第67章 CHAPTER V(3)

There were no great proofs of sorcery in that， after all， but there was still enough smoke to warrant a surmise of fire， and the archdeacon bore a tolerably formidable reputation. We ought to mention however， that the sciences of Egypt， that necromancy and magic， even the whitest， even the most innocent， had no more envenomed enemy， no more pitiless denunciator before the gentlemen of the officialty of Notre-Dame.

Whether this was sincere horror， or the game played by the thief who shouts， "stop thief！" at all events， it did not prevent the archdeacon from being considered by the learned heads of the chapter， as a soul who had ventured into the vestibule of hell， who was lost in the caves of the cabal， groping amid the shadows of the occult sciences. Neither were the people deceived thereby； with any one who possessed any sagacity， Quasimodo passed for the demon； Claude Frollo， for the sorcerer. It was evident that the bellringer was to serve the archdeacon for a given time， at the end of which he would carry away the latter's soul， by way of payment. Thus the archdeacon， in spite of the excessive austerity of his life， was in bad odor among all pious souls； and there was no devout nose so inexperienced that it could not smell him out to be a magician.

And if， as he grew older， abysses had formed in his science， they had also formed in his heart. That at least， is what one had grounds for believing on scrutinizing that face upon which the soul was only seen to shine through a sombre cloud.

Whence that large， bald brow？ that head forever bent？ that breast always heaving with sighs？ What secret thought caused his mouth to smile with so much bitterness， at the same moment that his scowling brows approached each other like two bulls on the point of fighting？ Why was what hair he had left already gray？ What was that internal fire which sometimes broke forth in his glance， to such a degree that his eye resembled a hole pierced in the wall of a furnace？

These symptoms of a violent moral preoccupation， had acquired an especially high degree of intensity at the epoch when this story takes place. More than once a choir-boy had fled in terror at finding him alone in the church， so strange and dazzling was his look. More than once， in the choir， at the hour of the offices， his neighbor in the stalls had heard him mingle with the plain song， ~ad omnem tonum~， unintelligible parentheses. More than once the laundress of the Terrain charged "with washing the chapter" had observed， not without affright， the marks of nails and clenched fingers on the surplice of monsieur the archdeacon of Josas.

However， he redoubled his severity， and had never been more exemplary. By profession as well as by character， he had always held himself aloof from women； he seemed to hate them more than ever. The mere rustling of a silken petticoat caused his hood to fall over his eyes. Upon this score he was so jealous of austerity and reserve， that when the Dame de Beaujeu， the king's daughter， came to visit the cloister of Notre-Dame， in the month of December， 1481， he gravely opposed her entrance， reminding the bishop of the statute of the Black Book， dating from the vigil of Saint-Barthélemy， 1334， which interdicts access to the cloister to "any woman whatever， old or young， mistress or maid." Upon which the bishop had been constrained to recite to him the ordinance of Legate Odo， which excepts certain great dames， ~aliquoe magnates mulieres， quoe sine scandalo vitari non possunt~.

And again the archdeacon had protested， objecting that the ordinance of the legate， which dated back to 1207， was anterior by a hundred and twenty-seven years to the Black Book， and consequently was abrogated in fact by it. And he had refused to appear before the princess.

It was also noticed that his horror for Bohemian women and gypsies had seemed to redouble for some time past. He had petitioned the bishop for an edict which expressly forbade the Bohemian women to come and dance and beat their tambourines on the place of the Parvis； and for about the same length of time， he had been ransacking the mouldy placards of the officialty， in order to collect the cases of sorcerers and witches condemned to fire or the rope， for complicity in crimes with rams， sows， or goats.