CHAPTER XXI.
They all sat down together at supper that evening, Marie dispensingher soup as usual before she went to the table. She sat next to heruncle on one side, and below her there were vacant seats. Urmandtook a chair on the left hand of Madame Voss, next to him was theCure, and below the Cure the happy rival. It had all been arrangedby Marie herself, with the greatest care. Urmand seemed to have gotover the worst of his trouble, and when Marie came to the tablebowed to her graciously. She bowed in return, and then eat her soupin silence. Michel Voss overdid his part a little by too muchtalking, but his wife restored the balance by her prudence. Georgetold them how strong the French party was at Colmar, and explainedthat the Germans had not a leg to stand upon as far as generalopinion went. Before the supper was over, Adrian Urmand was talkingglibly enough; and it really seemed as though the terriblemisfortunes of the Lion d'Or would arrange themselves comfortablyafter all. When supper was done, the father, son, and the discardedlover smoked their pipes together amicably in the billiard room.There was not a word said then by either of them in connection withMarie Bromar.
On the next morning the sun was bright, and the air was as warm asit ever is in October. The day, perhaps, might not have beenselected for an out-of-doors party had there been no special reasonfor such an arrangement; but seeing how strong a reason existed,even Madame Voss acknowledged that the morning was favourable.While those pipes of peace were being smoked over night, Marie hadbeen preparing the hampers. On the next morning nobody except Marieherself was very early. It was intended that the day should be gotthrough at any rate with a pretence of pleasure, and they were allto be as idle, and genteel, and agreeable as possible. It had beensettled that they should start at twelve. The drive, unfortunately,would not consume much more than half an hour. Then what withunpacking, climbing about the rocks, and throwing stones down intothe river, they would get through the time till two. At two theywould eat their dinner--with all their shawls and greatcoats aroundthem--then smoke their cigars, and come back when they found itimpossible to drag out the day any longer. Marie was not to talk toGeorge, and was to be specially courteous to M. Urmand. The two oldladies accompanied them, as did also M. le Cure Gondin. Theprogramme for the day did not seem to be very delightful; but itappeared to Michel Voss that in this way, better than in any other,could some little halo be thrown over the parting hours of poorAdrian Urmand.
Everything went as well as could have been anticipated. Theymanaged to delay their departure till nearly half-past twelve, andwere so lost in wonder at the quantity of water running down thefall in the ravine, that there had hardly been any heaviness of timewhen they seated themselves on the rocks at half-past two.
'Now for the business of the day,' said Michel, as, standing up, heplunged a knife and fork into a large pie which he had placed on aboulder before him. 'Marie has got no soup for us here, so we mustbegin with the solids at once.' Soon after that one cork might havebeen heard to fly, and then another, and no stranger looking onwould have believed how dreadful had been the enmity existing on theprevious day--or, indeed, how great a cause for enmity there hadbeen. Michel himself was very hilarious. If he could onlyobliterate in any way the evil which he had certainly inflicted onthat unfortunate young man! 'Urmand, my friend, another glass ofwine. George, fill our friend Urmand's glass; not so quickly,George, not so quickly; you give him nothing but the froth. AdrianUrmand, your very good health. May you always be a happy andsuccessful man!' So saying, Michel Voss drained his own tumbler.
Urmand, at the moment, was seated in a niche among the rocks, inwhich a cushion out of the carriage had been placed for his specialaccommodation. Indeed, every comfort and luxury had been showeredupon his head to compensate him for his lost bride. This was thethird time that he had been by name invited to drink his wine, andthree times he had obeyed. Now, feeling himself to be summoned in avery peculiar way--feeling also, perhaps, that that which might havemade others drunk had made him bold, he extricated himself from hisniche, and stood upon his legs among the rocks. He stood upon hislegs among the rocks, and with a graceful movement of his arm, wavedthe glass above his head.
'We are delighted to have you here among us, my friend,' said MichelVoss, who also, perhaps, had been made bold. Madame Voss, who wasclose to her husband, pulled him by the sleeve. Then he seatedhimself, but Adrian Urmand was left standing among them.
'My friend,' said he, 'and you, Madame Voss particularly, I feelparticularly obliged to you for this charming entertainment.' Thenthe innkeeper cheered his guest, whereupon Madame Voss pulled herhusband's sleeve harder than before. 'I am, indeed,' continuedUrmand. 'The best thing will be,' said he, 'to make a clean breastof it at once. You all know why I came here,--and you all know howI'm going back.' At this moment his voice faltered a little, and healmost sobbed. Both the old ladies immediately put theirhandkerchiefs to their eyes. Marie blushed and turned away her faceon to her uncle's shoulder. Madame Voss remained immovable. Shedreaded greatly any symptoms of that courage which follows theflying of corks. In truth, however, she had nothing now to fear.'Of course, I feel it a little,' continued Adrian Urmand. 'That isonly natural. I suppose it was a mistake; but it has been rathertrying to me. But I am ready to forget and forgive, and that is allI've got to say.' This speech, which astonished them allexceedingly, remained unanswered for some few moments, during whichUrmand had sunk back into his niche. Michel Voss was not ready-wittedenough to reply to his guest at the moment, and George was aware thatit would not be fitting for him, the triumphant lover, to make anyreply. He could hardly have spoken without showing his triumph.During this short interval no one said a word, and Urmand endeavouredto assume a look of gloomy dignity.
But at last Michel Voss got upon his legs, his wife giving himvarious twitches on the sleeve as he did so. 'I never was so muchaffected in my life,' said he, 'and upon my word I think that ourexcellent friend Adrian Urmand has behaved as well in a tryingdifficulty as,--as,--as any man ever did. I needn't say much aboutit, for we all know what it was. And we all know that young womenwill be young women, and that they are very hard to manage.''Don't, Uncle Michel' said Marie in a whisper. But Michel was toobold to attend either to whisperings or pullings of the sleeve, andwent on with his speech. 'There has been a slight mistake, but Ihope sincerely that everything has now been made right. Here is ourfriend Adrian Urmand's health, and I am quite sure that we all hopethat he may get an excellent, beautiful young wife, with a gooddowry, and that before long.' Then he too sat down, and all theladies drank to the health and future fortunes of M. Adrian Urmand.
Upon the whole the rejected lover liked it. At any rate it wasbetter so than being alone and moody and despised of all people. Hewould know now how to get away from Granpere without having to plana surreptitious escape. Of course he had come out intending to bemiserable, to be known as an ill-used man who had been treated withan amount of cruelty surpassing all that had ever been told of inlove histories. To be depressed by the weight of the ill-usagewhich he had borne was a part of the play which he had to act. Butthe play when acted after this fashion had in it something ofpleasing excitement, and he felt assured that he was exhibitingdignity in very adverse circumstances. George Voss was probablythinking ill of the young man all the while; but every one elsethere conceived that M. Urmand bore himself well under most tryingcircumstances. After the banquet was over Marie expressed herselfso much touched as almost to incur the jealousy of her morefortunate lover. When the speeches were finished the men madethemselves happy with their cigars and wine till Madame Vossdeclared that she was already half-dead with the cold and damp, andthen they all returned to the inn in excellent spirits. That whichhad made so bold both Michel and his guest had not been allowed tohave any more extended or more deleterious effect.
On the next morning M. Urmand returned home to Basle, taking thepublic conveyance as far as Remiremont. Everybody was up to see himoff, and Marie herself gave him his cu
p of coffee at parting. Itwas pretty to see the mingled grace and shame with which the littleceremony was performed. She hardly said a word; indeed what wordshe did say was heard by no one; but she crossed her hands on herbreast, and the gravest smile came over her face, and she turned hereyes down to the ground, and if any one ever begged pardon without aword spoken, Marie Bromar then asked Adrian Urmand to pardon her theevil she had wrought upon him. 'O, yes;--of course,' he said.'It's all right. It's all right.' Then she gave him her hand, andsaid good-bye, and ran away up into her room. Though she had gotrid of one lover, not a word had yet been said as to her uncle'sacceptance of that other lover on her behalf; nor had any words moretender been spoken between her and George than those with which thereader has been made acquainted.
'And now,' said George, as soon as the diligence had started out ofthe yard.
'Well;--and what now?' asked the father.
'I must be off to Colmar next.'
'Not to-day, George.'
'Yes; to-day;--or this evening at least. But I must settlesomething first. What do you say, father?' Michel Voss stood for awhile with his hands in his pockets and his head turned away. 'Youknow what I mean, father.'
'O yes; I know what you mean.'
'I don't suppose you'll say anything against it now.'
'It wouldn't be any good, I suppose, if I did,' said Michel,crossing over the courtyard to the other part of the establishment.He gave no farther permission than this, but George thought that somuch was sufficient.
George did return to Colmar that evening, being in all matters ofbusiness a man accurate and resolute; but he did not go till he hadbeen thoroughly scolded for his misconduct by Marie Bromar. 'It wasyour fault,' said Marie. 'Your fault from beginning to end.'
'It shall be if you say so,' answered George; 'but I can't say thatI see it.'
'If a person goes away for more than twelve months and never sends aword or a message or a sign, what is a person to think, George?' Hecould only promise her that he would never leave her again even fora month.
How they were married in November, and how Madame Faragon wasbrought over to Granpere with infinite trouble, and how thehousehold linen got itself marked at last, with a V instead of a U,the reader can understand without the narration of farther details.
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