that the sisters have found her; she goes as lady's
maid to a chateau that is only twelve kilometres from
here. I am glad, for now that the girl is grown up
I sometimes desire to have her near me.9
Marie thought: 'A fine pig-sty she will find if
she comes! But she will not endure it very long,
I imagine.5 Aloud she said: 'Then you must clean
up your house; if you wish I can find you some
woman to help.5
'Thank you/ he replied to her great surprise; I
would like the house to be neat for ^Eliana.'
The thought of her seemed to haunt him these
days. When Marie had driven him out of the kitchen
because she was waiting to scrub the tiles, he would
hobble away in search of Christophe; and if Christophe
was too busy just then to attend, he would hobble
upstairs and sit with Jouse.
'Dieu,5 Jouse would mumble, Tor twenty years you
have left her completely ignored and uncared for, yet
now you can talk of no one else — I begin to think
that the girl has bewitched you! However, I am glad
that you went to Aries; I consider that you have
been very neglectful.3 And unless he was feeling his
rheumatism, Eusebe would accept such rebukes quite
mildly.
But once back in his home his mood might change,
whereupon he would make an outlandish commotion;
whacking his bedding, or banging his floors with a
broom that was losing most of its bristles; and then
he would suddenly empty his slops and his filthy
water out of the window.
'Be off! Do not get in my way!5 he would bawl at
some splashed and highly indignant pedestrian.
And Jouse, hearing the hubbub must smile: 'Now
he grows very angry with me,' he would think; 'ah,
well there are compensations it seems —I am glad
I escaped the contents of that bucket!3
393