第38章

"Monsieur l'abbe," he said, "my whole ambition is to have a house like this." The old maid fancied a declaration lurked in that speech, and she lowered her eyes."You must enjoy it very much, mademoiselle,"added the viscount.

"How could it be otherwise? It has been in our family since 1574, the period at which one of our ancestors, steward to the Duc d'Alencon, acquired the land and built the house," replied Mademoiselle Cormon.

"It is built on piles," she added.

Jacquelin announced dinner.Monsieur de Troisville offered his arm to the happy woman, who endeavored not to lean too heavily upon it; she feared, as usual, to seem to make advances.

"Everything is so harmonious here," said the viscount, as he seated himself at table.

"Yes, our trees are full of birds, which give us concerts for nothing;no one ever frightens them; and the nightingales sing at night," said Mademoiselle Cormon.

"I was speaking of the interior of the house," remarked the viscount, who did not trouble himself to observe Mademoiselle Cormon, and therefore did not perceive the dulness of her mind."Everything is so in keeping,--the tones of color, the furniture, the general character.""But it costs a great deal; taxes are enormous," responded the excellent woman.

"Ah! taxes are high, are they?" said the viscount, preoccupied with his own ideas.

"I don't know," replied the abbe."My niece manages the property of each of us.""Taxes are not of much importance to the rich," said Mademoiselle Cormon, not wishing to be thought miserly."As for the furniture, Ishall leave it as it is, and change nothing,--unless I marry; and then, of course, everything here must suit the husband.""You have noble principles, mademoiselle," said the viscount, smiling.

"You will make one happy man."

"No one ever made to me such a pretty speech," thought the old maid.

The viscount complimented Mademoiselle Cormon on the excellence of her service and the admirable arrangements of the house, remarking that he had supposed the provinces behind the age in that respect; but, on the contrary, he found them, as the English say, "very comfortable.""What can that word mean?" she thought."Oh, where is the chevalier to explain it to me? 'Comfortable,'--there seem to be several words in it.Well, courage!" she said to herself."I can't be expected to answer a foreign language-- But," she continued aloud, feeling her tongue untied by the eloquence which nearly all human creatures find in momentous circumstances, "we have a very brilliant society here, monsieur.It assembles at my house, and you shall judge of it this evening, for some of my faithful friends have no doubt heard of my return and your arrival.Among them is the Chevalier de Valois, a seigneur of the old court, a man of infinite wit and taste; then there is Monsieur le Marquis d'Esgrignon and Mademoiselle Armande, his sister" (she bit her tongue with vexation),--"a woman remarkable in her way," she added."She resolved to remain unmarried in order to leave all her fortune to her brother and nephew.""Ah!" exclaimed the viscount."Yes, the d'Esgrignons,--I remember them.""Alencon is very gay," continued the old maid, now fairly launched.

"There's much amusement: the receiver-general gives balls; the prefect is an amiable man; and Monseigneur the bishop sometimes honors us with a visit--""Well, then," said the viscount, smiling, "I have done wisely to come back, like the hare, to die in my form.""Yes," she said."I, too, attach myself or I die."The viscount smiled.

"Ah!" thought the old maid, "all is well; he understands me."The conversation continued on generalities.By one of those mysterious unknown and undefinable faculties, Mademoiselle Cormon found in her brain, under the pressure of her desire to be agreeable, all the phrases and opinions of the Chevalier de Valois.It was like a duel in which the devil himself pointed the pistol.Never was any adversary better aimed at.The viscount was far too well-bred to speak of the excellence of the dinner; but his silence was praise.As he drank the delicious wines which Jacquelin served to him profusely, he seemed to feel he was with friends, and to meet them with pleasure; for the true connoisseur does not applaud, he enjoys.He inquired the price of land, of houses, of estates; he made Mademoiselle Cormon describe at length the confluence of the Sarthe and the Brillante; he expressed surprise that the town was placed so far from the river, and seemed to be much interested in the topography of the place.

The silent abbe left his niece to throw the dice of conversation; and she truly felt that she pleased Monsieur de Troisville, who smiled at her gracefully, and committed himself during this dinner far more than her most eager suitors had ever done in ten days.Imagine, therefore, the little attentions with which he was petted; you might have thought him a cherished lover, whose return brought joy to the household.

Mademoiselle foresaw the moment when the viscount wanted bread; she watched his every look; when he turned his head she adroitly put upon his plate a portion of some dish he seemed to like; had he been a gourmand, she would almost have killed him; but what a delightful specimen of the attentions she would show to a husband! She did not commit the folly of depreciating herself; on the contrary, she set every sail bravely, ran up all her flags, assumed the bearing of the queen of Alencon, and boasted of her excellent preserves.In fact, she fished for compliments in speaking of herself, for she saw that she pleased the viscount; the truth being that her eager desire had so transformed her that she became almost a woman.