Volume VI Part 35 (1/2)
The assault-at-are of the wives of all the senators and deputies connected with the _Vie Francaise_, for the benefit of the orphans of the Sixth Arrondissement of Paris Madahters, while refusing the position of lady patroness, for she only aided with her nay Not that she was very devout, but her ed her, in her own opinion, to observe a certain religious attitude, and the gathering organized by the journalist had a species of Republican iht be construed as anti-clerical
In papers of every shade of opinion, during the past three weeks, paragraphs had appeared such as: ”Our eue, Jacques Rival, has conceived the idea, as ingenious as it is generous, of organizing for the benefit of the orphans of the Sixth Arrondisserand assault-at-ar-room attached to his apartue, Re these names, and by Mesdames Laroche-Mathieu, Percerol, and Firmin, wives of the well-known deputies A collection will take place during the interval, and the amount will at once be placed in the hands of the mayor of the Sixth Arrondisseantic advertisement that the clever journalist had devised to his own advantage
Jacques Rival received all-co, where a refreshment buffet had been fitted up, the cost of which was to be deducted froesture the little staircase leading to the cellar, saying: ”Downstairs, ladies, downstairs; the assault will take place in the baseer, and then shaking Du Roy by the hand, said: ”How are you, Pretty-boy?”
His friend was surprised, and exclaimed: ”Who told you that--”
Rival interrupted him with: ”Madame Walter, here, who thinks the nickna: ”Yes, I will admit that, if I knew you better, I would do like little Laurine and call you Pretty-boy, too The nahed, as he replied: ”But I beg of you, madame, to do so”
She had lowered her eyes, and remarked: ”No We are not sufficiently intimate”
He murmured: ”Will you allow me the hope that we shall be more so?”
”Well, ill see then,” said she
He drew on one side to let her precede hias jet The abrupt transition fro about it A cellar-like odor rose up this winding staircase, a smell of damp heat and of moldy walls wiped down for the occasion, and also whiffs of incense recalling sacred offices and feminine emanations of vervain, orris root, and violets A loud itated crowd could also be heard down this hole
The entire cellar was lit up by wreaths of gas jets and Chinese lanterns hidden in the foliage, reen boughs The ceiling was ornaround hidden by flowers and leaves This was thought charination In the small cellar, at the end, was a platfores
In the reht and to the left, would accommodate about two hundred people Four hundred had been invited
In front of the platforures, andthe them out as notabilities of the art, professionals, and aentlemen in frock coats, who bore a fa array They were also seeking to be seen, recognized, and spoken of, being masters of the sword out of uniform, experts on foil play Almost all the seats were occupied by ladies, who kept up a loud rustling of gar theh at a theater, for it was already as hot as an oven in this leafy grotto A joker kept crying froeat, lehters reached the seats reserved for the installed theed to leave you; we men must not collar the seats”
But Mada tone: ”I should very much like to have you with us all the same You can tell me the names of the fencers Come, if you stand close to the end of the seat you will not be in anyone's way” She looked at hi: ”Come, stay with us, Monsieur--Pretty-boy We have need of you”
He replied: ”I will obey with pleasure, madame”
On all sides could be heard the remark: ”It is very funny, this cellar; very pretty, too”
George kneell, this vault He recalled thehe had passed there on the eve of his duel, alone in front of the little white carton target that had glared at hie and terrible eye
The voice of Jacques Rival sounded froentle clothes, to set off their chests, mounted the platfores Their names flew about General de Reynaldi, the president, a short man, with heavy moustaches; the
painter, Josephin Roudet, a tall, ball-headedbeard; Mattheo de Ujar, Si young fellows; and Gaspard Merleron, aup on the two sides of the vault That on the right was inscribed ”M Crevecoeur,” and that on the left ”M Pluood second-class masters They made their appearance, both sparely built, with h the salute with auto in their white costu for fun Froes nodded with the air of connoisseurs The public saw nothing but two livingtheir ar, but they were satisfied These two uely ridiculous They reminded them of the wooden wrestlers sold on the boulevards at the New Year's Fair
The first couple of fencers were succeeded by Monsieur Planton and Monsieur Carapin, a civilian master and a military one Monsieur Planton was very little, and Monsieur Carapin iht that the first thrust would have reduced his voluhed Monsieur Planton skipped about like a monkey: Monsieur Carapin, only
paralyzed by fat He lunged every five minutes with such heaviness and such effort that it seeetic resolution on his part to acco himself The connoisseurs pronounced his play very steady and close, and the confiding public appreciated it as such
Then came Monsieur Porion and Monsieur Lapalyes to scuttle off with their chairs, crossing and re-crossing fro and the other retreating, with vigorous and coed in little jus forward that caused the assault was aptly criticized by so out: ”Don't burst yourselves over it; it is a time job!” The spectators, shocked at this want of taste, cried ”Ssh!+” The judgment of the experts was passed around The fencers had shown or, and played somewhat loosely
The first half of the entertainment was concluded by a very fine bout between Jacques Rival and the celebrated Belgian professor, Lebegue