Volume VI Part 14 (1/2)
a lot of japanese trifles on the walls, and he bought for five francs quite a collection of little fans and screens, hich he hid the most obvious of the marks on the wall paper He pasted on thepanes transparent pictures representing boats floating down rivers, flocks of birds flying across rosy skies, multi-colored ladies on balconies, and processions of little black h to sleep and sit down in, soon looked like the inside of a Chinese lantern He thought the effect satisfactory, and passed the evening in pasting on the ceiling birds that he had cut fro over Then he went to bed, lulled by the whistle of the trains
He went ho of cakes and a bottle of Madeira, purchased at the grocer's He had to go out again to buy two plates and two glasses, and arranged this collation on his dressing-table, the dirty wood of which was covered by a napkin, the jug and basin being hidden away beneath it
Then he waited
She caht colors of the pictures, exclaimed: ”Dear me, yours is a nice place But there are a lot of people about on the staircase”
He had clasped her in his ar the hair between her forehead and her bonnet through her veil
An hour and a half later he escorted her back to the cab-stand in the Rue de Roe he murmured: ”Tuesday at the same time?”
She replied: ”Tuesday at the sarown dark, she drew his head into the carriage and kissed hi whipped up his beast, she exclaimed: ”Good-bye, Pretty-boy,” and the old vehicle started at the weary trot of its old white horse
For three weeks Duroy received Madame de Marelle in this way every two or three days, now in the evening and now in theher one afternoon, a loud uproar on the stairs drew hiry voice shouted: ”What is that little devil howling about now?” The yelling and exasperated voice of a woman replied: ”It is that dirty hussy who comes to see the penny-a-liner upstairs; she has upset Nicholas on the landing As if dabs like that, who pay no attention to children on the staircase, should be allowed here”
Duroy drew back, distracted, for he could hear the rapid rustling of skirts and a hurried step ascending from the story just beneath him
There was soon a knock at the door, which he had reclosed He opened it, and Madame de Marelle rushed into the roo: ”Did you hear?”
He pretended to know nothing ”No; what?”
”How they have insulted uards who live down below”
”But, surely not; what does it allable to utter a word He had to take off her bonnet, undo her dress, lay her on the bed, , and then when her enation broke out She wanted hio down at once, to thrash them, to kill them
He repeated: ”But they are only work-people, low creatures Just reht be recognized, arrested, ruined One cannot lower one's self to have anything to do with such people”
She passed on to another idea ”What shall we do now? For ain”
He replied: ”It is very simple; I will move”
She murmured: ”Yes, but that will take some time” Then all at once she framed a plan, and reassured, added softly: ”No, listen, I knohat to do; letI will send you a telegrahted with her plan, which she would not reveal, and indulged in a thousand follies She was very agitated, however, as she went downstairs, leaning with all her weight on her lover's ars treh
As he usually got up late, he was still in bed the next day, when, about eleven o'clock, the telegraph ram He opened it and read:
”Meet me at five; 127, Rue de Constantinople Rooms hired by Madame Duroy--Clo”
At five o'clock to the e furnished house, and asked: ”It is here that Madame Duroy has taken rooms, is it not?”
”Yes, sir”
”Will you show me to them, if you please”
The man, doubtless used to delicate situations in which prudence is necessary, looked hi range of keys, said: ”You are Monsieur Duroy?”