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Man and Maid

Page 2

All, Maurice assures me, ready for anything, and highly attractive. It

will do me a great deal of good, he protests. We shall see.

Night. They came, with Maurice and Alwood Chester, of the American Red

Cross. They gave little shrill screams of admiration for the room.

"Quel endroit delicieux!--What boiserie! English?--Yes, of course,

English dix-septième, one could see--What silver!--and cleaned--And

everything of a chic!--And the hermit so séduisant with his air

maussade!--Hein."

"Yes, the war is much too long--One has given of one's time in the first

year--but now, really, fatigue has overcome one!--and surely after the

spring offensive peace must come soon--and one must live!"

They smoked continuously and devoured the chocolate cake, then they had

liqueurs.

They were so well dressed! and so lissome. They wore elastic corsets, or

none at all. They were well painted; cheeks of the new tint, rather

apricot coloured--and magenta lips. They had arranged themselves when

they had finished munching, bringing out their gold looking-glasses and

their lip grease and their powder--and the divorcee continued to

endeavour to enthrall my senses with her voluptuous half closing of the

eyes, while she reddened her full mouth.

They spoke of the theatre, and the last bons mots about their cherès

amies--the last liasons--the last passions--They spoke of

Gabrielle--her husband was killed last week--'So foolish of him, since

one of Alice's 'friends' among the Ministers could easily have got him a

soft job, and one must always help one's friends! Alice adored

Gabrielle.--But he has left her well provided for--Gabrielle will look

well in her crepe--and there it is, war is war--Que voulez vous?'

"After all, will it be as agreeable if peace does come this summer?--One

will be able to dance openly--that will be nice--but for the rest? It

may be things will be more difficult--and there may be complications.

One has been very well during the war--very well, indeed--N'est ce pas

ma cherie--n'est ce pas?"

Thus they talked.

The widow's lover is married, Maurice tells me, and has been able to

keep his wife safely down at their place in Landes, but if peace should

come he must be en famille, and the wife can very well be disagreeable

about the affair.

The divorcée's three lovers will be in Paris at the same time. The

married one's husband returned for good--"Yes, certainly, peace will

have its drawbacks--The war knows its compensations--But considerable

ones!"

When they had departed, promising to return very soon--to dinner this

time, and see all the "exquisite appartement," Burton came into the

room to take away the tea things. His face was a mask as he swept up the

cigarette ash, which had fallen upon the William and Mary English lac

table, which holds the big lamp, then he carefully carried away the

silver ash trays filled with the ends, and returned with them cleaned.

Then he coughed slightly.

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