashion raisin g her eyes whenever she heard a sou nd
At last she heard a ring at the door and presentl y her sister ap
eared wrapped in a trave l ing clo ak And immediately without any
p
formal greetin g they clasped each other ardently only desisting for a
moment to begin embracing each other over again Then they talke d
asking questions about each other S health about the ir respective fami
lies and a thousand other things gossiping jerking out hurried broken
sentences and rushing about whil e Mme Henriette w as removing her
hat and veil
It was now quite dark Mme Roub ére rang for a lamp an d as soon
as it was brought in she sc anned her sister s face and was on the point
er once more But S he hel d back scared and asto nished
h
of embr acin
g
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MOONLI G H T
325
at the other s appe arance Aroun d her temples M me Letore ha d two
long locks of white hair All the rest of her hair was of a glossy raven
black hue but there alone at each side of her head ran as it were
two silvery streams which were M ediately lost in the black mass
surrounding them She was nevertheless only twenty four years ol d
and this change had come on suddenly since her departure for
Switzerland
Without moving Mme Roub ere gaze d at her in amazement tears
rising to her eyes as she thought that some mysterious and terrible
c alamity
must have fallen on her sister She asked
”
“
What is the matter with you Henriette ?
Smilin g with a sad smile the smi e of one who is heartsick the
other replied
“
Why nothin g I assure you Were you noticing my white hair?
But Mme Roub ere im petuously seize d her by the shoulders an d
with
a searching glance at her repeated
“
What is the matter with you ? Tell me what is the
matter with you
”
And if you te l l me a falsehood I ll soon find it out
They remained face to face and Mme Henriette who became so
pale that she was near fainting had two pearly tears at each corner of
her drooping eyes
Her sister went on asking
“
What has happened to you ? What is the matter with you ? Answer
’
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m e!
”
T
hen in a su b dued voice the other murmured
“
I havc l have a lover
And hidin g her forehead on the Shoulder of her younger sister she
h
.
,
,
sobbed
Then when she had grown a little calmer when the heaving of her
breast had sub sided she commenced to unbosom herself as if to cast
forth this secret from herself to empty this sorrow of hers into a
sympathetic heart
Thereupon holdin g each other s hands tightly grasped the two
women went over to a sofa in a dark co m er of the room into which
they sank and the younger sister passing her arm over the elder one s
neck and drawing her close to her heart listened
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Oh ! I recognize that there was no excuse for one; I do not under
stand myself and since that day I feel as if I were mad Be careful
my child about yourself— be care ful ! If you only knew how weak we
are how quickly we yiel d a moment of tenderness one of those su d
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E MAU PASSAN T
32 6
den
fi
t of melancholy which steal into your soul
one of
those longin gs
to open your arms to love to embrace which we all have at certain
moments
“
You know my husband and you know how fond of h
im I am but h
e
is mature and sensi b le and cannot even comprehend the tender vibra
tions of a woman s heart He is always always the same always good
always smiling always kind always perfect Oh ! How I som etim m
hav e wished that he would roughly clasp me in his arms that h e
would embrace me with those slow sweet kisses which make two
beings intermingle which are like mute confi
dences ! How I wished
that he was self abandone d and even weak s o that he should have
need of me of my caresses of my tears !
This all seems very silly but we women are made like that How
c an“we help it ?
And yet the thought of d eceiving never came near me Today it
has happened without love without reason without anything simply
because the moon shone one night on the Lake of Lucerne
“
D uri ng the month when we were travelin g together my husban d
with his calm in difference paralyzed my en thusiasm extin g
uished m y
poetic ardor When we were descending the mountain paths at sun
rise when as the four horses galloped along with the diligence we
valleys woods streams an d
s aw in the transparent morning haze
“
vil lages I clasped my hands with delight an d said to him : What a
beautiful scene darling ! Kiss me now ! He only answere d with a
‘
smile of chilling kindliness There is _no reason why we shoul d kiss
each other because you l ike the landscape
“
And his words froze m e to the heart It seems to me that when
people love each other they ought to feel more moved by love th an
ever in the presence of beautiful scenes
“
Indeed he prevented the effervescent poetry that bubb le d up
within me from gu shing out How can I express it? I was almost like a
boiler filled with steam and hermetically se aled
“
One evening (we had been for four days staying in the Hotel de
Fl u el en ) Ro b ert having got one of his sick headaches went to be d
immediately after dinner an d I went to take a walk al l alone al ong
e edge of the lake
th
It was a night such as one might read of in a fairy tal e The full
moon showed itself in the middle of the sky ; the tall mou ntains w ith
their show crests seemed to wear silver crowns ; the waters of the
l ake glittered with tiny rippling motions The air was mild with that
kind of penetrating freshness which softens us till we seem to be
swooning to be deeply affected without any apparent ca use But how
s
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSAN T
3 28
DOUB T FU L H APP I N E S S
I CAN NE ITHE R TE LL you the name
the country nor of the man I t
was far far from here upon a hot fertil e coast We followed since
m orning the shore and the wheat fields and the sea covered with the
Flowers grew down very near the waves the light waves so
su n
sweet and S leepy It was very warm but a gentle heat perfu med with
the fat humid fruitful earth ; one could believe that he was b reathing
erms
g
I had been told that this evening I would find hospitality in the
house of a F renchman who lived at the end of the promontory in a
grove of orange trees Who was he ? I do not know yet He had arrive d
one morning ten years before this b ought the land planted his v ines
and sown his seed ; he had worked had this man with passion and
fury Month after month and year after year he had added to his
domains making the fertil e virgin soil yield without ceasing and
amassing a fortune by his indefatigable labor
It was said that he worked constantly Up with the dawn going
through his fields until night superintendin g everything without rest
he seemed harassed by a fixed idea tortured b y an insatiable desire for
m oney which nothing could distract or appease
Now he seemed to b e very rich
The su n was setting when I reached his dwelling This dwelling
was at the end of a point in the midst of orange trees It was a large
square house very simple overlooking the sea
As I approached a large bearded man appeared in the doorway
Having saluted him I asked for shelter for the night He extended his
hand and said smilin g
“
Enter sir you are at home
He led me to a room gave some ord ers to a servant wi th the perfect
ease and good grace of a man of the world then he left me saying :
“
We will dine when you are ready to come down
We dined t ete a t ete upon a terrace O pposite the sea At first I
spoke of his country so rich so far away so little known ! He smiled
answering in an a b stracted way
“
Yes this is a pretty country But no coun try pleases one much
”
when it is far from those they love
”
“
Y
ou regret France ?
“
I— I long for Paris
Why not return there ?
“
Oh ! I am going to return there
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DOUB T FUL
3 29
HAPPINESS
An d gradually we began to talk of the French world of the boule
vards and of the many features of Paris He asked me about men he
had known cities names all of them familiar names upon the vaud e
ville
stage
“
Who does one see at Tortoni s these days ?
“
The same ones except the dead
I looked at him with marke d interest pursued by some vague
remembrance Certainly I had seen that head somewhere ! But where ?
An d when ? He seemed fatigue d although vigorous sad though reso
lute H is great blond beard fell upon his breast and sometimes he
would take it near his chin and draw it through his closed han d
slipping it along to the very end He was a little b ald but had thick
eyebrows and a heavy mustache which mingl ed with the hair of his
beard
Behind us the sun was dis appearing in the sea throwing upon the
coast a cloud of fire The orange trees in flower exhaled a powerfu l
delicious fragrance on the evening air Seeing nothing but me and
fixing his look upon me he seemed to discover in my eyes to see at
the depth of my soul the well known much loved image of the broad
l k so far away that extends from the Madeleine to the Rue D rouot
wa“
”
D
o you know B ou rtel l e? he asked
“
Yes certainly
“
Is b e much changed?
”
Yes he is all white
“
”
?
And the Ridam ie
Always the same
“
And the women ? Tell me about the women Let us see D id you
”
know Suzanne Verner ?
“
Yes very well to the end
”
“
Ah ! And Sophie Astier?
”
“
Dead !
Poor girl ! Can it b e
D id you know
He was suddenly silent Then in a changed voice his face growing
pale he continued :
“
No it is b etter not to speak of her ; it disturbs me so
Then as if to change the trend of his thought he rose and sa1d
“
Do you wis h to go in ?
I am willing to go And I followed him into the house
The rooms downstairs were enormous bare sad and seemed aban
doued Some glass dishes were set upon the table by the tawny
skinne d servants who constantly roamed aroun d this dwelling Two
guns hung upon two nails on the wal l and in the corners were to be
sh
seen some spades some fi
l ines dried palm leaves and objects of
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
33 0
every kind placed there at random by those entering that they might
find them at hand should they chance to have need of them on going
,
.
ou t
.
My host smile d
“
This is a lodge or rather the l o d ging place of an exile he said
“
but my chamber is more as it should b e Let us go in there
I thought on entering that I was in a curiosity shop so fille d was
the room with all kinds of things things disconnected stran e and
v aried that one felt to be souvenirs of something Upon the walls were
tw o pret ty engravings of we l l known paintings some stuffs some arms
swords pistols ; then in the middle of the principal panel a square
of white satin in a gold frame
S urprised I approached to look at it when I perceive d a pin which
held a hair in the middle of the shining silk
My host placed his hand on my shoulder and said smiling
“
That is the only thin g that I see here and the only thing I have
‘
seen for ten years Monsieur Prudhomme exclaims : This sword is the
‘
most b eautiful d ay in my life But I s ay : This pin is all of my life
I sought for a commonplace phrase and ended by saying :
”
“
rough some woman ?
You have suffered th
“
He replied brusquely : You may say I have suffered miserably but
come out on my balcony A name has suddenly come to my lips that
‘
I have not dared to pronounce because if you had answered d ea d
as you did when I spoke of Sophie Astier my brain would be on fire
even today
“
W e were upon a large balcony where we could see two gulfs one
on the right and the other on the left shut in by high gray moun
tains It was the hour of twilight when the su n entirely out of sight
no longer l ights the earth except by reflection from the sky
“
He continued : D o you know if Jeanne de Limours still lives ?
H is eye fixed on mine was full of trembling anxiety I smile d an d
answered :
“
Y
es indeed and prettier than ever
”
“
You know her ?
“
Yes
He hesitated Then asked : Completely?
“
No
He took my hand Te ll me about her he said
“
I have nothingto tell ; she is one of the most charmin g women or
rather girls in Paris and the most courte d She lead s an agreeable
”
p rincesslike existence ; that is all
“
“
”
He murmured : I love her as if he had said : I am going to d ie
“
Then brusquely : Ah! For three years th at was a fri ghtful but deli
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SHORT STORIES OF DE MAUPASSANT
8 32
was for that very reason that I love d her so much In her the Fem
inine the odious frightful Feminine was more prominent than in any
other woman She was charged an d surch arged wi th it as with a
venomous
fluid She w as Woman more than anyone else has ever been
“
And whenever I went ou t with her she would cast her eyes over
all men in such a fashion that she seemed to give hersel f to each one
with only a look This exasperated me but attached me more strongly
to her nevertheless This creat ure belonged to every b ody from merely
passing through the street in spite of me in spite of hersel f from her
very nature although the al lurement was most modest and sweet Do
you understand ?
“
And what torment ! At the theater in a restaurant it seemed to me
that everyone possessed her b efore my eyes And whenever I left her
alone others did in fact possess her
“
It is ten years now since I s aw her and I love her now more than
ever
Night had spread over the earth A powerful perfume of orange
flowers was in the air
“
I said to him : Will you try to see her again ?
“
He answered Surely ! I have here now in money and land seven
or eight hundred thousand francs When the mil l ion is complete d I
shal l sell all and set ou t With that I can have one year with her one
”
—
good entire year And then adieu ; my life will be finished
“
I asked : And after that ?
”
“
“
After that he answered I don t know It will be finished
P erhaps I shall ask her to take me as val et de ch
a m bre
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H U M I L I AT I O N
TH E T W O
of flowers
Y OUNG
W O MEN had the appearance of b eing buried in a be d
Th ey were alone in an immense l andau filled with bouquets
like a giant basket Upon the seat b efore them were tw o small ham
rs full of Nice violets
and upon the bearskin which covered their
e
El l ees was a heap of roses gill yflowers mar guerites tuberoses and
or ange flowers bound together with silk ribbons which seemed to
crush the two delicate bodies only allowing to appear above the
spread ou t perfumed bed the shoulders arms and a little of their
bodices one of which was blue and the other lilac
The coachman s whip bore a sheath of anemones ; the horses heads
were decorated with wall flowers ; the S pokes of the wheels were clothed
in mignonette and in pla ce of lanterns there were two roun d enor
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333
HUMILIATION
ous bouquets which seemed like the tw o eyes of this strange
rolling flowery beast
The l andau went along Antibes Street at a brisk trot preceded fo l
lowed and accomp anied by a crowd of o ther garlanded carriages full
of women concealed u n d er a billow of violets F or it was the F lower
Festival at Cannes
They arrived at the F oncrere Boulevard where the battle took place
e whole length of the immense avenue a double line of b edecked
Th
equipages was going and coming like a rib b on without end They
threw flowers from one to the other Flowers passed in the air like
balls hit the fair faces hovered and fell in the dust where an army of
street urchins gathered them
A compact crowd clamorous but orderly looked on standing in
rows upon the sidewalks and held in place b y po l icemen on horseback
who passed along pushing back the curious b rutall y with their feet
in order that the vil lains might not mingle with the rich
nized each other called to
Now the people in the carriages reco g
each other and b om b arded one another with roses A chariot full of
pretty young women clothed in red like devils attracted and held a ll
eyes One gentleman who resembled the portraits of Henry IV
threw repeatedly with joyous ardor a huge b ouquet retained by an
elastic At the threat of the b low the women lowered their heads an d
hid their eyes but the gracious projectile only described a curve a nd
again returned to its master who immediately threw it again to a
new face
The two young women emptied their arsenal with full hands an d
received a shower of bouquets ; then after an hour of battle a little
wearied at the last they ordered the coachm an to take the road to the
Juan Gul f which skirts the sea
The sun disappeared behind th
e Esterel out l inin g in black upon a
background of fire the lacy sil houette of the stretched out mountain
The calm sea was spread out blue and clear as far as the horizon
where it mingled with the sky and with the squadron anchored in the
m iddle of the gulf having the appearance of a troop of monstrous
beasts immova ble upon the water apocalyptic animals humpbacked
and clothed in coats of mail capped with thin masts like plumes an d
with eyes that lighted up when night came on
The young women stretched ou t under the fur robe looke d upon it
langu
idly Final ly one of them said
“
H ow delicious these even ings are ! Everything seems goo d Is it
”
not so M argot?
The other rep lie d : Yes it is good But there is always something
”
lac king
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
334
“
What” is it? For my part I am completely happy I have need of
no thing
“
Yes ? You think so perhaps But whatever well being surroun ds
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”
bo dies we always desire something more— for the heart
”
“
Said the other smiling : A little love?
“
Yes
They were silent looking straight before them ; then the one cal led
M arguerite said : Life does not seem supportable to me without that
I need to be loved if only by a dog And we are al l so whatever you
may say Simone
“
No no my de ar I prefer not to be l ove d at all than to be l oved
by no one of im portance D o you think for example that it would be
agreeable to me to be loved by— by
She looked for someone by whom she could possibly be loved cast
ingher e y es over the neighborin g country Her eyes after hav ing
made the tour of the whole horiz on fell upon the tw o metal buttons
“
shining on th
an d she continued laughing By
e coachman s back
m y coachman ?
Mlle M ar guerite sc arcely smile d as she replied
“
I can assure you it is very amus ing to b e love d by a domestic
This has happened to me two or three tirnes They roll their eyes so
queerly that one is dying to laugh Naturall y the more one is loved
the more severe she becomes since otherwise one puts hersel f in th
e
way of being made ridiculous for some very slight cause if anyone
”
happened to observe it
Mlle Simone listened her look fixed straight before her ; than she
d eclared
:
“
No decidedly the heart of my v alet at my feet wo uld not appe ar
”
to me sufficient But tell me how you perceived that you were loved
“
”
I perceived it in them as I do in other men ; they become so s tupid !
”
But others do not appear so sm p id to me wh
en they are in lov e
Idiots my dear incapable of chatting of answering of compre
”
hending anything
And you ? What effect did it have on you to be l ove d by a
”
domes tic ? Were you moved— flattered?
“
Moved ? No Fl attered? Yes a little One is always flattered by the
”
love
of a man whoever he may be
“
”
Oh now Margot !
“
Yes my d ear Wait ! I will tel l you a singular adventure that hap
pened to me You wil l see what curious things take place among us
in such cases
“
It was four years ago in the autumn when I foun d myse lf without
a maid I ha d tri ed five or six one after the other a ll of them incom
our
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SHORT STORIES OF DE M AUPASSAN T
336
‘
He thinks that a cr imin al is conce aled somewhere here
I began to be a little afraid and ordered the po l ice captain to be
brought that I might have some exp lanation He was a m an rather
well b rought up and decorated with the Legion of Honor He excus ed
himself asked my pardon then asserted that I had among my serv ants
a convict !
“
I was thunderstruck an d answer ed that I could vouch for every
one of them and that I would make a review of them for h
is satisfaction
‘
There is Peter Cou rtin an old soldier
It was not he
‘
au
The coachman Francis Ping
a peasant son of my father s
farmer
“
It was not he
‘
A stableboy also from Champagne and also a son of peas ants I
had known and no more except the footman whom you have seen
“
It was not any of them
‘
Then sir, you see that you have been deceive d
‘
Pardon me madame b ut I am s u re I am not deceive d As he has
not at all the appearance of a criminal wil l you have the goodness
to have all your servants appear here b efore you and me all of them ?
“
I hesitated at first then I yielded summo ning all my people men
and women
“
He looked at them all for an instant then declared
‘
This is not all
‘
‘
Your pardon sir I replied ; this is all except my own mai d who
l d not possibly be confounded With a convict
cou“
‘
He asked : Coul d I see her too?
‘
Certainly
I rang and Rose appeared imme d iately Scarcely had she entered
when he gave a si gnal and two men whom I had not seen conceal ed
behind the door threw themselves upon her seized her h ands and
bound them with cords
“
I uttered a cry of fury and was going to try and defend her Th e
c aptain
stopped me
‘
This girl madame is a man who cal l s him self j ohn Nicholas
Lecap et condemned to death in 187 9 for assassination preceded by
violation His sentence was changed to life impriso nment He escaped
four months ago We have been on the search for him ever since
“
I was dismayed struck dumb I could not believe it The po li ce
man continued laughing :
‘
I can only give you one proof H is right arm is tattooed
“
His sleeve was rolled up It was true The policeman a dd ed
certainly in bad taste :
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THE WE DD ING NI G HT
33 7
‘
’
Doubtless you will be satisfied without the other proofs
And he led away my maid !
“
Well if you will b elieve it the feelin g which was uppermost in
me was that of anger at having b een played with in this way deceive d
and made ridiculous ; it was not shame at having b een dressed u n
dressed handled and touched by this man but— a— profound hum ilia
”
tion— the humiliation of a woman D o you understand ?
“
No not exactly
“
Let us see Think a minute He had been condemned— for Vio l a
tion this young man— and that— that humiliated me— there ! Now do
u understand ?
o
y
An d M l le Simone did not reply She looked straight before her with
her eyes sin g
ularly fixed upon the two shining buttons of the l ivery
and with that Sphinx s smile that women have sometimes
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T HE
WE DD I N G N I GH T
MY DEAR GENEVIEVE you ask me
totell
you about my wedding jour
ney How do you think I dare ? Ah ! Sly one who had nothing to tell
me who even allowed me to guess at nothing— but there ! Nothing
from nothing !
Now you have b een married eighteen months yes eighteen months
you my best friend who fo rmerly said you could conceal nothing
from me and you had not the charity to warn me ! If you had only
given the hint ! If you had only put me on my guard ! If you had put
one l ittle simple suspicion in my soul you might have hindered me
from making the egregious b lunder for which I still b lush and which
my husband wil l laugh at until his death You alone are responsi b le
for it ! I have rendered myself frightfully ridicul ous forever ; I have
c ommitted one of those errors of which the memory is never effaced
and by your fault wicked one ! Oh ! If I had kn own !
Wait ! I take courage from writing and have decided to tell you all
But promise me not to laugh too much And do not expect a comedy
It is a drama
You recall my marriage I was to start the same evening on my
wedding journey Certam l y I did not at all resemble Paulette whom
Gyp tells us ab out in that droll account of her spiritual romance
called Ab ou t Marria g e And if my mother had said to me as Mme
“
d H au tretan did to her daughter : Your hus b and will take you in his
arms— and
I should certainly not have responded as Paulette
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAU PASSANT
33 8
”
did laughing : Go no farther M amma I know all that as we ll as you
As for me I knew nothing at all and Mamma my poor mamma
who is always frightened dared not broach the delicate sub ject
Well then at five o clock in the evening after the collation they to ld
us that the carriage was waiting The guests had gone ; I was ready
I can still hear the noise of the trunks on the staircase and the blowing
of Papa s nose which seemed to indicate that he was weeping In em
“
”
bracing me the poor man said : Good cou ra gel as if I were going
e was a fo u ntain My hus
to have a tooth pulled As for M amma sh
b and urged me to hasten these painful adieux and I was myself all
in tears although very happy That is not easy to exp lain but is
entirely true All at once I felt something pulling at my dress It was
Bijou wholly forgotten since morning The poor beast was saying
adieu to me after his fashion This gave my heart a little blow an d I
felt a great desire to embrace my dog I seized him (you remember
he is as large as a fist ) and began to devour him with kisses I love to
caress an imals It gives me a sweet pleasure causing a kind of
delicious shiver
As for him he was like a ma d creature ; he waved his paws l icked
me and nibbled as he docs when he is perfectly content Suddenly he
took my nose in his teeth and I felt that he ha d really bitten me
I uttered a little cry and put the dog down He ha d bitten although
only in play Everybody was disturbed They brought water vinegar
and some pieces of linen My husband him self attende d to it It was
nothin g after all but three little h oles which his teeth ha d mad e At
the end of five minutes the bloo d was stopped and we went away
It had been decided that we should go on a journey through
Normandy for about six weeks
That evening we arrived at D ieppe When I s ay evening I mean
midnight
You know how I love the sea I declared to my husband that I coul d
not retire until I had seen it He appeared very contrary I asked him
laughin g if he was sleepy
“
He answered : No my dear but you must understan d that I woul d
like to be alone with you
I was su rprised Alone with me ? I replie d But you have been
alone with me all the way from Paris in the train
“
He laughed Yes— but— in the train— that is not the same thing
as being in ou r room
“
I would not g
ive up Oh well I sai d we shal l be al one on the
beach and that is all there is to it !
”
“
Decidedly he was not pleased He said : Very well ; as you wish
The night was magnificent one of those nights which brings gran d
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E M AUPASSAN T
340
laughed under the roof and the bellboy
,
was
in contortions
on
his
bench in the vestibule
Think of it ! In a hotel !
Soon I found myself alone with my husband who mad e me some
s u mmary exp lanations as one explains a s u rgical Operation before it is
undertaken He was not at all content I wept until daylight an d w e
went away at the O pening of the doors
That is not all The next day we arrive d at Pourvil l e which is only
an em b ryo station for baths My husband overwhelmed me with little
attentions and tender care After a first misunderstanding he appeared
enchanted Ashamed and much cast down over my adventure of the
evening before I was also amiable as could be and docile But you
cannot figure the horror the dis gust almost the hatred that Henry
inspired in me when I knew the infamous secret that they concea l
from young girls I was in despair as sad as death mindful O f every
thing and harassed by the need of being near my poor parents The
next day after we arrived at Etretat All the bathers were in a fl
of excitement A young woman had been b itten by a little d og an d
had just died O f rab ies A great shiver ran down my back when I
heard this story told at the hotel table It seemed to me immediately
that I was suffering in the nose and I ha d strange feelings all along
my limbs
That night I could not sleep ; I had completely forgotten my hu s
band What if I were going to die too from rabies ? I asked for some
details the next day from the p rOp n etor of the hotel He gave me some
frightful ones I passed the day in walking upon the shore I thought
I could no longer speak Hydrophobia ! What a horrible death !
“
”
Henry as ked me : What is the matter? You seem s ad
“
”
I answered : Oh ! Nothing ! Nothing !
My staring eyes were fixe d upon the sea without seeing it upon
farms upon the fields without my ever being able to say what came
under my gaze F or nothing in the world would I have co nfessed the
thought that tortured me Some pain true pain was felt in my nose
I wished to return
As soon as I was back in the hote l I shut myself up in ord er to
examine the wound There was nothing to be seen Nevertheless I
could not doubt that it was working me great harm I wrote imme
diatel y to my mother a short letter which probably sounded strange
I asked an immediate reply to some insi gn ificant questions After
“
having signed my name I wrote : Especially do not forget to give
me some news of Bijou
The next day I could not eat but I re fuse d to see a physician All
d ay long I remained seated upon the beach looking at the bathers in
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TH E
WE DD IN G NI G HT
34 1
the water They came the thin and the stout all hid eous in their
frightfu l costumes but I never thought of l aughing I thought : They
are happy these people ! They have not been bitten ! They are goin g
to live ! They ha v e nothing to fear They can amuse themselves at will
because they are at peace !
At that instant I carried my han d to my nose touching it ; was it
not swollen? And soon I entere d the hotel shut myself in and looke d
at it in the glass Oh it had changed color I should die now ve ry
soon
That evening I felt all at once a sort of ten d erness for my husban d
a tenderness of despair He appeared goo d to me ; I leaned upon his
arm Twenty times I was on the point of telling him my distressing
secret but ended in keeping silent
He abused odiously my listlessness an d the weakness of my sou l
I had not the force to resist him or even the will I would bear all
suffer all !
The next day I received a letter from my mother She replie d to
my q uestions but said not a word about Bijou I im mediately thought :
”
“
He is dead and they are concealing it from me I wished to run to
the telegraph office and send a dispatch One thought stopped me :
”
“
If he really is dead they will not te ll me I then resigned myself to
two more days of angu ish I wrote again I asked them to send me the
dog for diversion b ecause I was a little lonesome
A trembling fit took me in the afternoon I could not raise a ful l
lass without spilling half The state of my soul was lamentable
g
I escaped from my husband at twilight and ran to the church I praye d
a long time On returning I felt anew the pains in my nose and con
su l ted a druggist whose shop was lighted I spoke to him as if one of
my friends had been b itten asking his advice in the matter He was an
amiable man very obliging He advised me freely But I forgot to
notice what he said ; my mind was so troubled I only remem b er this :
“
”
Purging is often recommended I bought many bottles of I know
not what under pretext of sending them to my friend
Th
e dogs that I met filled me with horror creating in me a desire to
flee at top of my speed It seemed to me many times also that I ha d
a desire to bite them My night was horribly dis turb ed My husband
profited by it
The next day I receive d a response from my mother B ijou she
said i s very well but it would exp ose him too much to send him
”
alone on a railroad train Then they would not send him to me He
was dead
I c oul d not yet sleep As for Henry he snored He awoke many
times I was annihilated
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SHORT S TO RIE S OF D E M AU PASSANT
3 42
The next d ay I took a bath in the
I was a lmost o vercome in
entering the water ; I was so frightfully col d I was more than ever
shocked by this frigid sensation I trembled in every limb but fe lt no
more pain in the nose
By chance they presented me to the me d ical inspector O f the baths
a charming man I led up to my subject with extreme skill I then sai d
to him that my little dog had bitten me several days before and asked
him what was necessary to be d one if we discovered any inflammation
“
He laughed and answered : In your situation madame I see only
one remedy which would be for you to make a new nose
“
And as I did not comprehen d he ad d ed : Your husban d will see to
”
that An d I was no better informed on leaving him than I was before
Henry that evening seemed v ery gay v ery happy We went to th
e
casino but he did not wait for the end of the play before proposing
to me to return As there was nothing of interest to me I followed
him Bu t I could not remain in bed ; all my nerves were unstrun g and
vibrating Neither could he sleep He embrace d me caresse d me b e
came all sweetness and tenderness as if he had finally g
ow
u essed h
much I was suffering I accepte d his caresses without even compre
hending them or thinkin g about them
But suddenly an extraordinary fearful crisis seize d me I uttered a
frightful cry pushed back my husban d who took hol d of me ran into
my room and began to beat my head and face against the door It was
rage! Horrible rage ! I was lost !
Henry raised me u p himse lf frightene d and trying to un d er stan d
the trouble I kept silent I was resigned now I awaited death I la rew
that after some hours of respite another crisis would seize me e ven to
the last which would be mortal
I allowed them to put me in the bed At the point of d ay the
ating obsessions of my husband caused a new paroxysm
was longer than the first I had a d esire to tear and bite and howl ;
it was terrible an d nevertheless not so painful as I had believed
Toward eight o clock in the morning I slept for the first time in
four nights At eleven o cl ock a belove d voice awoke me It was
M amma whom my letters had frightened and who had hastene d to
see me She had in her han d a great basket from whence came some
little barks I seized it foolish in ho e I opened it and Bijou jumped
upon the b ed embraced me gamboled about rolled himsel f upon my
pillo w frenzied with joy
Ah well my dearie you may believe me if you wi ll ; I d id not com
prehend all until the next day Oh the imagination how it works ! And
to think that I believed
Tell me was it not too foolish?
I have never confessed to any one y ou w ill understan d why the
sea
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3 44
SHORT STORIES OF DE MAUPASSANT
de vil of a holiday ! he had express ed the highest d egree of a dm iration
of which h
is mind was capable
P adoie having finishe d with h
is peas ants turn ed to h
im and ask ed
.
“
You
,
,
”
are well ?
“
”
Not bad as you see An d you?
“
Very well thank you It is amiabl e
.
,
”
“
Oh !
see us
of
.
,
ou
y
th ink
to
of
c oming
to
.
I have thought of it for a l ong time but you know in the m i li
”
tary profession one doesn t hav e much liberty
“
”
Oh ! I know I know an d that is why it is v ery amiable of you
“
”
And Josephine is well ?
“
Yes yes thank you ; you sh all see h er v ery soon
”
“
Where is she?
“
She has gone to pay some v isits ; we have so many rel atives here
and this is a very exac tin g proper
“
I have no doubt of it
Then the door O pened and Mme P adoie appear ed She went towar d
her“
brother without eagerness held up her cheek an d asked :
”
Have you been here long?
“
”
No scarcely half an hour
“
Ah ! I thought the train wo uld be late If you are ready come into
”
e p arlor
th
They passe d into a neighboring room leavin g P adoie to his a ccounts
and his collections When they were alone she said
“
I h ave heard of some of your fi
ne actions
”
“
W
hat for instance?
“
It appears that you have been conducting you rself l ike a black
”
tting into debt
uar
d
that
you
get
t
psy
and
have
been
ge
i
g
”
“
“
”
He appeared ve ry much astonished I ? he said Never in my l ife
“
Oh you needn t deny it ; I know all about it
He still tried to defend himself but she closed his mouth with so
violent a lecture that
he was forced to silence
“
Then she said : We dine at six o clock ; you are free until d inner
I cannot ask your company because I not unfortunatel y have some
things to do Left alone he hesitated between sleeping and takin g
a walk He looked for a door leading to his room and foun d one to the
street He decided in favor of the street
He began to wander around slowly his sword hitting agains t his
le gs through the sad Breton town so sleepy so calm so dead that on
“
”
the border of its inner sea they call it The Morb ihan He looke d at
the li ttle gray houses the few passers the empty shops and said to
“
himself : Not gay surely or amus ing is V annes A sad idea comin g
”
here !
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OFFI CE R
T H E N O NC O M MI S SIONED
3 45
He sought the ort so dreary retu rne d by a solitary desolate boule
v ard and was bac before five o clock Then he threw himself upon his
bed to slee until dinner
The mai woke
him by knockin g on the door and saying : Dinner
”
is served sir !
He descended In the humid d ining room where the paper was
nearly all unglue d by the sun a supp er was waiting upon a round
table without a cloth for which three melancholy plates were set
M and Mme P adoie entered at the same time as V arajou They were
seated then the husband and wife made the sign of the cross upon the
pit of their stomachs after which P adoie served the soup a thick soup
It was the day for po tpie After the soup came the beef b eef too much
cooked melted and fat which ha d fallen apart in b oil ing The non
com mis sioned officer masticate d it slowly with disgust with fatigu e
and rage
“
M me P adoie said to her husban d : Are you going to the presid ent s
house
this evening?
”
“
Y
es my dear
“
DO not stay late You are all worn ou t every tim e you go ou t You
”
are not made for the world with your bad health
Then she spoke of the society of Vannes of the excellent society
where the P adoies were received with consideration thanks to their
religious sentiments
Then they served a pur é of potatoes with a d ish of pork in honor
nished Not even
of the new arrival Then some cheese and it was fi
c offee
When V arajou understoo d that he was to pass the evening face to
face with his sister forced to undergo her reproaches listen to her ser
mons without even a solacing glass to cool his throat or to ai d the
remonstrances in slipping down he concluded that the punishment
was more than he could bear and declared that he must go to the
armory to execute some commission under his leav e of absence
An d he escaped at seven o clock
Scarcely was he in the street when he began to shake himself like
“
a dog just out of the water He murmured : W hat a blankety blank
”
blank l ife of drudgery ! An d he began to search for a café the best
café in town He foun d it o v er a room behin d tw o g
as jets Inside
five or six men some semi gentlemen a little noisy were seated aroun d
some little tables drinkin g and chatting wh ile two billard players were
walking around the green cloth on which the ivory balls were hittin
“
each other T hey were counting : Eighteen— nineteen No luck 0
good shot ! Well played ! Eleven You must play on the re d Twenty
”
Froze ! Froze ! Twelve There ! Was I right?
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SHO RT STO R IE S OF D E MA U PASSANT
846
ordered a d emitasse and a smal l glass of brandy of the be st
Then he sat down and waited its com ing
He was accustomed to pass his evenings at l ibefty with his com
rades in the clatter of glasses an d the smoke of pipes This silence
this calm exa sperated him He began to drink first h
is co ffee then h
is
bran d y and then he gave a s econd order Now he had a d esire to
l augh then to cry then to sin g and then of fighting som eone
He said to himsel f : Jove ! H ow this sets me up ! I must make a feast
”
of it
An d the idea came to him of fi
nding some girls to amuse h imse lf
V arajou
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“
of the employees
Hey waiter !
He cal led one
:
”
“
Yes sir!
“
”
Say waiter where can one g
o here to have a merry time ?
“
The man looked s tupid at this que stion Finall y he answere d : I
d on“t know sir Onl y here !
”
Here ! And what d o you call a merry time I should like to know !
“
”
Oh ! I don t know sir d rinking beer or some good wine
“
”
Go on you oyster ! And the girls where are they ?
”
“
The girls ! Ha ! ha ! ha !
”
“
Yes the gir ls where are they to be foun d here ?
”
“
G
ir ls ?
“
Yes yes girls
“
The waiter came nearer to him"an d said in a low voice : You want
to know where there is a house ?
“
Yes of course !
“
You take the second street to the l eft and then the first to th e right
”
It is number fift een
”
“
Thanks ol d man Here is something for you
”
“
Thanks sir
“
And V arajou went ou t repeating : Secon d to th e le ft first to the
“
At the end of a few s econds he thought : S econd to the
right fifteen
l eft— yes But in coming ou t of the café do I turn to the left or to the
right ? Bah ! It d oesn t make any difference I shall soon find ou t
An d he walked on turning into the second street at the l eft then
in the first at the right and looked for num ber fifteen It w as a house
of v e ry good appe arance where he saw the windows of the first story
lighted behind the closed shutters The v estibul e d oor was ha lf O pen
and a lamp w as burning in there
”
“
This is the place thought the noncommissioned “
officer
”
Then he entered and as no one came he called : Hey there ! Hey !
A little maid appea red an d was struck d umb on seeing a soldier
”
“
H e said to her : Good evening my child The l adies are upstairs ?
”
“
Yes sir
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SHORT STORIES OF DE M AUPASSANT
348
the el d erly one repaire d towar d the d oor ready to flee if it becam e
ne cessary
Then tw o gentlemen appeare d both in evening clothes an d d ec
“
orated Padoie rushed toward them saying : Oh Mr President he is
m ad— surely he is mad They sent him to u s to convalesce You can
”
see at once that he is mad
V arajou seated himself comprehen d ing nothing about him but
gu essing that he had done something monstrously foolish F inally he
“
”
arose and turning toward his brother in law asked : W here are we ?
And P adoie seized suddenly with a foolish anger stammere d
“
Where are— where where are we? U nfo rtunate— miserable— in
famous fellow— where are we ? In the house of the president— Of the
president of Mortem ain O f Mortem ain— of— Of— of— Mortem ain
”
Ah ! Ah you scamp— scamp — you scam p !
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I N T HE
HALL
C O U RT ROO M
the justice of the peace of Gorg
evil l e is full of peasants
who seated in rows along the walls are awaitin g the Opening of the
sess i on
There are tall and short stout an d thin all with the trim appear
ance of a row of fruit trees They have placed their baskets on the floor
and remain silent tranquil preoccupied with their own affairs Th
ey
have brought with them the O dor of the stable of sweat of sour milk
and of the manure heap Flies are buzzing under the white ceiling
Through the open d oor the crowin g of cocks is heard
Upon a sort of platform is a long table covered with green cloth
An old wrinkled man sits there writing at the extreme left A police
m an tipped back upon his chair is gazing into the air at the extreme
right And upon the bare wall a great Christ in wood twisted into a
pitia ble pose seems to offer his eternal suffering for the cause of
these brutes with the odor of beasts
The justice of the peace enters finally He is corpulent high co l ore d
and rustles his magistrate s black ro b e as he walks with the rapid step
of a large man in a hurry ; he seats himse lf places his cap u pon the
table and looks at the assemblage with an air of profound scorn
He is a scholarly provincial a bri ht mind of the district one of
those who translate Horace relish e little verses of Voltaire an d
know by hea rt Vert Vert as well as the snuffy poe try of P arny
He pronounces officially the words :
TH E
of
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IN THE C OURTROO M
349
“
Now Monsieur Potel all the cases Then smiling he murmurs
“uid id t nt b m dicere versus erat ”
Q
q
Then the clerk
e
u
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,
,
a
,
a
,
.
the court in an unintelligible v oice jabbers
”
“
Madame Victoire Bascule versus Isidore Patu ron
An enormous woman comes forward a lady of the country town of
the canton with a much beribboned hat a watch chain festoone d
upon her breast rings on her fingers and earrings shining like lighte d
candles
The justice greets her with a l ook of rec ognition which savors of
jest and says :
Madame Bascule state your troub les
The Opposing p arty stands on the other sid e It is represente d by
three persons Among them is a young peasant of tw enty fi
ve as fat
cheeked as an apple and as red as a poppy At his right is his wife
very young thin small like a bantam chicken with a narrow flat
hea d covered as in Crete with a p ink bonnet She has a round eye
astonished and angry which looks sidewise like that of poultry At the
left of the boy sits his father an ol d bent man whose tw isted bo dy
d isappears in his starched blous e as if it were un d er a bell
M
me Bascule explains :
“
M r Justice for fifteen years I have treate d this boy kin dly I brought
him up and loved him like a mother ; I have d one everything for him ;
I have made a man of him He promised me he swore to me that he
would never leave me He even took an oath on account of which I
gave him a little property my land at Bec de Mortin which is worth
abou t six thousand Then this little thing little nothing this brat
uage Madame Bascule
T H E J US TI CE : Moderate your lan g
MME B A S CUL E : A little — a little— I think I am understoo d— tu rns
his head does I know not what to him neither do I know why an d
he goes and marries her this fool this great beast and gives her my
property my property at Bec d e Mortin Ah no ; ah no I have a paper
— here it is— which gives me back my property now We had a state
ment drawn up at the notary s for the property and a statement on
paper for the sake of friendship One is worth as much as the other
Each to his right is it not so?
She holds toward the justice a stamped paper wide Open
I S ID O RE PAT U B ON : It is not true
T H E J U S TI CE : Keep silent You shall speak in your turn (H e reads )
of
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I the undersigned Isidore Paturon do by this present
promise Madam e Bascule my benefactress never to leave her
while I live and to serve her with devotion
GORGE V IL L E August 5 18 83
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
350
There
to write ?
is
a cross here for the signature Do you
not
.
know
how
’
Ism ORE : No
T H E J U S TI CE :
I don t
And is it you who made this cross ?
I S IDO RE : No it was not I
T H E J U S T I CE : Who did make it then ?
I SID O RE : She did
T r E J US TI CE : You are ready to swear that you d i d not make this
cross
Ism ORE (earnestl y ) : Upon the head of my mother and my father
my grandmother and grandfather and of the good God who hears me
I swear that it was not I (H e ra is es his h
a nd a nd str ikes it a ainst h
is
g
asiz e h
is oath)
side to em p h
hing) : What have been you r relations with
T H E J US TI CE (la ug
M adame Bascul e the lady here present?
Ism ORE : I have helped to amuse her (G rinningat th
e aud ience )
T H E J UST I CE : Be careful of your expressions D o you mean to say
at your c onnections have not been as pure as She preten d s ?
th
FATHE R PATUR ON (ta king u p the na rrative ) : He wasn t fift een
years ol d yet not fifteen years ol d Monsieu r Judge when she
d e b auched
T H E J US TI CE : D o you mean debauched ?
T H E FATHE R : You understand me He was not fifteen years ol d I
say And for four years b efore that a l ready S he had n u rsed h
im with
the greatest care feeding him l ike a chicken she was fattening until
he was ready to split saving your re sp ect And then when the w e
had come that she thought was just right then she depraved him
T H E J US T I CE : D epraved ? An d you al lowed it ?
T H E FATH E R : Her as well as another It has to come
T H E J US T I CE : Then what have you to complain of?
T H E FA THE R : Nothing ! Oh I complain of nothing of nothing only
that he cannot get free of her when he wants to I ask the protection of
the l aw
MME B ASCUL E : These people weary me with their lies Monsieur
Judge I made a man of him
T H E J UST I CE : I see !
MM E B AS CUL E : And now he denies me leaves me robs me O f my
property
Ism oRE : It is not true Monsieur Ju d ge I wanted to leave her five
years ago seeing that S he had fleshe d up with excess and that didn t
suit m e It troubled me much Why ? I don t know Then I told her I
was going away She wept like a gutter and promised me her property
.
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
3 52
them to laugh at their own foolishness and if they get angry to punish
them b y play ing a new joke on them
I have played many a joke in my lifetime and I have ha d some
p l ayed on me ; some ve ry good ones too I have played some very
laugha ble ones and some terri ble ones One of my victim s died of the
consequences but it was no loss to anyone I will tell about it someday
but it will not be an easy task as the joke was not at all a nice one
It happened in the su b urbs of Paris and those who witn essed it are
laughing yet at the recollection of it though the vic tim died of it
May he rest in peace !
I will narrate two today One in which I was the victim and another
in which I was the instigator I wil l begin with the former as I do not
find it so amusing being the victim myself
I had been invited by some friends in Picardy to come an d S pen d
a few weeks They were fond of a joke like mysel f (I would not have
known them had they been otherwise )
They gave me a rousing reception on my arrival They fire d guns
they kissed me and made such a fuss over me that I bec ame suspicious
”
”
“
“
Be careful old fox I said to mysel f there is something up
D uring dinner they all laughed immoderately I thought to myself
They are certainly projectin g some good joke and intend to play it on
me for they laugh at nothin g apparently I was on my guard all eve
ning and looked at everybody suspiciously even at the servants
When bedtim e came everybody escorted me to my room and bid
me good night I wondered why and a fter S hutting my door I stood
in the middle of the room with the candle in my hand I could hear
them Outside in the hall whispering and laughing ; they were watching
me no dou b t I looked at the wall s im pe d ed the furniture the ceiling
the floor but I found nothing suspicious I heard footsteps close to my
door ; surely they were looking through the keyhole Then it struck me
that perhaps my light would go ou t suddenly and I would b e left in the
dark so I lighted all the candles and looked around once more but I
discovered nothing After having inspected the windows and the
shutters I closed the latter with care ; then I drew the curtains and
placed a chair against them If someone S hould try to come in that way
I would be sure to hear them I thought Then I sat down cautiously
I thought the chair would give way beneath me but it was solid
enough I did not dare to go to bed but as it was getting late I
realized that I was ridiculous If they were watching me as I supposed
they were they certainly must have laughed heartily at my uneasiness
my
mind
I
approached
the
so I resolved to go to b ed Having made u
p
alcove The bed looked particularly suspicious to me and I drew the
heavy curtains back pulled on them but they held fas t Perhaps a
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PRACTI CAL JO KE
A
3 53
bucket of water is hidden on the top all ready to fall on me or else
”
the bed may fall apart as soon as I lie on it I thought I racked my
brain to try and remember all the d ifferent jokes I had played on others
so as to gu ess what might be in store for me ; I wa s not going to b e
c aught not I !
Suddenly an idea struck me which I thought capital I gently pulled
the mattress off the bed and it came toward me along with the sheets
and blankets I dragged them in the middle of the room near the door
and made my bed up again the best way I could put ou t all the lights
and felt my way into bed I lay awake at least another hour starting at
every little sound but everything seemed quiet so I at last went to
slee’
Ii
nu st have slept profoundly for some time when suddenly I woke
up with a start Something heavy had fallen on me and at the same
tir
ne a hot liquid streamed all over my neck and chest which made me
scream with pain A terrible noise filled my cars as if a whole S ideb oar d
full of dis hes had fallen in them I was suffocating under the weight so
I reached out my hand to feel the object and I felt a face a nose and
whiskers I gave that face a terrib le blow wi th my fist b ut instan
taneou sl y I received a shower of blows which drove me out of bed in
a hurry and ou t into the hall
To my amazement I foun d it was broad daylight and everybody
e stairs to find ou t the cause of the noise What we foun d
coming up th
was the valet S prawled out on the bed struggling among the broken
dishes and tray He had brought me some breakfast and having en
countered m y improvised couch had very unwillingly dropped the
breakfast as well as himself on my face !
The precautions I had taken to close the shutters and curtains and to
s l eep in the middle of the room had been my undoing The v ery thin g
I had so carefully avoided had happened
They certainly had a good laugh on me that day !
The other joke I speak of dates back to my b oyhood days I was
S pending my vacation at home as usual in the ol d castle in Picardy
I had just finished my second term at college and had been par
ticu l arl y interested in chemistry and especially in a compound called
h
os h
u re de ca l ciu m which when thrown in water would catch fi
re
p
p
explode foll owed by fumes of an o ffensive odor I had brought a few
handful s of this compound with me so as to have fun with it during my
v acation
An old lady named Mme D ufour often visited us She was a cranky
vindictive horrid ol d thing I do not know why but somehow She
hated me She misconstrued everything I did or said and she never
m issed a chan c e to tattle about me the O ld hag ! She wore a wig of
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SHORT STO R IE S OF D E MAUPASSAN T
354
beautiful brown hair although S he was
ridiculous little caps adorned with ) ink
of because S he was rich but I hate
her
more than sixty an d the mo st
ri bbons She was well thought
d to the bottom of my heart and
I resolved to revenge myself by playing a joke on her
A cousin of mine who was of the same age as I was visiting us an d
I communicated my plan to him but my audacity frightened him
One night when everybody was downstairs I sneaked into Mme
Dufou r s room secured a receptacle into which I deposited a handfu l
of the calcium phosphate having assured myself b eforehand that it was
perfectly dry and ran to the garret to await developments
Pretty soon I heard everybody coming upstairs to b ed I waite d until
everything was still then I came downstairs barefooted holdin g m y
breath until I came to Mme Du four s door and looked at my enemy
through the keyhole
She was putting her things away an d having taken her dress off She
d onned a white wrapper She then filled a glass with water and putting
her whole hand in her mouth as if she were trying to tear her tongue
e pulled ou t something pink and white which she deposited in
ou t sh
the glass I w as horribly frightened but soon found it was only her false
teeth she had taken ou t She then took off her wig and I perceived a
few straggling white hairs on the top of herhead They looked so comi
She kneeled down to say her
cal that I almost burst ou t l aughing
prayers got up and approached my instrument of vengeance I waite d
awhil e my heart beating with expectation
Suddenly I heard a S light sound then a series of e xpl osions I l ooked
at Mme Dufou r ; her face was a s tudy She Opened her eyes wide then
S hut them then Opened them again and looked The white substance
was crackling exploding at the same time while a thick white smoke
curled up mysteriously toward the ceil ing
Perhaps the poor woman thought it was some sat anic fireworks or
perhaps that she had been sud d enly afflicted with some horrible dis
ease ; at all events she stood there S peechless with fright her gaze
riveted on the supernatural phenomenon Suddenly she screamed an d
fell swooning to the floor I ran to my room jumped into bed and closed
my eyes trying to convince myself that I had not left my room an d ha d
seen nothing
“
She is dead I said to myself ; I have killed her and I listene d
anxiously to the sound of footsteps I heard voices and laughter and
the next thing I knew my father was soundly boxing my ears
Mme Dufour was very pale when S he came down the next day and
Perhaps S he was trying to ex
e drank glass after glass of water
sh
e imagine d was is: her although the doctor
uishthe fire which sh
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE MAUPASSAN T
356
T
he marquis clapped his hands
”
“
“
This is b eautiful said a lady And what a dream to be so l o ved !
.
What happin ess to live fi
fty fi
ve years enveloped in a deep living af
fection ! How happy and benign must be the life of one who is adore d
”
like that !
The doctor laughed
“
”
In fact madame he said you are deceive d on that point because
the one loved was a man You know him ; it is Monsieur Chou u et the
village pharmacist An d as for the woman you knew her too; it is the
Old woman who put cane seats in chairs and came every
year to this
”
house But how can I make you comprehend the matter?
The enthusiasm of the women fell On their faces a look of dis gus t
”
said : Pooh ! as if love could only strik e those fine and distinguishe d
creatures who were worthy of the interest of fashiona ble people
The doctor continued
“
I was called three months ago to the bedside of this Ol d woman She
was dying She had come here in the ol d carriage that served her for
a house drawn by the nag that you have O ften seen and accompanied
by her two great black dogs her friends and guard The curate was
already there She made us the executors of her will and in order to
unveil the meaning of her testament she related the story of her l ife I
have never heard anything more sin gular or more affecting
“
Her father made cha ir seats and so did her mother She had never
known a home in any one place upon the earth AS a little girl she
went around ragged and d irty They would stop beside the road at the
entrance to towns unharness the horse and let him browse ; the dog
would go to sleep with his nose in his paws ; the little one would play
in the grass while the father and mother under the shade of the cl rns
bordering the roadside would reseat all the ol d chairs in the neighbor
hood
“
No one ever talked in this ambulance dwellin g After the necessa ry
words to decide who S hould make the tour of the houses and who
‘
Should call out the well known Chairs to mend ! they would Sit down
to plait the straw face to face or S ide by side
“
When the child went too far away or stru ck up an acquaintance
with some urch in in the village the angry voice of the father would cal l
‘
her : You come back here you brat ! And these were the only wor ds of
tenderness She ever heard
“
Whe n S he grew larger they sent her around to collect the worn ou t
chairs to be reb ottom ed Then she made some ac ua intances from place
to place amon the street children Then it would be the parents of her
‘
new friends w 0 would call b rutally to their children : Will you come
ere you scamp ! Let me catch you ta lking to that barefoot again !
h
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A STRAN G E FANCY
3 57
“
Often the boys would throw stones at her Sometimes ladies woul d
.
give her a few pennies and look at her closely
“
One day— She was then eleven years ol d— as they were pas sing
through this place she met the little Chou u et b ehind the cemetery
weeping because some comrade had stolen two sous from him The
tears of this little well to do citizen one of those fortunate ones from
whom in her queer noodle S he had imagined herself cut off one of
those beings always content and joyous quite upset her She went up
to him and when S he learned the cause of his trouble she poured into
his hands all her savings seven sous which he took quite naturally
drying his tears Then mad with joy she had He audacity to em b race
him As he was counting the money attentively he allowed her to do
e was not repulsed or beaten sh
e did the same thing
it Seeing that sh
again She embraced him with arms and heart Then she ran away
“
What could have taken place in her miserable head after that ? Did
S he attach herself to this booby because she had sacrificed for him her
vagabond fortune or because she had given to him her first tender kiss ?
The
mystery is the same for the small as for the great
“
For months she dreamed of this corner of the cemetery and of this
b oy In the hope of seeing him again S he robbed her parents keeping
back a sou here and there either from a chair seat or upon the pro
visions which She was sent to buy
“
When she re turned here she had two francs in her pocket but she
only saw the little dru ggist v ery properly behind the big colored bottle
of his father s S hop between a red decanter and a tapeworm She loved
him there still more charmed aroused to ecstasy by this glory of
colored water this apotheosis of Shining crystal
“
This picture became an ineffaceable memory and when she saw
him the followin g year playing marb les near the school with his com
rades she threw herself upon him se wed him in her arms and kissed
him with such violence that he began to how! with fear Then in order
to appease him She gave him all her money— seventy cents a rea l
treasure which he looked at with b ulgin g eyes
“
He took it and let her caress him as much as she wished
Du ring the next four years She turned into his hand all her surplus
which he pocketed with a clear conscrence in exchange for permitted
kisses There was sometimes fifteen cents sometimes forty and once
only five and one half and She wept with pain and humiliation at
ve franc
this but it had been a bad year The last time there was a fi
piece a great round piece that made him laugh with content
“
She thought of nothing but him and he waited her return with a
certain im patience running to meet her which made the heart of the
girl leap with joy
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE MAUPASSAN T
3 58
Then he disappeared They sent him away to college She fou n d
it ou t by skillful questioning Then she used her diplomacy to change
her parents itinerary and make them pass through there in vacation
She succeeded but for one year ; then for two years she did not see him ;
then S he scarcely recognized him so much was he changed ; he was so
large and handsome in his coat with the brass b uttons and so impos ing
He feigned not to see her an d passed proudly by near her
She wept over it for two days and after that she suffered without
ceasing
“
Every year S he returned here passing him without daring to bow
and without his dei gn ing to raise his eyes to her She loved him p as
‘
:
She
said
to
me
D
octor
he
sionatel
i
s the only m an I have seen on
y
earth ; I have not known that there are o thers existing
“
Her parents died She continued their trade but took with her two
dogs instead of one two terrib le dogs that no one would dare encounter
“
One day in enterin g this village where her heart still remained She
perceived a young woman coming ou t of the Chou u et S hop on the
arm of her well beloved It was his wife He was married
“
That evening she threw herself into the pond on the mayor s estate
A drunken m an got her ou t an d took her to the pharmacy Chou uet
the son came down in his dressing gown to care for her an d without
appearing to recognize her loosed her clothing and ru b bed her then
‘
said in a hard voice : My but you are foolish ! It is not necessary to
make a beast of yourself like this !
“
That was sufficient to cure her He ha d spoken to her ! She was
happy for a long time
“
He w anted no remuneration for his serv ices but S he insisted
paying him well And all her life was spent like this She made
seats and thought of Chou u et Every year She saw him behind his
large windows She had the habit of buying from him all her medical
needs In this way she coul d see him near to and speak to him and still
give him a little money
“
As I told you in the beginning she die d this spring After having
related her sad history She b egged me to give to him whom S he had so
patiently loved all the savings of her life b ecause She had worked only
for him S he said fasting even in order to put aside and to be su re
that he would think of her at least once after she was dead
“
She then g
ay c me two thousand three hundred and twen ty seven
francs I allowed the curate twenty seven for b urial an d carried off the
rest when she had drawn her last breath
“
The next day I took myself to the house of the Chou u ets They had
just finished b reakfast S itting Opposite each other large and red smell
ing of their pharmaceutical products im portant and satis fied
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SHORT STORIES OF D E MAUPASSANT
3 60
“
‘
‘
He stoppe d surprise d Ah no he answere d what coul d I do w ith
them ? D ispose of them as you wish
“
Then he laughed and extended his hand which I took What else
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could I do ? In our country a medical man an d a druggist should not b e
enem es
“
I have kept the dogs at my house The curate who has a l arge yar d
i
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took the horse The wagon serves Chou u et as a cabin and he has
bought five railroad bonds with the money
“
This is the only profound love that I have met in my life
The doctor was S ilent Then the marquis with tears in h
is eyes
“
D ecidedly it is only women who know how to love
s ighed
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AFT E R
D E AT H
R E THE L had assisted at the funeral and interment of
M Badon Lerem ince and the last words of the discourse of the dele
gate of the district remained in the memory of all :
“
”
He was an honest man at least
Honest man he had been in all the appreciable acts of his life : in
his words in his example in his attitude in his bearing in his step in
the cu t of his b eard and the form of his hats He had never said a word
“
that did not contain an example never gave alms without a c company
ingit with advice never held a hand without having the air of giving
it a kind of b enediction
He left two children a son and a daughter His son was general
counselor and his daughter having married a notary M Poirel de l a
Voulte held a high place in V ez iers
They were inconsolab le at the death of their father for they l oved
him sincerely
As soon as the ceremonies were over they returned to the house of
death and all three together the son the daughter and the son in law
O pened the will whose seal was to be b roken b y them alone and that
only after the co ffin had been placed in the earth A direction upon
the envelope expressed this wish
It was M P oirel de la Voulte who opene d the paper being accus
tom ed to these things in the capacity of notary and having adjuste d
his eyeglasses over his eyes he read in a dull voice made for p articu
l ariz in gcontracts :
‘
My children my dear children I could not sleep tranquilly the
eternal S leep if I did not make a confession to you from the other side
ALL V E ZIE RS
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361
AFTER DEATH
the tomb the confession of a crime remorse of which has rent my
life Yes I have committed a crime a frightful abominable crime
‘
I was twenty six years ol d had just been called to the Bar in
P aris and was living the life of young people from the provinces
stranded without acquaintances friends or parents in the city
‘
I took a mistress There are people who are indignant at this word
mistress but there are also beings who cannot live alone I am one
of these Solitude fi l ls me with a horrible agony especially solitude in a
lodging before the fire in the evening It seems to me then that I am
alone upon earth frightfully alone surrounded by vague dangers an d
terrible unknown thin gs and the partition which separates me from my
neighbor from my neigh b or whom I do not know m akes him as far
removed as the stars that I see from my window A sort of fever invades
me a fever Of impatience and fe ar and the S ilence of the walls over
powers me It is so profound so sad this S ilence of a room where one
lives alone ! It is a sil ence about the soul and when the furniture
cracks or starts the courage wanes for one expects no sound in this
mournful dwelling place
‘
H ow many times unnerved frightened by this mute im mobility
have I begun to S peak to pronounce some words without sequence
without reason in order to make some noise My voice then appeare d
to me so strange that I was afraid of that also Is there anything more
frightful than talkin g alone in an empty house ? The voice seems like
that of another an unknown v oice S peakin g without cause to no one
into the hollow air with no ear to listen for one knows before the
word s are uttered into the space of the apartment what the lips are
about to say And when they resound lugu b riously in the silence they
seem more like an echo the echo of singular words pronounced low by
the thoughts
‘
I took a mistress a young girl like all those young girls who live in
Paris at some trade insufficient to support them She was sweet goo d
and simple Her parents lived at Poissy She went to stay a few days
with them from time to tirne
‘
For a year I lived tranquilly enough with her fully d ecide d to
leav e her when I should see some young person with whom I was wel l
enough pleased to want to marry I would leave to this one a small in
come since it is admitted in ou r society that the love of a woman ought
to be paid for in money when She is poor in jewels if she is rich
‘
But behold there came a day when she announced to me that
e was enceinte I was struck down and perceived in an instant the
sh
ruin of my whole existence The chain was apparent that I must drag
to my dying day in the near future in my old age always the chain of
a woman bound to my life by a child the chain of a child whom it
of
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE MAU PASSAN T
362
would
necessary to bring up watch over and protect al ways con
im from th
e world My mind was over
ceal in gmyself from him an d h
tu rned by this news and a confuse d d esire which I did not formulate
but which I felt in my heart took to showing itself like people con
ceal ed behind portieres waiting until someone tells them to appear
a criminal desire that roamed around at the bottom of m y thoughts : If
some accident could happen ! There are so many of these little beings
who die before b irth !
‘
Oh ! I did not desire the d eath of my mistress Poor girl I l oved her
well ! But I wished perhaps the death of the o ther before I had seen it
‘
It was born I had a household in m y bachelor s quarters a fals e
household with a child— a horrible thing It resembled all infants I
could scarcely love it F athers you see do not love until later They
have not the instinctive surpassin g love and tende rness of mo thers ;
their affection is awakened little by little as their mind is drawn toward
their children each day in the bonds which unite living beings together
‘
A year passed away I now fled from my too small dwelling where
linen and blankets and stockings the siz e of a pair of gloves were
dragging around and a thousand things of this kind were left upon the
furniture especially upon the arm of the easy chair I fled particularly
to escape from hearing him cry for he cried at all times when he was
changed when he was washe d when one touched him when he was
put to bed when he was taken up without ceasing
‘
I had made some acquaintances and had met her who was to be
come your mother I came to love her and a desire to marry her was
awakened in me I paid her my court ; I aske d her in marriage ; S he ao
ce ted me
p ‘
And now I found myself in this p redicament : T o marry having a
child this young girl whom I a d ored— or to tell the truth and renoun ce
her and happiness the future everything for her parents rigid and
sc rup ulous people would never give her to me if th
ey knew
‘
I passed one month of horrible angu ish of moral torture a month
where a thousand thoughts frightened an d haunted me and I felt grow
ing in me a hate against my son a einst this little piece of living crying
flesh who barred my way ruine my life and condemned me to an
existence without hope those vagu e hopes so charming to youth
‘
At this time the mother of my companion fell ill and I remained
alone with the infant It was in D ecember It was terribly cold What
a nightl My mistress had gone I had dined in my narrow d ining room
and then entered softly into the chamber where the little one Slept
‘
I seated myself in an armchair before the fire The wind sighed
making the glass crack a wind d ry with frost and I saw ou t of the
be
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SHORT STORIE S OF D E M AUPASSAN T
3 64
‘
I did not reflect I was thinking of nothing Suddenly a little c ough
made a frightful shiver pass through me from head to foot a S hiver
which I can feel at this moment at the roots of my hair With a startle d
movement I closed brusquely the two sides of the window and turning
hastened to the cradle
‘
He stil l slept his mou th open all bare I touche d his limbs ; they
were icy and I covered him again My heart seemed suddenly to break
and to be filled with pity and tenderness for this poor little innocent
being whom I had wished to kill I kissed him over and over again upon
his fine hair Then I re turned and seated myself before the fire
‘
I thought with horror of what I had done and asked myself when ce
came these tempests of the soul when man loses all notion of things a ll
control of himself and moves in a sort of fearful drunkenness without
knowing what he does without knowing where he goes like a ship in
a hurricane
‘
The child coughe d once again and I felt torn to the heart If he
should die ! My God my God ! What would become of me ?
‘
I got up and went to look at him ; and with a candle in my han d I
bent over him Seein g him breathe tranquilly I was reassu red even
when he coughed for the third time But I felt such a shock and made
such a movement to arrest it (as one does at the sight of some fright
ful thing ) that I let the candle fall
‘
And straightening myself after having picke d it up I per ceive d
that my temples were moistened with sweat with a sweat hot and col d
at the same time which produced an agony of the soul like that of
some frightful moral suffering or some unnamable torture burning l ike
fire and cold as ice piercing the bones and the skin of my head
‘
I remained bending over my son until dayb reak calming myse lf
when he was quiet and transfixed by an abominable grief when a feeb l e
cough came from his mouth
‘
He awoke with red eyes an inflame d throat and diflicu l t breathing
When my mistress entered the house and saw him we sent im mediately
for a physician He came in an hour an d asked after having e x
am ined him
“
Has he taken cold ?
‘
I began to tremble as very ol d people tremble an d stammere d
“
”
No I think not Then I asked
“
What is the matter ? Is it anything grave?
‘
He answere d :
“
I cannot say yet I will return this evening
‘
He returned in the evening My son had passed ne arly the whole
day in an invincible slee iness coughing from time to time A con
gestion of the lungs now s owed itself
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ON CATS
3 65
‘
This lasted ten days I cannot exp ress what I suffere d during those
interminable hours which separate the morning from evening and the
evening from the morning
‘
He died
‘
And since— since that moment I have not passed an hour no not
an hour without that atrocious cutting memory a memory which
gnaws which tortures and rends the mind and stirs in me like a
writhing beast chained up in the bottom of my soul
‘
Oh ! If I could have b ecome mad !
M Foiral de la Voulte put up his glasses a movement which was
usual with him when he had finishe d reading a contract and the three
heirs of the dead man looked at each other without saying a word pal e
and immovable At the end of a minute the notary said
“
This must b e destroyed
The two others lowered their head s in si gn of assent He lighte d a
c andle separated care ful ly the pages which contained the dangerous
confession from the pages which contained the disposition of the
money then he presented them to the flame and threw them into the
fireplace
And they watched the white leaves as they were consume d Soon
they were nothing more than a l ot of little black heaps And as they
stil l perceived some letters which were legib le on the paper the daug
h
ter crushed it with the end of her foot mixing it with the ol d ashes
Then they all three rem ained quiet for some time looking at it as if
they feared that the charre d secret might fly away up the chimney
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ON
C AT S
Cap
f Antibes
e o
.
S EATED ON A B ENCH the other day at my door in the full sunlight with
a cluster of anemones in flower before me I read a b ook recently pub
ed
an honest book something uncommon and charming The
lish
Coop er by George D uval A large White cat that belonged to the
g ardener jumped upon my lap and by the shock closed the book which
I placed at my side in order to caress the animal
The weather was warm ; a faint suggestive odor of new flowers was
in the air and at times came little cool breezes from the great white
summits that I could see in the distance But the sun was hot and
sh arp and the day was one of those that stir the earth make it alive
break open the seed in order to animate the sleeping germs an d cleave
the buds so that the young leaves may spring forth The cat rolled itself
on my knees lying on its back it paws in the air with claws protruding
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S HO RT STORIE S OF DE MAUPASSAN T
366
then recedin g The little creature showed its ointed teeth beneath its
lips an d its green eyes gleamed in the half c osed slit of its eyeli ds I
c aressed and rubbed the soft nervous anirm l supple as a piece of silk
smooth warm delicious d angerous She purred with satisfaction yet
was quite ready to scratch for a cat loves to scratch as well as to be
petted She held ou t her neck and rolled again and when I took my
hand from her she raised herself and pushed her head against my lifted
hand
I made her nervous and she made me nervous also for although I
like cats in a certain way I detest them at the same time— those animals
so cha rming and so treacherous It gives me pleasure to fondle them
to rub under my hand their silky fur that sometimes crackles to fee l
their warmth through this fine and exquisite covering Nothing is soft er
nothing gives to the skin a sensation more delicate more refined more
rare than the warm living coat of a cat But this livin g coat also com
m u nicates to me through the ends of my fingers a strange an d fe ro
cions desire to strangle the animal I am caressing I feel in her the
desire sh
e has to bite and scratch me I feel it that same desire as if it
were an electric current communicated from her to me I run my fingers
through the soft fur and the current passes through my nerves from
my finger tips to my heart _even to my brain ; it tingles throughou t my
being and causes me to shut my teeth hard
An d if the animal begins to bite and scratch me I seize her by the
neck ; I give her a turn and throw her far from me as I would thr ow a
stone from a sling so quickly and so brutally that she never has tim e to
revenge herse l f
I remember that when I was a chil d I l ove d cats yet I ha d even then
that strange desire to strangle them with my li ttle hands and one d ay
at the end of the garden at the beginning of the wood I perceive d
sud d e nly something gray rolling in the high grass I went to see what it
was and found a cat caught in a sn are stranglin g suffocating dying
It rolled tore up the ground with its claws bo u nded fell inert then
began again and its hoarse rapid breathing made a noise like a pump
a fright ful noise which I hear yet I could have taken a spade and cut
the snare ; I could have gone to find the servant or tell my father No
I did not move an d with beatin g heart I watched it die with a trem
bling and c ruel joy It was a cat ! If it had been a dog I woul d rather
have c_ut the 0 0 p p er wire with my teeth than let it suffer a second more
When the cat was quite dead but yet warm I went to feel of it and
pull its tail !
These little creatures are d elicious notwithstanding delicious above
all because in caressing them whil e they are rubbin g against our skin
purring and rolling on us lookin g at us with their yellow eyes which
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SHORT STORIE S OF DE MAUPASSANT
3 68
apparently possess ing tremen d ous powers of resistance an d it was
supported by four defensive towers as its name would indicate
I had a letter of introduction to the owner of this manor who would
not permit me to go to the hotel The whole v alley is one of the most
charming spots in summer that one could dream of I wandered about
there until evening and after d inner I went to the apartment that ha d
b een reserved for me I first passed through a sort of sitting room the
walls of which were covered by ol d Cordova leather ; then I went
through another room where by the light of my candle I no ticed rap
idly in pass ing several old portraits of ladies —those paintings of which
Th eophile Gautier has written
I entered the room where my bed was and l ooked around me The
walls were hung with antique tapestries where one saw rose colored
d onjons in blue landscapes an d great fantastic birds sitting under foli
age of precious stones ! My dressing room was in one of the towers
The windows wide on the inside and narrowed to a mere slit on the
outside going through the entire thickness of the walls were in
reality nothing but loopholes through which one might kill an ap
roach
i
ngenemy
p
I shut my door went to bed and s lept Presently I dreamed ; u su
ally one dreams a little of somethin g that has passed during the day
I seemed to be traveling ; I entere d an inn where I saw at a table be
fore the fire a servant in complete livery and a mason— a strange as
sociation which did not astonish me These people spoke of Victor
Hugo who had just d ie d and I took part in their conversation At
l ast I went to bed in a room the d oor of which I could not shut an d
suddenly I saw the servant an d the mason armed with sabers coming
softly toward my bed
I awoke at once an d a few m inutes passed before I could recol
lect where I was Then I recalled quickly my arrival of the day before
at T horence the occu rrences of the evening and my pleasant recep
tion by the owner I was just about to close my eyes when I saw
d istinctly in the darkness in the middle of my room at about the
height of a man s head two fiery eyes watching me
I seized a match and while striking it I heard a noise a l ight soft
noise like the sound of a wet rag thrown on the floor b ut after I had
lighted the candle I saw nothing but a tall table in the mid dle of the
room I rose went through both ap artm ents looked under the bed and
into the closets and found nothing I thought then that erhaps I
continued dreaming after I was awake and so I went to speep again
not without trouble
I dreamed again This time I travele d once more but in the Orient
in the coun try that I love I arrived at the house of a Turk who lived
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Then a little black boy took me to a room— all my dreams ende d
in this fashion in those days ! It was a perfum ed room decorated in
sk
y blue with skins of wild beasts on the floor and b efore the fi
re
the idea of fire pursued me even in the desert— on a l ow chair was a
i
woman l ghtly clo thed who was waitin g on me She was of the purest
oriental type with stars tattooed on her cheeks and forehead and chin ;
sh
e had immense eyes
a beautiful form and slightly b rown skin a
warm and excitin g skin
She looked at me and I thought : This is what I understand to be
the true meanin g of the word hospitali ty In our stupid and prudis h
northern cou ntriesn with their hateful mawkishness of ideas and sil ly
no uons ”of morality a man would never receive a stranger in this
fashion
I went up to the woman an d spoke to her but she repl e d onl y by
s igns not knowing a word of my lan uage which the Turk her mas
g
ter understood so well All the happier that she would be silent I
took her by the hand and led her toward my couch where I placed
myself b y her side
But one always awakens at those moments ! So I O pened my eyes
and was not greatly surprised to feel b eneath my h and something soft
and warm which I caressed lovingly Then my mind clearing I rec
niz ed that it was a cat a b ig cat rolled up agains t my cheek sleep
og
ing there with co nfidence I left it there and composed myself to sleep
once more When daylight appeared he was gone and I really thought
I had dreamed he had b een with me for I could not understand how
he could have come in and gone ou t as my door w as locked
When I related my dream and my adventure to
my agreeable host
“
(not the whole of it ! ) he b egan to laugh and said : He came in through
his own door and rais ing a curtain he showed me a little round hole
in the wall I learned then that the old habitations of this country have
long narrow runways through the walls which go from the cellar to
the garret from the servants rooms to the rooms of the seigneu r
and these passages render the cat king and master of the interior of
the house He goes where it pleases him vis its his domain at his pleas
u re sleeps in all the beds sees all hears all knows all the secrets all
the habits all the shames of the house Everywhere he is at home the
animal that moves without noise the s ilent prowler the noctu rnal
ro ver of the hollowed walls And I thought of Baudelaire
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