He must learn that a thick blade is often a weak blade
that thin steel is the best when it comes to sawing;
that the truest blades have a clear, bell-like ring wher
craftily struck with the ball of the finger. And ther
he must learn how to press his knee on the plank and
how to begin the cut with the sharp, eager teeth sc
near his thumb that just for a moment they made bin]
feel frightened. And finally, having learnt all these
things and others too numerous to be recorded, he
must learn from Jouse the romance of the adze that
had shaped the stout beams of the Middle Ages. The
romance of the hammer Jouse also taught him, telling
of how that most ancient of tools had used to be
fashioned by the water from stone, long ago, before
history was first recorded.
This knowledge the good Jouse had gleaned through
a book soon after that memorable visit to Lisieux; and
this battered old book which he had picked up at a
rag-and-bone shop not far from the quay, was the onl}
volume he had opened in years — always, of course,
excepting his Missal —for reading had never come
easily to Jouse. But now it was pleasant to show ofFhif
learning to his new apprentice who would listen foi
hours, and whose'brown, dog-like eyes would follow
him about with gratitude mingled with deep respect
Indeed Jouse had taken to saying to his wife: CI begir
to doubt whether your cousin is half-witted.5
So the summer days passed happily enough while
Christophe grew strong at his mother's breast, anc
Anfos grew wise despite his weak mind, and Jousc
grew more and more contented and in consequence
always a trifle stouter. That summer too, Mir&c
seemed well content, for she had attached herself tc
the baby, fineling, no doubt, that the difference waj
slight between this small, hairless human thing anc
one of her own robust hairy puppies.
34