Part 53 (1/2)
”Do your worst,” he said, in a low, sneering voice. ”You are a pack of liars yourselves,” and while Bidiane and Claudine stiffened themselves with rage, and Mirabelle Marie contemptuously muttered, ”Get out, ole beast,” he cast a final malevolent glance on them, and left the house.
For a time the three remained speechless; then Bidiane sank into her chair, pushed back her half-eaten supper, propped her red head on her hand, and burst into pa.s.sionate weeping.
Claudine stood gloomily watching her, while Mirabelle Marie sat down, and s.h.i.+fting her hands from her hips, laid them on her trembling knees.
”I guess he'll drive us out of this, Biddy,--an' I like Sleepin' Water.”
Bidiane lifted her face to the ceiling, just as if she were ”taking a vowel,” her aunt reflected, in her far from perfect English. ”He shall not ruin us, my aunt,--we will ruin him.”
”What'll you do, sissy?”
”I will tell you something about politics,” said Bidiane, immediately becoming calm. ”Mr. Nimmo has explained to me something about them, and if you listen, you will understand. In the first place, do you know what politics are?” and hastily wiping her eyes, she intently surveyed the two women who were hanging on her words.
”Yes, I know,” said her aunt, joyfully. ”It's when men quit work, an'
gab, an' git red in the face, an' pa.s.s the bottle, an' pick rows, to fine out which shall go up to the city of Boston to make laws an' sit in a big room with lots of other men.”
Bidiane, with an impatient gesture, turned to Claudine. ”You know better than that?”
”Well, yes,--a little,” said the black-eyed beauty, contemptuously.
”My aunt,” said Bidiane, solemnly, ”you have been out in the world, and yet you have many things to learn. Politics is a science, and deep, very deep.”
”Is it?” said her aunt, humbly. ”An' what's a science?”
”A science is--well, a science is something wonderfully clever--when one knows a great deal. Now this Dominion of Canada in which we live is large, very large, and there are two parties of politicians in it. You know them, Claudine?”
”Yes, I do,” said the young woman, promptly; ”they are Liberals and Conservatives.”
”That is right; and just now the Premier of the Dominion is a Frenchman, my aunt,--I don't believe you knew that,--and we are proud of him.”
”An' what's the Premier?”
”He is the chief one,--the one who stands over the others, when they make the laws.”
”Oh, the boss!--you will tell him about this bad man.”
”No, it would grieve him too much, for the Premier is always a good man, who never does anything wrong. This bad man will impose on him, and try to get him to promise to let him go to Ottawa--oh, by the way, Claudine, we must explain about that. My aunt, you know that there are two cities to which politicians go to make the laws. One is the capital.”
”Yes, I know,--in Boston city.”
”Nonsense,--Boston is in the United States. We are in Canada. Halifax is the capital of Nova Scotia.”
”But all our folks go to Boston when they travels,” said Mirabelle Marie, in a slightly injured tone.
”Yes, yes, I know,--the foolish people; they should go to Halifax. Well, that is where the big house is in which they make the laws. I saw it when I was there, and it has pictures of kings and queens in it. Now, when a man becomes too clever for this house, they send him to Ottawa, where the Premier is.”
”Yes, I remember,--the good Frenchman.”
”Well, this bad man now wishes to go to Halifax; then if he is ambitious,--and he is bad enough to be anything,--he may wish to go to Ottawa. But we must stop him right away before he does more mischief, for all men think he is good. Mr. Guilbaut was praising him yesterday.”