He turned round as if surprised: "Look here, Joseph, I never knew a
better boy than you, but you lack sense. Why should we close our
shutters? Because God created the world in six days and rested the
seventh? But we did not create it ourselves, and we need to work to
live. If we shut our shop from interest and pretend to be saints and
so gain new customers, that will be hypocrisy. You speak sometimes
without thinking."
I saw at once that I was wrong, and I replied: "Mr. Goulden, we will
leave our windows open and it will be seen that we have watches to
sell, and that will do no harm to any one."
We were no sooner at table than Aunt Gredel and Catherine came.
Catherine was dressed entirely in black, on account of the service for
Louis XVI. She had a pretty little bonnet of black tulle, and her
dress was very nicely made, and this set off her delicate red and white
complexion and made her look so beautiful that I could hardly believe
that she was Joseph Bertha's beloved; her neck was white as snow, and
had it not been for her lips and her rosy little chin, her blue eyes
and golden hair, I should have thought that it was some one who
resembled her, but who was more beautiful. She laughed when she saw
how much I admired her, and at last I said: "Catherine, you are _too_
beautiful now; I dare not kiss you."
"Oh! you need not trouble yourself," said she.
As she leaned upon my shoulder I gave her a long kiss, so that Aunt
Gredel and Mr. Goulden looked on and laughed, and I wished them far
enough away, that I might tell Catherine that I loved her more and
more, and that I would give my life a thousand times for her; but as I
could not do that before them, I only thought of these things and was
sad.
Aunt had a black dress on also, and her prayer-book was under her arm.
"Come, kiss me too, Joseph; you see I too have a black dress, like
Catherine's."
I embraced her, and Mr. Goulden said, "You will come and dine with
us--that is understood; but, meanwhile you will take something, will
you not?"
"We have breakfasted," replied Aunt Gredel.
"That is nothing; God knows when this procession will end, you will be
all the time on your feet, and will need something to sustain you."
Then they sat down, Aunt Gredel on my right, and Catherine on my left,
and Father Goulden opposite. They drank a good glass of wine, and aunt
said the procession would be very fine, and that there were at least
twenty-five priests from the neighborhood round; that Mr. Hubert, the
pastor of Quatre Vents, had come, and that the grand altar in the
cavalry quarter was higher than the houses; that the pine-trees and
poplars around had crape on them, and that the altar was covered with a
black cloth. She talked of everything under the sun, while I looked at
Catherine, and we thought, without saying anything, "Oh! when will that
beggarly minister write and say, 'Get married and leave me alone?'"
At last, toward nine o'clock, and when the second bell had rung, Aunt
Gredel said, "That is the second ringing; we will come to dinner as
soon as possible."
"Yes, yes, Mother Gredel," replied Mr. Goulden, "we will wait for you."
They rose, and I went down to the foot of the stairs with Catherine in
order to embrace her once again, when Aunt Gredel cried, "Let us hurry,
let us hurry!"
They went away, and I went back to my work; but from that moment till
about eleven o'clock I could do nothing at all. The crowd was so very
great that you could hear nothing outside but a ceaseless murmur; the
leaves rustled under foot, and when the procession left the church the
effect was so impressive that even Mr. Goulden himself stopped his work
to listen to the prayers and hymns. I thought of Catherine in the
crowd more beautiful than any of the others, with Aunt Gredel near her,
repeating "Pray for us, pray for us," in their clear voices. I thought
they must be very much fatigued, and all these voices and chants made
me dream, and though I held a watch in my hand and tried to work, my
mind was not on it. The higher the sun rose the more uneasy I became,
till at last Mr. Goulden said, laughing, "Ah! Joseph, it does not go
to-day!" and as I blushed rosy red, he continued, "Yes, when I was
dreaming of Louisa Benedum I looked in vain for springs and wheels. I
could see nothing but her blue eyes."