ALL sins whatever, quoth the abbess, turning casuist in the distress
they were under, are held by the confessor of our convent to be either
mortal or venial: there is no further division. Now a venial sin being
the slightest and least of all sins—being halved—by taking either only
the half of it, and leaving the rest—or, by taking it all, and amicably
halving it betwixt yourself and another person—in course becomes
diluted into no sin at all.
Now I see no sin in saying, _bou, bou, bou, bou, bou_, a hundred times
together; nor is there any turpitude in pronouncing the syllable _ger,
ger, ger, ger, ger_, were it from our matins to our vespers: Therefore,
my dear daughter, continued the abbess of _Andoüillets_—I will say
_bou_, and thou shalt say _ger;_ and then alternately, as there is no
more sin in _fou_ than in _bou_—Thou shalt say _fou_—and I will come in
(like fa, sol, la, re, mi, ut, at our complines) with _ter._ And
accordingly the abbess, giving the pitch note, set off thus:
Abbess, ) Bou - - bou - - bou - -
_Margarita_,) ——ger, - - ger, - - ger.
_Margarita_,) Fou...fou...fou..
Abbess, ) —ter, - - ter, - - ter.
The two mules acknowledged the notes by a mutual lash of their tails;
but it went no further——’Twill answer by an’ by, said the novice.
Abbess, ) Bou. bou. bou. bou. bou. bou.
Margarita,) —ger, ger, ger, ger, ger, ger.