"Other times, other methods, madame; to-day, men do business and seek enjoyment at the same time. They negotiate a sale while drinking punch, and sign a deed at a bouillotte or an ecarte table, and buy consols while dancing a quadrille. Well, I see no harm in all that. It is what is called carrying on business gayly."

"Yes, monsieur, but not substantially.--For my own part, I shall not choose for my banker the one who gives the most beautiful parties; and if it is your purpose to leave this lodging in order to live in that way, I warn you that I shall not live with you."

Edouard made no reply to his mother-in-law, but took his hat and went out in a very ill humor, storming against women who insist upon meddling in business of which they understand nothing. Madame Germeuil remained with her daughter.

"Oh! mamma," said Adeline, throwing herself into her mother's arms, "don't be angry with Edouard. Alas! It is I alone who am guilty. It was I who urged him to leave the place he had. But could I have antic.i.p.ated?

It is that Dufresne, it is his advice which turns my husband's head."

"My dear Adeline, in the early days of your married life, you should have taken possession of your husband's mind, and accustomed him to do what you wanted; at that time it would have been very easy for you, but you did just the opposite."

"I simply tried to please him, and we had but one will then! But soon I am going to be a mother. Ah! how impatiently I await that moment! I am sure that his child's caresses will make Edouard forget all his schemes of wealth and grandeur."

"May you say true!"

The term marked by nature approached. Edouard realized that that was no time to change his abode, so he said no more of his plans, and Adeline thought that he had abandoned them. Soon she brought into the world a pretty little girl, a faithful image of her mother's charms. Edouard desired that Dufresne should be his child's G.o.dfather, but Madame Germeuil refused him as an a.s.sociate; so it was necessary to give way, and to take in his place an old annuitant, most upright, orderly and methodical, who gave the G.o.dmother three boxes of bonbons and two pairs of gloves, and promised to dine every week with the young mother, in order to learn how his G.o.ddaughter was coming on.

Edouard did not say a word, but he awaited his wife's entire recovery before putting his plans into execution; and he secretly hoped that Madame Germeuil would persist in her refusal to change her lodgings, in order that he might no longer have beneath his roof a mother-in-law whose advice and reproaches were beginning to be distasteful to him.

Adeline was engrossed by the joy of being a mother; she nursed her child, in spite of all that Edouard could say to prove that that was not done in good society; but in that matter Adeline resisted her husband, the mother-love carried the day, and that new sentiment abated in some degree the force of the sentiment which hitherto had reigned despotically in her heart.

For some time Madame Dolban had been a less frequent visitor at the Murville house; Adeline and her mother did not know the reason, but they were not sorry to be less often in the company of Dufresne, who ordinarily accompanied Madame Dolban. They thought that if he saw him less often, Edouard would pay less heed to the new dreams of wealth which had been suggested to him by that young man.

The ladies were mistaken; Dufresne was very careful not to neglect Murville, with whose character he was now perfectly acquainted. He knew all that he could hope to gain by his acquaintance. He had, moreover, extensive projects. Which events will soon place us in a position to judge, no doubt. But like a clever man, Dufresne waited until the propitious moment came to carry out his plans. He saw that Madame Germeuil did not like him; the presence of Adeline's mother interfered with his designs; so he tried shrewdly to sow discord between her and her son-in-law; he found a way of separating them, by suggesting to Edouard to find a larger apartment in order to give handsome parties.

The two friends met everyday, and pa.s.sed a large part of the morning together; and when Murville left the house at night, it was to go to other houses where Dufresne had agreed to meet him. Edouard could not do without his friend, he was unwilling to do anything without consulting him, to undertake anything until he had seen him. But if his wife gave him advice, if his mother-in-law ventured to make a remonstrance, Edouard lost his temper, flew into a rage, and insisted that he was the master, whereas he was simply the plaything of the man who had the art to flatter his tastes. A curious character! naturally weak, unreasonably obstinate, intending to be firm and not to allow himself to be guided by others, Edouard abandoned himself to the will of the man who secretly advised him to be persevering and determined in his plans, because he was well aware that that was the way to speak to a weak man who in his eyes was simply a ma.s.s of ductile matter, to which he could give whatever shape he chose.

Adeline did not suffer from the new duties to which she devoted herself; on the contrary, her features seemed even lovelier, her eyes more melting, her bearing more graceful; she was fascinating when she held her child in her arms, and when she went out in the morning to give her a breath of air. Another than Murville would have considered Adeline improved; but a husband rarely makes such observations, he sees only the contrary. In default of him, others notice his wife's beauty, admire what he does not see, praise what he has ceased to praise, and rave over what he neglects; that is something that husbands do not think about, that they do not trouble themselves about at all, and yet it is the thing which plays them such cruel tricks.

One man observed what Edouard no longer observed; he followed Adeline, without her knowledge, he admired her charms, he divined those which he could not see and devoured with his eyes all that he could see. A violent pa.s.sion had a.s.sumed the mastery of him; he was simply waiting for a favorable moment to try to induce her to share his pa.s.sion.

However, there was very little hope that he could win her love, and he knew it. Adeline was virtue personified; she was absolutely devoted to her husband and to her child. But there was no obstacle, no barrier, that the man who adored her had not resolved to overturn. Nothing can check the impetuous torrent swelled by heavy rains; nothing could discourage his love if we may thus name the unbridled desires, the delirium, the jealousy that for a long time had filled his heart. He had decided to attempt everything, to undertake everything, to dare everything, in order to triumph over Adeline; his pa.s.sion, long concealed, was only the more violent on that account; the fire which devoured him was likely to consume everything when it should break forth. But who was this mysterious man, whose love thus far had remained a secret? You know him, reader, and I will wager that you have already guessed his name.

Edouard, who had plunged deeper than ever into business, of which he understood nothing, but which seemed to him all the more attractive on that account,--Edouard hired a handsome house, a fashionable carriage, bought magnificent furniture of the latest style, furnished a very elaborate office, with shelves on all sides, on which were pasteboard boxes, empty to be sure, but soon to contain the doc.u.ments relating to the transactions which could not fail to come to his hands in a mult.i.tude. Pending their arrival, our man hired a clerk, who pa.s.sed his time reading the _Gazette_ and cutting quill pens.

Adeline was installed in her new abode. She looked at everything, sighed and held her peace. Madame Germeuil, on the contrary, burst forth into reproaches, and had a violent scene with her son-in-law. She predicted that he would ruin himself. Edouard was vexed and lost his temper, and a rupture followed. Madame Germeuil left her son-in-law's house, swearing never to see him again; she refused to be moved by her daughter's tears, tears for which the good woman blamed herself in the depths of her heart; she realized that it would have been better to give her daughter to a man of firm but sensible character than to a weak, irresolute creature, who had not enough intelligence to admit his failings, and too much obstinacy to repair them. But the harm was done.

After Madame Germeuil's departure there was another scene between the husband and the wife; for Adeline could not forbear to scold her husband in her turn, and she begged him to go after her mother and bring her back. He was obstinate; he persisted in refusing to attempt a reconciliation, and he informed his wife that he was determined to do as he chose, that all remonstrance would be fruitless thenceforth and would not change his line of conduct, in which he did not propose to be guided by women.

Thus the splendid abode of the new business agent was christened by tears; but Murville no longer paid any heed to such trifles; he had matters of great importance in his head. Dufresne was to put him in the way of earning fifty thousand francs with a wealthy shipowner who had just arrived in Paris and was seeking investments for his money, with which he did not know what to do. In order to become acquainted with that invaluable man, it was necessary to give an evening party, a ball, to which he would be brought by a third person. The ball was decided upon; and in accordance with his friend's advice, Edouard made the most elaborate preparations for a function which was to give him an established position in society. To be sure, the expenses of that function would be enormous. The twelve thousand francs earned some time before were largely spent; he had had to encroach upon his income to buy the furniture and to decorate his house; but all that was nothing at all; in order to reap, one must sow,--that was Dufresne's maxim. And his example proved that it worked well with him; never had he seemed more fortunate, more magnificent, more at his ease. He had a cabriolet, a groom, and such diamonds! Therefore he must be doing an excellent business.

XVII

A GRAND PARTY.--A DECLARATION OF LOVE

"My dear love," said Edouard to his wife, one morning, "I am going to give a party to-morrow--a ball; you must prepare to do the honors."

"You are going to give a party--to whom, pray? Can it be that you are reconciled with mamma?"

"Who is talking about your mother? She is a woman who insists upon meddling in affairs which she does not understand, and who, because her tastes lead her to live in a narrow circle, wishes also to prevent us from going out of it. You must agree that that is utterly absurd.

However, when I have fifty thousand francs a year, I fancy that she will forgive me for not listening to her advice."

"That will not be very soon, I take it!"

"Sooner than you think, madame, and I act accordingly."

"And is that the reason that you are giving a party?"

"Exactly."

"Whom do you expect to have?"

"Oh! never fear, we shall have lots of people. In the first place, we must, for it is the fashion now; if one is not crowded and pushed about in a salon, he does not think that he has enjoyed himself."

"Oh! what nonsense, my dear! Who told you that?"

"It is not nonsense, madame. I go into society while you are taking care of your daughter."

"Oh! I am well aware that you no longer stay with me."

"That is necessary; I must show myself in society; that is the place where a man makes acquaintances."

"Disastrous ones, sometimes!"

"Oh! mon Dieu! I am not a child; I know with whom I am dealing! Why, to hear you and your mother talk, anyone would think that I am not capable of taking care of myself.

"I never said that, my dear; but I cannot help regretting the time when I alone was sufficient for your enjoyment; then you pa.s.sed all your time with me,--you did not go into society.--Well! were you not happy?"

"To be sure I was."

"Then why have you changed your mode of life?"

"Why? why? That is a strange question to ask me! a man cannot always be making love to his wife, can he?"

"Oh! I have discovered that! But I did not expect to learn it after only a year of married life."

"Well, well! are you going to begin your reproaches again? Women are never reasonable."

"I am not reproaching you, my dear; give parties, as that gives you pleasure; I shall never object."

"You are a love; you are not obstinate like your mother; and I tell you again that this is all for our good. So make the necessary preparations.

I have already ordered and arranged everything, and all that you will have to do will be to see that my orders are carried out."

"Very well. But what shall I say to people whom I do not know?"

"Oh! don't let that trouble you! You just bow and smile to every one.

With your grace and your wit you will always be fascinating."