The poor fellow tried to show himself brave, and repeated several times.

"Yes! courage!"

"Oh," cried the old man, "so I will have, by God! I'll go along o' her

to the end!"

The bell began tolling. All was ready; they had to start. And seated in

a stall of the choir, side by side, they saw pass and repass in front of

them continually the three chanting choristers.

The serpent-player was blowing with all his might. Monsieur Bournisien,

in full vestments, was singing in a shrill voice. He bowed before the

tabernacle, raising his hands, stretched out his arms. Lestiboudois

went about the church with his whalebone stick. The bier stood near the

lectern, between four rows of candles. Charles felt inclined to get up

and put them out.

Yet he tried to stir himself to a feeling of devotion, to throw himself

into the hope of a future life in which he should see her again. He

imagined to himself she had gone on a long journey, far away, for a long

time. But when he thought of her lying there, and that all was over,

that they would lay her in the earth, he was seized with a fierce,

gloomy, despairful rage. At times he thought he felt nothing more, and

he enjoyed this lull in his pain, whilst at the same time he reproached

himself for being a wretch.

The sharp noise of an iron-ferruled stick was heard on the stones,

striking them at irregular intervals. It came from the end of the

church, and stopped short at the lower aisles. A man in a coarse brown

jacket knelt down painfully. It was Hippolyte, the stable-boy at the

"Lion d'Or." He had put on his new leg.

One of the choristers went round the nave making a collection, and the

coppers chinked one after the other on the silver plate.

"Oh, make haste! I am in pain!" cried Bovary, angrily throwing him a

five-franc piece. The churchman thanked him with a deep bow.

They sang, they knelt, they stood up; it was endless! He remembered that

once, in the early times, they had been to mass together, and they had

sat down on the other side, on the right, by the wall. The bell began

again. There was a great moving of chairs; the bearers slipped their

three staves under the coffin, and everyone left the church.

Then Justin appeared at the door of the shop. He suddenly went in again,

pale, staggering.

People were at the windows to see the procession pass. Charles at the

head walked erect. He affected a brave air, and saluted with a nod those

who, coming out from the lanes or from their doors, stood amidst the

crowd.




readonlinefreebook.com Copyright 2016 - 2024