because they believed in Saint Loup's rich future —
Madame Roustan5 Madame Simon the corn-chand-
ler's wife, Heraiitte the baker and a number of others
— began to feel very deeply aggrieved at the attitude
being adopted by Jouse, began to fear that in hinder-
ing Kahn he might also be hindering their personal
interests. While as for Mere Melanie the progressive,
whose improvements were being paid for out of savings,
Mere Melanie cut Jouse dead in the street, and so did
her little hump-backed violinist.
*Ah, mais non,3 she protested, cthat Jouse is crazy,
he would have us all back in the Middle Ages. He
is fast becoming as bad as our mayor;ffi very well,
from now on I refuse to know him. I consider that
he has played Kahn a mean trick — but doubtless it
arises from a lack of education.3
Madame Roustan took her grievance off to her
brother: cHere have I spent much money doing up
those two bedrooms, and now you have seen fit to
quarrel with Kahn upon whose enterprise we are all
depending. A few pretty villas will improve the
whole town; what can have possessed you to refuse
to build them?5
Jouse shrugged and yawned: 'That is surely my
business; and in any case, Germaine, why are you
whining? Those who cannot find villas will look for
rooms — I have probably helped you to let your
apartments/
Madame Roustan, however, remained obdurate:
clt is vital that Saint Loup should spread/ she per-
sisted, 'there will always be those who prefer to take
rooms, but such people do little or nothing for trade,
trade is only supported by those who own houses.
You know very well that I depend on my shop and
that life is always hard for a widow; as it is I can
scarcely make two ends meet . . .' She nagged on
until Jouse's temper gave way;
286